Chapter II.

 

STATUTORY AND ACTUAL STRENGTH OF THE MARINE CORPS

ON VARIOUS DATES.

 

Statutory Strength.

 

The act of Congress of August 29, 1916, increased the authorized strength of the Marine Corps from 344 officers and 9,921 enlisted men to 597 officers and 14,981 enlisted men, and the President was authorized in an emergency to further increase the corps to 693 officers and 17,400 enlisted men, which he did by Executive order on March 26, 1917.

 

On April 6, 1917, Congress declared "that a state of war exists between the United States and the Imperial German Government" and one and one-half months later, on May 22, 1917, temporarily increased the authorized strength to 1,197 commissioned officers, 126 warrant officers, and 30,000 enlisted men. Finally, the act of July 1, 1918, temporarily increased the Marine Corps to 3,017 commissioned officers, 324 warrant officers, and 75,500 enlisted men, which is the maximum strength ever authorized for the Marine Corps. Of this number 17,400 were permanent and 57,650 temporary. In addition to the above, the act of August 29, 1916, which established the Marine Corps Reserve, permits the enrollment of reserves without limit as to number, and on April 6, 1917, there were enrolled, subject to call to active duty, three Reserve commissioned officers, 24 National Naval Volunteer officers, 36 Reserve enlisted men, and 928 enlisted National Naval Volunteers. There were also available for recall to active duty 65 regular retired commissioned officers, one regular retired warrant officer, and 210 regular retired enlisted men.

 

Actual Strength of the Marine Corps at the Beginning and

End of the War.

 

On April 6, 1917, the strength of the Marine Corps on active duty was as follows:

 

Regular commissioned officers:
Major General Commandant	1
Brigadier Generals	7
Colonels	13
Lieutenant	27
Majors.	59
Captains.	119
First lieutenants	87
Second lieutenants	106
Total regular officers.	419
Regular commissioned retired officers:
On active duty.	43
Regular warrant officers:
Marine gunners	20
Quartermaster clerks	20
Pay clerks	9
Total warrant officers	49
Total regular officers	511
Total regular enlisted men	13,214
TOTAL strength on active duty	13,725

 

 

On November 11, 1918, the strength of the Marine Corps on active duty was as follows:

 

Regular commissioned officers:
Major General Commandant	1
Major generals	2
Brigadier generals	13
Colonels	43
Lieutenant-colonels	52
Majors	199
Captains	522
First lieutenants	436
Second lieutenants	413
Total Regular officers	1,681
Commissioned retired officers:
On active duty	43
Reserve officers on active duty:
Majors	7
Captains	33
First lieutenants	63
Second lieutenants	360
Total Reserve officers	463
Total commissioned officers an active duty	2,187
Regular warrant officers:
Marine gunners	109
Quartermaster clerks	89
Pay clerks	56
Total	254
Reserve warrant officers:
Marine gunners	27
Quartermaster clerks	2
Pay clerks	4
Total	33
Total warrant officers on active duty	287
Total officers on active duty	2,474
Enlisted personnel:
Regular	63,714
Retired enlisted men on active duty	15
Reserves, on active duty	6,483
Female reservists, on active duty	277
Total enlisted personnel	70,459
Total strength on active duty	72,963

 

 

On December 11, 1918, the Marine Corps attained its maximum strength on active duty, which was distributed as follows:

 

Regular commissioned officers	1,678
Retired officers on active duty	44
Reserve commissioned officers	452
Regular warrant officers	257
Reserve warrant officers	31
Regular enlisted men	65,666
Reserve enlisted men	6,704
Female reservists	269
Total	75,101

 

 

The maximum enlisted strength of the regular Marine Corps, not including reserves, during the period between the outbreak of war and the date the armistice became operative was 63,714 on November 9, 1918. 

 

 

 

Chapter III.

 

RECRUITING - APPLICANTS, REJECTIONS, ENLISTMENTS - ENLISTMENTS BY STATES.

 

Recruiting

 

 

The recruiting service of the corps was enlarged greatly during the war and it was so well organized and its method of procedure was so efficient that it was able to stand the enormous increase of the corps. The real test of any organization comes when a very great increase is suddenly made and the recruiting service of the Marine Corps passed that test in a commendable manner.

 

On August 8, 1918, by Executive order, volunteer enlistments in the Marine Corps and enrollments in the reserve were stopped, and from that time until October 1, 1918, no men were enlisted in the corps with the exception of those whose cases were pending when the Executive order above mentioned was issued and some whose enlistments expired and were reenlisted. On September 16, 1918, the Secretary of War approved the terms of a tentative plan proposed in an informal conference by representatives of the Navy Department, the Marine Corps, the General Staff, and the Provost Marshal General's Office.

 

This plan in part provided that the Marine Corps was accorded the privilege of individual inductions to the amount of 5,000 men, for the months of October, November, and December, 1918, and January, 1919, and 1,500 thereafter.

 

As the plan above mentioned operated the men were supplied from the selective draft, but the choice was given the Marine Corps of accepting or rejecting men according to the way they measured up to the Marine Corps standards. The inductees also had a choice in the matter, so they were really "voluntary inductees." This plan was very favorable and permitted the Marine Corps to maintain its high standard of enlisted personnel.

 

Owing to the cessation of hostilities there were but few inductions and none of the inductees ever reached France prior to the armistice becoming effective. Regular voluntary inductions into the Marine Corps (through Provost Marshal General) commenced October 1, 1918, and the last man was voluntarily inducted on December 13, 1918. Inductions occurred as follows:

 

October, 1918	2,787
November, 1918	3,880
December, 1918	421
Total	7, 088

 

 

Owing to the signing of the armistice, no more requests were made to the Provost Marshal General for the induction of men after November 18, 1918.

 

On December 2, 1918, the President, by proclamation, directed that voluntary enlistments of registrants into the Navy and Marine Corps would be permitted without notice to local boards, and the provisions of the selective service law became inoperative so far as the Marine Corps was concerned.

 

On December 4, 1918, recruiting on a very limited scale was resumed by order of the Secretary of the Navy. On that date also, enrollments in the Marine Corps Reserve were stopped.

