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The March Up: Taking Baghdad With the 1st Marine Division Hardcover – 1 Sept. 2003

by Francis J. West (Author), Ray L. Smith (Author), Bing West (Author)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 27 ratings
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Chronicles the actions and efforts of the 1st Marine Division on their 22-day march into Baghdad, reporting firsthand accounts of strategic plans, failures, and ultimately, victory.
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  1. Print length
    320 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Bantam Dell Pub Group
  4. Publication date
    1 Sept. 2003
  5. Dimensions
    16.26 x 2.69 x 24.16 cm
  6. ISBN-10
    055380376X
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0553803761
  8. See all details
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Product description

From the Inside Flap

WITH UNPRECEDENTED ACCESS AND PREVIOUSLY UNREPORTED DETAIL, HERE IS A FIRSTHAND ACCOUNT OF THE 22-DAY MARCH TO BAGHDAD THAT TAKES YOU BEHIND THE SCENES AND TO THE FRONT LINE .

No one reporting on the war in Iraq had the unique battlefield clearance afforded the authors of this dramatic eyewitness account. Unlike embedded journalists confined to a single unit, West and Smith acquired a captured yellow SUV and joined with whatever unit was leading the assault every day of the fight. The result is a report of what really happened from the heart of the action unlike anything you ll read anywhere else.

While we will move swiftly and aggressively against those who resist, we will treat all others with decency, demonstrating chivalry and soldierly compassion for people who have endured a lifetime under Saddam s oppression. Major General J.N. Mattis, 1st Marine Division, Commanding

Here is the story that can be told only by those who actually witnessed the action of the famed 1st Marine Division s march on Baghdad, from the shaky beginning of U.S. operations in southern Iraq to the capture of U.S. prisoners, the misreported fierce Iraqi resistance, and the aggressive assaults that led to a quick and decisive victory.

With over a half century of military and combat experience between them, bestselling author F. J. Bing West and Major General Ray L. Smith, USMC (Ret.), combine expert military analysis with dramatic battlefield reporting. They bring the reader on a march that ended in victory but was shadowed by second-guessing, unexpected reversals, and the threat of catastrophe.


With access to three-star generals in the command centers and to privates in the field, the authors reveal how the strategic plan played out in battle, showing what went well and what failed, and detailing power struggles for military and political control never reported. The result is destined to become the definitive account of ground warfare in Iraq.

About the Author

F. J. “BING” WEST (right) served as Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs in the Reagan administration. He was a Marine infantry officer in Vietnam, where he wrote Small Unit Action, a firsthand description of the combat. He is also the author of The Village, a Vietnam classic, and the bestselling war novel The Pepperdogs. Visit his website at www.westwrite.com.


MAJOR GENERAL RAY L. SMITH, USMC (Ret.), is one of the most decorated Marines since World War II and served as a rifle company commander in the battle for Hue City in 1968. He commanded the Marines in Grenada in 1983 and in Beirut. He later commanded the 3rd Marine Division. He is a national expert on infantry and urban warfare.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bantam Dell Pub Group; First Edition (1 Sept. 2003)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 055380376X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0553803761
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 16.26 x 2.69 x 24.16 cm
  • Customer reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 27 ratings

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  1. Francis J. West

    Francis J. West

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    Bing West is a former assistant secretary of defense who chaired the US Security Commissions with El Salvador, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Pakistan, South Korea and Japan. A combat Marine, he has been on hundreds of patrols in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan. He has written ten books about national security and battle.

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  2. Ray L. Smith

    Ray L. Smith

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Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
27 global ratings

