What is the official birthday of the U.S. Marine Corps, founded during the Revolutionary War?

The official birthday of the U.S. Marine Corps is November 10, 1775.

On that date, the Second Continental Congress passed a resolution establishing two battalions of Continental Marines. The new force was intended to serve with the Continental Navy and fight both at sea and on shore during the Revolutionary War.

The modern Marine Corps traces its lineage to those Continental Marines. The Corps was re-established in its current legal form on July 11, 1798, but November 10 remains the recognized birthday because it marks the original congressional creation.

Marine celebrations traditionally include a formal ball and a cake-cutting ceremony. The date is sometimes confused with the Army’s June 14 birthday or the Navy’s October 13 establishment date, but each service traces its anniversary to a different event in 1775.