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THE UNITED STATES MARINES
A History, Third Edition
by Brig. Gen. Edwin Howard Simmons, USMC (Ret.)
foreword by Gen. Charles C. Krulak, USMC
This new edition brings the most popular and
accessible history of the U.S. Marine Corps fully up to date. Because
the previous edition left off at 1975, new chapters have been added
to cover the tumultuous events of the last quarter-century, including
Lebanon, Grenada, Panama, the Persian Gulf, Bangladesh, Somalia,
and Haiti. Other chapters have been revised in light of new scholarship.
Since its somewhat confused
beginnings in November 1775 when the Second Continental Congress
almost absentmindedly authorized two battalions of American marines,
the U.S. Marine Corps has participated in all the nation's wars
from the American Revolution through Desert Storm. American marines
have written their name large at such places as Bladensburg, Guantanamo,
Belleau Wood, Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Iwo Jima, Inchon, Chosin, Hue,
Khe Sanh, and Kuwait. This compact yet complete study focuses on
the big wars but never slights events in between: the little wars,
campaigns, punitive expeditions, showings of the flag, protection
of American lives and property, and humanitarian missions that help
define the corps. Nor does the author neglect the intermittent but
never-ending fight for the corps's survival at home where it faces
periodic challenges from the Army, Navy, Air Force, and, on occasion,
unfriendly presidents. Few writers know the subject as intimately
as Simmons, a retired general who served in three wars at every
level of command, from platoon to division.
Edwin Simmons fought in World War II, Korea,
and Vietnam, and after active service was director of Marine Corps
history and museums for twenty-five years. He lives in Alexandria,
Virginia.
384 pages. 25 Photographs. 31 Maps. Appendices.
Bibliography. Index.
6” x 9”
ISBN: 1557508402
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