Top reviews from United Kingdom

Fallout
5.0 out of 5 stars inspiring
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 April 2023
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It’s so refreshing to read a real account. The unknown, the urgent decisions that had to be made under difficult circumstances. Thank you for this opportunity.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars A modern classic
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 8 December 2003
West and Smith have delivered perhaps the definitive embedded report account of Gulf War II. Like Mark Bowden's seminal "Black Hawk Down," "The March Up" will go down as a classic account of modern warfare.
Unlike other "embed" reporters, West and Smith are not journalists but retired U.S. Marine officers with service in Vietnam. West served in the Defense Department under the Ford and Reagan Administrations. West is highly decorated retired general and commanded Marine forces in Grenada in 1983. West and Smith were able to attach themselves to a Marine public affairs effort with the 1st Marine Division--a unit both men were veterans of. West does the writing in this book, relating the experiences that both he and Smith witnessed.
Because of their semi-official brief and Marine service, West and Smith were able to move amongst many units in the division--unlike other embeds who stayed with one or two battalions the entire war. West and Smith thus smoothly experience the war from the level of the Private First Class to the two-star general running the division. Unlike some of the embeds, West and Smith sometimes were actually in the midst of real combat on the front lines, and were themselves under fire on several occasions.
As the cliche goes, there are no ex-Marines, and it's clear early in the account that West and Smith a vested stake with the Marines not like that of ordinary journalists. West's son was serving with the 1st Force Recon Company and Smith acts at times like the general he was. Marines ask both men for their insights and even when not solicited, the Marine commanders often listen to both men.
The 1st Marine Division, comprised of three regimental combat teams (RCTs), jumped off from Kuwait in late March 2003 and ended up carrying out the longest land advance in Marine Corps history for over 200 years. Iraqi Freedom was an unusual war for the Marine Corps in that much of the advance was done by vehicles, with infantrymen only disgorging to take or clear a particular complex of buildings or confront Fedayeen or Iraqi Army forces that try to attack their progress along the roads and trackways. Because of the political imperative for speed, the Marines had little choice but drive in such exposed columns but overwhelming firepower--both air and land--and near incompetent and suicide resistance by the Iraqis meant the Marines could operate in this manner.
Acquiring a captured yellow Nissan Pathfinder, West and Smith follow along with the massed Marine columns of Abrams tanks, amphibious tractors (Amtracs), and Humvee vehicles. With excellent rapport amongst the division's officers, West and Smith are usually able to find out where the most interesting action is and get there to be on scene either during or just after.
Still, the campaign was not bloodless for the Marines and West relates the deaths of Marines he witnessed or was later told about. Sometimes, these deaths hit home as Marines that he knew previously are killed. Though the number of 1st Marine Division dead was comparatively small, West's account reminds us all that war is not a painless endeavor and even one death can have a cascading effect on many others.
The book shifts focus smoothly and seemlessly. One moment West writes about a Marine fire team given the task of seizing an important oil pumping station before Iraqi forces can create an economic disaster. Later, the book focuses on the ridiculous Western media defeatism that followed setbacks in Nasiriyah (when Jessica Lynch's convoy was ambushed) and Najaf by making the excellent point that the Marines needed no pause, and unlike their Army brethren, were used to operating with bare-bone logistics. West even weaves in the history of the Marine Corps' doctrine from Vietnam to the present. But never is any discussion so lengthy that the reader feels bogged down. "The March Up" should keep the interest of both casual readers and hardened military historians.
Though the authors obviously support the war, they do not shy away from criticism of certain aspects of the campaign. Sometimes they even make plain their criticism to other Marines they are journeying with. West does not likes the policy of shooting at civilian vehicles that do not respect Marine challenges—but he admits that he didn’t have a better policy for preventing suicide bombers. In one controversial part of the book, West writes of his complete disgust when a foreign officer (the country is not mentioned) on exchange to the Marine Corps opens fire with a LAV-25's 25mm cannon, cutting down two Iraqis who did not seem to be combatants.
The book successfully gives an insight into the personalities of the Marines at all levels. West writes of Marine generals and colonels who constantly keep themselves engrossed in all details of the campaign. Then there are the infantrymen who constantly feel chagrined that the Marine Abrams tanks are "getting all the kills" of Iraqis who challenge the vehicle columns. This pent up desire to slay the enemy finally releases itself in an awesome display of infantry movement and firepower at Baghdad University. New York Times and Guardian readers will surely be horrified at the Marines’ attitudes but the account rings true. Professional American Marines, while not warmongers, feel like athletes who train constantly but never get into the big game. For many of the Marine infantry, the march to Baghdad was their big game and they wanted to get into it to prove what they could do.
As time goes on, later embedded reporter accounts will benefit from the passage of time and the declassification of records. But it's hard to see anyone surpassing this book. For anyone wanting to gain an insight into modern warfare and into one of the world's most elite fighting forces, buy this book immediately and select the quickest shipping option possible. This book is absolutely mandatory reading.
13 people found this helpful
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Charles Vasey
4.0 out of 5 stars Anabasis
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 21 April 2008
Verified Purchase
This is a competent record, from the point of view of two ex-US Marines riding with the USMC units, of the advance on Baghdad. The viewpoint is that strange mixture of "on high" and "closeup". The two authors report their own adventures close up and those of the RCTs at a distance. This mixed view gives something close to the confusion that must have been felt by the soldiers. Although the conventional Iraqi forces are in big trouble the small bands of soldiers and Fedayeen are perfectly willing to close up with their AK47s and die bravely. Sometimes they can even injure ther foes.

Given what came afterwards this period was the "happy time" for US Forces, believing in their liberation and not suffering the feared WMD attacks. I thought the book caught the spirit of the time. Aware that the First Gulf War had overestimated Iraqi forces but always mindful of Mogadishu the American forces moved (as most armies do) in that confusion that a new war brings.

West and Smith are aware of civilian casualties and not afraid to upbraid trigger-happy troops, but the sheer confusion of a campaign which is almost an unbroken series of meeting engagements makes one amazed that there were not more.

