This branch of the U.S. military was at first
created to deal with invasions from water and invading via the water, but the marines
do a bit of everything now. In 1834, the marines became part of the U.S.
navy, but they go back to 1775. Presently there are around 186,000 active
members and 38,500 reserves. It’s the smallest of the seven U.S. uniformed
services – by those we mean Navy, Army, Air Force, etc. There is also a special branch of the marine
corps, which is the “United States Marine Corps Special Operations Command.” This command often deals with more covert
operations. It’s all a bit confusing as the U.S. military
is comprised of so many parts, but we’ll help explain everything. Welcome to this episode of the Infographics
Show, 50 Shocking Facts about US Marines. 50. What do they do? Just like we did in our other shows, we have
to give you some basics before we get into facts you probably don’t already know. Unlike the regular Navy, the marines spend
much of their time on land, though they might capture naval bases or defend them. As you’ll find out, they are kind of military
multi-taskers, and many times they have been the main force in land battles. So really, the name “marines” can be a
bit misleading. 49. Let the Marines explain
Here’s the Marines’ own mission statement: “We are forward deployed to respond swiftly
and aggressively in times of crisis. We are soldiers of the sea, providing forces
and detachments to naval ships and shore operations. We are global leaders, developing expeditionary
doctrine and innovations that set the example, and leading other countries' forces and agencies
in multinational military operations. These unique capabilities make us "First to
Fight," and our nation's first line of defense.” 48. What qualifications do you need to join? You must be American, mentally stable, i.e.
a history of meth abuse and related-psychoses in your teens won’t go down well in the
interview. You need a high school diploma or GED. 90
percent of marines have a high school diploma, some have GEDs and a very small percentage
have neither. One military site says there are 35 career
fields in the marines, so you’ll be chosen to do what you are good at. 47. What else? You must be at least 17, but if you are that
age you’ll need your parents’ permission to join. You can be as old as 28, according to Stars
and Stripes. It depends on what you can offer or what you
want to do. 46. How fit do you have to be? Ok, so you don’t have to be quite as trim
as a UFC middleweight, but you do have to be reasonably fit. We went to the actual marine’s website to
see what you have to do. We can’t go through it all, but basically
you must be decent at pull ups, push ups and crunches. You then have to run a three-mile (4.8km)
run in 28 minutes or less. That’s not really hard for most people who
jog a bit. You then have a series of combat fitness tests. All these are scored and for female marines
there are different limits for the tests. But before you even start that, you can’t
look like you’ve lived most of your life playing Mario Kart and eating double-cheese
pizza. The marine’s website tells you to contact
a marine to find out body requirements, and we don’t really want to sign up ourselves. We found one site that says they prefer men
between 5 feet and 6 feet 8 inches tall and that weigh less than 255 pounds. Those are pretty wide parameters, but if you
are out of shape boot camp might prove to be difficult. 45. Is boot camp hard, like in the movies? “Are you eyeballing me son!” Is boot camp hard? The short answer is yes. Military.com writes, “Marine boot camp is
extremely challenging – both physically and mentally – considered to be tougher
than the basic training programs of any of the other military services.” There are three phases lasting 70 days, and
yes, your drill instructor is usually tough on you. One of the last phases is to deprive you of
sleep and not feed you much while you go on a grueling march. It’s called The Crucible. After boot camp you’ll be sent for more
training at your respective school. 44. Nah, not for me
Between 11 and 14 percent of people don’t get through boot camp. 43. And for some people it really wasn’t for
them In 2018, a marine dropped dead from a heart
attack in San Diego. 42. Killing your DI
We can’t find any stories of marines killing their drill instructor, but in 2008 four marines
murdered a United States Marine Corps Sergeant Jan Paweł Pietrzak. It had nothing to do with bad feelings, though. This was not a Full Metal Jacket scenario,
just bad people that did bad things. 41. The first raid
Let’s get lighter and more historical. The first ever raid by the marines came just
after they were founded when they stole a bunch of weapons from the Brits in the Bahamas. 40. Famous marines who don’t look the part
