"SEMPER FIDALIS"--EVER FAITHFUL!

November 10 marks the 244th birthday of the U.S. Marines.  Perhaps this little article will impart to you something you did not know about the Marine Corps.
In 1775, October to be exact the United States Navy was born, all three ships of Her.  Why did we need a navy at this infant status as a nation, even before we had a Constitution?  The simple answer is that now that the grand English Navy no longer defended our shipping in the Mediterranean from the Barbary pirates we were paying tribute to the pirates to allow our trade in that part of the world to continue.
Thomas Jefferson became President in 1801 (which, by the way, upset John Adams because he did not win a second term and drove a wedge between the Adams and Jefferson friendship) he vowed to do something about the Barbary Pirates and he did.  On February 6, 1802 Jefferson signed into law "An act for the protection of the Commerce and Seamen of the United States against Tripolitan Corsairs."
The Marines were trained in marksmanship and placed in the topsails and told to take out the officers when the chance arose.
Marines were called "Leather Necks" at that time because of the high stiff leather uniform collars designed to protect from the scimitar blades of the pirates.  Lt. O'Bannon, one Sgt. and 6 Privates, disembarked at the mouth of the Nile, joined up with 400 local recruits left Alexandria March 6, 1805 and marched to Tripoli and fought the pirates while the Navy shelled the city from the Sea.  That ended the threat and the tribute we had been paying for years.
The United States Marines have been in every fight the United States has been involved in since the beginning and have earned other nick-names, such as "Jar-Heads" because of the "Hi-N-Tite".  There have been others too and most of them earned and deserved, like what the Germans called them after the battle of the Somme in WWI; "Devil Dogs" because of their fierce assault.  So on November 10,2019 we honor our United States Marines on their 244th birthday, "OORAH"..Medicineman!