2nd Battalion, 4th Marines (2/4) is an infantry battalion of the United States Marine Corps. The battalion, nicknamed the Magnificent Bastards, is based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California and are a part of the 5th Marine Regiment and 1st Marine Division.
2nd Battalion, 4th Marines was constituted in April 1914 during World War I when it was activated as one of the three battalions of the 4th Marine Regiment.
Medal Honor - Vietnam -
LtCol Howard V Lee
Major [then Captain] Howard Vincent Lee (MCSN: 0-69961), United States Marine Corps, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty on 8 and 9 August 1966, while serving with Company E, Second Battalion, Fourth Marines, THIRD Marine Division (Reinforced), Fleet Marine Force, in action against enemy forces near Cam Lo, Republic of Vietnam.
Medal Honor - Vietnam -
MGen James Livingston
Captain James Everett Livingston (MCSN: 0-84449), United States Marine Corps, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty on 2 May 1968, while serving as Commanding Officer, Company E, Second Battalion, Fourth Marines, Ninth Marine Amphibious Brigade, in action against enemy forces at Dai Do, Quang Tri Province, Republic of Viet Nam.
Medal Honor - Vietnam -
Col Jay Vargas
Major Jay R. Vargas (MCSN: 0-83768), United States Marine Corps, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as Commanding Officer, Company G, Second Battalion, Fourth Marines, Ninth Marine Amphibious Brigade, THIRD Marine Division (Reinforced), Fleet Marine Force, in action against enemy forces at Dai Do, Quang Tri Province, Republic of Vietnam, from 30 April to 2 May 1968.
Medal Honor - Vietnam -
LCpl Jedh Colby Barker
Lance Corporal Jedh Colby Barker (MCSN: 2207369), United States Marine Corps, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty on 21 September 1967, while serving as a machine gunner with Company F, Second Battalion, Fourth Marines, THIRD Marine Division (Reinforced), Fleet Marine Force, in action near Con Thien, Republic of Vietnam.
Medal Honor - Vietnam -
LCpl Joe Calvin Paul
Lance Corporal Joe Calvin Paul (MCSN: 2033358), United States Marine Corps, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty on 18 August 1965, while serving with Company H, Second Battalion, Fourth Marines, THIRD Marine Division (Reinforced), Fleet Marine Force, in action against an armed enemy near Chu Lai, Republic of Vietnam.
Medal Honor - Vietnam -
Sgt Paul Hellstrom Foster
Sergeant Paul Hellstrom Foster (MCSN: 1903536), United States Marine Corps Reserve, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty on 14 October 1967, while serving as an artillery liaison operations chief with the Second Battalion, Fourth Marines, THIRD Marine Division (Reinforced), Fleet Marine Force, in action near Con Thien, Quang Tri Province, Republic of Vietnam.
Description
Operation Sharp Edge was a non-combatant evacuation operation carried out by the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit (22nd MEU) and 26th MEU of the United States Marine Corps in Liberia in 1990 and 1991. The MEUs were supported by U.S. Navy Amphibious Readiness Group including USS Saipan (LHA-2), USS Ponce (LPD 15), USS Sumter (LST 1181), Fleet Surgical Team TWO and the destroyer USS Peterson (DD 969).
The 22nd MEU was composed of Battalion Landing Team (BLT) 2nd Battalion 4th Marines (ground combat element), HMM-261 (REIN) (aviation combat element) and MSSG-22 (logistics combat element).
Company "H" of the 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines executed a pre-dawn vertical envelopment of the besieged U.S. Embassy, with 237 Marines inserted via medium and heavy lift Marine CH-53E Super Stallion and CH-46 Sea Knight helicopters. The landing zones were under sporadic fire from light, medium and heavy weapons from belligerents. "Hotel" Company secured an extended perimeter around the U.S. Embassy and began evacuation of other allied embassies. Ground elements were supported by U.S. Marine AH-1T SuperCobra helicopters and Marine AV-8B Harrier II attack aircraft. Simultaneously, elements of BLT 2/4 secured landing zones in the surrounding areas, extracting U.S. and foreign nationals. Non-combatants were flown off to the USS Saipan (LHA-2) and USS Ponce(LPD-15) for processing and ultimately Freetown, Sierra Leone. Although BLT 2/4 conducted the initial entry into the embassy, the Marines of BLT 3/8 with 26th MEU arrived on station and continued with the evacuation operations as the 22nd MEU began its retrograde and departure.
Following the initial 20 August 1990 evacuation by the 22nd MEU and her support elements, the MEU was relieved by the Company "K" and a detachment of Headquarters and Support (H&S) personnel of the 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment (designated as Battalion Landing Team 3/8), a part of the 26th MEU 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit embarked on the US Whidbey Island (LSD-41). Also present were embarked service support group elements from the MEU command element, as well as the USS Barnstable County, which was used to ferry evacuees out of Monrovia. Remaining on station for the next 121 days, the Marines and sailors of the USS Whidbey Island evacuated over 1000 civilian personnel from Monrovia, most of whom were subsequently transprted to Freetown, Sierra Leone aboard the accompanying USS Barnstable County (LST). The 26th MEU was relieved by FAST Company 5th Platoon of the Marine Corps circa December, 1990, when the USS Whidbey Island and her embarked troops steamed to the Mediterranean in anticipated support of the growing Operation Desert Shield.. All told, the 26 MEU and 22 MEU evacuated a total of 2,439 people between the summer of 1990 and 9 January 1991.
