These inspiring marine quotes show the genuine strength and personality of marines. These security personnel do the unthinkable on the battlefield. They even go for risky missions and spend time in shark-filled aquatic habitats.
Marines are strong, intelligent, and courageous. They are highly skilled, too. However, the training these professionals undergo is out of this world. They train for long hours and under the most unfavorable conditions.
This training conditions their minds and makes them incredible professionals; it is little wonder why marines do the unthinkable on the battlefield and are well-respected.
I have prepared a couple of inspirational marine quotes to get you inspired. Check them out below.
The Best Inspiring Marine Quotes: Marines Are Incredible
- “Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don’t have that problem.” ― Ronald Reagan
- “I loved being in the Marine Corps, I loved my job in the Marine Corps, and I loved the people I served with. It’s one of the best things I’ve had a chance to do.” – Adam Driver
- “Everyday US Marines make the impossible possible and then go about their business like it’s just the way things are supposed to be.” ~ Mark W. Boyer
- “You always hear all these statements like “Freedom isn’t free.” You hear the President talking about all these people making sacrifices. But you never really know until you carry one of them in a casket. When you feel their body weight. When you feel them. That’s when you know. That’s when you understand.” ~ Jim Sheeler
- “So long as our Corps fields such Marines, America has nothing to fear from tyrants, be they Fascists, Communists or Tyrants with Medieval Ideology. For we serve in a Corps with no institutional confusion about our purpose: To fight! To fight well!” – Jim Mattis
- “For over 221 years our Corps has done two things for this great Nation. We make Marines, and we win battles.” – Gen. Charles C. Krulak
- A ship without Marines is like a garment without buttons.” – Admiral David D. Porter
- “…It is a proud privilege to be a soldier – a good soldier … [with] discipline, self-respect, pride in his unit and his country, a high sense of duty and obligation to comrades and to his superiors, and a self confidence born of demonstrated ability.” ― George S. Patton Jr.
- “Freedom is not free, but the U.S. Marine Corps will pay most of your share.” – Ned Dolan
- “I’ve always been proud of being a Marine. I won’t hesitate to defend the Corps.” – Jonathan Winters
- “Marines I see as two breeds, Rottweilers or Dobermans, because Marines come in two varieties, big and mean, or skinny and mean. They’re aggressive on the attack and tenacious on defense. They’ve got really short hair and they always go for the throat.” ~ James Stark
- “Retreat Hell! We’re just attacking in another direction.” – Major General Oliver P. Smith
- “The Japanese fought to win – it was a savage, brutal, inhumane, exhausting and dirty business. Our commanders knew that if we were to win and survive, we must be trained realistically for it whether we liked it or not. In the post-war years, the U.S. Marine Corps came in for a great deal of undeserved criticism in my opinion, from well-meaning persons who did not comprehend the magnitude of stress and horror that combat can be. The technology that developed the rifle barrel, the machine gun and high explosive shells has turned war into prolonged, subhuman slaughter. Men must be trained realistically if they are to survive it without breaking, mentally and physically.” ― E.B. Sledge
- “They say “you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink.” In the Marine Corps, you can make that horse wish to hell he had.” ~ Fred Larson
- “Marines are built through the ethos of struggle and sacrifice.” – Gen James Jones
- “It was my duty to shoot the enemy, and I don’t regret it. My regrets are for the people I couldn’t save: Marines, soldiers, buddies. I’m not naive, and I don’t romanticize war. The worst moments of my life have come as a SEAL. But I can stand before God with a clear conscience about doing my job.” ― Chris Kyle
- “The United States Marine Corps, with its fiercely proud tradition of excellence in combat, its hallowed rituals, and its unbending code of honor, is part of the fabric of American myth.” – Thomas E. Ricks
- “The bended knee is not a tradition of our Corps.” – General Alexander A. Vandergrift
- “As a civilian, I know nothing about combat, the Marine Corps experience or modern man’s struggle adjusting to peace after war. I only know what’s been shared with me; confidences I would never betray, nor use as details in a novel.” ― Tiffany Madison
- “The safest place in Korea was right behind a platoon of Marines. Lord, how they could fight!” – MGen. Frank E. Lowe
21. “Without discipline, there is no Marine Corp.” – R. Lee Ermey