 

Applicants, rejections, enlistments, etc., regular Marine Corps,

not including reserves but including inductees, April, 1917,

to November, 1918.

<1> Rejections by commanding officer include minors whose parents refused consent, married men whose wives refused consent, and men with criminal records or who were otherwise undesirable.

<2> Rejections by medical officer include all rejections at recruiting office as well as those rejected by the medical officer at the recruit depot to which they were transferred.

 

Enlistments By States.

 

The following table shows the number of men enlisted in the Marine Corps, not including reserves enrolled but including inductees, between April 1, 1917, and November 11, 1918. These figures do not include the 13, 214 enlisted men already in the Marine Corps on April 6,1917:

 

Alabama	313	Nevada	86
Arizona	210	New Jersey	1,251
Arkansas	290	New Hampshire	67
California	2,527	New Mexico	25
Colorado	1,262	New York	6,782
Connecticut	240	North Carolina	488
Delaware	72	North Dakota	225
District of Columbia	451	Ohio	4,968
Florida	110	Oklahoma	384
Georgia	674	Oregon	1,006
Illinois	4,959	Pennsylvania	4,365
Idaho	508	Rhode Island	64
Indiana	1,182	South Carolina	66
Iowa	607	South Dakota	145
Kansas	673	Tennessee	1,418
Kentucky	592	Texas	2,205
Louisiana	832	Utah	898
Maine	24	Vermont	21
Massachusetts	1,957	Virginia	617
Maryland	867	Washington	1,767
Michigan	2,115	West Virginia	598
Minnesota	2,581	Wisconsin	876
Missouri	3,721	Wyoming	92
Mississippi	297
Montana	1,205	Total	57,144
Nebraska	461

 

 

 

Chapter IV

 

GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION AND DISPOSITION OF MARINES

DURING WAR.

 

During the period of the war Marines served ashore and afloat all over the world. The following tables show where they were located at the outbreak of war and on the date the armistice became operative; also the naval vessels on which Marines were serving on both of these dates; and the geographical location of Marines during the war.

 

Location of Marines on April 6, 1917, and November 11, 1918.

 <1>Including enlisted men commissioned in Europe.

 

Marines Serving on Board Naval Vessels.

 

Marine detachments served on board all the overseas battleships and on the battleships of Battleship Force Two throughout the war. The Marines of Battleship Force One of which the MINNESOTA was flagship were temporarily withdrawn in April, 1918.

 

Marines were also on board a great many of the cruisers which acted as escorts for the vessels transporting Army troops to Europe.

 

The following table shows in detail those vessels which carried Marine detachments at the beginning of the war and on Armistice Day:

 

Ships.	Apr. 6, 1917.			Nov. 11, 1918.
	Officers.	Men.	Officers.	Men.
Atlantic Fleet	1		1
Pacific Fleet	1		1
Asiatic Fleet	1		1
Battleship Force 2	1		1
Battleship Force	1
Cruiser Force			1
Division 6	1		1
Division 7	1
Division 8			1
Division 9 (Sixth Battle Squadron)			1
Alabama	1	49
Arizona	2	83	2	88
Arkansas	1	76	2	86
Brooklyn	2	69	2	98
Castine		20
Charleston			2	62
Cincinnati	1	40	1	41
Columbia		19
Connecticut	3	65
Constellation		6		7
Delaware	1	65	2	70
Denver	1	40
Des Moines		38
Dolphin		15		20
Florida	1	66	2	63
Frederick		2		64
Galveston	1	39	1	40
George Washington		2		97
Helena	1	30	1	25
Huntington			2	61
Idaho			2	19
Louisiana	1	64
Machias		20
Mayflower		15		5
Michigan	2	62
Minnesota	2	68
Mississippi			2	78
Montana	1	62	2	72
Nebraska	1	68
Nevada	1	77	2	79
New Hampshire	1	67
New Jersey	1	6
New York	1	77	2	20
North Carolina			2	65
North Dakota	1	64	2	65
Oklahoma	2	77	2	89
Olympia	1	40
Pennsylvania	1	94	3	133
Pittsburgh (below)	2	75	2	105
Prairie		19
Pueblo	1	69	2	15
Rhode Island	1	64
Seattle	1	61
South Carolina	2	65
South Dakota			2	59
St. Louis			2	62
Texas	1	72	2	78
Utah	2	62	2	72
Wilmington	1	30	1	30
Wyoming	1	78	2	82
Yorktown		20
Total	49	2,187	64	2,009

 

 

USS Pittsburgh, armoured cruiser, at Rio de Janeiro

 

In addition to the above-named vessels, Marines served on the LEVIATHAN, ALBANY, NEW ORLEANS, GEORGIA, KANSAS, VERMONT, SAN DIEGO, and VIRGINIA.

 

Geographical Location of Marines During the War.

 

During the period of the war Marines were stationed at the following posts:

 

UNITED STATES.

 

Navy yards and stations. - Portsmouth, N. H.; Boston; New York; Philadelphia; Annapolis; Washington, D. C.; Norfolk, Va.; Charleston, S. C.; Key West, Fla.; Pensacola, Fla.; New Orleans; Mare Island, Calif.; Puget Sound, Wash.; and North Island, Calif.

 

Naval magazines. - Hingham, Mass.; Fort Lafayette; Iona Island, N. Y.; Lake; Fort Mifflin, Pa.; St. Juliens Creek, Va.; and Mare Island, Calif.

 

Naval ammunition depots. - Dover, N. J., and New London, Conn.

 

Torpedo stations. - Puget Sound, Wash., and Newport, R.I.

 

Radio stations, etc. - Greenbury, Md.; Point Isabell, Tex.; Radio, Va.; Key West, Fla.; Chatham, Mass.; Portland, Me.; Rye Beach, Me.; Otter Cliffs, Me.; naval radio station, Wellfleet, Mass.; French Cable Co., Orleans, Mass.; Postal Telegraph and Cable Co., Rockport, Mass.; Commercial Telegraph & Cable Co., Boston; Marconi Wireless Co., Boston; Western Union Co., Boston; Cape Cod, Mass.; Sayville, N. Y.; New Brunswick, N. J.; Belmar, N. J.; Tuckerton, N. J.; Beaufort, S. C.; Charleston, S. C.; Annapolis, Md.; Washington, D. C.; San Diego, Calif.; Chollas Heights, Calif.; Point Arguello, Calif.; Inglewood, Calif.; East San Pedro, Calif.; Eureka, Calf.; Bolinas, Calif.; Marshall, Calif.; Farallones Islands, Calif.; Marshfield, Oreg.; Astoria, Oreg.; Lents, Oreg.; Tatoosh, Wash.; North Head, Wash.

