What Makes Marines Exceptional — 250 Years Later

A reflection on the rare and unmistakable spirit that defines Marines, seen most clearly in battle.

The Marine Corps turns 250 this year — two and a half centuries of history, courage, and sacrifice.

For all the traditions, all the battles, and all the legends, one truth remains: there’s something about Marines that’s hard to explain, yet everyone can see it. It’s not just discipline, toughness, or skill. It’s something deeper within our spirit — something I saw one day on the battlefield.

The United States Marine Corps is often called the greatest fighting force the world has ever known. Some might argue that other forces in history were more violent, larger, or more feared. There’s some truth to that, but they’re gone for a reason. They lacked that intangible quality the Marines embody.

Over the years, I’ve thought a lot about what makes this organization so special. To be honest, when I served as a Marine, I often focused more on the negatives than the positives. But one thing always impressed me: the enlisted Marine. From the first moment I met them, I knew there was something different, and it’s taken me years to try to figure out what it is.

It’s not that they were all the toughest, strongest, or most physically gifted, though many were. What set them apart was their warrior mentality, a mindset I’ve never seen matched in any other force or elite unit, coupled with an unwavering desire to do their duty with honor, no matter the task. The way they approached every mission, every responsibility, with total commitment defined who they were.

Their drive for self-improvement pushes them to adapt, to overcome, and to always find a way to be better. And beyond that, they possess something even rarer: a true warrior spirit rooted in selflessness. They fight for their brothers beside them and for those who can’t fight for themselves. They embrace being the “good guys,” the monsters, if need be, willing to do the hard, difficult work to protect their brothers and the innocent.

Those traits alone would be enough to make any fighting force exceptional. But even then, it didn’t fully explain it, not completely. There was still something deeper, something harder to define.

I’ve tried for years to pinpoint exactly what makes Marines so special, what gives them that unmistakable presence the world recognizes instantly. I’ve seen pieces of it in garrison, in training, and in the former Marines I met before and after serving. Everyone has their own theory. But there’s one moment from Afghanistan that captures it better than any explanation I’ve heard or could come up with.

We were hit in an ambush. The Marines immediately overwhelmed the enemy and drove them back, no surprise there. Anyone who has served has seen this, the discipline, the aggression, the precision. It’s incredible to watch Marines close with and destroy the enemy. But other forces can do that too.

What happened next, though, is what truly defines the Marine.

As we began clearing the village compound by compound, we entered a room full of women and children. The men had fled, leaving their families behind. The women and children were crying, terrified. The Marines calmed them down, secured the area, and made sure they were safe before continuing to destroy the enemy.

This is the difference.

The men who fight against us run in fear because they know what Marines are capable of — yet they also know we live by a higher code. They know, even in their fear, that we will not harm the innocent. They know that their wives and children are safer with Marines than with anyone else. Even though they would not do the same.

That is what makes Marines exceptional. To be so feared by your enemies, yet so honorable that even the enemy knows you will protect the innocent, that’s something no other fighting force in history can claim. We will destroy anyone or anything that threatens us or our nation, yet we will always protect the weak and the innocent.

That is true strength. That is true discipline. That is what makes Marines the greatest warriors to have ever walked the earth.

We truly are no better friend, and no worse enemy.

Semper Fidelis.

Colin S. Duffy