Way too many famous people to mention, so we’ll give you a few names that surprised
us: Jim Beaver, the guy that wrote the show Deadwood. Drew Carey, comedian and TV star who looks
like he might have struggled with the pull ups if he wasn’t much slimmer in those days. The Everly Brothers, old school musicians. Carlo Mastrototaro, a Mafia boss. Tom Monaghan, the man that gave America Domino’s
pizza. Charles Ng, rapist and killer of 25 people
currently residing on Death Row in San Quentin. William Clark Styron Jr., one of America’s
most celebrated novelists. You might not be surprised that the list is
full of boxers and other athletes, as well as lots of politicians. 39. Heartburn
Marines must finish eating their meal the second their DI (drill instructor) finishes
his meal, which is why some people say marines eat really fast. 38. The Tavern
Now, some people dispute that this even happened this way. But as the story goes, the way the marines
got started was when two Captains, Robert Mullan and Samuel Nicholas, invited a bunch
of decent men for a beer at a place called the Tun Tavern. The National Museum of Marine Corps in Virginia
has a restaurant called the Tun Tavern. 37. A few good men
You’ve heard that phrase and it comes from an ad asking for marines to sign up to sail. The ad goes like this: “The Continental
ship Providence, now lying at Boston, is bound on a short cruise, immediately; a few good
men are wanted to make up her complement.” That was way back in 1779. 36. Tough Dogs
While the British Bulldog has been used to symbolize the stubbornness and hard temperament
of Winston Churchill, as well as being painted in the past on tough guy’s arms, the marines
actually use it as its mascot. What’s kinda funny though for all those
tough guys and marines, is that this breed suffers lots of health problems and usually
dies at a young age. 35. Change the mascot
Shih Tzu’s and Chihuahuas have one of the longest life expectancies. 34. Toy Heroes
Not many people know that Toys for Tots was started by the marine reserves. They have collected over 500 million toys
since they started in 1947. The idea came from Major Bill Hendricks, who
took inspiration from seeing his wife donate toys. It’s not all about being tough and killing
people. 33. Super Rabbit
Bugs Bunny was made honorary Marine master sergeant for his performance in the cartoon
Super-Rabbit. Very few people receive this award, which
is given to “individuals in the civilian community who have made extraordinary contributions
to the Marine Corps.” Chuck Norris gained that honor, too, as did
comedian Bob Hope. 32. Jarhead
The term jarhead was given to marines during world war two. Some say it was because of their “high and
tight” haircut but others say it was more about how the neck of their uniforms was high
and so it made their heads look like jars. Most people on forums discussing this say
it was the hair, not the clothes. 31. Leatherneck
Another name for a marine is leatherneck. This originated in the 19th century when a
marine’s uniform consisted of a very hard and high leather neck. Why? So, a bayonet couldn’t penetrate a marine’s
neck. 30. Devils
The Germans gave the name of “teufel hunden” to the U.S. marines in the first world war. The marines were sent to save Paris from invading
Germans and did a tremendous job. That German phrase above translates to devil
dogs. 29. The big man
The first ever officer of the marines, then called the Continental Marines, was called
Major Samuel Nicholas. He was the guy that was responsible for that
Tun Tavern event, but it’s thought he went around lots of taverns looking for able men
to fight. He was a Freemason of a Masonic Lodge and
a good recruiter. He fought in many battles and died only after
he retired from the marines, when yellow fever got him in 1790. His birthday, 10 November, is now the marine
corps birthday. 28. Honor and ethics
If you read the manual for becoming a marine a big part of the training is about teaching
men to be honorable soldiers. While their job is to defend and kill, they
also learn how to do that ethically. This is why they have the motto “Semper
Fidelis”, which is Latin for “Always Faithful”. Faithful not only to the marines, but to the
country and to the values they have been taught. 27. PTSD
That’s not always easy when you have PTSD. It’s said around 8 percent of Americans
will get PTSD at some point in their lives, but as for people in the military that goes
up to 11 to 30 percent. 26. Not enough help
One ex-marine writes, “In the military, young people are indoctrinated into a warrior
culture. When they’re sent to boot camp and then
to war, they are required to do extreme things in order to survive.” Some don’t cope well. The US National Institute of Health writes
that veterans don’t get enough help, and many turn to drink, drugs and worse. It writes, “Our findings suggest that mental