 

Naval prisons. - Portsmouth, N. H.; Parris island, S. C.; and Mare Island, Calif.

 

Naval hospitals. - Boston; New York; Washington, D. C.; Norfolk, Va.; Key West, Fla.; and Fort Lyons, Col.

 

Coaling stations. - La Playa, Calif., and Tiburon, Calif.

 

Receiving ship. - Boston.

 

Other places. - Headquarters, Washington, D. C.; Office of the Judge Advocate General; assistant paymasters' offices at New York, Atlanta, Ga., and San Francisco, Calif.; depots of supplies at Philadelphia, Pa., San Francisco, Calif., and Charleston, S. C.; naval experimental station, New London, Conn.; naval district base, New London, Conn.; advanced base force, Philadelphia, Pa.; mobilization bureau, New York City; third naval district base, New York; New Navy Building guard, Washington, D. C.; naval mine station, Yorktown, Va.; naval base, Hampton Roads, Va.; Navy rifle range, Wakefield, Mass.; rifle range, Winthrop, Md.; naval proving grounds, Indian Head Md. Wissahickon Barracks, N. J.; Navy fuel depot, Curtis, Md.; Navy ordnance plant, Charleston, W. Va.; camp of instruction, bayonet team, Lansdowne, Pa.; signal battalion, Paoli, Pa.; staff office, San Francisco Calif.; Marine barracks, Quantico, Va.; Fort Crockett, Galveston, Tex.; Gerstner Field, Lake Charles, La.; naval air station, Cape May, N: J.; naval air station, San Diego, Calif.; naval school for mechanics, Great Lakes, Ill.; naval air station, Pensacola, Fla.; Army training field, Mineola, Long island, N. Y.; Marine Corps School of Machine Gun Instruction at Utica, N. Y., and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston, Mass.

 

BEYOND CONTINENTAL LIMITS OF UNITED STATES.

 

American Expeditionary Forces. - In France, England, and Germany.

 

With naval service in Europe. - Paris, France; Pauillac, France; London, England; Marine aerodromes between Calais and Dunkirk, France; Croix d'Hins, Gironde, France; naval base, Ponta Delgada, Azores Islands; Cardiff, Wales.

 

Naval stations. - Cavite, P. I.; Olongapo, P. I.; Pearl Harbor, Hawaii; Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; Virgin Islands; Guam.

 

Occupation forces. - Santo Domingo, Haiti.

 

Legation guards. - Peking, China; and Managua, Nicaragua.

 

Couriers. - Madrid, Spain; The Hague, Holland; Luxembourg Jassy, Roumania; Stockholm, Sweden; Copenhagen, Denmark; Christiania, Norway; Petrograd, Archangel, Murman Coast, Russia; Paris, France; London, England; Athens, Greece; and Rome, Italy.

 

Constabularies. - Guardia Nacional Dominicana and Haitian gendarmerie.

 

Radio stations. - Cavite, P. I.; San Juan, Porto Rico; El Cayay, Porto Rico; Haiti; Croix d'Hins, Gironde, France.

 

Naval ammunition depot. - Olongapo, P.I.

 

Naval magazine. Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

 

Depot of supplies. - Cavite, P. I.

 

Attaches. - Paris, France; London, England; Yokohama, Japan; Petrograd, Russia; Stockholm, Sweden; Copenhagen, Denmark; and Christiania, Norway.

 

 

 

Chapter V.

 

HOW OFFICERS WERE OBTAINED AND TRAINED.

 

How Officers Were Obtained.

 

The outbreak of war made it essential that the corps should be filled as far as practicable with officers who had had prior military experience and training, and immediate steps were taken to arrange for the designation and examination of Marine Corps warrant officers, noncommissioned officers, graduates of military colleges, and other civilians with military experience and training.

 

The appointment of officers subsequent to the declaration of war up to October, 1917, both for the permanent service and for the temporary increase authorized for the duration of the war, were drawn from the following sources:

 

Graduates of the Naval Academy	6
Former officer of the Marine Corps	1
Former graduate of the Naval Academy	1
Warrant officers and paymaster's clerks of the Marine Corps	89
Meritorious noncommissioned officers of the Marine Corps	122
Reserve officers and National Naval Volunteers	36
Graduates of military colleges	284
Other civilians with prior military or naval experience or training	136
Other civilians passing the competitive examination held July 10, 1917	86

 

In order to expedite the training of the new officers, advantage was taken of the law providing for a Marine Corps Reserve, and successful candidates were immediately enrolled as second lieutenants in the reserve and ordered to Marine Corps posts for instruction pending the issuance of their commissions in the regular service. Candidates designated for the examination held July 10, 1917, were authorized upon designation to enroll as privates in the Marine Corps Reserve, with the understanding that upon the completion of their examination they would be ordered to the Recruit Depot at Parris Island, S. C., for training pending the receipt of the report of the examining board. This policy was carried out, and the successful candidates were commissioned second lieutenants in the Marine Corps, while the unsuccessful candidates were given the option of continuing in the service as enlisted men or of being discharged therefrom.

 

Owing to the unusually large number of young men of excellent education and fine attainments who had enlisted in the Marine Corps after the outbreak of war, it was decided that no further appointments of civilians to the rank of second lieutenant would be made during the continuance of the war, and that all vacancies occuring in that grade, not required for graduates of the Naval Academy, would be filled by the promotion of meritorious noncommissioned officers. This decision was promulgated to the service in Marine Corps Orders No. 25 (Series 1917).

 

How Officers Were Trained.