The comparison with the army later led by Xenophon seems an unneccesary addition to what is a decent piece of reporting.
2 people found this helpful
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Kentspur
3.0 out of 5 stars Awesome display of power
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 29 March 2004
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This book is one of the 'instant war' genre that springs up after any major conflict.
I think it benefits from immediacy and the US Marine experience of the joint authors, but - necessarily - it suffers from some of the confusion that post-battle reports suffer. (I finished it fairly clueless about what happened at Nasariyah - the 'big set-back.)
What came across strongly for me was just how powerful the US forces were. Yes there was a lot of talk about how things didn't go to plan, but in the book, the main enemy is time, not the Iraqis. They might fire an RPG and get someone, but they are going to die - minutes or moments later. To try and take the Marines on means getting killed. For some, that's an option, for most, it's not. They have the good sense to run away or surrender.
Once you fire that RPG, a computer within the tank is tracing the heat source and telling the gunners and machine gunners where you are, not to mention the radar-controlled counter-battery units or the superior night vision or the satellite tracking or the sublime ground-to-air comms.
Early in the book, the authors describe an Iraqi force pulling up in a civilian bus, deploying and fighting bravely. These are 'good soldiers' who stand up to the marines. They are killed to a man while the marines suffer no casualties. None.
My point is that if you are up against this sort of over-whelming military force and technology aren't you going to start trying something different? Like hitting soft targets through terrorism?
I didn't feel the book was that well-written - too much jargon and not enough 'character development'. It isn't a novel, but you have to know who these guys are to care. The best book on what it means to be a US Marine - I think - remains the superb 'Flags of Our Fathers.'
I would recommend this to people who want to understand how the US military machine functions.
7 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

slax64
5.0 out of 5 stars Oohrah!! The best account of the war to date!!!!
Reviewed in the United States on 15 September 2003
Verified Purchase
There was so much "smoke and mirrors" and misinformation during the war that you didn't know quite what to believe. Having TV correspondents embedded with various Marine units was unique and somewhat informative, but that does not compare to the accout written so definitively in "The March Up". This is a highly interesting day-to-day, battle-to-battle reporting of the situations and dangers encountered by the 1st Marine Division. You feel like you are riding along with them, with blow-by-blow descriptions of what it was like to actually be there. The action and descisions made by these brave Marine Officers and their units are unparalleled and we have them (and all others who fought and continue to fight) to thank for ridding the world of a very evil regime.
With this book being written by the father of a Marine and a former Marine, there are no punches pulled - a factual, riveting page-turner. As the sister of a Marine company commander featured in this book, I sincerely thank Mr. West and General Smith for their wonderful account of the events on the march to Baghdad. Well done gentlemen!
11 people found this helpful
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raquel-catherine duenas
5.0 out of 5 stars Authentic, entertaining, well written.
Reviewed in the United States on 3 June 2020
Verified Purchase
Love this book! The author writes a first hand account of the war in Irak. He’s a brilliant writer, as well as a veteran.
One person found this helpful
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B. T. Larkin
4.0 out of 5 stars A Great Book If You Recognize What It Is
Reviewed in the United States on 31 May 2004
Verified Purchase
This is a very good book for what it is -- the first campaign narrative and proproganda for a general. Hopefully there will be more books in the future with real research and more even-handedness. This book is not intended as research and is clearly a propaganda piece for General Mattis who gave them carte-blanche to roam his division. As such, the book could be titled "How to Launch Your Campaign for Commandant".
With that said, the combat and writing experience of the authors combined with their proximity to the battles involved produces some strong insights that are not likely to be found in other books. In terms of an analysis of tactics, I thought the book was very strong. It is a lot more insightful than all the embedded journalism stories that reported the excitement but could make very little sense of the battles. For that reason I highly recommend "The March Up" as a campaign narrative.
7 people found this helpful
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OIF 2003
5.0 out of 5 stars An outstanding account by men who were there
Reviewed in the United States on 16 September 2003
Verified Purchase
As the commander of a U.S. Army Psychological Operations company assigned to the 1st Marine Division during and after the Iraq War, I can attest to the truth written by Mr. West and MajGen Smith. Their no-holds-barred account of what our Marines, soldiers, and sailors experienced in Iraq is a must-read for anyone interested in understanding how the Iraqis really reacted to their liberation. They accurately depict the extreme sacrifices made by our young men and women, and remind us that all Americans and Iraqis owe a great debt to those who died to make them free.
6 people found this helpful
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Matt
5.0 out of 5 stars Bing West is one of the best writers of modern military history
Reviewed in the United States on 17 January 2015
Verified Purchase
Bing West is one of the best writers of modern military history. Its great to have the perspective of someone who has been there and not just a few hundred pages of armchair generalship.
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