health disparities are often a leading factor to the high suicide rates among veterans who
experience depression and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.” You’ve all seen the movies. Perhaps that phrase “Semper Fidelis” should
work both ways, not just when the government wants men to fight but when it has to take
responsibility for the consequences of war. 25. Marines have it tough
Suicides among all veterans is about double that of American civilians. In fact, in 2016 a Pentagon report said, “Suicide
kills more troops than Islamic State.” This might be all the military, but let’s
remember the marines are often right in the mix and have one of the hardest jobs. One report, although from 2010, said more
marines kill themselves than any other branch of the military. Not by much, though. The army was second, and the navy was much
lower than both. 24. The marines have their own hymn
This is the first verse: “From the Halls of Montezuma
To the shores of Tripoli; We fight our country's battles
In the air, on land, and sea; First to fight for right and freedom
And to keep our honor clean; We are proud to claim the title
Of United States Marine.” 23. What does it mean? The Halls of Montezuma refers to the battle
of Chapultepec in 1847, the Marines took Chapultepec Castle in Mexico City and the took the city
in the Mexican-American War. The second line refers the Barbary War in
the early 1800s when the United States and Sweden went up against some North African
states. You can actually learn a lot just from analyzing
the full song. There are pirates involved, and who doesn’t
like reading about pirates. 22. Normandy Invasion
One of the things some people find strange is that it was the American army who made
up most of the Normandy invasion and not the marines. Storming the land from the sea, isn’t that
what the marines are trained to do? The reason was simply about numbers. The army had 89 divisions in the war and the
Marines had just 6. The marines were scattered around the world,
especially the Pacific, and the army had enough troops for the invasion. 21. Marines in other worlds
It’s often Marines that are depicted fighting on other planets. They ended up in the film Aliens, in the movie
Avatar as the “jarhead Clan” and also in the video game Doom. 20. How to save your friends
A marine called Jason Lee Dunham was posthumously given the medal of honor for an act of valor. The marine serving in Iraq with the 3rd Battalion
7th Marines threw himself on a grenade and tried to cover it with his helmet. It exploded and he was very seriously hurt. His comrades however were not seriously hurt. Gunham was evacuated but his injuries were
grave, and his life support was turned off in 2004. During the posthumous presentation of the
medal of honor the first few lines read, “For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the
risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty.” 19. Getting there fast
In 2002 the U.S, air force and the marines began a project called “Small Unit Space
Transport and Insertion”, the acronym being SUSTAIN. The object was to be able to deploy marines
anywhere on the planet within just two hours or less. Suborbital spacecraft would be used to make
this happen. “We've batted ideas back and forth," said
one of the main people involved, regarding the challenge. We can’t find how the program has progressed
recently. 18. Bambi was a marine
The kid that did the voice for the cute deer Bambi, an animated movie made back in 1942,
became a marine. His name is Donald "Donnie" Roan Dunagan. He’s 83 today, but in his younger days – post-Bambi
– he served in the marines and was awarded a Bronze Star and three Purple Hearts. That’s a tough little deer. 17. No girl left behind
In the book, “Goodnight Saigon” by Charles Henderson, it’s written that during the
Evacuation of Saigon by American Troops in 1975 one marine called Gregory Hargis drove
a truck full of prostitutes to an airstrip and put them on a C-141. He said they were his friends and signed a
responsibility form for them. This is some of the dialogue in the book:
“Where we go,” they chimed together. “You go stateside,” Hargis called back. 16. Reckless
The marines had a horse they named Reckless, but we are not sure how conscious the horse
was of its recklessness. During the Korean War the warhorse carried
ammunition, wounded soldiers and more. She made many, many missions and was injured
for her efforts. She was awarded 2 purple hearts and became
a staff sergeant. 15. Hard Times
The New York Times reported in 2009 that when times are tough economically in the USA and
the marines have enough recruits they would change their ads. Rather than tempt folks to join they would
make marine life look really hard. When numbers fall, expect to see more enticing
ads. 14. Peyote