 

The officers appointed from civil life, as soon as enrolled, were ordered to the Marine barracks, Mare Island, Calif.; San Diego, Calif.; Parris Island, S. C.; and the Marine Corps rifle range, Winthrop, Md., for instruction, pending the completion of the buildings for their use at the Marine barracks, Quantico, Va. Early in July, 1917, the buildings being in readiness, the newly appointed officers, about 345 in number, were assembled at Quantico, where an officers' camp of instruction was held, and the course completed in October, 1917.

 

In carrying out the policy of obtaining officers from the ranks, orders were issued to commanding officers of every post and station of the Marine Corps, both at home and abroad, as well as those on board ship, to the effect that all commissioned officers would be taken from the ranks, and that the number of men to be designated from each post to attend the training camp would be a certain percentage of the number of men stationed at such post or station. Each commanding officer was ordered to convene a board of three officers to examine into the qualifications of the men at his post, and to report in the order of merit the names of the men considered qualified for entry to the officers' training camp at Quantico, Va. These reports were all forwarded to headquarters, where a board was convened to examine them and to select, in accordance with their standing as reported by the various boards, the number of men who it had been decided could be quartered and properly instructed at Quantico. It was found that about 600 was the limit that could be accommodated, and approximately this number was selected for the first camp, which was established at Quantico, Va., in April, 1918.

 

The officers' training camp was commanded by an officer of adequate rank. The students were divided into companies with a major in command as chief instructor and captains and lieutenants to assist him. The candidates were given a very rigid course of instruction and intensive training. Some of the studies pursued were: Infantry drill regulations, manual of interior guard duty, bayonet training, bombing, minor tactics, military engineering, military topography, administration, military law, lectures on gas and on sea duty, and a practical course on the rifle range.

 

The training at these camps was most intensive and thoroughly competitive, so that a man's position depended entirely upon himself. The material to draw from was so excellent that comparatively few of those who entered the camps failed to receive commissions and many of the young men so commissioned who were assigned to duty abroad demonstrated that their selection was fully justified.

 

Many officers also received special training in the schools of the Overseas Depot at Quantico, Va.

 

The majority of the members of the first officers' training camp were graduated in July, 1918. Three hundred of this camp were commissioned on July 15, 1918, and 91 on August 15, 1918.

 

The same proportionate allowance that was made in the United States was also designated for the Marines serving in France, and similar means were instituted there to carry out the policy of selection of men for the training camp. As a result of the camp established over there, 164 second lieutenants were appointed from the Fourth Brigade in France.

 

The second officers' training camp was opened at Quantico, Va., on August 20, 1918, the enlisted men forming its personnel having been selected in exactly the same manner as those attending the first camp and this procedure was also followed with regard to the Marines of the American Expeditionary Forces in France. Of the 570 men enrolled 432 were graduated from the second officers' training camp, December 16, 1918, and 172 from the Army candidate school in France, who, immediately upon graduating, were enrolled as second lieutenants (provisional) in class 4, Marine Corps Reserve, and subsequently appointed temporary second lieutenants in the Marine Corps. An extension of three weeks to this course in America was necessitated by the epidemic of influenza.

 

There were 235 graduated in July, 1919, from the third officers' training camp who were enrolled as second lieutenants (provisional) in class 4, Marine Corps Reserve, and immediately assigned to inactive duty.

 

There were also 48 graduates of the Army candidate school in France, who were enrolled as second lieutenants (provisional) in class 4, Marine Corps Reserve, and who were discharged or placed on inactive duty upon their return to the United States, with the exception of four who were transferred to the temporary service.

 

Sixty-nine officers were graduated from the Marine Corps school of machine-gun instruction at Utica N. Y.

 

Information regarding the training of Marine officers for aviation duties will be found in Chapter XXI.

 

Marine Sections, Student Army Training Corps.

 

In the act approved August 31, 1918, provision was made for a Student Army Training Corps, and under date of September 12, 1918, the Secretary of War directed the Provost Marshal General to allot 1,500 of the registrants authorized for induction into the Student Army Training Corps to the Marine sections under that organization. On September 23, 1918, with the approval of the Navy Department, Marine Corps headquarters designated the following institutions for the organization of Marine sections of the Student Army Training Corps and allotted quotas to each ranging from 100 to 190:

 

Leland Stanford Junior University	110
Georgia School of Technology	100
Harvard University	120
University of Minnesota	110
Cornell University	170
University of Washington	160
University of Texas	100
Yale University	100
University of Kansas	140
University of Wisconsin	190
Virginia Military Institute	100
University of North Carolina	100

 

A Marine officer was ordered to each of the designated institutions and charged with the duties of administration, instruction, and discipline of the Marine section, with the assistance of a noncommissioned officer of the Marine Corps.

 

It was intended to transfer, from time to time, well-qualified students who were inducted into Marine sections of the Student Army Training Corps to aviation duty, or to one of the two recruit camps, and in both cases men thus recommended, who proved themselves qualified to become officers, would be ultimately commissioned in either the Marine Corps Reserve Flying Corps or for general service in the Marine Corps. In either case after finishing their course in the Student Army Training Corps they would have been sent to a recruit camp for the regular course of training, because this would make it possible to imbue them with the necessary esprit de corps and indoctrinate them with the Marine Corps methods of procedure and training, both essential to the making of a Marine officer of the highest type. Owing to the ending of active hostilities there were no graduates from the Marine sections of the Student Army Training Corps at the different universities and colleges as they were ordered abandoned shortly after the armistice became operative

 

 

 

Chapter VI.

 

TRAINING OF ENLISTED MEN IN THE UNITED STATES AND

EUROPE.

 

 

Private

Sergeant

 

In United States.

 

The Marine Corps system of training for the enlisted personnel during the war was thorough and excellent in every respect, and resulted in the turning out of men who proved themselves well fitted for the arduous duties of Marines.

 

For a short time after the outbreak of the war temporary recruit depots were opened at the navy yards at Philadelphia, Pa., and Norfolk, Va., with a capacity of 2,500 at the former and 500 at the latter. These were used until the regular recruit depots at Parris Island, S. C., and Mare Island, Calif., could accommodate the recruits. These two recruit depots were greatly enlarged both in size and scope, to take care of the temporary increase in strength authorized for the war, and were soon able to meet all demands made upon them.

