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Historical Perspective on the 1812 Marines The Marine Guard 1812 has performed for representatives of the governments of: Canada , India, Italy, Japan, Germany, Great Britain, Portugal, Sweden and Brunei Darussalam. The Marine Guard 1812 has performed internationally for representatives of the Royal Family, the Royal Marines and HMS Victory. The Marine Guard 1812 has performed for: The President of the United States, The Secretary of Defense, The Secretary of the Navy, Members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Representatives of The United States Navy, Representatives of The United States Marine Corps, and The Mayor of New York City. The Marine Guard 1812 has acted as Security and Honor Guard for: The Governor of Massachusetts, The Secretary of Defense, Official Honor Guard for the City of New York Bicentennial of the Inauguration of George Washington. The Marine Guard 1812 received the honor of an invitation to the 1989 Bicentennial Inaugural Presidential Parade. The Detachment is also the 1989 winner of the United States Marine Corps Historical Foundation's Magruder Award for Excellence in Museology. The Marine Guard 1812 took an active role in the "Sail 2000" of the USS Constitution and is involved in all movements of USS Constitution.
Historical Perspective on the 1812 Marines 3 June 1783, Marine Lieutenant Thomas Elmwood walked off the Continental Ship Alliance, giving a final salute to an empty ship flying no colors. This signaled the end of the Continental Marines and they passed into history not to be seen again. The Alliance was then sold off for scrap. This event also marked the end of the Continental Navy. Before Lt. Elmwood left the Alliance, he turned in the last Marine equipment left in Federal service:
Expended:
27 March 1794, Congress commissioned for six ships of war to be constructed in order to safeguard American shipping interests and merchant trade using the high seas. Among these six ships was USS Constitution. Along with the construction of these new ships Congress acted to reestablish the United States Navy and then the United States Marine Corps, both as we know them today. Not until the Naval Act of 1794, for the Betterment of the Service, did the United States Navy (now) appear again with the United States Marine Corps. This congressional action was the first establishment of the now United States military as opposed to the old Continental military.
USS Constitution, as part of its 450-man crew, had 55 United States Marines assigned. The first detachment of six marines arrived at Edmond Hart's Shipyard in Boston early in 1794. Their duties were to safeguard the government stores of supplies and the work area for the building of USS Constitution as well as other duties as necessary. When USS Constitution was launched the guard detachment became part of "ships company" and put to sea When the War known as the War of 1812 finally became a reality, the Marine Corps or "Marine Department" was only twelve years old. Marine levels remained well below the authorized requirements set by Congress. The authorized level in 1809 was 1897. This remained so from the establishment up through the War of 1812. The listed figures for active strength (actual) during the War was:
The authorized level for April of 1814 was set at 2700. Recruiting was a continued problem and authorization levels were never reached. In 1800 the Navy Yard at Charlestown, Massachusetts was established.
The first detachment of Marines arrived from other duties in the Boston
area under command of a sergeant. They took up guard details and established
one of the oldest Marine Barracks in the United States. The Marine presence
continued at the Navy Yard until 1973 when the yard was officially closed
as a military installation. The yard now comes under the United States
Park Service and is part of the Boston National Historical Park and open
to the public.
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