2nd Marine Division
2nd Marine Division insignia
Founded	1 February 1941(82 years, 5 months)
Country	United States
Branch	United States Marine Corps
Type	Ground combat element
Size	Marine Division (approximately 20,000)
Part of	II Marine Expeditionary Force
Garrison/HQ	Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune
Nickname	The Silent Second
Motto	Follow Me
Engagements	Banana Wars World War I (6th Marines) Western Front German spring offensive Battle of Belleau Wood Battle of Soissons Hundred Days Offensive Battle of Saint-Mihiel Battle of Blanc Mont Ridge Meuse-Argonne offensive World War II Pacific War Solomon Islands campaign Guadalcanal campaign Battle of Tulagi and Gavutu-Tanambogo Actions along the Matanikau Battle of Henderson Field Matanikau Offensive Battle of Mount Austen Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaign Battle of Tarawa Mariana and Palau Islands campaign Battle of Saipan Battle of Tinian Volcano and Ryukyu Islands campaign Battle of Okinawa Cold War 1958 Lebanon crisis Cuban Missile Crisis Dominican Civil War Operation Urgent Fury Operation Just Cause Lebanese Civil War Multinational Force in Lebanon Gulf War Battle of Khafji Battle of Kuwait International Airport Somali Civil War Operation Restore Hope Yugoslav Wars Bosnian War Operation Provide Promise NATO intervention in Bosnia and Herzegovina Operation Deny Flight 1997 Albanian civil unrest Operation Silver Wake Operation Uphold Democracy First Liberian Civil War Operation Sharp Edge Sierra Leone Civil War Operation Noble Obelisk War on terror Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Iraqi Freedom 2003 invasion of Iraq Battle of Nasiriyah Anbar campaign (2003–2011) Operation Vigilant Resolve Operation Phantom Fury Battle of Al-Qa'im (2005) Operation Spear Battle of Haditha Operation Dagger Battle of Ramadi (2006) Operation Badlands Second Battle of Habbaniyah Operation Phantom Thunder Operation Alljah Operation Valiant Guardian Operation Mawtini War in Afghanistan Helmand province campaign Battle of Garmsir Operation Moshtarak Operation Strike of the Sword 2021 Taliban offensive Fall of Kabul (2021) Operation Allies Refuge First Libyan Civil War Operation Unified Protector Operation Odyssey Dawn War against the Islamic State Operation Inherent Resolve
Website	2ndmardiv.marines.mil
Commanders
Commanding General	MajGenFarrell J. Sullivan
Notable commanders	Thomas E. Watson LeRoy P. Hunt Clayton Barney Vogel Randolph M. Pate James L. Jones Julian C. Smith Alphonse DeCarre Chesty Puller Alfred M. Gray Jr.

The2nd Marine Division (2nd MARDIV) is adivision of theUnited States Marine Corps, which forms theground combat element of theII Marine Expeditionary Force (II MEF). The division is based atMarine Corps Base Camp Lejeune,North Carolina and headquartered atJulian C. Smith Hall.

The 2nd Marine Division earned renown in World War II, distinguishing itself atGuadalcanal,Tarawa,Saipan,Tinian, andOkinawa.

The lineal forebear of the 2nd Marine Division is the 2nd Marine Brigade, which was activated on 1 July 1936 at San Diego, California. Subsequently, the brigade was deployed during August–September 1937 to Shanghai, China. The 2nd Marine Brigade relocated during February–April 1938 to San Diego, California.^[1]

Major GeneralClayton B. Vogel, its first commander, activated the 2nd Marine Division at a parade and review at the Marine Corps Base, San Diego, California, during a sunny Saturday afternoon of 1 February 1941. The division consisted of the 2nd, 6th, and 8th Marine Regiments (infantry); the 10th Marine Regiment (artillery); engineer, medical, service, and tank battalions; and transport, signal, chemical, and antiaircraft machine gun companies.^[2] By mid-1941, because of the growing threat of a German invasion toIceland, the6th Marine Regiment, a battalion from10th Marines and other scattered units were pulled from the division and sent to garrisonReykjavík. After the outbreak of war the8th Marine Regiment with an assortment of other division assets formed the 2nd Marine Brigade and were dispatched to garrisonAmerican Samoa.^[3]

DuringWorld War II, the 2nd Marine Division (Headquarters) participated in operations in thePacific Theater of Operations:

• TheGuadalcanal campaign, in theSolomon Islands campaign – 4 January to 8 February 1943.
  • 2nd Marines, reinforced:
    Guadalcanal–Tulagi landings, 7 to 9 August 1942;
    capture and defense of Guadalcanal, 10 August 1942 to 31 January 1943.
  • 8th Marines, reinforced:
    capture and defense of Guadalcanal, 2 November 1942 to 8 February 1943.
• TheBattle of Tarawa, in theGilbert Islands campaign – 20 November to 4 December 1943.
• TheBattle of Saipan, in theMariana Islands campaign – 15 June to 24 July 1944.
• TheBattle of Tinian – 24 July to 10 August 1944.
• TheBattle of Okinawa (floating reserve) – 1 to 10 April 1945.
  • Detachment of Headquarters and the 8th Marines, reinforced – 1 to 30 June 1945.