22. “We have two companies of Marines running rampant all over the northern half of this island, and three Army regiments pinned down in the southwestern corner, doing nothing. What the hell is going on?” – Gen. John W. Vessey Jr
- “Old breed? New breed? There’s not a damn bit of difference so long as it’s the Marine breed.” – Lieutenant General Lewis B. “Chesty” Puller
- “The Marine Corps is the Navy’s police force and as long as I am President that is what it will remain. They have a propaganda machine that is almost equal to Stalin’s.” ― Harry S Truman
- A Marine is a Marine. I set that policy two weeks ago – there’s no such thing as a former Marine. You’re a Marine, just in a different uniform and you’re in a different phase of your life. But you’ll always be a Marine because you went to Parris Island, San Diego or the hills of Quantico. There’s no such thing as a former Marine.” – General James F. Amos
- “The American Marines have it [pride], and benefit from it. They are tough, cocky, sure of themselves and their buddies. They can fight and they know it.” – General Mark Clark
- “To Marines, love of liberty is not an empty phrase… Rather, it’s displayed by blood, sweat, and tears for the fallen.” – Jim Mattis
- “Hardness,” I was learning, was the supreme virtue among recon Marines. The greatest compliment one could pay to another was to say he was hard. Hardness wasn’t toughness, nor was it courage, although both were part of it. Hardness was the ability to face an overwhelming situation with aplomb, smile calmly at it, and then triumph through sheer professional pride.” ― Nathaniel Fick
- “There are only two kinds of people that understand Marines: Marines and the enemy. Everyone else has a second-hand opinion.” – Gen. William Thornson
- “They told (us) to open up the Embassy, or “we’ll blow you away.” And then they looked up and saw the Marines on the roof with these really big guns, and they said in Somali, ‘Igaralli ahow’ which means ‘Excuse me, I didn’t mean it, my mistake.’” – Karen Aquilar
- “I have just returned from visiting the Marines at the front, and there is not a finer fighting organization in the world.” – General Douglas MacArthur
- “Marines die, that’s what we’re here for. But the Marine Corps lives forever. And that means YOU will live forever.” – GySgt. Hartma
- “We Marines believe that God gave America the greatest gift He could bestow to man while he lived on this earth -freedom. We also believe He gave us another gift nearly as precious – our soldiers, sailors, airmen, Coast Guardsmen, and Marines – to safeguard that gift and guarantee no force on this earth can ever steal it away.” – John F. Kelly
- “The Marines I have seen around the world have the cleanest bodies, the filthiest minds, the highest morale, and the lowest morals of any group of animals I have ever seen. Thank God for the United States Marine Corps!” – Eleanor Roosevelt
- “We had it drilled into us time and time again: ‘If someone above you falls, grip tightly to the vertical rope and cradle that person in your arms until help can get to you.’…If someone fell down on me I swear I would have bitten him on the ass and would keep on biting until he got off on his own.” ― C.S. Crawford,
- “Hell, these are Marines. Men like them held Guadalcanal and took Iwo Jima. Bagdad ain’t shit.” – Marine Major General John F. Kelly
- “Your job is to be the hardest motherfucker in your platoon,” he said while pointing at me across the desk. “Do that, and everything else will fall into place.” He added that I was assigned to Bravo Company, call sign Hitman, and wished me luck.” ― Nathaniel Fick
- “Marines don’t know how to spell the word defeat.” – General James Mattis
- “We are United States Marines, and for two and a quarter centuries we have defined the standards of courage, esprit, and military prowess.” – Gen. James L. Jones
- “My only answer as to why the Marines get the toughest jobs is because the average Leatherneck is a much better fighter. He has far more guts, courage, and better officers… These boys out here have pride in the Marine Corps and will fight to the end no matter what the cost.” – 2nd Lt. Richard C. Kennard
- “We signed up knowing the risk. Those innocent people in New York didn’t go to work thinking there was any kind of risk.” – Private First Class Edward J. Seiffert
- “Being in the marines was the best thing that ever happened to me. It can do a lot for a young guy. I owe a lot to the Marine Corps. If I had a son, I’d want him to be a marine.” ~ Tom Monaghan
- “I love the Corps for those intangible possessions that cannot be issued: pride, honor, integrity, and being able to carry on the traditions for generations of warriors past.” – Cpl. Jeff Sornig
- “Be strong when you are weak. Be brave when you are scared. Be humble when you are victorious. Be badass everyday.” ~ Unknown
