The Lion and the Crown

The Lion and the Crown. Distinguishing badge of a Royal Regiment. The Royal Marines Corps was awarded the title of "Royal" by King George III in 1802.

Fouled Anchor

Fouled Anchor. The badge of The Lord High Admiral first worn by the Marines in 1747.

Globe

The Globe. Granted by King George IV in "1827" in place of the One Hundred and Nine Battle Honours which the Marines Honourably earned.

The Laurels

The Laurels. Granted for the gallantry displayed by the Marines in the capture of Belle Isle in 1761

The Corps Motto

Per Mare Per Terram. "By Sea By Land " The Corps Motto believed to have been used for the first time in 1775 at Bunker Hill.

Gibraltar

Gibraltar. Commemorates the capture and defence of the famous Rock in 1704.

Gibraltar was sporadically inhabited from prehistoric times. The Muslim commander Tariq ibn Ziyad captured Gibraltar in AD 711, and the site was thereafter held as a fortress by all its successive occupiers. The Muslim occupation was permanently ended by the Spanish in 1462, and Isabella I annexed Gibraltar to Spain in 1501. But in 1704, during the War of the Spanish Succession, Sir George Rooke captured Gibraltar for the British, and Spain formally ceded it to Britain under the terms of the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. The Spanish nevertheless made several attempts to retake Gibraltar from Britain, most notably in a protracted but unsuccessful military siege that lasted from 1779 to 1783. In 1830 Gibraltar became a British crown colony. The opening of the Suez Canal (1869) heightened British determination to keep possession of Gibraltar, since the Mediterranean was now the main route to Britain's colonies in East Africa and southern Asia.

The peninsula consists of a limestone and shale ridge known as the Rock. It rises abruptly from the isthmus to 1,380 feet (421 m) at Rock Gun, which is its northernmost summit. Its greatest height, 1,396 feet (426 m), is attained near its southern end. The Rock shelves down to the sea at Europa Point, which faces Ceuta (a Spanish enclave in Morocco), 20 miles (32 km) to the south across the strait. From the Mediterranean, Gibraltar appears as a series of sheer, inaccessible cliffs, fronting the sea on the peninsula's east coast. The Rock's slope is more gradual on its western side and is occupied by tier upon tier of houses that stretch for some 300 feet (90 m) above the old defensive walls. Higher up, limestone cliffs almost isolate the Upper Rock, which is covered with a tangle of wild trees.

Since the 18th century Gibraltar has been a symbol of British naval strength, and it is commonly known in that context as "the Rock." With the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, Gibraltar increased in strategic importance, and its position as a provisioning port was greatly enhanced. Since World War II the British military garrison and naval dockyard have continued to be an important part of Gibraltar's economy, and naval operations of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) often use the port facilities.