Marleyan military (Anime)

The Marleyan military (マーレ軍) is the combined armed forces of Marley, consisting primarily of the Marleyan army (マーレ軍 Māre-gun) and the Marleyan navy (マーレ海軍 Māre kaigun). Their main strength comes from the infamous Warriors, comprised of Eldians possessing the power of the Titans.

Numbers
According to Yelena, in the year 851, the Marleyan army boosted a total strength of one million men organized into 50 divisions of 20,000 strong. The navy had a total of 21 battleships among three fleets as well as an unknown amount of destroyers, survey ships and other types of naval warships. However, it is unclear whether these numbers still hold true after the Marley Mid-East War given that Marley has suffered heavy casualties in that war with over half their naval fleet being destroyed by the Mid-East Alliance.

Chain of Command
The various branches of the military are collectively led by a general, formerly General Calvi before his death, then succeeded by General Theo Magath. Below the general are commanders who are responsible for the control and training of a combat unit.

Military service
Marley practices conscription in the conquered lands of its empire, although its own citizens are presently exempted from military service, after it was abolished for Marleyan citizens mutliple decades ago. Due to that, its rank and file is made up of various ethnicities, with the Eldian Unit being the most visible among them.

In the year 854, Magath pushed for the reintroduction of conscription for ethnic Marleyans in order to meet the anticipated threats from Paradis Island and other advanced powers of the world.

Salute
The military’s salute consists in raising the right hand whenever it is necessary, such as to greet superior officers or aknowledge an order that has been given. When Magath ordered his subordinate officer to prepare the Eldian Unit to be sent to combat, Koslow did the salute before executing the orders. When Magath caught Warriors Zeke Jaeger and Colt Grice having a discussion, both did the salute in order to greet their then commander. When the Warrior Titan Reiner Braun caught the then candidate to inherit his powers Falco uttering words that could be considered as treason to Marley, Falco recited an oath praising Marley and the privilege to serve the country as one of its Warrior Titans, while doing the salute at the same time.

Ancient times
The Marleyan armies at the time of when Ymir Fritz was alive wore uniforms that were pretty evenly similar, but had small differences between soldiers of different ranks. The average soldiers wore simple Roman-like brown tunic, with a muscle body armour on top of it covering the chest, alongside a red cape. On their heads, the ancient Marleyan soldiers wore a metal helmet. While the rest of the uniform was the same for the soldiers from all ranks, the helmet was the gear in which there was a mark of difference. While the average soldiers didn't have it, superior officers posessed red plumes on top of their helmets, indicating their superior ranks. Ancient Marleyan soldiers were also seen being equipped with pilums and circular silver scutums as shields. While the average soldiers were on foot, superior officers mounted on horses while in the battlefield.

Army
In modern times, the standard uniform of the Marleyan army consists of a white uniform with black suspender straps running along up and down the front of the uniform, connected to two black supply packs at the hip, a black belt, tall combat boots, and a silver stahlhelm-like headgear with a black striple around it. Due to the Marleyan military being racially segregated, the Eldians are given a special uniform that differentiates them from non-Eldian soldiers in the military. Their uniform is the same as the one given to Marleyans and soldiers from other ethnicites and nationalities, safe from the fact that the Eldian soldiers have a small patch in the uniform's collar engraved with the nine star symbol such as the one engraved in the armbands, representing the Nine Titans and the Eldian Empire. Another difference is the headgear, which is a brown pit helmet with a small Eldian star engraved at the front. Obviously, Eldians in the military are also differentiated by the armbands that they wear. Outside of the battlefield and in formal settings, the Marleyan army also provides a service dress uniform for all the soldiers, regardless of rank, whether they are generals, commanders, captains, soldiers, and even Warrior cadets. This military uniform consists of a beige trenchcoat with a brown belt, worn over a simple white shirt and a black tie. For the highest ranking officers, they are given order badges on their left chest, the number of badges depending on the officer's position and past achievements in the military. Though they have been seen mostly in the Marleyan highest-ranking officers' uniforms, the Warriors now former Warchief Zeke Jaeger had the privilege, before defecting to Eldia, of being the only Eldian in the military posessing those order badges, indicating how much trust and respect he acquired from his Marleyan superiors, most probably thanks to the multiple ennemy cities and countries Marley has been able to conquer by using his unique abilities. The general's trenchcoat uniform is unique from all other officers and soldiers by having on top of the order badges, medals, including a very noticeable red sash running diagonally from the right shoulder to the left waist. Former general Calvi had four medals on the left chest of his uniform, on top of the order badges. This uniform also differentiated the Eldians in the military from the other races with the presence of the nine star symbol on the left collar in the trenchcoats worn by the Eldians.