 

At the beginning of the war the course of recruit instruction at the recruit depot, Parris Island, was of 8 weeks duration, and with but very few exceptions every recruit passing through this depot received 8 weeks instruction. At the Mare Island recruit depot, the recruits received 12 weeks training from April 6 to 28, 1917, 9 weeks from April 29, 1917, to June 21, 1918, and 8 weeks from June 22 to November 11, 1918.

 

The following table gives a list of the special schools at the Parris Island recruit depot and the number of graduates from each during the period between the outbreak of war and the date the armistice became operative:

 

Noncommissioned Officers School	2,144
Field Musics School	493
Radio School	143
Signal School	232
Band School	247
Clerical School	236
Pay School	78
Cooks, and Bakers, School	150
Total	3, 723

 

The following table illustrates what was accomplished by the two recruit depots:

 

 

 

After leaving the recruit depots at Parris Island and Mare Island, advanced training was given the men at Quantico Va. This training was most intensive and as a result all the organizations which were trained there attained a high state of efficiency. It was made to approximate as nearly as practicable the real service which the men would have in the American Expeditionary Forces in France. Officers who were engaged in this training showed great ingenuity and efficiency in their attempts to make the training approach as nearly as possible what the men would be subjected to in actual service. That they succeeded was shown by the work done by the Marines in France and other places.

 

The first troops arrived at the Marine barracks, Quantico, Va., on May 18, 1917. The maximum enlisted strength was 9,849 on September 1 2,1918. The maximum number of officers present at one time was 484, on August 16, 1918. The strength on November 11, 1918, was 329 officers and 8,798 enlisted men. From May, 1917, to November 11, 1918, approximately 1,000 officers and 40,000 enlisted men passed through Quantico, Va.

 

In addition to giving the enlisted men general training at Quantico in preparation for overseas and other duty, the Overseas Depot was established on May 19, 1918, for the double purpose of organizing and training units of the Marine Corps for service with the American Expeditionary Forces.

 

Prior to the organization of this depot the Fifth and Sixth Regiments, the Sixth Machine Gun Battalion, the Base Battalion of the Fifth Regiment, and two replacement battalions had left the United States and had become part of the American Expeditionary Force.

 

The Overseas Depot consisted of an administrative staff and the various sections as follows:

 

(a) The specialists' schools for the technical training of the infantry and machine gun, and the coordination of these specialists' arms;

 

(b) the tactical department for the instruction and training of overseas units in new tactical principles;

 

(c) the enlisted staff school for the training of first sergeants, mess sergeants, cooks, company clerks, armorers, etc: Two French and four Canadian officers, who had abundant experience in the fighting in Europe, were assigned as advisors of the commanding officer.

 

The basic independent unit of organization was the platoon, and the platoon therefore became the principal training unit. In the organization of this unit the scheme followed was to assure to each a certain nucleus of enlisted instructors trained in the various specialties, in addition to the platoon commanders, who were qualified to carry on the instruction along approved lines within the unit. This nucleus was taken from the graduates of the specialists' schools of the depot. When four such platoons had been formed they were assembled into a company. The company headquarters, trained in the enlisted staff school, was added to the four platoons and the company organization was turned over to the company commander complete in all details. Battalions were likewise formed by the consolidation of companies. In every instance the platoon, company, and the battalion, carried out a regular schedule of drills and institutions under the supervision of the depot, but all administrative details were left in the hands of the company and the battalion commanders. These training schedules were made up in the tactical department, approved by the commanding officer, and were based on the most approved methods in effect at the time. In the cases of the formation of regimental organizations, of which there were two formed during the existence of the Overseas Depot, the battalions upon being formed were turned over to the regimental commander, and in this case direct supervision by the depot ceased, but all facilities on hand, such as material, officers acting in an advisory capacity, training areas, etc., directly attached to the depot, were placed at the disposal of the regimental commanders who were at all times in active liaison with the depot.

 

About 85 per cent of the troops forming the detachments arriving at the Overseas Depot for service in France had undergone not less than 8 nor more than 12 weeks' training at the regular recruit depots of the Marine Corps. The preliminary training received at these recruit depots was such as to fit the men for general service throughout the Marine Corps, and resulted in the men being well disciplined, considering the short time they had been in the service. This facilitated the more advanced and specialized training they were to receive at the Overseas Depot. These detachments were composed entirely of qualified riflemen, having undergone during the recruit period a most thorough and comprehensive course in the use of the rifle. Upon the arrival of these detachments they were organized as outlined above, and the commissioned personnel was assigned to the units from the officers' school. The schedule and drills and instructions were provided them and were carried out under the supervision of specially selected officers of the tactical department of the Overseas Depot, including the foreign officers. This training continued until the units departed for France. Training in open warfare was given precedence over that of trench warfare from the very beginning in the proportion of about four to one.

 

The following units were organized by the Overseas Depot: Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh Separate Battalions; Second and Third Machine Gun Battalions; Fifth Brigade Machine Gun Battalion; Second and Third Separate Machine Gun Battalions; Eleventh and Thirteenth Regiments; total, approximately, 16,000 officers and enlisted men. The Seventh and Eighth Separate Battalions were organized and sent to France from Marine Barracks, Parris Island, S. C.

 

The following table shows the schools conducted by the Overseas Depot and the number of graduates:

 

School.	Officers.	Noncommissioned officers.	Privates.	Total.
Officers	294			294
Bayonet		360	220	580
Bombing		200	150	350
Gas		180		180
Automatic Rifle		150	650	809
Scout Snipers		75	375	450
Machine Gun	120	145	295	560
Miners and Sappers		70	80	150
Enlisted Staff		105	300	405
Total	414	1,285	2,070	3,769

 

In addition to the training described above, 69 officers and 2,084 enlisted men, a total of 2,153, graduated from the Marine Corps school of machine-gun instruction at Utica, N. Y.

 

Never before in the history of the corps have better drilled and trained or more generally efficient men been turned out, ready for duty, upon completion of their training, and to this factor is largely due the splendid record made by the Marines during the war.

