From two battalions raised by the Continental Congress in 1775 to the Corps of today: the wars and battles the Marines fought, the leaders who shaped them, and the traditions they carry. **How to read it.** Wars and campaigns are durations, with a picture behind the timeline while they last; battles, milestones and people are moments with their picture. Chapter headings mark the eras. Hover over a cluster of moments to fan it out, and open any moment for its full notes and sources. Related events (a leader and their battle, a battle and its war) are linked. **Sources and images.** Each event links the Wikipedia article it draws on. Images are linked, not copied, from Wikimedia Commons, where most are US government works in the public domain; open an image's original for its author and license. Dates are given in UTC; where only the month or year is known, the notes say so.
102 moments · 1775-04-19T00:00:00Z CE – 2025-11-10T00:00:00Z CE · by @athan · @athan
The cake-cutting ceremony is made standard
tradition
birthday
Commandant **Lemuel C. Shepherd Jr.** standardized the birthday celebration, including the cake-cutting ceremony, which entered the Marine drill manual in 1956. The first slice goes to the guest of honor; the second to the **oldest Marine present, who passes it to the youngest**, as experience is handed to the next generation. *(The day is not recorded; the moment marks the year.)* **Read more:** [Marine Corps birthday ball — Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marine_Corps_birthday_ball) *Image: Wikimedia Commons (the youngest and oldest Marine at a 230th birthday ceremony, 2005; U.S. Navy photo).*
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