Warrior Unit
The members of the Warrior Unit are given numerous different uniforms, mostly used when in training back inside the country's borders. Two different uniforms have been seen to be used by the Warriors cadets : one of them consists in a white short-sleeve military shirt, alongside a green short going up to the knees with brown small leather boots, while the other one consists in a full kaki uniform with high black military boots. The Warriors are also occasionally seen wearing the full white uniform of the army, without the additional suspender straps and supply packs. They also wear the military's official trenchcoat when in formal settings, such as military meetings with Marleyan superiors, or special occasions, such as when Willy Tybur made a speech culmating in a declaration of war against the Eldians of Paradis Island in Liberio's internment zone.

Navy
The Marleyan navy also provides numerous uniforms. The naval soldiers who were sent to survey Paradis Island from the year 851 after the Warriors defeat at Shigansina and the postponing of the Paradis Island Operation were dressed nearly identically to their army counterparts, safe for an additional life jacket. The members of the Marleyan navy stationned closer to home are dressed in navy blue sailor uniforms, having just like the army the two black suspender straps, alongside four black supply packs on the hip at the front and two bigger ones at the back, with the same tall dark boots. Superior naval officers wore a different uniform, consisting in a totally dark uniform with a brown life jacket worn on top of it, and a dark naval cap engraved with the Marleyan seashell national emblem.

Army
The Marleyan army (マーレ陸軍) possesses a conventional armament that is largely similar to other world powers in appearance, but is noted to be more obsolete. For small-arms weaponry, bolt action rifles and stick grenades are the standard-issued weapons of Marleyan infantrymen, with two models of rifle in service. War Chief Zeke Jaeger also carries a carbine rifle into battle, suggesting that automatic small-arms are used at least by Marley's elite Airborne Unit. Heavier weapons such as water-cooling machine guns are employed as the primary armament of the Cart Titan in particular, turning them into mobile weapon platforms manned by Marleyan soldiers known as the Panzer Unit (パンツァー隊). Soldiers are primarily transported by steam-powered trains, but those who garrison inside home territory are also transported by trucks.

In 852, the army consists of 50 divisions, comprised of 20,000 soldiers each, for a total of 1,000,000 soldiers.

The use of Titans is central to the army's doctrine. Besides having the Warriors as a strategical deterrent, Marley also has a long-standing strategy of converting its Eldian population into pure Titans to bolster its military strength. In ancient times, pure Titans were set loose by the Eldian Empire an enemy force en masse, as they are unable to follow complex commands except from the Founding Titan. Marley's tactic remains much unchanged from Eldia's in the modern era, except that the Titans can now be airdropped by airships.

Other than strategic value, inheritors of the Nine Titans also fulfill the tactical role comparable to tanks on the field. For example, Porco Galliard was tasked to destroy a machine gun nest which was otherwise untouchable by infantry in the battle against Fort Slava. A more literal example is Pieck, who possesses four machine guns turrets strapped to the armor on her Titan's back, a configuration that proved highly effective in clearing the Allies' trench system. Otherwise, Marleyan troops practice conventional tactics such as trench warfare, frontal human wave assault, and rudimentary anti-armor techniques such as the use of bundle stick grenades.

However, due to their heavy reliance on the power of the Titans, the Marleyan army has neglected development and advancement of conventional armaments. As a result, its forces were gradually outclassed by the Mid-East Allied Forces and other nations of the world, who pushed their efforts into military development in order to strike a balance with Marley's Titans.

The army has little regard for proper conducts of war. For example, Magath intentionally allowed Warrior candidate Gabi Braun to attack an enemy pillbox in plainclothes, even though he was aware that this would be a violation of international law if anyone remained alive to report it. By the time the Marleyan military initiates their Paradis Island Surprise Attack in spite of severe losses following the Raid on Liberio, they would adapt Anti-Titan Artillery pieces capable of defeating from the Mid-East Allied Forces to where it is capable of being airdropped onto Shiganshina District for use by the Cart Titan. Marleyan modifications includes being capable of penetrating through hardening.

Panzer Unit
Heavier weapons such as water-cooling machine guns are employed as the primary armament of the Cart Titan in particular, turning them into mobile weapon platforms manned by Marleyan soldiers known as the Panzer Unit (パンツァー隊).

Eldian Unit
One of the forces in the Marleyan army is the Eldian Unit (エルディア人部隊). The army's hierarchy is ethnically segregated, with Eldians forming the entirety of the enlisted ranks led by an all-Marleyan leadership. As a clear indication of rank, Eldian soldiers are issued with headgear differing from their Marleyan superiors, and all are required to wear the nine-pointed star insignia identifying them as Eldians at all time unless when being explicitly ordered to take it off. The Eldians soldiers have a color signifying their rank, grey is Eldian soldier, yellow is Warrior candidate, and red is Warrior. Like in civilian society, Marleyan officers are generally disdainful of their Eldian subordinates, but some are less so. For example, Commander Magath is more willing to communicate with his Warrior candidates, and even allows them opportunities to celebrate, although those were likely done out of pragmatism. On the other hand, his subordinate Marleyan officer Koslow is openly contemptuous of the Eldians, and he seeks every chance to belittle them. Despite the discrimination, Eldian veterans are entitled to medical care if they are permanently crippled or psychologically damaged in war.

