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Image by David Cutright
As do several of the worlds of the UFP, Terra maintains her own military organizations and a large and effective Marine Corps. The tradition of Terran Marines originated with the United Kingdoms in the 18th century, and reached its pinnacle with the United States Marine Corps, with both being national strike force units with a 'first in, last out' approach to military engagement. The United States Marine Corps was highly active during the First Romulan War, and with the Andorian High Guard, became the foundational unit for the formation of Federation Marine Corps in the 2160s.
The Marine Corps of Terra is trained in Camp LeJuene, North Carolina (First Division), Valkenstein Base in Bavaria (Second Divisition), and at Freedom Base in Liberia (Third Division), with reserve units training at Gromki Base in the Ukraine. Second Division is one of the three permanent Federation Marine Corps units, and the only one based on Terra. It is made up of about 40% Terran citizens and the other members come from over 30 worlds of the UFP.
The Terran Marine Corps is still affiliated with the United Earth Space Forces, and the officer training schools are located at Annapolis, MD, and in a distributed campus outside of St. Petersburg, Russia. They often cross-train with the equivalent forces on Andora, Tellar, and Corridan, and maintain a separate deployment facility at Alpha Centauri, as a guest of the Alpha Centauri Star Rangers.
Their 'finishing schools' for basic training at on the 'back side' of Terra's moon, called Luna, and at Antarctica. They also maintain a presence at the Utopia Planitia base of Starfleet, where they maintain their headquarters for ship operations. While the Marine Corps maintains at least a Division at full strength on Terra at all times, they do respond to crises on Terran colony worlds and worlds with close economic ties to Terra, sometimes at the request of Starfleet but more often when the matters are not those that are monitored and policed closely by Starfleet.
As in Starfleet itself, Marine Corps ships include high warp units capable of shipping Rapid Response Teams, single Marine Companies, and 3 unit Company Regiments, for rapid movement to worlds where a strike force and cantonment is needed. The Second Division is supplied and equipped by Starfleet, and is completely mobile.
Starfleet maintains an additional Regiment at Ames Base in California, but this unit was destroyed during the Knight's Invasion: Earth mission, when it was discovered that it was the cover for a PsiBine assault force. A new unit is being assembled and will be on base there as soon as their old facilities are rebuilt.
Officers planning to perform service commanding Terran Marines units for the UFP and in conjunction with Starfleet, may attend their last two years of training at Starfleet Academy, though their summers are still spent training with their own host institutions. A limited number of Marine Corps officers are seconded for a part of their careers to Starfleet and work as Starfleet officers.
Terra maintains a covert action base in conjunctio with the Federation Marine Corps, that operates out of the Ganymede colony and the orbital base above it.
Written by Russ Vanneman