|
|---|
|
World War II era Officer Rank Structure The U. S. Marine Corps used the standard military structure to identify officer ranks. This system developed over many decades after the Corps was established by the Continental Congress on 10 November 1775. Officers wore full size rank insignia on the epaulets of blouses and coats. They wore miniature rank on the collar points of shirts. As a general rule, rank insignia was not worn on dungaree blouses in combat areas. FLAG OFFICERS
General officers commanded large units and served in other high level billets. The Commandant of the Marine Corps was the senior Marine. At the outbreak of war, Gen Thomas Holcomb was serving in this capacity. Congress promoted him to lieutenant general on 20 January 1942. In 1945 Congress advanced the Commandant to the rank of general. Gen A. A. Vandegrift was the Commandant at that time and he was promoted on 4 April 1945. The Marine Corps used the practice of "tombstone promotions" to recognize outstanding performance by retiring general officers. These promotions took effect upon retirement and the Marine was ceremonially advanced to the next higher rank. Among the officers who received tombstone promotions for World War II service were Gen Holcomb, and Gen H. M. Smith, one of the architects of amphibious warfare and commander of the Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, during the war. Gen Roy Geiger, who commanded both ground and air units during the war, also received a tombstone promotion following his death on 23 Jan 1947.
Field grade officers were the middle managers of the Marine Corps. They provided the vital link between small level front line units and the higher command echelons. In general, these officers served at the battalion and regimental level. Field grade officers also served in staff billets in higher echelon commands.
Company grade officers led small units in combat and training. These Marines were a vital link in the chain of command and they were directly responsible for the welfare, training, morale and proficiency of their troops. With its hard driving ethos of officers leading from the front, the Marine Corps suffered heavy losses in young officers during World War II. Officers entered the Marine Corps under several commissioning programs. A small number of graduating midshipmen from the U. S. Naval Academy received commissions as Marine officers each year. Many newly minted second lieutenants came out of the Naval Reserve Officers Training Course. Thousands of officers went through the gates of MCB, Quantico, in the Reserve Officer Classes. Another important source of officers was the Special Officer Candidate School conducted at MCB, Camp Lejeune in 1944. The Marine Corps also used other sources for officer procurement. For instance, numerous enlisted Marines received commissions during the war. Finally, the Corps had several programs to recruit officers with specialized skills. Among these were public relations specialists, attorneys, etc. Aviators were assessed through the V-12 program, the Naval Academy and other sources.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This site is owned & maintained by Mark Flowers, copyright 2004, all rights reserved.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