 

The work of the officers training the Marines was not spectacular, and they wear no war chevrons, nor decorations for bravery, perhaps, but they were, nevertheless, a vital factor in whatever success the Marine Corps met with in the great struggle.

 

Information with reference to the training of enlisted men for aviation will be found in Chapter XXI.

 

Training In France.

 

On June 27, 1917, the First Battalion of the Fifth Regiment actually landed in France and on July 3, 1917, the entire Fifth Regiment was under canvas on French soil. From that date every effort was made to train the men and officers. Elements of the Fifth Regiment trained as a part of the First Division of Regulars from July 15, 1917, to September, 1917, in the Gondrecourt training area. From September, 1917, on, the training of the available units of the Fourth Brigade as a unit of the Second Division of Regulars was conducted in the Bourmont training area.

 

Until February, 1918, the training of the Marines in France was handicapped by the fact that units of the Brigade were engaged in duties along the Line of Communications (Services of Supply), one company and a battalion commander being absent in England until March, 1918. It was not until the middle of February, 1918, that the Fourth Brigade of Marines (less the company in England) was conducting its training as a brigade with any degree of satisfaction. Owing to the well-trained condition of the individual Marine this condition did not vitally affect his professional ability as was so distinctly shown by his later accomplishments.

 

The Fourth Brigade continued its training in the Bourmont training area until the middle of March, 1918, when it entered the front line trenches in the Verdun sector.

 

The Marine replacements received little or no training in a training area in France as most of them were hurried into the fighting immediately upon arrival overseas.

 

To summarize, the average Marine who arrived in France received at least six weeks' training in the United States in a recruit depot and a very short period at Quantico. This is a contrast to the six months' training received by the average enlisted man of the Army After arrival in France the Marines, except those of the original Fourth Brigade, received practically no training in a training area since they joined the brigade almost immediately. The Marines comprising the Fifth Brigade of Marines received no training in a regular training area in France.

 

in France, wearing French gasmasks

 

 

 

Chapter VII.

 

ORGANIZATIONS AND REPLACEMENTS SENT TO EUROPE - ORGANIZATION OF THE FOURTH AND FIFTH BRIGADES.

 

The Fourth Brigade of Marines.

 

The Fourth Brigade of United States Marines was composed of the Fifth and Sixth Regiments of Marines, and the Sixth Machine Gun Battalion of Marines.

 

The companies forming the battalions were as follows:

 

	Fifth Regiment.
First Battalion.	Second Battalion.	Third Battalion.
17th (A) Company.	18th (E) Company.	16th (I) Company.
49th (B) Company.	43d (F) Company.	20th (K) Company.
66th (C) Company.	51st (G) Company.	45th (L) Company.
67th (D) Company.	55th (H) Company.	47th (M) Company.
	8th Machine Gun Company.
	Supply Company.
	Headquarters Company.
	Sixth Regiment.
First Battalion.	Second Battalion.	Third Battalion.
74th (A) Company.	78th (E) Company.	82nd (J) Company.
75th (B) Company.	79th (F) Company.	83rd (K) Company.
76th (C) Company.	80th (G) Company.	84th (L) Company.
95th (D) Company.	96th (H) Company.	97th (M) Company.
	73d Machine Gun Company.
	Supply Company.
	Headquarters Company.
	Sixth Machine Gun Battalion.
15th (A) Company.	23d (B) Company.	77th (C) Company.
	81st (D) Company.

 

From June 27, 1917, to the middle of September, 1917, the Fifth Regiment was a unit of the First Division of Regulars. Although the Fifth Regiment was the only organization of Marines in France at the time, the Fourth Brigade of Marines was formed on October 23, 1917, when Col. Charles A. Doyen cabled acceptance of his appointment as Brigadier General. From October 26, 1917, to August 8, 1919, the Fourth Brigade was a part of the Second Division of Regulars, except from October 20-23, 1918, when the Brigade was provisionally at the disposal of the Ninth French Army Corps, in the vicinity of Leffincourt. On August 8, 1919, the brigade was transferred back to the naval service.

 

On May 29, 1917, in accordance with directions issued by the President, the Secretary of the Navy directed the Major General Commandant "to organize a force of Marines to be known as the Fifth Regiment of Marines for service with the Army as a part of the first expedition to proceed to France in the near future." The Fifth Regiment was accordingly organized at the navy yard, Philadelphia, Pa., on June 7, 1917, with Col. Charles A. Doyen in command, and Maj. Harry R. Lay, as adjutant.

 

Gen. Pershing and his staff, accompanied by two Marine officers, proceded the first expedition to France, sailing late in May, 1917, from the United States.

 

The final report of the American commander in chief includes the following:

 

The offer by the Navy Department of one regiment of Marines to be reorganized as Infantry was accepted by the Secretary of War, and it became temporarily a part of the First Division.

 

On June 14, 1917, the first expedition of American troops left the United States for France and the Fifth Regiment of Marines embarked on the naval transports HENDERSON and HANCOCK, and the auxiliary cruiser DE KALB (former PRINTZ EITEL FRIEDRICH), formed approximately one-fifth of it. The fourth group, including the HANCOCK, did not sail until June 17, 1917.

 

The orders received by the convoy commander on the day prior to sailing read in part: "A military expedition is to be embarked on the above-named transports, augmented by a regiment of Marines embarked in naval vessels, for transportation to a destination already communicated."

 

The DE KALB was in group 1, the HENDERSON in group 2, and the HANCOCK in group 4; all were part of the escort and not the convoy.

 

Rear-Admiral Albert Gleaves, the convoy commander, flying his flag on the SEATTLE, personally commanded the first group, while Maj. Gen. W. L. Sibert in the TENEDARES, was the senior Army officer embarked.

 

The passage of the four groups across the Atlantic was successfully accomplished without a single disaster, or the loss of a life due to enemy causes.

 

At 10.15 p. m., June 22, 1917, the first group, including the DE KALB was attacked by enemy submarines. The wake of a submarine was sighted crossing 50 yards ahead of the Seattle's bow from starboard to port. A few seconds later the DE KALB and HAVANA sighted torpedoes and opened fire. Two torpedoes passed close to the HAVANA, and one passed ahead and one astern of the DE KALB. The second group encountered two submarines, the first at 11.50 a. m., June 26, 1918, about 100 miles off the French coast and the second two hours later.

