WEBVTT 00:07.033 --> 00:09.572 (pensive piano music) 00:10.955 --> 00:13.006 - [Man] Heroes, to me, are the guys 00:13.006 --> 00:16.213 that I sweated and patrolled beside, 00:16.251 --> 00:18.501 and bled beside and fought beside. 00:19.611 --> 00:21.863 (somber music) 00:24.437 --> 00:27.420 - [Man] I didn't know if our next move was going to be our last. 00:27.835 --> 00:30.204 But one of the things that I did know, 00:30.204 --> 00:32.015 if we die, 00:32.015 --> 00:33.903 we're going to die with honor. 00:45.729 --> 00:47.456 - I, Roy Elrod-- 00:48.062 --> 00:49.682 - Do solemnly swear-- 00:50.386 --> 00:51.505 - To support and defend-- 00:52.953 --> 00:54.445 - The Constitution of the United States-- 00:55.457 --> 00:58.344 - Against all enemies foreign and domestic. 00:59.809 --> 01:02.799 - [Narrator] "It is the Warrior, not the poet, 01:02.799 --> 01:05.950 "who has given us freedom of speech. 01:06.817 --> 01:09.518 "It is the Warrior who salutes the flag, 01:09.518 --> 01:11.749 "who serves beneath the flag, 01:12.947 --> 01:15.537 "and whose coffin is draped by the flag. 01:16.745 --> 01:19.647 - That I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same-- 01:19.960 --> 01:23.584 - And that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States-- 01:23.637 --> 01:25.668 - And the orders of the officers appointed over me. 01:28.061 --> 01:29.723 - [Narrator] "He is the POW 01:29.723 --> 01:32.120 "who went away one man 01:32.120 --> 01:34.089 "and came back another 01:34.281 --> 01:38.484 "or hasn't come back at all. 01:40.340 --> 01:43.807 "It is the San Diego and Parris Island drill instructor 01:44.186 --> 01:47.698 "who saved countless lives by turning average individuals 01:47.698 --> 01:49.231 "into Marines 01:49.373 --> 01:52.239 "and teaching them to watch each other's back." 01:55.287 --> 01:56.924 - According to the regulations-- 01:57.463 --> 02:00.436 - And the Uniform Code of Military Justice. 02:00.878 --> 02:03.757 - [Narrator] "The Warrior is the parading Legionnaire 02:03.945 --> 02:07.881 "who pins on medals with a prosthetic hand. 02:09.898 --> 02:12.937 "He is an ordinary and extraordinary human being 02:13.929 --> 02:16.073 "who offered some of life's most vital years 02:16.073 --> 02:17.885 "in the service of his country, 02:18.741 --> 02:20.754 "and who sacrificed life's ambitions 02:20.754 --> 02:24.367 "so others would not have to sacrifice 02:24.367 --> 02:26.049 "their own. 02:28.109 --> 02:30.747 "It is the Warrior, a savior, 02:30.747 --> 02:33.417 "a sword against the darkness, 02:34.078 --> 02:36.356 "who has nothing more than the finest, 02:36.356 --> 02:40.231 "greatest testimony to and on behalf of 02:41.925 --> 02:45.562 "the finest and greatest nation ever known." 02:45.946 --> 02:48.047 - So help me God. 02:53.292 --> 02:55.926 (driving music) 03:02.900 --> 03:06.259 - [General James F Amos] For 238 years, United States Marines have served 03:06.444 --> 03:09.165 our great nation with unfailing valor, 03:09.280 --> 03:11.820 bolstered by the enduring fortitude of one another, 03:11.820 --> 03:14.033 their families, and their friends. 03:14.504 --> 03:16.707 This is why each year on November the 10th, 03:17.074 --> 03:19.772 Marines from all generations gather together, 03:20.298 --> 03:24.425 in groups both large and small, to celebrate the birthday of our Corps 03:24.660 --> 03:26.745 and to reflect on our proud legacy. 