Evans Carlson

Evans Fordyce Carlson
Evans Fordyce Carlson
	Carlson c. 1942–1945
Born	February 26, 1896; Sidney, New York, U.S.
Died	May 27, 1947 (aged 51); Portland, Oregon, U.S.
Place of burial	Arlington National Cemetery
Allegiance	United States
Branch	United States Army; United States Marine Corps
Service years	1912–1921 (USA); 1922–1939, 1941–1946 (USMC)
Rank	Brigadier general
Unit	2nd Marines
Commands	2nd Raider Battalion
Conflicts	Pancho Villa Expedition; World War I; United States occupation of Nicaragua; Second Sino-Japanese War (observer); World War II Makin Island Raid; Guadalcanal campaign Carlson's patrol; ; Battle of Tarawa; Battle of Saipan; ;
Awards	Navy Cross (3); Legion of Merit; Purple Heart Medal (2); Combat Action Ribbon; Croce al Merito di Guerra (Italy)

Evans Fordyce Carlson (February 26, 1896 – May 27, 1947) was a United States Marine Corps officer who led "Carlson's Raiders" during World War II. Many credit Carlson with developing the tactics and attitude that would later come to define America's special operations forces. He is renowned for the "Makin Island raid" in 1942, and his raiders' "Long Patrol" (aka Carlson's patrol) behind Japanese lines on Guadalcanal, in which 488 Japanese were killed. Carlson popularized the phrase "gung-ho".