Calle: The United States Marines*

Description

The need for skilled marksmen on board warships during naval operations spurredthe British Navy to establish a marine corps in 1664. The present United StatesMarine Corps traces its roots to the Continental Marines, established with the Navy in 1775. The Corps has been an invaluable component of the United States armed forces for more than two hundred years. When President George Bush deployed troops to Saudi Arabia in response to Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, the United States Marines stood poised to defend America's ally. War commenced on January 16, 1991, and the coalition battle strategy called for American and allied air, navaland marine forces to wipe out enemy response capabilities. In a bold feint, U.S. Marines conspicuously practiced amphibious landings along the Saudi coast, hinting at a possible liberation of Kuwait City. While Iraqi commanders concentrated troop deployment to the Saudi-Kuwait border, Allied forces moved into positionacross from Iraq's southern border. As the ground war commenced, the Marines moved inland, covering forty miles by nightfall. Two days later, U.S. Marines defeated Iraqi troops at Kuwait International Airport and the enemy fled. This artwork depicts a ramrod-straight Marine delivering a salute, Old Glory as his background. It pays tribute to "the few -- the proud -- the Marines."