Review: History of Marine Corps shows 'Leathernecks' tough from early days

The First Leathernecks: A Combat History of the U.S. Marines From Inception to the Halls of Montezuma (1775-1848), by Don Burzynski. Warrior Publishing Group,117 pages. Soft cover: $24.95. Ebook: $9.95.

The modern image of the U.S. Marine Corps comes from World War II: young men in green camouflage fatigues storming the beaches of tiny islands in the south Pacific, and in some cases, enduring an unimaginable slaughter. But the history of the Marines goes back to the beginning of the republic, though most people only hear the echoes in the first two lines of the Marine Hymn, “From the Halls of Montezuma, to the shores of Tripoli...” Military historian Don Burzynski lifts the veil on this history with his fascinating and thorough new book, The First Leathernecks.

Though they appear similar to the civilian eye, the Marine differs significantly from his U.S. Army cousin. Marines are “sea soldiers” with numerous missions, including securing beachheads that the Army can later exploit. In its earliest days, Marines specialized in defending ships from boarders. They also served as expert gunners and marksmen, picking off Royal Navy officers from a ship’s “fighting tops” during the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. In 1831, as Burzynski tells it, the Marines first took on a modern role as an expeditionary force when they attacked and destroyed a nest of pirates at Quallah Battoo in modern Indonesia.

The “shores of Tripoli” phrase in the Marine Hymn refers to the 1805 liberation by Marines of a group of sailors imprisoned by Barbary pirates based in the city that is now the capital of Libya. For the student of political history, the phrase also hints at President Thomas Jefferson’s moves to replace the leader of the pirates with someone more favorably inclined to American interests, a plan 21st century pundits might have called “regime change.” By the same token, the “Halls of Montezuma” refers to an almost suicidal but successful storming of a Mexican fort by Marines in 1848, part of the U.S.-Mexican War of 1846-1848, an American war of conquest which won it most of the southwest United States and set the modern southern boundary. In each case, the Marines overcame overwhelming odds that secured the Corps’ fearsome reputation.

Burzynski’s book is almost of hymn of its own kind to the early days of the Marine Corps. He has dug deep into sometimes sketchy source material and brought to light the troubles and early valor of the nascent branch of the U.S. military. Though the book is intended as a military history, it could have felt more three-dimensional with stronger portraits of key officers and more details about the struggles within the government about the role of the Marines. However, the lively illustrations by Charles Waterhouse and Burzynski’s detailed knowledge of this early time provide a successful foundation for further exploration.

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National Geographic publishes U.S. Navy commemorative book on War of 1812

Washington, DC — The War of 1812 and the Rise of the U.S. Navy (National Geographic Books; on sale March 27, 2012; hardcover; $30) is the U.S. Navy's official commemorative book of the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812. It presents a sweeping panorama of a defining moment in the American story and is a must-read for maritime aficionados and general history buffs. The book depicts the first true global conflict of a young and expanding nation and was produced by the Naval History and Heritage Command as an authoritative history of the naval War of 1812.

Renowned historian Douglas Brinkley states in his foreword that this is the most "intellectually engaging" book he has encountered on the War of 1812. With its spectacular illustrations — from privateer recruiting posters to prints depicting famous naval duels to frigate ship models chiseled out of bone by prisoners of war — "every page brings the War of 1812 vividly to life," he writes. The book, broken into chapters covering the periods 1812 to 1815, shares fresh historical recollections, personal reminiscences of the war and detailed histories through vibrant images and intimate stories.

The preface is provided by Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus, and the afterword is written by Admiral Gary Roughead, chief of naval operations.

The U.S. Navy's commemoration of the bicentennial of the War of 1812 and the Star-Spangled Banner will comprise a series of public events in historically significant locations in partnership with OpSail. Highlights include visits by U.S. and foreign warships and tall ships, as well as air shows. Dates and locations:

• New Orleans: April 17-23
• Fort Lauderdale, Fla: April 25-30
• New York City: May 23-30
• Portland, Maine: Dates TBD
• Norfolk, Va: June 2-12
• Baltimore: June 13-19
• Boston: June 29-July 6
• New London, Conn: July 7-9

About the Authors

David A. Taylor is the author of the award-winning books "Soul of a People: The WPA Writers' Project Uncovers Depression America," "Ginseng, the Divine Root" and "Success: Stories," a fiction collection. His work has appeared in such publications as Smithsonian, The Washington Post, Village Voice, The American Scholar and Outside. Taylor has written and co-produced documentary films for PBS, the National Geographic Society, Discovery Channel and the Smithsonian Channel, including "Soul of a People," which was nominated for a 2010 Writers Guild award.

Mark Collins Jenkins, a former archivist at the National Geographic Society, has written on a wide range of historical topics. His books include "The Civil War: A Virtual History," "Vampire Forensics: Uncovering the Origins of an Enduring Legend," "The Book of Marvels: An Explorer's Miscellany," "Odysseys and Photographs: Four National Geographic Field Men" and "Worlds to Explore: Classic Tales of Travel and Adventure from National Geographic."

Douglas Brinkley is professor of history at Rice University and the author of a number of award-winning and bestselling books, including "The Mississippi and the Making of a Nation" (with Stephen Ambrose), "The World War II Memorial," "The Great Deluge" and "The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America." Six of his books have been selected as New York Times Notable Books of the Year. He is a regular commentator for CBS News and a contributing editor to Vanity Fair magazine.