Again, from the New York Times, there is a report in 1997 that tells us native Americans
were allowed to take peyote – containing the psychedelic drug mescaline – in the
marines in spite of antidrug policies. It was decided they could on the grounds of
their religion, but not on the battlefield of course. 13. Feed your head
The marines are given a reading list. Marines must read history, some biographies,
and lots about war. They must also read the U.S. Constitution. It states on the Library of the Marine Corps
website, “I want Marines to read beyond the list, too, especially paying attention
to current events, science and technology and what our potential adversaries are up
to around the world.” 12. The Drill
A marine was saved by ad hoc brain surgery partly using a Black and Decker drill. The surgeon was CNN chief medical correspondent
Dr Sanjay Gupta. In 2007 the doctor wrote in a CNN article,
“I remember the day well. It was in April of 2003. A 23-year-old Marine, Jesus Vidana, suddenly
fell to the ground, his helmet and head bloodied by a sniper's bullet.” Gupta writes that the marine survived and
did well, saying he wouldn’t be telling you the story if it hadn’t gone that way. 11. Older than the actual country
The US marine corps is actually older than the USA itself, which you should know if you
now your history. It was formed one year before the Declaration
of Independence. 10. Talking down the enemy
At the battles for Saipan and Tinian islands in 1944 during World War II a US marine called
Guy Louis Gabaldon is said to have convinced 1,300 Japanese soldiers to surrender. How did he do this? After shining shoes on Skid Row and joining
a gang he went to live with a Japanese family when he was 12. He learned the language and their customs. For his efforts he became known as the ‘The
Pied Piper of Saipan’. 9. Raising the flag
One of the soldiers from that famous moment in history when soldiers raised the American
flag on Mount Suribachi during the Battle of Iwo Jima in world war two, was actually
color blind. It’s said he got in the marines by memorizing
what another man had said in the tests. He was killed in action a week after that
flag was raised. 8. Look smart
Stars and Stripes writes that when marines are in uniform they should always be well
groomed. But another thing they are told not to do
is put their hands in their pockets. “Again, if you are in the field and it is
cold, and you don’t have gloves, common sense says, put your hands in your pocket,
but you better not do it in garrison,” said Mary Boyt, of the Marine Corps Uniform Board. But what if you have an itch in a certain
spot? Stars and Stripes didn’t ask that question. 7. And if it rains? Male marines are not allowed to carry umbrellas. This was called a silly rule by some American
media after conservatives were apparently outraged at a photo of a marine holding an
umbrella over President Barrack Obama. By the way, female marines can hold umbrellas. 6. Drinking snake blood
Every year American marines visit Thailand and do all kinds of jungle exercises. It’s known as Cobra Gold and is a big deal
in the Thai media. It culminates with U.S. marines cutting off
a cobra’s head and drinking its blood. 5. The hidden pin
Some marines have a pin with their next rank they could be promoted to somewhere on their
uniform, but they often keep that pin covered. 4. Cake Time
During the marine corps birthday every year there is cake. The first piece is given to the guest of honor,
the second to the oldest marine at the party and the third to the youngest marine. We guess then it’s a free-for-all. 3. The band
The marines have had a band since 1798, which has been performing for American presidents
at their inauguration since Thomas Jefferson in 1801. It’s called “The President’s Own.” It’s usually pretty formal music, although
Theodore Roosevelt’s daughter Alice asked the band to perform a Scott Joplin ragtime
number. 2. Loss of life
While marines died in small numbers in the 18th and 19th centuries, it wasn’t until
World War I’s Battle of Belleau Wood that huge numbers died in one battle. It’s said around 5,000 marines died. 1. Carrying a lot of money around
Star Spangled Flags wrote in 2017 that these days each marine carries about $14,000 worth
of gear and equipment, and that’s not even including night-vision goggles. The Huffington Post writes that top of the
range goggles can cost as much as $20,000. They can be much cheaper, but we guess the
marines have the good stuff. It’s also said that in the early 2000s marines
would carry just $2,500 worth of gear. So, are there any other shocking facts about
the US Marines that we didn’t mention? Let us know in the comments! Also, be sure to check out our other video
called 50 Shocking Facts About the Cold War! Thanks for watching, and, as always, don’t
forget to like, share, and subscribe. See you next time!
