"Once
A Marine," the engaging memoirs of Alexander A. Vandegrift -
eighteenth Commandant of the U.S. Marine
Corps, is a remarkable
story. The story is that of a leader who dedicated forty years of
his life in service to his country, his Corps, and his fellow
Marines. He did it all with personal humility and without losing
perspective of the Corps' role in American government and society.
This book is an important part of any World War II or Marine Corps
collection.
Heirs to a storied past
and glamorized as modern-day knights, the Marine Corps--the elite
fighting force in America's military--in fact has not always been so
highly regarded. As Jack Shulimson shows, only a century ago the
Corps' identity and existence were much in question. Although
the Marines were formally established by Congress in 1798 and
subsequently distinguished themselves fighting on the Barbary Coast,
their essential mission and identity remained unclear throughout
most of the nineteenth century. In this enlightening study,
Shulimson argues that the Marine Corps officers' inextricable ties
to the Navy both hampered and aided their attempt to define their
own special jurisdiction and professional identity. He reveals the
processes, politics, and personalities that converged to create
tense relations before Marine officers (with the Navy's blessing)
eventually transcended their second-class role.
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