| 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines | |
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1st Battalion, 2nd Marines insignia |
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| Active | June 1, 1933 - November 1947 October 1949 - present |
| Country | United States |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
| Branch | United States Marine Corps |
| Type | Infantry |
| Part of | 2nd Marine Regiment 2nd Marine Division |
| Garrison/HQ | Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune |
| Nickname | Timberwolf |
| Engagements | World War II * Battle of Guadalcanal * Battle of Tarawa * Battle of Saipan * Battle of Tinian * Battle of Okinawa Operation Desert Storm Operation Iraqi Freedom * Battle of Nasiriyah |
1st Battalion, 2nd Marines is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina consisting of approximately 900 Marines and Sailors. They fall under the command of the 2nd Marine Regiment and the 2nd Marine Division.
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The 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines was activated on January 1, 1933 at Camp Haitian, Haiti and spend the next year and a half in Haiti until its deactivation in 1934.
Shortly before the outbreak of World War II, the battalion was reactivated deployed to the Pacific theater in June 1942. While there, the unit participated in the bloody "island hopping" campaign, fighting at Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Saipan, Tinian, and Okinawa. After the war, 1/2 spent a brief period on occupation duty in Japan, including Nagasaki, before returning to Camp Lejeune where it stood down in November 1947.
Reactivated again in October 1949, the battalion has since regularly deployed to the Caribbean and Mediterranean regions. 1/2 has seen operational service during the Cuban Missile Crisis (1962), Dominican intervention (1965), operations in the Persian Gulf (1988), Eastern Exit (Somalia evacuation, 1991), Desert Shield and Desert Storm (1990–91), Haitian refugee (1992), Somalia (1993), and Cuba (1994), Operation Noble Obelisk-Freetown, Sierra Leone (1997). The unit has also deployed with the Unit Deployment Program and Camp Lejeune-based MEUs.
In December 2001, the Marines of Bravo Company were recalled off of Christmas leave after completing their six month Unit Deployment Program (UDP) to Okinawa. The Marines were sent to Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba to provide security for the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, including Camp X-Ray.
The battalion saw combat during Operation Iraqi Freedom as part of Task Force Tarawa in 2003 and with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit in 2004, having combat operations in Iskandariyah, Musayyib, Haswa, and Jurf Al Sakhar, located in the Babil province. In the summer of 2006, the battalion completed their third tour in Iraq as part of the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit in Hīt located within the Al Anbar province. In March 2007 the battalion on its 4th combat deployment operated in Kahn ar Bagdadi, Ar Rutbah, and Anah, located in Al Anbar province. From July 2008 through February 2009 the battalion deployed to Al Habbaniyah in the Al Anbar province. The battalion also spent a portion of its 5th deployment to Iraq in Sinjar, located in the Ninawa province.[1]
The battalion deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in March 2010. Their area of operations (AO) included Now Zad, Salaam Bazaar, Karimanda, Kunjak, Musa Qal'eh, and the Musa Qal'eh Wadi down to Sangin. The battalion took heavy casualties but was able to push out a large portion of the Taliban in the AO and double the size of the AO that they were responsible for. 1/2 came home in late September when they were relieved by 1st Battalion 8th Marines.
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