Elements of the division were part of the occupation of Nagasaki, arriving twenty-five days after the nuclear strike.^[4]

The 2nd and 8th Marines (reinforced by other units of the 2nd Marine Division) were awarded thePresidential Unit Citation while attached to the1st Marine Division from 7 August and 4 November 1942, respectively, for theGuadalcanal operation.^{[citation needed]}

The 2nd Marine Division was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation forTarawa Atoll,Gilbert Islands, 20–24 November 1943:"For outstanding performance in combat during the seizure and occupation of the Japanese-held Atoll of Tarawa, Gilbert Islands, 20 to 24 November 1943. Forced by the treacherous coral reefs to disembark from their landing craft hundreds of yards off the beach, the Second Marine Division (Reinforced) became a highly vulnerable target for devastating Japanese fire. Dauntlessly advancing in spite of rapidly mounting losses, the Marines fought a gallant battle against crushing odds, clearing the limited beachheads of snipers and machine guns, reducing powerfully fortified enemy positions and completely annihilating the fanatically determined and strongly entrenched Japanese forces. By the successful occupation of Tarawa, the Second Marine Division (Reinforced) has provided our forces with highly strategic and important air and land bases from which to continue future operations against the enemy; by the valiant fighting spirit of these men, their heroic fortitude under punishing fire and their relentless perseverance in waging this epic battle in the Central Pacific, they have upheld the finest traditions of the United States Naval Service."^{[citation needed]}

During the war two Seabee battalions were posted to the 2nd. The 18th Naval Construction Battalion (NCB) was assigned to the18th Marines as the third battalion of the regiment. They received a Presidential Unit Citation for doing Tarawa with the 2nd Marine Division but also did Saipan and Tinian as well. The 18th Marines were inactivated and the Seabees stayed on Tinian to work on the airfield. They were replaced by the 71st NCB for the 2nd's assault on Okinawa.^{[citation needed]}

The Division did not take part in a major action again until 1958 when elements participated in the U.S. intervention into theLebanon crisis of 1958. 2nd Marine Division units helped to reinforceGuantanamo Bay during theCuban Missile Crisis in 1962 and landed in theDominican Republic in 1965 as part ofOperation Power Pack. Other peacekeeping operations carried on by the Division include being part of the Multi National Peacekeeping Force inLebanon from August 1982 until February 1984. The Division suffered the loss of 238 Marines and Sailors during the1983 Beirut barracks bombing, plus 3 U.S. Army personnel attached to the unit. Towards the end of the 1980s, Division Marines participated inOperation Just Cause, the invasion ofPanama.^{[citation needed]}

The 1990s began with elements of the Division participating inOperation Sharp Edge, the evacuation of American and allied civilians out of war tornLiberia. This was followed by deployments toSaudi Arabia in support ofOperation Desert Shield and then the liberation ofKuwait inOperation Desert Storm. The 2nd Marine Division played a major role repelling the attempted Iraqi invasion of Saudi Arabia which is known as theBattle of Khafji. The 2nd Marine Division faced heavy resistance during theBattle of Kuwait International Airport. Marine Reserve unit Bravo Company, 4th Tank Battalion, 4th Marine division was assigned to the 2nd Marine Division.^[5] Bravo Company went on to destroy 59 tanks, 32 APCs, 26 non-armored vehicles, and an artillery gun.^[6] Bravo Company destroyed a total of 119 enemy vehicles and took over 800POWs.^[5] The crew of the tank "Stepchild" has the longest confirmed live kill (an Iraqi BMP) by a tank at 3,750 meters (2.33 mi).^[5] On the second day of the U.S. advance a platoon from the Marine 8th Battalion destroyed 13 Iraqi tanks in a battle near a defensive position known as the Ice Tray.^[7] Marine and Navy air power then inflicted heavy casualties on retreating Iraqi forces leading north out of Kuwait City.^[6] The 1st Tank Battalion claimed 50 Iraqi T-55 and T-62 tanks and 25 APCs. The 3rd Battalion claimed 57 T-55s and T-62s (plus 5 T-72s), 7 APCs, and 10 trucks. The 8th Battalion destroyed more than three dozen tanks and a number of other vehicles.^[8] On the third and final day of combat the 2nd Marine Division would liberate the city of Al Jahra then would go on to occupy the high ground on the Mutla Ridge cutting off the Iraqi escape route from Kuwait to Basra. Following the war, elements of the Division participated inOperation Provide Comfort.^{[citation needed]}

