Happy birthday Marine Corps! Here are 37 powerful pictures of the Marine Corps through history

The Marine Corps, 240 years old on Tuesday, has served a role in every conflict in the history of the United States.

That is because the Marines operate on sea, air, and land - unlike the other sister service branches - and can respond to a crisis in under 24 hours with the full force of a modern military.

Today there are more than 220,000 active-duty and reserve Marines.

To celebrate the Corps, we've pulled some of the best photos from the archives.