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1st Battalion, 3d Marines
The origin of the “Lava Dogs” nickname lies in the combination of the USMC nickname “Devil Dogs” and “lava,” the foundation of the Hawaiian Islands, specifically Oahu, which 1st Battalion, 3d Marine Regiment calls home. The battalion deploys to the Pohakuloa Training Area (PTA) on the Big Island of Hawaii several times annually to conduct its most rigorous and severe training. The training area consists of sharp and jagged pumice stone in many different shapes, sizes and compositions, all referred to as “lava dogs.” The Marines of 1st Battalion, 3d Marines have had their combat boots and bodies chewed often by these lava dogs throughout the years. This wear while operating in the shadow of Mauna Kea, however, did not deter them from their mission. The “Devil Dogs” of 1st Battalion, 3d Marines are as sharp and rabid as the “lava dogs” of PTA. They both are vicious in the attack and a formidable obstacle in the defense. Also, like the “lava dogs” of PTA, the Lava Dogs of 1st Battalion, 3d Marines will be around for a long, long time. A Brief History of 1st Battalion, 3rd Marines On 1 May 1942 the 1st Training Battalion was activated at New River, NC. A month and a half later, on the 17 June, the unit was redesignated as the 1st Battalion of the 3d Marine Regiment. After completing a rigorous training program at New River, the battalion set sail for the South Pacific and conducted amphibious operations training in American Samoa, Guadalcanal and New Zealand. The battalion received its combat baptism in November 1943 against the Japanese on the Island of Bougainville. The Japanese were a formidable foe, and the fighting was complicated by deep swamps and dense jungles. The battalion fought with distinction for nearly two months before being sent to Guadalcanal to prepare for the next leg of the Pacific island-hopping campaign. Guam was the next combat assignment for 1st Battalion, 3d Marines. The amphibious assault began on 21 July 1944. Shortly after landing, the battalion took heavy casualties, once again encountering a tenacious enemy. The fighting proved both bloody and costly. When organized resistance officially ended on 10 August and Guam was declared “secured,” a large number of Japanese troops remained at large in the jungle, refusing to surrender. The battalion participated in “mopping-up” operation through the latter part of October. In early 1945, 1st Battalion, 3d Marines embarked on its next mission. As part of Regimental Combat Team 3, it was to be part of the “floating reserve” for the amphibious assault on the Island of Iwo Jima. The battalion, however, was never called upon to land or to take part in the battle for Iwo Jima. Instead, it returned to Guam in March where it continued to remove the small pockets of Japanese resistance. The battalion remained on Guam through the surrender of the Japanese in September of 1945. Although the end of the war signified the end of hostilities, much work remained to be done. The islands in the Pacific held by the Japanese had to be demilitarized and the Japanese forces repatriated to mainland Japan. This job fell to 1st Battalion, 3d Marines, soon to be known as the “Chichi Jima” Marines. Chichi Jima was an Island fortress, often referred to as the Gibraltar of the Pacific, located in the Ogasawara Island chain, 615 miles south of Tokyo. After 14 years of war in China and the Pacific, Japan had arrived at a mortifying surrender. At exactly 1015 13 December 1945 the Japanese flag flying over Chichi Jima was lowered from its staff. The Japanese color guard folded the flag and presented it to the Commanding Officer of 1st Battalion, 3d Marines. At 1025, the Marine Drum and Bugle Corps sounded colors and everyone present, American and Japanese alike, rendered a salute as “Old Glory” unfurled above their heads. With the Japanese threat removed from Chichi Jima, 1st Battalion, 3d Marines returned to Guam where it was deactivated on 9 February 1946. The outbreak of the Korean War in 1950 found the Marine Corps woefully equipped and under strength. Several units deactivated at the end of the World War II were quickly reactivated. On 10 July 1951, 1st Battalion, 3d Marines was reactivated at Camp Pendleton, CA. The battalion readied itself for war on the Korean Peninsula and embarked for the Far East in August 1953. An armistice had been signed, ending the fighting, but 1/3 continued its deployment to Japan to become a garrison force. Its permanent home was changed in March 1957 when it was moved to Okinawa. While stationed in the Far East, the battalion engaged in numerous training exercises in Japan, the Philippines and Korea. After six years in the Far East, the battalion was ordered back to the United States. 1st Battalion, 3d Marines set sail for San Diego on 4 September 1959, as part of a Battalion Transplacement Program. Following its arrival at San Diego, the battalion moved to Camp Pendleton where it was assigned to the 1st Marine Division. On 25 October 1959, the battalion was attached to the 5th Marine Regiment. Its official designation as 1st Battalion, 3d Marines, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division lasted more than a year. The designation was dropped on 31 December 1960. The next day, 1/3 was reestablished back on Okinawa as part of the 3d Marine Division. The American government, by 1965, had decided that it was necessary to increase its efforts in meeting Communist aggression in the Republic of Vietnam. Accordingly, American ground forces were ordered to the war-torn country. 