LINEAGE
Originally activated as 3rd Battalion, 10th Marines on 1 January 1941 and armed with 75mm Pack Howitzers; the battalion now known as “the Steel Rain Battalion” fired the opening artillery rounds of the first U.S. offensive of World War II on 7 August 1942 against a Japanese sniper position on Guadalcanal. After earning two Presidential Unit Citations for service on Guadalcanal and Tarawa, the battalion briefly switched designations to 5th Battalion, 10th Marines. Six weeks later, the battalion transitioned to 155mm howitzers and was re-named the 2D 155mm Howitzer Battalion, a designation carried through the campaign for Saipan where they fired over 10,000 rounds, Guam where their displacements outpaced even the more nimble 75mm guns, and Iwo Jima where the battalion landed on D+1. The battalion was deactivated in 1945, and its guns remained silent until 1954 when it was re-activated. With the exception of the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962, where our Marines supported the blockade that forced the Soviet Union to remove its missiles from Cuba, the Steel Rain Battalion did not see action again until the Gulf War. The battalion was re-designated 5th Battalion, 10th Marines, 2d Marine Division in 1978 and served as the division’s general support artillery battalion. During Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm from December 1990 to April 1991, the Marines of 5/10 manned 8” and 155mm self-propelled howitzers and supported the division during the liberation of Kuwait. Since 1991, 5/10 has distinguished itself during service in Haiti in 1994 and by supporting the on-going War on Terrorism through service as provisional infantry, civil affairs, training foreign militaries, and providing artillery fire support to the coalition forces in Iraq. The battalion most recently served as the Brigade Headquarters Group for 2d Marine Expeditionary Brigade while deployed to Southern Afghanistan. The Marines and Sailors of the “Five and Dime” Battalion are always ready to bring our enemies “Pain by Steel Rain.”
HONORS
The Presidential Unit Citation Streamer with One Bronze Star
The Navy Unit Commendation Streamer with One Bronze Star
The American Defense Service Streamer
The Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Streamer with One Silver and One Bronze star
World War II Victory Streamer
National Defense Service Streamer with Two Bronze Stars
The Armed Forces Expeditionary Streamer
The Southwest Asia Service Streamer with Three Bronze Stars
The Global War on Terror Service Streamer
The Global War on Terror Expeditionary Streamer
Iraqi Campaign Streamer with One Bronze Star
Afghanistan Campaign Streamer with One Bronze Star