 

The DE KALB arrived at St. Nazaire, France, on June 26, 1917, the HENDERSON on June 27, 1917, and the HANCOCK on July 2, 1917. On June 27, 1917, the commanding officer of the Fifth Regiment reported to the commanding general, First Division, American Expeditionary Forces, and from that date the Fifth Regiment was considered as being detached for service with the Army by direction of the President.

 

Five hundred negro stevedores had been brought from the United States by the Army to discharge ships, but they were found inadequate for the large number of ships concerned. The Marines relieved the situation somewhat by turning to and discharging their own vessels.

 

On June 27, 1917, the First Battalion, less the Fifteenth Company which joined the battalion the following day, disembarked from the DE KALB and occupied quarters ashore. On this date Lieut. Col. Logan Feland joined the Fifth Regiment. On June 28, 1917, the Second and Third Battalions went ashore from the HENDERSON for a practice march, and the following day the First Battalion erected tents for the regiment on a camp site a short distance outside of St. Nazaire. By 8 p. m., July 3, 1917, the entire Fifth Regiment was ashore under canvas.

 

On July 15, 1917, the Fifth Regiment, less the Third Battalion, which remained behind to perform guard duty and other detached units and officers, proceeded to the Gondrecourt training area, and was stationed in Menaucourt and Naix. On August 1, 1917, Gen. Pershing inspected the battalions at the two towns where they were billetted.

 

On August 15, 1917, the First Division, including the Fifth Regiment of Marines, was reviewed by its commanding general on a plateau 12 miles distant from the training area.

 

On August 19, 1917, Gen. Pershing and Gen. Petain, commander-in-chief of all the French forces, inspected the Marines, as a unit of the First Division. Gen. Petain congratulated the colonel of the regiment on the splendid appearance of its officers and men, as well as the cleanliness of the towns.

 

Every opportunity was taken advantage of to perfect the regiment for combat duty, but this work was handicapped by the fact that many units of the regiment were scattered along the Line of Communications performing duty of a necessary but of a nontraining nature. One company and one battalion commander left the regiment until March 11, 1918. Many other officers and men were placed on detached duty.

 

On September 24, 25, 1917, that part of the Fifth Regiment available for training arrived in the Bourmont training areas and was stationed at Damblain and Breuvannes.

 

The following letter dated November 10, 1917, addressed by Gen. Pershing to the Major General Commandant is both complimentary and explanatory as to why the Marines were used along the Line of Communications.

 

Your Marines having been under my command for nearly six months, I feel that I can give you a discriminating report as to their excellent standing with their brothers of the Army and their general good conduct. I take this opportunity, also, of giving you the reasons for distributing them along our Line of Communications which, besides being a compliment to their high state of discipline and excellent soldierly appearance, was the natural thing to do as the Marine Regiment was an additional one in the Division and not provided for in the way of transportation and fighting equipment in case the Division should be pushed to the front. When, therefore, service of the rear troops and military and provost guards were needed at our base ports and in Paris it was the Marine Regiment that had to be scattered, in an endeavor to keep the rest of the organized division intact.

 

I have been obliged to detach a number of your officers as assistant provost marshals in France and in England, all of which I take it you will agree with me was highly complimentary to both officers and men, and was so intended. I can assure you that as soon as our service of the rear troops arrive, including a large number of officers and men for the specific duties now being performed by your men, the Marines will be brought back once more under your brigade commander and assigned to the duties which they so much desire in the Second Regular Division under General Bundy.

 

It is a great pleasure to report on your fine representatives here in France.

 

Col. Charles A. Doyen was in command of the Fifth Regiment from the date of its organization on June 7, 1917, to October 29, 1917; and Lieut. Col. Hiram I. Bearss from October 30, 1917, to December 31, 1917. Col. Wendell C. Neville having arrived on on board the DE KALB at St. Nazaire, France, on December 28, 1917, reported to the Fourth Brigade for duty on January 1, 1918 and on that date assumed command of the Fifth Regiment, continuing in command until July, 1918.

 

The Sixth Machine Gun Battalion of Marines was organized at the Marine barracks, Quantico, Va., by order of the Major General Commandant on August 17, 1917. The battalion was designated the First Machine Gun Battalion, but on January 20, 1918, after arrival in France, was renamed the Sixth Machine Gun Battalion. On December 14, 1917, the battalion sailed from New York on the DE KALB, arriving at St. Nazaire, France, December 28, 1917. On January 3, 1918, the battalion arrived at Damblain in the Bourmont training area and began training with headquarters at Germain-villiers.

 

Maj. Edward B. Cole was in command of the Sixth Machine Gun Battalion of Marines from the date of its organization until June 10, 1918, when he received a mortal wound.

 

On August 4, 1917, in accordance with directions issued by the President, the Secretary of the Navy directed the Major General Commandant "to organize a force of Marines, to be known as the Sixth Regiment of Marines, for service with the Army in France," and the regiment was organized as directed.

 

USS Von Steuben, transport

 

On September 23, 1917, the First Battalion of the Sixth Regiment sailed on the HENDERSON from New York and landed at St. Nazaire, France, on October 5, 1917. On October 17, 1917, the Seventy-third Machine Gun Company, Headquarters, and Supply Companies, and Col. Albertus W. Catlin, commanding officer of the Sixth Regiment, with his Staff, sailed from Philadelphia, Pa., on the DE KALB, and from New York on October 18, 1917, arriving at St. Nazaire, France, on November 1, 1917. On October 31 1917, the Third Battalion of the Sixth Regiment sailed from New York on board the VON STEUBEN and anchored at Brest, France, on November 1 2,1917. On January 24, 1918, the Second Battalion of the Sixth Regiment sailed on the HENDERSON from New York and arrived at St. Nazaire, France, February 6, 1918, and with the arrival of this last battalion, the entire Sixth Regiment of Marines was in France.

