Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps
Incumbent SMMC Ronald L. Green since February 20, 2015
Formation	May 23, 1957
First holder	Wilbur Bestwick
Website	http://www.hqmc.marines.mil/smmc

Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps (officially abbreviated to SMMC^[1][2]) is a billet, as well as a unique enlisted grade of rank, with a unique non-commissioned grade of rank insignia, in the United States Marine Corps.

History[edit]

Rank insignia of the SMMC from 1957 to 1970, became the rank insignia for a sergeant major afterwards.

In the U.S. Marine Corps, sergeant major is the ninth and highest enlisted rank, just above first sergeant, and equal in grade to master gunnery sergeant, although the two have different responsibilities. A sergeant major typically serves as the unit commander's senior enlisted adviser and to handle matters of discipline and morale among the enlisted Marines. The Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps is chosen by the Commandant of the Marine Corps to serve as his adviser and is the preeminent and highest ranking enlisted Marine with an order of precedence of a lieutenant general.^[3]

Although not officially considered a Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, when Archibald Sommers was appointed to the grade of Sergeant Major January 1, 1801, it was a solitary post, similar to the modern billet of Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps. In 1833, an act of legislation made the rank of sergeant major permanent for the Marine Corps and by 1899 five Marines held the rank of sergeant major. This continued until 1946, when the rank was abolished, only to be re-introduced in 1954 as part of the Marine Corps rank structure.^[4]

The post of Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps was established in 1957 from the order of Assistant Chief of Staff for Personnel at Headquarters Marine Corps, Brigadier general James P. Berkeley, as the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Commandant of the Marine Corps,^[4] the first such post in any of the five branches of the United States Armed Forces.^[5] In 1970, the rank insignia of the Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps was authorized (which features three stripes, the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor flanked by two five-point stars in the center, and four rockers) as opposed to the standard Sergeant Major rank insignia (which features three stripes, one five-point star in the center, and four rockers), which was used for the rank from the post's creation in 1957 to 1970. While "Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps" is the full wording of the rank, the verbal address for this is commonly Sergeant Major.

The Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps is selected by the Commandant of the Marine Corps and typically serves a four-year term, though his service is at the discretion of the Commandant.^[5] Since Sergeant Major Wilbur Bestwick was appointed the first Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps in 1957, 17 different Marines have filled this post.^[6]

On January 20, 2015, Commandant Joseph F. Dunford, Jr. announced that Sergeant Major Ronald L. Green would relieve Sergeant Major Micheal P. Barrett and serve as the 18th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps on February 20, 2015.^[7]

Sergeants Major of the Marine Corps[edit]

#	Picture	Name	Tenure from	Tenure to
1		Bestwick Wilbur Bestwick[8]	May 23, 1957	September 1, 1959
2		Rauber Francis D. Rauber[9]	September 1, 1959	June 29, 1962
3		McHugh Thomas J. McHugh[10]	June 29, 1962	July 17, 1965
4		Sweet Herbert J. Sweet[11]	July 17, 1965	August 1, 1969
5		Dailey Joseph W. Dailey[12]	August 1, 1969	February 1, 1973
6		Puckett Clinton A. Puckett[13]	February 1, 1973	June 1, 1975
7		Black Henry H. Black[14]	June 1, 1975	April 1, 1977
8		Massaro John R. Massaro[15]	April 1, 1977	August 16, 1979
9		Crawford Leland D. Crawford[16]	August 16, 1979	June 28, 1983
10		Cleary Robert E. Cleary[17]	June 28, 1983	June 27, 1987
11		Sommers David W. Sommers[18]	June 27, 1987	June 28, 1991
12		Overstreet Harold G. Overstreet[19]	June 28, 1991	June 30, 1995
13		Lee Lewis G. Lee[20]	June 30, 1995	June 29, 1999
14		McMichael Alford L. McMichael[21]	June 29, 1999	June 26, 2003
15		Estrada John L. Estrada[22]	June 26, 2003	April 25, 2007
16		Kent Carlton W. Kent[23]	April 25, 2007	June 9, 2011
17		Barrett Micheal P. Barrett[24]	June 9, 2011	February 20, 2015
18		Green Ronald L. Green[25]	February 20, 2015	Incumbent

Timeline[edit]