USMC 2nd Battalion 26th Marines Nomads Patch — USMC Embroidered Patch The Nomads — 2nd Battalion, 26th Marines They defended Khe Sanh. They fought through the jungles of I Corps. And when the mission was done, they folded their colors — twice. This patch honors 2nd Battalion, 26th Marines, one of the most battle-tested infantry battalions of the Vietnam War and a unit whose legacy stretches back to the bloodiest beach in Marine Corps history. 2/26 first saw combat as part of the 5th Marine Division during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II. Reactivated on 1 March 1966 at Camp Pendleton, the battalion deployed to South Vietnam in August 1966, operating from Da Nang and Phu Bai. In January 1968, 2/26 was airlifted to Khe Sanh Combat Base, where the 26th Marines endured a legendary 77-day siege against overwhelming North Vietnamese forces. The battalion subsequently served as a Battalion Landing Team with Special Landing Force Alpha, rotating between shipboard duty and ground operations across I Corps through 1969. The 26th Marines were deactivated in March 1970 as part of the U.S. drawdown, and 2/26 remains inactive today. Perfect For: Veterans of 2/26 or the 26th Marines, Khe Sanh survivors, Vietnam-era Marine collectors, 5th Marine Division historians, and anyone who honors the warriors who held the line when it mattered most. They wandered far. They never wavered.
