| Brazilian Marine Corps Corpo de Fuzileiros Navais |
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Brazilian Marine Corps seal. |
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| Active | 1808 - present |
| Country | Brazil |
| Branch | Brazilian Navy |
| Type | Marines |
| Size | 15,000 |
| Part of | Navy Ministry of Defence |
| General-Command HQ | Rio de Janeiro |
| Motto | Adsumus (Here we are) |
| Colors | Red; White |
| Anniversaries | March 7 |
| Commanders | |
| Commander-in-Chief | President Dilma Rousseff |
| Commander of the Navy | Admiral Júlio Soares de Moura Neto |
| General-Commander of the Marine Corps | Admiral Álvaro Augusto Dias Monteiro |
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The Brazilian Marine Corps (Portuguese: Corpo de Fuzileiros Navais; CFN) is the land combat branch of the Brazilian Navy.
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Deployed nationwide, along the coasts, in the marginal regions of Amazônia and in the Pantanal, in peacetime it provides for the security of Naval installations and aids isolated populations through civic action programs in the Naval Districts. Externally, it provides security for the embassies of Brazil in Algeria, in Paraguay, in Haiti and in Bolivia. It has participated in all of the armed conflicts in the Military history of Brazil.
The badge consist of an encircled anchor superimposed over a pair of crossed ron the collar points of the dress and service uniforms.
The Brazilian Marines trace their origin to 1808 when the troops of the Royal Brigade of the Navy (the Portuguese Marine Corps) arrived in Brazil (then a Portuguese colony) when Mary I of Portugal and her son and regent John VI relocated themselves to the Portuguese South American territory during the Napoleonic Wars in Europe.
In retaliation for the invasion of Portugal, Prince Regent, Dom João commanded the invasion of French Guiana, whose capital, Cayenne, was captured on the 14th of January 1809.
Later, the unit was involved in diverse campaigns, in the War of the independence of Brazil, in the conflicts of the basin of the River Plate, and in War of the Triple Alliance. In this last one, it was distinguished in action in the Battle of Riachuelo and in taking of Humaitá.
The CFN if has participated in the humanitarian actions promoted by UN in such diverse theaters of operation as Bosnia, Honduras, Moçambique, Ruanda, Angola, East Timor, and recently, in Haiti (MINUSTAH).
With about 15,000 men, all volunteers, professionals in combat on land, air and sea, its mission is to guarantee the projection of the naval power on land, by means of landings carried through with ships and staff of the Navy.
In the case of Brazil this is a complex mission, since the country has a territory of about 8,5 million km² (3.28 million sq. miles), a coast of more than 7,400 km (4,600 mi) with many oceanic islands, and a navigable waterways network of approximately 50,000 km (31,000 mi). This last one includes the Brazilian Amazon. To cover climates and natural landscapes so diversified as Pampas of Rio Grande Do Sul, pantanal of Mato Grosso do Sul, deserts of the Northeast region and Amazonian Rainforest, demands a training of the highest standards, agility and versatility. Therefore, there are units trained in demolition techniques, special operations, combat in forests, mountain and ice, and helicopter-transported operations.
Trained as a Fast Deployment Unit, recently, with the sending of Brazilian military observers, also integrating the Peacekeeping Forces of the United Nations, the Marines have made their presence in distinctive areas of conflict as El Salvador, Bosnia, Angola, Moçambique, Ruanda, Peru, Ecuador, East Timor and, more recently, Haiti.
The Corps headquarters is located in Fortaleza de São José, Ilha das Cobras, Rio de Janeiro.
The Fleets Marine Force (Força de Fuzileiros da Esquadra (FFE)) consists of the following units:
"Groupings of Marine Corps" (Grupamentos de Fuzileiros Navais (GFN)) are subordinate to the Naval Districts (Distritos Navais), for the security of naval installations, as well as performing operations in support of Naval District. They are located in the vicinity of the local Naval District headquarters. The 8th Naval District does not possess any such grouping. GFNs are companies the size of small battalions.
To fulfill its missions, the Marines are disembarked off the ships of the Brazilian Navy, be it using landing boats, amphibious vehicles or helicopters. For this they count on the support of the navy and/or sea and air support.
On land, it operates its normal ways, which include tanks, field artillery, antiaircraft artillery, combat engineering, communications and electronic warfare.
To fulfill its missions, fusiliers must pass a rigorous physical training program, normally with many runs, calisthenics, sleep deprivation, swimming while holding their breath, practice shooting with diverse armaments, especially metal rings, rappeling and, in some cases, combat.
The Brazilian Marines wear several different uniforms.
The Corps has a modern arsenal, composed by:
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