45. “The Marine Corps is proud of the fact that it is a force of combined arms, and it jealously guards the integrity of its air-ground team.” – General Keith B. McCutcheon
46. “You may hate the war, but never hate the ones that fight. For they do not choose when or where to fight. All they chose was to protect who they love and even the people they don’t know.” ~ Millie
- “In the simple moral maxim the marine corps teaches – do the right thing, for the right reason – no exception exists that says; unless there’s criticism or risk. Damn the consequences.” ~ Josh Rushing
- “This country has not seen and probably will never know the true level of sacrifice of our veterans. As a civilian I owe an unpayable debt to all our military. Going forward let’s not send our servicemen and women off to war or conflict zones unless it is overwhelmingly justifiable and on moral high ground. The men of WWII were the greatest generation, perhaps Korea the forgotten, Vietnam the trampled, Cold War unsung and Iraqi Freedom and Afghanistan vets underestimated. Every generation has proved itself to be worthy to stand up to the precedent of the greatest generation. Going back to the Revolution American soldiers have been the best in the world. Let’s all take a remembrance for all veterans who served or are serving, peacetime or wartime and gone or still with us. 11/11/16 May God Bless America and All Veterans.” ― Thomas M Smith
- “I love the Corps for those intangible possessions that cannot be issued: pride, honor, integrity, and being able to carry on the traditions for generations of warriors past.” – Corporal Jeff Sornig
- “There’s a mindset of flexibility and adaptability that comes with us. We don’t mind hardship. We don’t mind somebody saying, ‘Go in and do this nasty job.’ Whatever the job is, we can do it. That’s why the nation has a Marine Corps.” ~ James F. Amos
- “I would not trade you a billion dollars for the kids I led to combat in Vietnam or in fact any of the Marines that I served with for a quarter of a century.” – Oliver North
- “The Marine Corps taught me commitment, courage, focus, and a value system that can easily suffice for people like me who aren’t religious.” – Bob Lutz
- “Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don’t have that problem. – Ronald ReaganYou’ll never get a Purple Heart hiding in a foxhole! Follow me!” – Capt. Henry P. Crowe, USMC
- “I learned a great many things in the Marines that helped me as a football coach. The Marines train men hard and to do things the right way, just as a football team must train.” – Hayden Fry
- “There was always talk of esprit de corps, of being gung ho, and that must have been a part of it. Better, tougher training, more marksmanship on the firing range, the instant obedience to orders seared into men in boot camp.” – James Brady
- “Marines are very good at fighting… And if Gen. Franks wants fighters on the ground and he puts Marines in, he’ll have what he wants.” – Peter Pace
- “We think of the Marine Corps as a military outfit, and of course it is, but for me, the U.S. Marine Corps was a four-year crash course in character education. It taught me how to make a bed, how to do laundry, how to wake up early, how to manage my finances.” – J. D. Vance
- “There was nothing green left; artillery had denuded and scarred every inch of ground. Tiny flares glowed and disappeared. Shrapnel burst with bluish white puffs. Jets of flamethrowers flickered and here and there new explosions stirred up the rubble.
While I watched, an American observation plane droned over the Japanese lines, spotting targets for the U.S. warships lying offshore. Suddenly the little plane was hit by flak and disintegrated. The carnage below continued without pause. Here I was safe, but tomorrow I will be there. In that instant I realized that the worst thing that could happen to me was about to happen to me.” ― William Manchester
- “We are acknowledging the close personal nature of our 10 years at war and the strong bonds of fidelity that Marines have for one another, especially for those fellow Marines who we have lost.” – James F. Amos
Conclusion
These inspiring marine quotes depict the bravery, strength, courage, intelligence, and great work members of the Marine Corps are doing. They show why every marine should be proud of being a marine.
Marines are among the best fighters on the battlefield and can do what other security outfits can’t. They undergo one of the most brutal training to prepare for battles and rescue missions.
I would also like to pay tribute to marines worldwide who have lost their lives trying to protect their countries and citizens. Your service and dedication to saving lives will always be remembered. We appreciate you and will always love you.
