24. War’s End for Captain Jack Doherty

Jack enjoyed his time at Marine Corps Base Quantico. He excelled in the courses he undertook including learning Mandarin.

In 1920 he was transferred to China, a country he found intriguing. Following World War I, and as a result of the decline of military forces in Peking, the Marines maintained the largest Legation Guard presence in the city, even larger than the Japanese.

Jack requested he be transferred to the Mounted Unit. He loved horses and thought it would probably be the only opportunity he would have to be in a cavalry regiment. His request was granted and consequently he rode with ‘the finest men and horses in the US Marines’.

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1922

As a result of fighting near Peking between Warlords Wu Pei-fu of Shangtung and Chang Tso-Lin of Manchuria, the Marines sealed their portion of the Legation Quarter. Furthermore, Marines opened fire from the Tartar Wall on rebel soldiers attempting to use a ram on the Chien Men Gate.

Jack was regarded as a sharpshooter and managed to down several of the rebels before they fled.

The following month one hundred and fifty US Marines from the USS Huron landed at Tientsin in response to fighting between Gen Wu Pei fu and Gen Chang Tso-lin’s troops, also near Peking. They remained for several days in case they were needed. The Marine Legation Guard grew to a strength of five hundred and twenty-five.

Jack received another promotion: he was now Major Jack Doherty.

The young Major was summoned back to Washington in December 1923, for what reason he wasn’t sure. He sailed home on the USS Augusta, one of the most powerful battle ships in the fleet.

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Jack was posted to several Marine Corp installations over the next nine years including:

Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton

Oceanside, California

Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany

Albany, Georgia

Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune

Jacksonville, North Carolina

Marine Barracks, Washington, DC

Washington, DC

Camp H. M. Smith, Marine Corps Base Hawaii

Aiea, Hawaii

In that time he had received a number of promotions and by 1932 he was a Brigadier General in the Marine Corps.

He had married and had two boys, Tom and Peter, now aged ten and eight. Life was good, although he did get frustrated not being able to use his skills and experience in peacetime. He had however, gained an enormous amount of experience and training in ‘intelligence’ and those skills can be used anytime; peace or war.