 

On October 23, 1917, the Fourth Brigade of Marines was organized, with Brig. Gen. Charles A. Doyen in command. Brig. Gen. Doyen continued in command until May 7, 1918, when he published in General Orders No. 5, that he had relinquished command. Maj. Harry R. Lay was the first brigade adjutant, and performed the duties of that office from October 24, 1917, to August 9, 1918, except during the period February 7 to May 9, 1918, when Maj. Holland M. Smith was brigade adjutant.

 

On October 26, 1917, Brig. Gen. Charles A. Doyen, United States Marine Corps, assumed command of the Second Division as its first commanding general, and announced his staff in General Orders No. 1, with station at Bourmont, Haute-Marne, serving as such until relieved by Maj. Gen. Omar Bundy, United States Army, who announced that he assumed command in General Orders No. 4, November 8, 1917.

 

Like the Fifth Regiment, the Sixth Regiment spent several months performing the necessary but undesired duties along the Line of Communications. On January 12, 1918, Col. Albertus W. Catlin established headquarters for the Sixth Regiment at Blevaincourt in the Bourmont training area. The Third Battalion arrived in this area on January 12, 1918, the headquarters units the same date, the First Battalion during January, 1918, and the Second Battalion on February 10, 1918.

 

Therefore, on February 10, 1918, the Fourth Brigade of Marines was in the Bourmont training area intact, with the exception of one company on duty in England, training industriously as an infantry brigade of the Second Division. While the brigade had been organized on October 23, 1917, and had actually functioned as a brigade with elements of all three of its units present from January 12, 1918, it was not until February 10, 1918, that the Brigade organization was perfected.

 

Fifth Brigade of Marines.

 

On September 5, 1918, the Major General Commandant directed the post commander, Marine barracks, Quantico, Va., to organize brigade headquarters of the Fifth Brigade, United States Marine Corps.

 

This brigade was accordingly organized and was composed of the Eleventh and Thirteenth Regiments and the Fifth Brigade Machine Gun Battalion. The companies of the Fifth Brigade were designated by letters and not by numbers.

 

Brig. Gen. Eli K. Cole was designated as the brigade commander and on September 15, 1918, he and the Brigade Staff sailed from Hoboken, N. J., on board the VON STEUBEN, arriving at Brest, France, on September 24, 1918.

 

The Thirteenth Regiment left the Overseas Depot at Quantico, Va., on Friday, September 13, 1918, and on September 15, 1918, sailed from Hoboken, N. J., on board the HENDERSON and VON STEUBEN, arriving at Brest, France, on September 25, 1918.

 

On September 29, 1918, Eleventh Regiment Headquarters and the First Battalion sailed on the DE KALB from Philadelphia, Pa., and arrived at Brest, France, on October 13, 1918. On October 16, 1918, the Second and Third Battalions of the Eleventh Regiment sailed from Brooklyn, N. Y., on board the AGAMEMNON and VON STEUBEN and arrived at Brest, France on October 25, 1918.

 

On October 28, 1918, the Fifth Brigade Machine Gun Battalion sailed from South Brooklyn, N. Y., on board the HENDERSON and arrived at Brest, France, on November 9, 1918. With the arrival of this unit the entire Fifth Brigade was in France.

 

Aviation Units.

 

On January 21, 1918, the First Marine Aeronautic Company arrived at naval base No. 13, Ponta Delgada, Azores.

 

On July 30, 1918, the First Marine Aviation Force (less Squadron D) disembarked at Brest, France, and formed the Day Wing of the Northern Bombing Group. Squadron D joined the Day Wing in October, 1918.

 

Marine Detachments For Naval Bases.

 

On January 21, 1918, and on July 20, 1918, detachments for the naval base No. 13, arrived at Ponta Delgada, Azores.

 

On September 30, 1918, the detachment for naval base No. 29, arrived at Cardiff, Wales.

 

On December 29, 1918, the detachment for the naval forces in France, staff office, Paris, France, landed at St. Nazaire, France.

 

Replacements for American Expeditionary Forces.

 

The following table will show the names of the replacement organizations sent to the American Expeditionary Forces, dates of sailing and arrival, and names of vessels:

 

 

In addition to the above the Twelfth Replacement Battalion sailed from the United States on board the HANCOCK in June, 1919, arrived in France in June, 1919, and joined the American Expeditionary Forces.

 

Number of Marines Sailing from the United States to Europe for Duty with the American Expeditionary Forces and for Shore Duty with the Naval Service.

 

There were 834 officers, not including observers, and 30,481 enlisted men, or a total of 31,315 Marines, sent overseas for shore duty with the American Expeditionary Forces and naval service. The following tables give details:

 

 For duty with American Expeditionary Forces.

 

Month of Departure from United States.	Officers.	Enlisted men.	Total.
May, 1917	2 <1>	-	2
June, 1917	70	2,689	2,759
July, 1917	29	1,054	1,083
September, 1917	27	1,045	1,072
October, 1917	45	1,536	1,581
December, 1917	23	637	660
January, 1918	31	1,031	1,062
February, 1918	24	1,041	1,065
March, 1918	23	1,034	1,057
April, 1918	22	1,284	1,306
May, 1918	24	1,565	1,589
June, 1918	6	751	757
August, 1918	32	4,362	4,394
September, 1918	172	5,275	5,447
October, 1918	132	5,809	5,941
Total	662	29,113	29,775

 

 <1> Accompanied Gen. Pershing.

 

Sixty officers of the Medical Corps, twelve officers of the Dental Corps, five hundred enlisted men of the Medical Corps, and eleven Chaplains, of the Navy, not included in the above figures, were sent to France and served with the Marines in the American Expeditionary Forces.

 

In addition to the above the Twelfth Replacement Battalion, consisting of 9 officers and 500 enlisted men, joined the American Expeditionary Forces in June, 1919.

 

 For duty with naval service ashore.

 

Month of departure from United States.	Officers.	Enlisted men.	Total.
December, 1917	2	59	61
January, 1918	13	172	185
June, 1918	2	75	77
July, 1918	107	654	761
August, 1918	4	120	124
September, 1918	4	288	332
Total	172	1,368	1,560

 

 

 

Chapter VIII.

 

OPERATIONS IN GENERAL.

 

 

below - Départements of Northern France and main locations associated with Fourth Brigade training and combat areas