03:27.117 --> 03:29.358 With our fellow Warriors and beloved families, 03:29.470 --> 03:33.895 we congratulate each other and honor all those Marines who have gone before. 03:34.321 --> 03:38.003 They built our reputation as the most disciplined and honorable warriors 03:38.616 --> 03:40.473 to ever set foot on a battlefield. 03:41.469 --> 03:43.075 We have triumphed in every battle 03:43.259 --> 03:45.373 because our Corps is always focused 03:49.631 --> 03:52.764 2013 marks the anniversary of several touchstone battles 03:52.764 --> 03:54.601 in our celebrated history: 03:55.193 --> 03:58.431 the 70th anniversary of the 2nd Marine Division landing on Tarawa, 03:59.222 --> 04:01.460 the 45th anniversary of the Battle of Hue City, 04:02.203 --> 04:04.854 and the 10th anniversary of the march up to Baghdad. 04:05.550 --> 04:08.371 - [Norman Hatch] Was fortunate enough to be 04:08.371 --> 04:10.700 in one of the most 04:11.828 --> 04:14.067 extreme battles of the war, 04:15.451 --> 04:17.247 which was Tarawa. 04:18.389 --> 04:22.293 - My one year in Vietnam was basically jungle warfare where 04:22.773 --> 04:26.204 we experienced ambushes, fighting through the jungle, 04:27.230 --> 04:30.742 and suddenly, on my final weeks in Vietnam, 04:31.646 --> 04:34.285 we are fighting conventional warfare, 04:34.285 --> 04:36.402 building to building. 04:36.841 --> 04:40.992 It was just such a big adjustment for all of us. 04:42.870 --> 04:46.056 - And they started breaking out grenades 04:46.056 --> 04:48.242 and AT-4s and ammunition. 04:48.494 --> 04:51.267 And that's when it kind of sunk in, we're about to do something major. 04:51.324 --> 04:54.713 We loaded up and we drove to the outskirts of Fallujah. 04:54.713 --> 04:56.272 I was in the northwest corner. 04:56.272 --> 04:57.546 And I remember that berm. 04:57.546 --> 05:01.438 We all got in line and we're looking down at this massive city with all those minarets. 05:01.685 --> 05:05.415 - [Eddie Ray] The circumstance required us to do what we were trained to do. 05:05.749 --> 05:08.444 How we rehearsed and how we trained, 05:08.444 --> 05:10.859 quite frankly, we were just so well-trained. 05:11.814 --> 05:13.598 The Marines around me, 05:13.598 --> 05:17.509 I love them because they trusted me. 05:18.968 --> 05:21.605 They trusted me to make the kind of decisions 05:22.733 --> 05:26.449 that were going to put them in the place to win, no matter what the odds. 05:27.052 --> 05:29.340 - What good leaders do is, good leaders listen. 05:29.340 --> 05:32.463 They listen to their Marines. 05:32.568 --> 05:36.819 They may not be able to use all those ideas, but they listen to their Marines. 05:37.442 --> 05:41.908 - In every contest of combat, Marines have been successful because of our ethos 05:42.006 --> 05:44.040 and our absolute determination. 05:44.609 --> 05:45.596 This is who we are. 05:45.596 --> 05:47.796 Marines understand martial spirit. 05:48.290 --> 05:51.221 The warrior character of our Corps has been hard-earned 05:51.290 --> 05:53.079 by all those who have gone before. 05:53.879 --> 05:57.093 And no matter the odds, today's Marines will continue to carry the day 05:57.350 --> 05:59.807 with distinction and valor. 06:01.076 --> 06:03.174 - [Hatch] No military source ever considered 06:03.174 --> 06:05.943 the thought of a military landing 06:06.271 --> 06:10.527 against a heavily fortified beachhead and said it just couldn't be done. 06:11.159 --> 06:14.800 But the Marine Corps had slightly different ideas on that. 06:16.141 --> 06:19.193 - [Ventura] When we walked in, we were ambushed. 