thedrifter
06-08-04, 09:22 AM
Issue Date: June 07, 2004
The Lore of the Corps
Edson fought for Corps in Pacific, Washington
By Robert F. Dorr
Special to the times
Merritt A. “Red Mike” Edson led Marines in many of their greatest battles, received the nation’s highest award for valor and rose to two-star rank — but Edson is remembered mostly as a passionate defender of the Marine Corps and of its role as a distinct military service branch.
Born in Vermont in 1897, Edson served briefly as a National Guardsman before joining the Marine Corps Reserve in 1916. “Red Mike” drew his nickname from the shock of scarlet hair atop his unimpressive, 5-foot-7 figure.
As a second lieutenant, he served in France during World War I and afterward with the occupation forces in Germany.
After sea duty and aviation training, Edson — now promoted to captain — fought guerrillas in Nicaragua in 1928 and 1929 (when he briefly added a prominent red beard). It was during that campaign that Edson led 160 “picked and specially trained Marines” in a dozen separate engagements against the guerrillas, according to an official Marine Corps biography.
He earned the Navy Cross in Nicaragua for action in which “his exhibition of coolness, intrepidity and dash so inspired his men that superior forces of bandits were driven from their prepared positions and severe losses inflicted upon them,” according to the award citation.
After assignments at Parris Island, S.C., and Quantico, Va., Edson assumed duty as operations officer with the 4th Marines in Shanghai, China, from 1937 to 1939. In 1941 — still months away from Pearl Harbor — Edson was back at Quantico as a battalion commander with 5th Marines, training leathernecks who would be organized into the 1st Marine Raider Battalion.
Training shifted to American Samoa and, in August 1942, the Raiders joined 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, in the landing on Tulagi in the Solomon Islands, where Edson’s performance in combat earned him a second Navy Cross.
After several battles on Guadalcanal, Edson found himself defending Lunga Ridge on the night of Sept. 13, 1942, with his Raider battalion and two additional Marine companies against a major Japanese force intent on neutralizing Henderson Field, the key airstrip on the island.
Lunga became “Bloody Ridge” and “Edson’s Ridge” to Marines. With about 800 men, Edson withstood repeated attacks by 2,500 Japanese. According to the Marine Corps, the 1st Raider Battalion sustained 256 casualties. Edson was everywhere on the battlefield, encouraging and rallying his troops while exposing himself to Japanese gunfire.
For his prolonged fighting, bravery and leadership on that ridge crest, Edson received the Medal of Honor.
Many believe Edson could have become commandant. But he didn’t want to head up a weakened Marine Corps — the future that some in political and military circles envisioned. Edson became a popular and vocal champion for a strong Marine Corps.
According to one biographer, Edson even promoted the idea of the Corps being central to a new standing military force being considered for the embryonic United Nations.
Edson, said Jon T. Hoffman, a Reserve colonel and author of “Once a Legend: ‘Red Mike’ Edson of the Marine Raiders” (Presidio Press, 2000), “believed that USMC participation in this potentially important role would guarantee the existence of the Corps.”
But that path never was taken, since the efforts of Edson and others eventually swayed public and political opinion against military “unification” that would have drastically reduced the Corps’ personnel strength and mission.
Still, his battle had career consequences. Edson offended Capitol Hill lawmakers with his defense of his fellow Marines and was encouraged to retire in 1947, at which time he was promoted to major general.
Like many who excelled in war, “Red Mike” Edson was less comfortable in peace.
He served briefly as chief executive of the National Rifle Association but seemed unable to find himself after taking off his beloved uniform.
On Aug. 13, 1955, Edson died of carbon monoxide poisoning in his car, in his garage; the coroner ruled his death a suicide.
Edson was 58.
