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3 Commando Brigade is the main manoeuvre force of the Royal Marines. It can trace its origins back to World War II, when it was formed as the 3rd Special Service Brigade. The Commandos were formed as forces to performs raids on occupied Europe. Many of these raids were relatively small affairs, but some were very large, such as the 1942 raid on Dieppe, and the attack on St Nazaire to cripple the dry dock there.
At the end of the war, the British Army stopped using troops in the commando role, and the Royal Marines took over the task completely. 3 Commando Brigade was at the forefront of many actions over the next 25 years, acting as a strategic reserve for the Far East and Mediterranean areas. Its most high profile operation was during the Suez Crisis, when it took part in the amphibious assault against Egyptian targets. During Operation Musketeer, units of the Brigade made the first helicopter borne assault in history.
1971 saw the withdrawal of British forces from the Far East and Persian Gulf. The Brigade returned to the UK with other British units. It moved to Stonehouse Barracks in Plymouth, where it remains to this day.
Its next large operation was in 1982. Argentina invaded the Falklands Islands, and 3 Commando Brigade was one of the two main British land formations that took part in operations to recapture the islands. The Brigade landed at San Carlos Inlet and marched across East Falkand to Port Stanley. Argentine units were defeated in several sharp engagments, and their forces surrendered on 14 June. In the aftermath of the Gulf War, the Brigade was deployed on a non-warfighting task in northern Iraq. The Kurds had suffered immensely during the war and its immediate aftermath, and the Brigade was used due to its rapid deployment ability. It provided succour to the Kurds and saved many from starvation.
The early 21st century saw a new war begin. The brigade was involved in both of the first two campaigns, in Aghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003. In Afghanistan, no contact was made with enemy forces, despite expectations of a tough fight. Iraq, on the other hand, saw vicious fighting in the early stages of the campaign, as the Brigade made its first amphibious assault in over 20 years by landing on the Al Faw penninsula in south east Iraq. Both operations were successful, and showed the brigade is still ready to perform its traditional role as one of the United Kingdom's elite fighting forces.
Today the Brigade consists primarily of three battalion-sized Commando Units. These are 40 Commando Royal Marines, 42 Commando Royal Marines, and 45 Commando Royal Marines. In addition the brigade has several supporting units, its own logistics regiment, an artillery regiment, an engineer squadron, a helicopter squadron, a raiding squadron equipped with small boats, and a landing craft squadron. In addition, elements of the Special Boat Service are usually deployed with the Brigade, when operational.