06:19.193 --> 06:21.041 U-shaped type of ambush. 06:21.437 --> 06:24.374 They hit us from the front, from the left, from the right. 06:25.567 --> 06:29.834 The majority of my men, because I was the first squad leader, 06:30.503 --> 06:33.147 were either wounded or killed in action. 06:34.857 --> 06:36.826 - The enemy, the NVA, had a machine gun. 06:37.930 --> 06:40.314 Our fire team got knocked down, we got them back in. 06:41.402 --> 06:43.293 What are we gonna do? 06:43.293 --> 06:44.985 How are we gonna make this happen? 06:45.160 --> 06:49.697 - [Funke] And I remember my platoon commander, he's like, "hey, Sergeant Funke, take command." 06:50.009 --> 06:52.095 And I remember, you know, it's not orders. 06:52.095 --> 06:54.960 I jump up and I did the ol' "follow me" 06:54.960 --> 06:56.715 and I ran down that berm 06:56.715 --> 06:58.846 and everybody followed behind me in my squad. 06:59.653 --> 07:01.567 And we ran and H.E. 07:01.567 --> 07:04.380 We started blowing holes in the buildings to make a foothold. 07:04.507 --> 07:06.406 - [Hatch] When they started to send the boats in, 07:06.954 --> 07:09.600 a boat would hit the reef, drop the ramp, 07:09.600 --> 07:12.506 and immediately a shell would land in the boat 07:12.506 --> 07:15.709 and the whole boat would be blown to pieces. 07:16.108 --> 07:18.680 And everybody in it mangled and torn and dead. 07:19.595 --> 07:23.199 And that happened for probably about 15 minutes. 07:24.079 --> 07:28.643 There were a row of boats out on Beach 1, 2 and 3 and they were being hit 07:28.989 --> 07:31.396 by these shells that were coming in. 07:32.004 --> 07:34.366 They knew exactly where the reef was and zeroed in on it. 07:34.366 --> 07:36.383 They knew it perfectly. 07:37.226 --> 07:39.701 And as soon as the ramp went down, it was a perfect target. 07:39.701 --> 07:42.643 All those men, 20 some-odd men in a boat. 07:43.338 --> 07:46.756 - We started getting our 07:46.756 --> 07:48.235 wounded Marines off the streets. 07:48.536 --> 07:50.799 We understood 07:50.799 --> 07:53.213 that we might get killed. 07:55.109 --> 07:57.105 But, as Marines, 07:57.105 --> 08:01.212 that was our mission to help one another. 08:01.319 --> 08:03.450 Because if we were the ones wounded, 08:03.450 --> 08:05.700 our fellow Marines would do the same thing. 08:08.380 --> 08:10.524 - Got the platoon commanders and platoon sergeants together. 08:10.584 --> 08:13.259 Ok, how are we going to do this? 08:13.528 --> 08:15.225 From the back comes that lance corporal, 08:16.508 --> 08:18.527 "Sir, I know how to do this. 08:19.175 --> 08:22.263 "You know, sir, I could roll my .106 08:22.263 --> 08:24.808 "down the steps here of Hue University. 08:25.365 --> 08:29.202 "And I'll turn my gun and fire that down the street. 08:29.202 --> 08:31.055 "Sir, you know how big the round is. 08:31.949 --> 08:33.723 "That'll make them pull in their heads. 08:33.723 --> 08:35.410 "And, sir, you know the backblast. 08:35.816 --> 08:38.109 "Hell, you could run a whole platoon across the street there. 08:38.335 --> 08:40.113 "Or a whole company if you want, sir." 08:40.352 --> 08:42.908 You know what? I didn't have a better idea. 08:43.850 --> 08:45.460 - [Ray] We'd know that we're walking in 08:45.460 --> 08:47.753 and the odds are not going to be in our favor. 