Featuring specially commissioned artwork and archive illustrations,
this engrossing study describes the US Marine Corps' early operations
and illustrates its evolving uniforms and personal equipment.
The US Marine Corps' uniforms, personal equipment, insignia, and
weaponry are all described and illustrated in this book, complemented by
a succinct history of the Marines' military record from their beginnings
to the eve of the American Civil War, by which time the US Marine Corps
had established itself as a small but vitally important part of the
United States' armed forces.
Organized in 1775, the first American Marines distinguished themselves
throughout the American Revolutionary War, and even raided mainland
Britain before being disbanded in 1783. Reestablished in 1798, the US
Marine Corps fought in the Barbary Wars and the War of 1812, both at sea
and on land. The years after 1815 saw the Corps involved in a wide
variety of conflicts, from the Seminole Wars to the Mexican-American
War; Marines even reached China and Japan. As the prospect of civil war
began to threaten the United States, a small battalion of Marines was
responsible for the capture of abolitionist John Brown at Harper's Ferry
on October 18, 1859. The diverse operations and evolving appearance of
the Marines are captured in this absorbing study from an acknowledged
authority on US military costume.