1st Battalion, 3d Marines became the second American infantry unit to enter South Vietnam. The battalion began its movement, via air, to Da Nang in early March 1965, and completed its movement by mid-March. Less than six months after its arrival, 1/3 was withdrawn to Okinawa. The battalion was sent back to Vietnam on 18 November 1965. While in Vietnam, 1st Battalion, 3d Marines participated in operations such as MALLARD (January 1966), HASTINGS (Summer 1966), PRAIRIE (Fall 1966-Spring 1967), HICKORY (May and July 1967), KENTUCKY (Fall 1967), and OSCEOLA (Winter 1968). The 1968 Tet Offensive ushered in a new wave of intense combat activity for the Marines. In May 1968, 1/3 found itself heavily engaged in fighting North Vietnamese units at the village of Dai Do near the Cua Viet River. In 1969, the United States began slowly withdrawing combat units from Southeast Asia. One of the first Marine units to be notified to commence stand down operations was 1st Battalion, 3d Marines. The unit departed South Vietnam for the United States on 5 October 1969. Towards the end of the month, the battalion arrived in California and was located again at Camp Pendleton. Effective 18 November 1969, it was reduced to zero strength. On 27 November 1969, it was reestablished at MCAS, Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii as part of the 1st Marine Brigade. The battalion participated in numerous exercises throughout the Western Pacific during the 1970’s and 1980’s. Then in September 1990, 1st Battalion, 3d Marines deployed to Saudi Arabia to participate in Operations Desert Shield, Desert Storm and the Liberation of Kuwait. The battalion was deployed to Southwest Asia from September 1990 to April 1991, at which time 1st Battalion, 3d Marines returned to Kaneohe Bay. After returning from Southwest Asia, 1st Battalion, 3d Marines resumed its position as a 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade (MEB) Unit Deployment Program (UDP) battalion. Since then, 1/3 has participated in numerous deployments to Okinawa, and conducted several training exercises at the Pohakuloa Training Area on the Big Island of Hawaii, the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai and in Australia. From May 1991 to August 1994, the battalion practiced a rigorous training regimen, in order to maintain its combat readiness. In September 1994, 1st MEB was deactivated and 1/3 was reassigned to the 3d Marine Division. Throughout the 1990’s, 1/3 participated in numerous exercises including: Joint Task Force Garden Isle (Hurricane Iniki Relief), Kauai, Sep 1992; JTF Restore Hope, Somalia, Dec 1992; Exercise Balikatan, Republic of the Philippines, Nov 1993; the biennial Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise, Hawaii, Jun 1994; Exercise Cobra Gold, Thailand, May 1995; World War II Commemoration Ceremony, Oahu, Sep 1995; Exercise Gold Eagle (Australian Exchange), May 1994 and Feb 1996; Exercise Foal Eagle, Republic of Korea, Oct 1996; JTF Pacific Haven, Guam, Dec 1996. After the terrorist attacks on 11 September 2001, 1/3 took an immediate role in defense of the nation, at home and overseas. Operation Enduring Freedom saw 1/3 Marines actively participating in providing force-protection reinforcements to numerous bases on the island of Okinawa and providing security in the Persian Gulf for Military Sealift Command ships. Operation Enduring Freedom also saw Marines from 1/3 in the Philippines, providing road construction and base camp security for the Naval Mobile Construction Battalion, 1st and 4th Airdets, U.S Navy Sea Bees and the 9th Engineering Support Battalion on Basilan Island. Base camp security was conducted at Camp Hurricane, Camp Austin, Camp Texas and Camp Alaska, while work site security missions took place at numerous towns and villages in the Maluso, Sumisip and Tipo Tipo regions of the island. Next, 1st Battalion, 3d Marines deployed with the 31st MEU in July 2004. They were called to head toward the Persian Gulf to assist with growing conflict and later entered Iraq in October of 2004. The Marines and Sailors of 1/3 took part in the Battle of Fallujah II, where some of the fiercest urban warfare took place since Hue City. From there the Marines and Sailors of 1/3 conducted security operations for the first Iraqi elections without incident. Initially 1/3 set out on a regular six month UDP 1/3 but was extended for 10 months in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom returning to Hawaii in April 2005. Most recently, 1st Battalion, 3d Marines deployed to Afghanistan in January 2006. 1/3 executed a number of operations, the most significant being Operation Mountain Lion, which was a combined effort by the Afghan National Army and Coalition Forces to remove the enemy’s sanctuary in the Korengal Valley and set the conditions in the area for a permanent Government presence. Operation Mountain Lion was the largest operation conducted in Afghanistan since Operation Anaconda. As the main effort, 1st Battalion, 3d Marines executed a combined ground and heliborne assault, with eleven Marine and Afghan platoons landing in HLZs above the seven thousand foot line in under an hour . Accomplishing the mission and completing a transfer of authority, 1/3 redeployed to Hawaii in May 2006, the last Marine Corps unit to deploy to Afghanistan. 1st Battalion, 3d Marines has made its place in the history of the United States Marine Corps and is ready for action whenever our nation calls. Whether it is serving as a quick reaction force on the island of Oahu, or combating terrorism in Iraq or Afghanistan and throughout the world, 1/3 is the tip of the spear and battle ready. MA KAU KAU! | ||
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Last updated 4 March 2011 |
