King & Country USMC015 Marine Grenadier: One Hand on the Rifle, One in the Throw

King & Country · WWII U.S. Marines · USMC015

The broad throwing movement gives USMC015 its character. The Marine’s right arm reaches back with a grenade while his left hand holds the M1 Garand low, keeping the rifle out of the path of the throw. His bent knees and turned torso make the pose more involved than a raised arm attached to a standing rifleman.

In the set: One Marine throwing a Mk II grenade while holding a Garand.

The Mk II fragmentation grenade was widely known as the “pineapple” because of its segmented-looking iron body. It gave an infantryman a way to attack an enemy position without a direct rifle shot into it. The weapon’s short reach, however, brought its user close to the same cover that sheltered the defender.

“Grenadier” here describes what this man is doing. The set does not represent a Marine carrying a rifle-mounted grenade launcher or prove membership of a separate grenadier unit. That distinction is easy to lose in a search result, but unmistakable in the photograph: this is a hand-thrown grenade, with the rifle retained in the other hand.

References: King & Country USMC015 release description and photographs; historical background. Review observations are based on the product reference photographs.