Robert F. Dorr, an Air Force veteran, lives in Oakton, Va. He is the author of numerous books, including “Air Force One.” His e-mail address is robert.f.dorr@cox.net.
http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/story.php?f=0-MARINEPAPER-2938225.php
Ellie
The Lore of the Corps
Edson fought for Corps in Pacific, Washington
By Robert F. Dorr
Special to the times
Merritt A. “Red Mike” Edson led Marines in many of their greatest battles, received the nation’s highest award for valor and rose to two-star rank — but Edson is remembered mostly as a passionate defender of the Marine Corps and of its role as a distinct military service branch.
Born in Vermont in 1897, Edson served briefly as a National Guardsman before joining the Marine Corps Reserve in 1916. “Red Mike” drew his nickname from the shock of scarlet hair atop his unimpressive, 5-foot-7 figure.
As a second lieutenant, he served in France during World War I and afterward with the occupation forces in Germany.
After sea duty and aviation training, Edson — now promoted to captain — fought guerrillas in Nicaragua in 1928 and 1929 (when he briefly added a prominent red beard). It was during that campaign that Edson led 160 “picked and specially trained Marines” in a dozen separate engagements against the guerrillas, according to an official Marine Corps biography.
He earned the Navy Cross in Nicaragua for action in which “his exhibition of coolness, intrepidity and dash so inspired his men that superior forces of bandits were driven from their prepared positions and severe losses inflicted upon them,” according to the award citation.
After assignments at Parris Island, S.C., and Quantico, Va., Edson assumed duty as operations officer with the 4th Marines in Shanghai, China, from 1937 to 1939. In 1941 — still months away from Pearl Harbor — Edson was back at Quantico as a battalion commander with 5th Marines, training leathernecks who would be organized into the 1st Marine Raider Battalion.
Training shifted to American Samoa and, in August 1942, the Raiders joined 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, in the landing on Tulagi in the Solomon Islands, where Edson’s performance in combat earned him a second Navy Cross.
After several battles on Guadalcanal, Edson found himself defending Lunga Ridge on the night of Sept. 13, 1942, with his Raider battalion and two additional Marine companies against a major Japanese force intent on neutralizing Henderson Field, the key airstrip on the island.
Lunga became “Bloody Ridge” and “Edson’s Ridge” to Marines. With about 800 men, Edson withstood repeated attacks by 2,500 Japanese. According to the Marine Corps, the 1st Raider Battalion sustained 256 casualties. Edson was everywhere on the battlefield, encouraging and rallying his troops while exposing himself to Japanese gunfire.
For his prolonged fighting, bravery and leadership on that ridge crest, Edson received the Medal of Honor.
Many believe Edson could have become commandant. But he didn’t want to head up a weakened Marine Corps — the future that some in political and military circles envisioned. Edson became a popular and vocal champion for a strong Marine Corps.
According to one biographer, Edson even promoted the idea of the Corps being central to a new standing military force being considered for the embryonic United Nations.
Edson, said Jon T. Hoffman, a Reserve colonel and author of “Once a Legend: ‘Red Mike’ Edson of the Marine Raiders” (Presidio Press, 2000), “believed that USMC participation in this potentially important role would guarantee the existence of the Corps.”
But that path never was taken, since the efforts of Edson and others eventually swayed public and political opinion against military “unification” that would have drastically reduced the Corps’ personnel strength and mission.
Still, his battle had career consequences. Edson offended Capitol Hill lawmakers with his defense of his fellow Marines and was encouraged to retire in 1947, at which time he was promoted to major general.
Like many who excelled in war, “Red Mike” Edson was less comfortable in peace.
He served briefly as chief executive of the National Rifle Association but seemed unable to find himself after taking off his beloved uniform.
On Aug. 13, 1955, Edson died of carbon monoxide poisoning in his car, in his garage; the coroner ruled his death a suicide.
Edson was 58.
Robert F. Dorr, an Air Force veteran, lives in Oakton, Va. He is the author of numerous books, including “Air Force One.” His e-mail address is robert.f.dorr@cox.net.
http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/story.php?f=0-MARINEPAPER-2938225.php
Ellie