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SPOTLIGHT ON MARINE HEROES #9
A SHORT HISTORY OF THE 3RD MARDIV IN WORLD WAR II The 3rd Marine Division officially activated 16 September 1942 at Camp Elliott, San Diego, California. It was built around the 9th Marines, commanded by Colonel Lemuel C. Shepherd, Jr. who later became the 20th Commandant of the Marine Corps. Major General Charles D. Barrett was the first Commanding General of the Division. As 1942 drew to a close the Division was still located at Camp Elliott. It busied itself organizing and training for action in the South Pacific. In January and February 1943 divisional elements moved to Auckland, New Zealand. By August 1943 the Division was stationed on Guadalcanal where special training and rehearsals for the Bougainville operation were intensified. On 1 November 1943 the Division landed at Empress Augusta Bay, Bougainville. For approximately two months the Division took part in the fight against stiff and heavy enemy resistance. On 16 January 1944, with the transfer of command in the area to the Army’s XIV Corps, the last elements of the Division returned to Guadalcanal. Following the Bougainville operation the Division began training for the next campaign. Verbal instructions received in February 1944 led to planning for an operation against the Japanese on Emirau Island. The projected Emirau operation was subsequently cancelled and instructions were received to initiate planning for an operation against enemy forces at Kavieng, New Ireland. This operation was also called off. A few days later the Division received word to start training for the amphibious assault against the Japanese on Guam, Marianas. Divisional elements embarked at Guadalcanal on 2 and 3 June 1944 and sailed for Kwajalein, Marshall Islands enroute to the Marianas. It remained afloat off Saipan from 15 to 28 June 1944 as part of the reserve force for the Saipan operation, then being carried out by the 2nd and 4th Marine Divisions in conjunction with the 27th Infantry Division. With the situation on Saipan well controlled the Division returned to its restaging area awaiting the target date for the Guam operation. On 21 July 1944, as a part of the Southern Troops and Landing Force, the Division landed on western beaches of Guam in the vicinity of Asan Point. After twenty days of savage fighting the divisional units reached the northern coast of the island. On 10 August 1944 Guam was declared secure. Until its departure for the Iwo Jima campaign, the Division remained on Guam taking part in the mopping up operations. By the middle of February 1945 the Division completed embarkation at Guam for participation in the Iwo Jima operation. Initially, the Division remained afloat off Iwo Jima as Expeditionary Troops Reserve. Elements began landing on 21 February. On 25 February, the 3d Marine Division launched an attack in its zone between the 4th and 5th Marine Divisions. The 3d Marine Division faced well-organized and determined enemy resistance. The terrain, ideal for defense, was heavily fortified by pillboxes, caves, and covered artillery emplacements. Progress was slow and casualties heavy during the first few days of fighting. The Division slowly pushed the enemy back and by 3 March had severed the last enemy east-west artery of communication by occupying positions overlooking the sea. The Division secured its zone of action on 11 March and then initiated intensive patrolling and mopping-up operations. On 16 March, units of the 3d Marine Division relieved elements of the 5th Division and delivered the final attack of the Iwo Jima operation – a drive to Kitano Point. Iwo Jima was declared secure on the same day. On 4 April the 3d Marine Division was relieved by Army units. By mid-April 1945 the Division was back on Guam preparing for the next operation. On 3 August 1945 the Battalion received initial plans for the "Olympic" operation which called for an amphibious landing of Kyushu about 1 November 1945. The 3d Marine Division, along with the 2nd and 5th Marine Divisions, was assigned to the V Amphibious Corps for the projected operation. Japan’s agreement to cease hostilities and subsequent surrender cancelled "Olympic", and the Division remained on Guam until its deactivation on 28 December 1945. Source: official history of Headquarters Battalion, 3rd Marine Division THE STORY OF THE 3RD MARDIV INSIGNIA
Source: Liberation: Marines in the Recapture of Guam by Cyril J. O'Brien
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The insignia of the 3rd Marine Division was adopted on 25 August 1943, when the Division was in training on Guadalcanal for the upcoming invasion of Bougainville. Approved in 3rd Marine Division Memorandum 274-43, the insignia consisted of a caltrop on a triangular, gold-bordered scarlet shield. The caltrop was a medieval defensive weapon used against both cavalry and infantry. During the warfare of the Middle Ages, large numbers of caltrops were scattered by defenders on the ground in front of an approaching enemy. The four-pronged, forged-iron caltrop was designed so that no matter which way it landed when thrown on the ground, one point would be up with the other three points supporting it. When used on the insignia, the caltrop represented not only the 3d Marine Division, but also the motto painted on the drums carried by the Continental Marines in the American Revolution: "Don't Tread on Me."