Elements of the 2nd Marine Division deployed to Kuwait in early 2003 to reinforce the1st Marine Expeditionary Force. These units formed aMarine Expeditionary Brigade (MEB) and were calledTask Force Tarawa. Task Force Tarawa crossed into Iraq on the first day of the ground war with the initial task of seizing Jalibah airfield in southern Iraq. Following this, the Task Force pushed north and took part in a major battle in the town ofNasiriyah. After the war, these Marines were moved north toAl Kut where they provided security and stabilization operations in central Iraq.^{[citation needed]}

The 2nd Marine Division deployed toCamp Fallujah, Iraq as theII Marine Expeditionary Force (II MEF) headquarters in January 2005 as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom III (OIF III) (later redesignated OIF 04-06) to relieve the1st Marine Division in theAl Anbar province. The division again deployed for another year-long tour at Camp Fallujah from 2007 to 2008.^{[citation needed]}

As of March 2024, the 2nd Marine Division is composed of:

• Headquarters Battalion
• 2nd Marine Regiment
• 6th Marine Regiment
• 10th Marine Regiment
• 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion
• 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion
• 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion
• 2nd Combat Engineer Battalion

The scarlet and gold spearhead-shaped shoulder patch was designed and authorized in late 1943 for wear by 2nd Marine Division units serving in the Pacific Theater. The patch centers on a hand holding a torch, with the stars of theSouthern Cross constellation as a reference to Guadalcanal.^[9] Previously abattle blaze similar to the 1st Marine Division's insignia but with the "2" in a form of a snake was worn by veterans of the Guadalcanal campaign.^[10]

Although the Marine Corps officially disallowed shoulder patches in 1947, the insignia still appears on buildings, signs, documents, and non-uniform clothing.^[11] The insignia of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune retains the spearhead shape and general color scheme of the 2nd Marine Division.^[12]

A unit citation or commendation is an award bestowed upon an organization for the action cited. Members of the unit who participated in said actions are allowed to wear on their uniforms the awarded unit citation. The 2nd Marine Division has been presented with the following awards:^[13]

Streamer	Award	Year(s)	Additional Info
	Presidential Unit Citation Streamer	1943	Tarawa
	Navy Unit Commendation Streamer with one Bronze Star	1990–91, 2007–08	Southwest Asia, Iraq
	Marine Corps Expeditionary Streamer with one Bronze star
	China Service Streamer		North China
	American Defense Service Streamer with one Bronze Star	1941	World War II
	Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Streamer with one Silver and two Bronze Stars
	World War II Victory Streamer	1941–1945	Pacific War
	Navy Occupation Service Streamer with "ASIA" & "EUROPE"
	National Defense Service Streamer with three Bronze Stars	1950–1954, 1961–1974, 1990–1995, 2001–present	Korean War,Vietnam War,Gulf War,war on terrorism
	Armed Forces Expeditionary Streamer with three Bronze Stars
	Southwest Asia Service Streamer with three Bronze Stars
	Afghanistan Campaign Streamer with two bronze stars
	Iraq Campaign Streamer with four bronze stars
	Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Streamer
	Global War on Terrorism Service Streamer	2001–present

• List of 2nd Marine Division Commanders
• List of United States Marine Corps divisions
• Organization of the United States Marine Corps
• 18th Naval Construction Battalion18th Marine Regiment

• Col H. Avery Chenoweth (2005) Semper Fi: The Definitive Illustrated History of the U.S. Marines
• M60 vs T-62 Cold War Combatants 1956–92 by Lon Nordeen & David Isby

 This article incorporatespublic domain material from websites or documents of theUnited States Marine Corps.

Bibliography

Web

• History | History Of Bravo Company 4th Tank Battalion in Desert Storm 1991

• Media related to2nd Marine Division (United States) at Wikimedia Commons

• Divisions of the United States Marine Corps
• United States Marine Corps divisions during World War II
• Military units and formations established in 1941
• Military units and formations of the United States Marine Corps in World War II
• 1941 establishments in California

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