Gene Hackman left home at age 16, lied about his age
to enlist in the United States Marine Corps, and served
four and a half years as a field-radio operator. He was
stationed in China.   

The fledgling United States Marine Corps proved its dauntless
courage with a "miracle" victory in the Battle of Derna on the
shores of Tripoli in North Africa on this day in history, April 27,
1805.

The successful attack against overwhelming numbers on the
port city in present-day Libya, a stronghold of pirates who
spent years attacking United States ships at sea, was the
climactic battle of the First Barbary War (1801-05).

The victory is immortalized in a patriotic American anthem.

1st. Lt. Presley O’Bannon raised the American
flag during the Battle of Derna.

The Derna Plaque is part of "Defending the New Republic
1775-1865" display at the National Museum of the Marine
Corps in Virginia on May 25, 2010. This plaque was made
to honor a battle to take a fort from the Barbary pirates
off the northern coast of Africa. The Derna Plaque was discovered 175 years after the battle.

The history of the Marine Corps began when two battalions
of Continental Marines were formed on 10 November 1775
in Philadelphia as a service branch of infantry troops
capable of fighting both at sea and on shore.

The fledgling United States Marine Corps proved its dauntless
courage with a "miracle" victory in the Battle of Derna on the
shores of Tripoli in North Africa on this day in history, April 27,
1805.

The successful attack against overwhelming numbers on the
port city in present-day Libya, a stronghold of pirates who
Spent years attacking United States ships at sea, was the
climactic battle of the First Barbary War (1801-05).

The victory is immortalized in a patriotic American anthem.

"From the Halls of Montezuma/To the Shores of Tripoli/
We fight our country’s battles/In the air, on land and sea,"
proclaims the rousing opening lyrics of "The Marines’ Hymn".

In 1942, the Battle of Midway ended in a decisive victory for
American naval forces over Imperial Japan, marking a turning
point in the Pacific War.