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Tough question. A question the country, the Department of Defense and USMC have been trying to figure out for some time.At the tactical (individual soldier/Marine) level what everyone has written is definitely correct. There are lots of differences, so not completely a duplicate service. At the strategic level is where the trouble always arises.No, in theory the USMC is not a duplicate of the Army. While it is technically part of the Department of the Navy, the USMC has its own service chief on the Joint Staff (as every Marine will remind you of every chance they get). Again in theory the USMC is tasked and organized to land forces ashore from the sea or quickly over large distances and hence the continued push for 20+ (forgot the number but by doctrine the requirement is to land a certain size [regiment?] force shore) amphibious assault ships.But, and there is always a but, for the last 15 years or so the USMC has been just a second land army in the Middle East as dictated by strategic and political requirements. Yes, the USMC was able to carve themselves out a section of Afghanistan where they could avoid being “Joint” but for all intents and purposes they were a second land army. Yes, again to all the Marines out there they are tactically different and arguably better… Regardless, all the time in the Middle East has pulled the USMC away from what they want(?) and claim to be about.So, along comes the new Commandant and he makes the call that the USMC is going to get rid of all its tanks and reduce the number of aviation squadrons. That’s HUGE. He is trying to get the Marines back to their doctrinal roots. If the current plan gets enacted then the USMC will most certainly not be a duplicate of the Army. But we’ll see. The new direction charted by the Commandant is as much a political decision as it is a USMC decision. When the USMC stops buying M1s and F35s we’ll see what Congress has to say.

First, to clarify the chain of command for the two positions in your question: the Commandant of the Marine Corps (CMC) is the highest ranking military officer in the USMC and is a four star general. The USMC is one of the two US military services within the Department of the Navy (DON), which has the Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) as its civilian head. SECNAV reports to the Secretary of Defense (SECDEF), who reports to the President of the United States (POTUS).So, CMC most certainly renders appropriate military honors to SECNAV, including a hand salute. As a civilian, SECNAV is not expected to return the CMC’s salute with a hand salute, but it’s not necessarily inappropriate.

I served with a USMC unit in Afghanistan, and thought they were excellent, although clear differences between how we operated and what our priorities were.Firstly, in the British Army, there’s a lot more leeway for free thought and doing things “in the spirit of the law” rather than to the letter. A USMC unit will follow the rules even if they’re clearly bonkers. There’s pros & cons of both approaches - I’m not passing judgement on who was right.Secondly, fitness. I can confidently say that the average British infantryman will run rings around a US marine in a distance run or in a loaded march, and your average US marine will lift a hell of a lot more weight in the gym. This has come from the lessons learnt in the Falklands when soldiers had to operate without any mechanised support, and the British have a greater focus on cardiovascular fitness as a result.There’s no doubt about marksmanship - many Americans grow up with a gun in their hand, and the USMC are far better shots than the British.But, slight differences aside, we were all very content to serve alongside each other and worked very well together, and I still consider the marines I worked with very good friends and very capable soldiers.