3rd Battalion 2nd Marines (3/2) is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina consisting of approximately 1000 Marines and Sailors. Nicknamed the "Betio Bastards," they fall under the command of the 2nd Marine Regiment of the 2nd Marine Division.
World War II
Activated 18 January 1941 at San Diego, California. They were assigned to the 2nd Marine Brigade during February 1941. Deployed to Koro Island with the 2nd Marine Division in June 1942. The battalion participated in the following World War II campaigns:
Guadalcanal
Tarawa
Saipan
Tinian
Okinawa
During the Battle of Tarawa, the battalion participated in the amphibious assault on and capture of the small island of Betio in the Tarawa atoll, earning them the nickname "the Betio Bastards."
Following the war the battalion stood occupation duty in Kagoshima, Japan until February 1946 when they redeployed to Camp Pendleton, California. The battalion was deactivated on 27 March 1946.
Post World War II history
3/2 was reactivated on 28 December 1950 at Camp Pendleton, and were again assigned to the 2nd Marine Division. They deployed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962
The battalion deployed to Saudi Arabia in August 1990 and participated in Operation Desert Storm in early 1991. In 1994 they participated in Operation Restore Hope in Somalia and Operation Deny Flight and Operation Provide Promise.
Global War on Terror
In 2003, 3/2 deployed to Kuwait as part of Task Force Tarawa and beginning in March supported Operation Iraqi Freedom. The battalion participated in the battle of Nasiriyah .During this deployment 3/2 had 1 Marine, Sgt. Nicholas M. Hodson, of Springfield, MO killed in action.
During 2004, 3/2 was designated as the AT (anti-terrorism) battalion and was assigned to different areas around the globe. The battalion was spread between Afghanistan, Djibouti, and Cuba.
The battalion again deployed to Iraq in February 2005. The battalion launched major combat operations Operation Matador, Operation Spear, and Operation Quick Strike. They conducted security and stabilization operations in Al Anbar Province until September 2005. During this deployment 3/2 had 3 Marines killed in action.
The battalion again deployed to Iraq in the July 2006. They conducted security and stabilization operations in the Al Anbar Province in the city of Habbaniyah until mid February 2007. During this deployment the battalion had 14 Marines killed in action.
The battalion again deployed to Iraq in October 2007 operating in the Al Qaim region of the Al Anbar Province with Iraqi Police and Iraqi Army. During this deployment the battalion suffered a few casualties, and had a widespread area of operation along the Syrian border and Euphrates river. The Battalion again deployed to the Persian Gulf in May-December 2009 as the Battalion Landing Team for the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit. In January 2010 the battalion was dispatched as part of the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit to take part in the relief effort following the 2010 Haiti earthquake.
In February 2011, 3/2 was deployed to the Musa Qal'eh and Now Zad districts of Helmand Province, Afghanistan to engage in combat operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. 3/2 returned in September 2011.
Description
The Guadalcanal Campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal and codenamed Operation Watchtower by Allied forces, was a military campaign fought between 7 August 1942 and 9 February 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in the Pacific theatre of World War II. It was the first major offensive by Allied forces against the Empire of Japan.
On 7 August 1942, Allied forces, predominantly American, landed on the islands of Guadalcanal, Tulagi, and Florida in the southern Solomon Islands with the objective of denying their use by the Japanese to threaten the supply and communication routes between the US, Australia, and New Zealand. The Allies also intended to use Guadalcanal and Tulagi as bases to support a campaign to eventually capture or neutralize the major Japanese base at Rabaul on New Britain. The Allies overwhelmed the outnumbered Japanese defenders, who had occupied the islands since May 1942, and captured Tulagi and Florida, as well as an airfield (later named Henderson Field) that was under construction on Guadalcanal. Powerful US naval forces supported the landings.
Surprised by the Allied offensive, the Japanese made several attempts between August and November 1942 to retake Henderson Field. Three major land battles, seven large naval battles (five nighttime surface actions and two carrier battles), and continual, almost daily aerial battles culminated in the decisive Naval Battle of Guadalcanal in early November 1942, in which the last Japanese attempt to bombard Henderson Field from the sea and land with enough troops to retake it was defeated. In December 1942, the Japanese abandoned further efforts to retake Guadalcanal and evacuated their remaining forces by 7 February 1943 in the face of an offensive by the US Army's XIV Corps, conceding the island to the Allies.
The Guadalcanal campaign was a significant strategic combined arms victory by Allied forces over the Japanese in the Pacific theatre. The Japanese had reached the high-water mark of their conquests in the Pacific, and Guadalcanal marked the transition by the Allies from defensive operations to the strategic offensive in that theatre and the beginning of offensive operations, including the Solomon Islands, New Guinea, and Central Pacific campaigns, that resulted in Japan's eventual surrender and the end of World War II.