08:48.228 --> 08:52.215 All we gotta do is make the decision before the opposition is ready. 08:52.215 --> 08:55.505 If we can make our decision before they can, we're gonna win. 08:56.480 --> 08:59.422 - Tarawa put to an end any talk 08:59.422 --> 09:01.541 about not being able 09:01.660 --> 09:03.811 to land on a heavily fortified beachhead. 09:04.530 --> 09:08.549 It was the first battle to be able to do so since Gallipoli, 09:08.549 --> 09:11.546 and from that time on 09:11.651 --> 09:15.144 there was no more reluctance to forced landings. 09:15.996 --> 09:17.967 - And just what that lance corporal said, happened. 09:17.967 --> 09:19.703 Boom, boom, boom. 09:19.707 --> 09:21.745 He rolled that out into the street and he turns his gun. 09:22.740 --> 09:26.610 Rounds are crackin' all around these two young men, and they're not worried. 09:26.837 --> 09:28.550 The rounds are crackin' and they're gonna take care of it. 09:28.550 --> 09:31.656 They fired the .106, well it goes ba-WOOM. 09:32.312 --> 09:34.180 That big round tore down the street. 09:35.538 --> 09:37.979 The back blast went up, we ran a platoon across the street, 09:37.990 --> 09:40.720 providing the supporting fire to Fox Company. 09:40.720 --> 09:42.230 And you know what that's called? 09:42.438 --> 09:46.626 That's called lance corporal ingenuity and PFC power. 09:46.727 --> 09:48.932 It's alive and well today. 09:49.456 --> 09:51.104 I see it everywhere in the force. 09:51.104 --> 09:55.028 I see it everywhere in our Corps, just like I saw it then. 09:55.341 --> 09:58.625 - Marines who fought in these epic battles each made their own mark 09:58.837 --> 10:00.378 upon the history of our Corps. 10:00.378 --> 10:03.430 They passed a rich and illustrious legacy on to us. 10:03.739 --> 10:06.051 It's ours to jealously guard. 10:06.361 --> 10:08.186 It's up to us to make our own marks 10:08.186 --> 10:11.039 and thus proudly pass it on to generations 10:11.562 --> 10:13.707 of Marines that will follow. 10:15.326 --> 10:19.458 - When you're asking people to risk their lives, 10:21.710 --> 10:25.537 you don't have to talk. You can't talk. You can't talk the talk, 10:25.611 --> 10:29.383 you gotta just step out there. You gotta step out yourself. 10:30.302 --> 10:32.241 If I expect 10:32.241 --> 10:34.692 the Marine to my right and my left 10:34.692 --> 10:38.481 to follow me, I gotta take a step. 10:39.635 --> 10:42.707 - An effective leader doesn't say, 10:42.707 --> 10:45.005 "ok, we gotta get from point A to point B 10:45.792 --> 10:48.524 "and we're probably gonna get shot at a lot. Ya'll go ahead." 10:48.572 --> 10:52.451 The good leader, by the time he has it out of his mouth, he's already on the way. 10:53.159 --> 10:56.865 And you're right there, a step behind him. 10:57.058 --> 11:00.826 - The most important part of my job is to take care of the Marines, 11:02.083 --> 11:05.274 take care of their families, and make sure that they're doing their jobs, 11:05.778 --> 11:08.508 not just for themselves but for America. 11:08.928 --> 11:10.497 - Anybody who raises their right hand and 11:10.497 --> 11:13.075 willing to sacrifice 11:13.075 --> 11:15.482 their life to come over 11:15.531 --> 11:18.395 and go and protect our beliefs is a hero in my book. 11:18.433 --> 11:21.397 - As I used to tell them, "officers forward." 11:23.489 --> 11:24.942 Officers forward. 11:25.857 --> 11:28.432 When we're moving forward, the officers are forward. 