Review: 'America's Privateer' a worshipful treatment of a beautiful tall ship

America’s Privateer: Lynx and the War of 1812, J. Dennis Robinson. Lynx Educational Foundation, 184 pages, with 190 color photos, paintings and maps, oversize hardcover, $34.95.

One of the great things about tall ships is that you can’t go wrong with a good picture. Virtually all large sailing vessels are photogenic to a fault, particularly when all the sails are run out, and the boat is almost sliding across the water. Lynx is no exception. The new coffee-table book, America’s Privateer: Lynx and the War of 1812, published by the Newport Beach, Calif.-based Lynx Educational Foundation, takes maximum advantage of this camera-loving vessel, while author J. Dennis Robinson engages the reader with an interesting, if sometimes over-the-top story.

Launched in 2001, Lynx is a replica of type of highly-maneuverable topsail schooner with distinctive raking masts and a unique purpose: prey on British merchant vessels and warships on behalf of the U.S. government. The modern Lynx was inspired by a similar ship of the same name built near Baltimore during the War of 1812, and although her career lasted less than a year, her story, particularly her design, inspired maritime historian Howard Chapelle, which included a drawing of her in his landmark book, The Search for Speed Under Sail. Businessman and history buff Woodson K. Woods saw the drawing and decided he wanted a boat just like it.

The original Lynx sailed with a “letter of marque,” a license to attack enemy ships. During the War of 1812, the U.S. issued these licenses—a common practice among nations at the time—to expand the number of ships that could engage a powerful adversary, in this case, the Royal Navy. Investors would build a ship specifically designed for “privateering” in hopes of taking cargo or ships and selling them for a huge profit. Although patriotism certainly played a role in these “cruizes of opportunity,” a single prize could make a man (the investors at least) rich. Robinson makes a convincing case that privateers are an under-appreciated aspect of the War of 1812. But that doesn’t make the investors, captains, and crews admirable people. Privateers weren’t pirates, in the sense that they operated within the law. But their methods and ultimate motivation were hardly much different.

Woods’ much nobler motivation for building the modern Lynx was educational; he envisioned a platform on which young people could discover the nation’s maritime history, specifically the history of the War of 1812. He asked designer Melbourne Smith, who also designed the brig Niagara and the schooner Californian, to create Lynx. Robinson takes great pains to show how Lynx was constructed by amazing craftsmen and women at Rockport Marine in Rockport, Maine. The story of towing the 99-ton Lynx across a bridge to its launch site is harrowing. And Robinson manages to reveal a little bit of Woods’ character, beyond his love of country. “[Woods] ‘blessed’ the project by tying red bunting in every corner of the boat shop to ward off witches and evil spirits,” Robinson writes.

A prolific writer of local history and editor of SeacoastNH.com, Robinson sometimes falls in the trap of many maritime writers: too much “salty talk” and an almost hagiographic treatment of life on the water. Although I have never gone to sea, it’s clear enough to me that even in the 21st century, it’s a dangerous, unpredictable, and sometimes ruinous way to make a living. That was certainly the case for the original Lynx. But America’s Privateer is valuable because its gorgeous layout, stunning imagery (some photos by Woods), and intelligent description of the historic and modern Lynx are sure to spark conversations wherever it’s found.

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Review: Collision at Sea tells important tale of Lightship Relief sinking

Collision at Sea: The True Story of the Collision and Sinking of USCG Lightship Relief LV-78/WAL-505, by J.F. “Jay” McCarthy. Infinity Publishing, 84 pages, softcover, $11.95.

One of the great hidden treasures of small historical societies and associations is the books produced by members to record small, though important events. The books don’t sell in the millions of copies, and the authors don’t get on Oprah. But they often tell long-forgotten stories in a unique way. Collision at Sea is one such book. Written by a former lightship sailor, Jay McCarthy, this slim, but rich and likeable volume relates the last hours of the Lightship Relief LV-78/WAL-505 and the nightmare experienced by its nine-man crew.

In the predawn hours of June 24, 1960, most of the men were asleep as Relief performed her duties as a temporary stand-in on the Ambrose station at the entrance to New York Harbor. The lightship Ambrose herself was in port for maintenance, but Relief was more than capable of guiding the cargo ships and passenger liners that constantly transited one of the busiest shipping channels in the world. The crew of one of those cargo vessels, the Green Bay, would make a series of tragic errors that would destroy Relief.

As a veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard’s lightship service, McCarthy is unique qualified to tell the story, and he doggedly pursues it, tracking down most of the survivors of the collision and getting their version of events, while fleshing out the official version. McCarthy also adds telling details of their lives aboard Relief with personal photos and recollections, adding some background of the lightship service to give the tragedy context. And he offers his own view of what happened to Relief, which now lies on the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.

McCarthy also reminds us that many of these lightship veterans, who lived a life that has now passed into history, are themselves passing and with them, their stories. That’s the real value of this book and hundreds of books like it published by small historical societies or written by men and women of associations such as the USCG Lightship Sailors Association. McCarthy performs an incredible service to future generations by gathering stories that might otherwise be missed, ensuring that someone will remember the tales long after their actors are gone.

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