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Abstract

The central question of this research is how the United States Marine Corps shifted from an auxiliary naval force to an elite, mobile fighting force, and the role that the Battle of Belleau Wood played in that transformation. The Battle of Belleau Wood, fought from June 1-26, 1918, in France during the First World War, was a pivotal engagement where untested American forces were able to stop and drive back the German advance in the Chateau-Thierry sector. While there were both Marines and Army soldiers present at the battle, newspapers disproportionally showed the Marines’ actions, which created a public image of an elite and effective fighting force. This publicity that the Marines received would then be used after the war to show their relevance as a force. For this research, I looked at a wide range of primary sources in addition to some trustworthy secondary sources with some key sources including With the Help of God and a Few Good Marines: The Battles of Chateau Thierry and Belleau Wood by Albert Caitlus and And They Thought We Wouldn’t Fight by Floyd Gibbons. In addition to those sources, interviews, letters, and Congressional hearings were examined. I was able to use the sources to analyze the Marines’ effectiveness in the battle, the media attention that then followed, and the post war fight to remain a force. Additionally, research showed that because of the Battle of Belleau Wood, talks were initiated to reshape the Marine Corps into a rapidly deployable, elite, amphibious assault force compared to just a naval auxiliary force. Ultimately, while the United States Marine Corps had been in existence since 1775, it was the Battle of Belleau Wood set in motion its transformation into the force that it is today.

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