When the Korean War broke out in 1950, the Marine Corps was ordered
to deploy an air-ground brigade in less than ten days, even though
no such brigade existed at the time. Assembled from the woefully
understrength 1st Marine Division and 1st Marine Air Wing units,
the Brigade shipped out only six days after activation, sailed
directly to Korea, was in combat within ninety-six hours of landing
and, despite these enormous handicaps and numerically superior
enemy forces, won every one of its engagements and helped secure
the Pusan Perimeter.
Despite its remarkable achievements, the Brigade's history has
largely been lost amid accounts of the sweeping operations that
followed. Its real history has been replaced by myths that
attribute its success to tough training, great conditioning, unit
cohesion, and combat-experienced officers. None of which were true.
T. X. Hammes now reveals the real story of the Brigade's success,
prominently citing the Corps' crucial ability to maintain its
ethos, culture, and combat effectiveness during the period between
World War II and Korea, when its very existence was being
challenged.
By studying the Corps from 1945 to 1950, Hammes shows that it
was indeed the culture of the Corps-a culture based on remembering
its storied history and learning to face modern challenges-that was
responsible for the Brigade's success. The Corps remembered the
human factors that made it so successful in past wars, notably the
ethos of never leaving another marine behind. At the same time, the
Corps demonstrated commendable flexibility in adapting its doctrine
and operations to evolutions in modern warfare. In particular, the
Corps overcame the air-ground schism that marked the end of World
War II to excel at close air support. Despite massive budget and
manpower cuts, the Corps continued to experiment and learn even at
it clung to its historical lodestones. This approach was validated
during the Brigade's trial by fire.
More than a mere battle history, "Forgotten Warriors" gets to
the heart of marine culture to show fighting forces have to both
remember and learn. As today's armed forces face similar
challenges, this book confirms that culture as much as technology
prepares America's fighting men and women to answer their country's
call.
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