11:28.862 --> 11:31.424 When we're moving back, the officers are at the back. 11:32.223 --> 11:34.607 We're the first in and last out. 11:35.832 --> 11:39.416 - [Christmas] The intense valor, fighting and victory 11:39.416 --> 11:41.758 that occurred at Tarawa and behind them 11:41.860 --> 11:44.615 and having to push forward, occurred in Hue. 11:45.461 --> 11:49.456 And if you look at it, it occurred in Fallujah. 11:50.394 --> 11:52.458 And knowing of our history, we realize 11:52.458 --> 11:55.341 that that's a legacy that we're part of. 11:56.216 --> 11:59.841 At first, we can't let that legacy down as individual Marines. 12:00.585 --> 12:04.673 But we also know that it's our job to build upon that legacy. 12:12.548 --> 12:15.390 - As General Ron Christmas said to us so eloquently, 12:15.849 --> 12:19.642 it's up to us to carry on the legacy that we hold so dear. 12:20.089 --> 12:22.347 As we celebrate 238 years 12:22.347 --> 12:25.355 of defending our Constitution and the American people, 12:25.629 --> 12:27.815 Sergeant Major Barrett and I want you to know 12:27.815 --> 12:29.696 how proud we are of all of you. 12:30.107 --> 12:32.565 Because of you, gathered here tonight, 12:32.565 --> 12:34.623 our Corps remains strong, 12:34.635 --> 12:36.925 ready to respond to any crisis 12:36.925 --> 12:39.111 in any clime and place. 12:39.649 --> 12:41.658 - Remember that America keeps an insurance policy, 12:41.658 --> 12:43.783 a hedge against uncertainty. 12:44.392 --> 12:46.076 It's called the United States Marines Corps. 12:46.076 --> 12:48.013 You are it, Marines. 12:48.653 --> 12:52.533 Continue to prepare for the next fight, do great deeds, and endure. 12:53.056 --> 12:57.370 - Marines and Sailors, the future of our Corps rests upon your shoulders. 12:57.988 --> 13:01.972 It's up to us, today's generation of Marines, to uphold our reputation 13:02.437 --> 13:04.182 and to keep our honor clean. 13:04.682 --> 13:06.466 Stay alert and stay ready. 13:06.967 --> 13:10.201 Happy birthday, Marines, and semper fidelis. 13:11.774 --> 13:14.076 (gunshots) 13:22.216 --> 13:24.904 - And we went down a long axis of the column. 13:25.050 --> 13:29.296 And you could see at the front of the column where they were trying to come out. 13:30.708 --> 13:32.009 They were too slow. 13:32.957 --> 13:33.966 They were just too slow. 13:36.676 --> 13:38.228 And they were too slow 13:38.228 --> 13:40.303 because we 13:40.303 --> 13:43.503 practiced doing it fast. 13:44.211 --> 13:48.033 Or we got fast with our practice. 13:51.143 --> 13:53.942 And to this day I thank God that we did. 13:54.452 --> 13:57.080 Because that's how we survived, that's how we did it. 13:58.168 --> 14:02.822 - There's just a lot of things that I appreciate now 14:03.486 --> 14:05.377 that the Marine Corps has taught me. 14:05.377 --> 14:07.689 And obviously it never leaves you. 14:08.032 --> 14:12.077 I'm still rockin' the fade four months after getting out. 14:12.331 --> 14:14.634 - This Medal, as far as I'm concerned, 14:14.634 --> 14:17.654 stands for the metal of America. 14:17.923 --> 14:21.823 This stands for the strength of this great country. 14:22.442 --> 14:26.854 And it represents the strength of a great military 14:27.552 --> 14:30.401 that has fought for over 238 years 14:30.401 --> 14:32.677 to maintain the freedoms 14:33.254 --> 14:35.073 that our country enjoys today. 14:35.562 --> 14:37.083 That's what rests 14:37.083 --> 14:40.283 within this medal and the men who wear it.