Warriors
Before the year 830, Marley possessed seven Titans which assured its position as the world's sole superpower. However, advancements in technology from other major nations have started to undermine the military importance of Titans. Recognizing this fact, the Marleyan government planned to conquer Paradis Island to exploit its rich fossil fuel resources in order to improve their conventional military. The plan was hindered by Karl Fritz's threat of unleashing the Colossal Titans upon the world in case of a Marleyan invasion, though this threat was little more than a means of temporary deterrence.

In order to counter King Fritz's ultimatum, the Marleyan government decided to grant the power of the seven Titans in their nation's possession to a selection of children who are Subjects of Ymir, thus forming the Warriors (戦士). The families of those chosen children were promised to be made into honorary Marleyans with all freedoms that come with the distinction. These children were trained into expendable soldiers in warfare while also serving as candidates to inherit the powers of the Titans.

Over a dozen years later, in the year 845, Marley sent out four of their Warriors, Bertholdt Hoover, Reiner Braun, Annie Leonhart, and Marcel Galliard from their hometown of Liberio. These Warriors were given the task of breaching the gates of the Walls in order to wipe out the Eldians and take the Founding Titan from the royal family.

They succeed in breaching Wall Maria, though their efforts in breaching Wall Rose are halted upon learning that Eren Jaeger possesses the power of the Titans, leading them to suspect that he could have the Founding Titan they seek. Since that revelation, the goal of the surviving Warriors has been to capture Eren Jaeger in order to obtain the Founding Titan. However, after their failure at the Battle of Shiganshina District, the Paradis Island Operation has since been postponed due to the loss of the Colossal and Female Titans.

In the year 854, a group of candidates consisting of Gabi, Falco, Colt, Zofia, and Udo join the Eldian soldiers to help capture Fort Slava under the command of Theo Magath during the Marley Mid-East War. The same battle also sees Reiner, and Zeke being deployed on the field alongside a barrage of mindless Titan. Reiner is severely injured when he shields Zeke from a direct hit of a naval artillery shell.

The Warriors are now facing the threat of being outclassed by advanced technology in weaponry used by other nations against them. During the Raid on Liberio, the Scout Regiment matches the Warriors in battle, and even manages to overwhelm them when Porco Galliard breaks formation and leaves his comrades exposed. The forces of Paradis Island then manage to steal the War Hammer Titan from Marley and inflict some serious damage to the Armored, Jaw, and Cart Titans while also successfully rally the Beast Titan to their side.

Navy
The Marley navy (マーレ海軍) is outdated and underdeveloped, which leads to devastating losses against the state-of-the-art naval warships deployed by the Allies during the Marley Mid-East War. During the war, it only manages to control the sea at the cost of half of its fleet after four years of fighting.

Marley has a variety of different warships in its navy, such as battleships, destroyers, ironclads, survey ships, and steamboats.

In 852, the Marleyan Navy had a total of 21 battleships among three fleets. Despite poorer performance, the battleships operated by Marley after the war bear few differences to its Alliance counterparts in appearance, which may suggest that the ships were seized from the defeated Alliance as war compensation. The ships are steam-powered, fully steel built vessels, armed with two twin-gun main batteries of large-caliber naval guns as well as numerous smaller guns around the hull; pre-dreadnoughts. The navy sent 32 ships including a number of destroyers to the coast of Paradis Island in the course of three years after the Battle of Shiganshina District. The purpose was to survey the area for the invasion of the island. All ships were lost to the Scout Regiment and a group of Marleyan dissidents - Consecutively, the latter group lured them in by sending out a fake distress call, allowing the Attack Titan or the Colossal Titan to ambush the vessels. Most members of the ship crews were captured. Over time, the survivors' hostility became smoothed out. Some would even cooperate with the Scout Regiment and become technical specialists.

Relations between the army and the navy may be poor. For example, Udo scolds them for being "Imbeciles, chickens, and pricks."

During the fighting in Liberio, Magath gives orders to the navy, citing that the normal chain of command has broken down. This suggests that the head of the Marleyan navy was present for the Liberio festival and perished.

During the course of the battle, a Marleyan naval fleet arrives at a port near Liberio, in order to reinforce the Marleyan position. However, Armin Arlelt is waiting for them and proceeds to transform into his Colossal Titan form, obliterating the fleet and the port where the ships are docking.

The Marleyan navy would lead the Global Alliance Fleet against Eren Jaeger's Rumbling at the port city of Karifa, but completely fails to stop the Titans and is completely slaughtered alongside the other nations' battleships.

Air Force
Although it is unclear whether or not the Marleyan military possesses an independent air branch, air power had seen use in the Marley Mid-East War and the operation against Paradis Island.

At the conclusion of the Marley Mid-East War, it is hinted that Marley will focus on developing heavier-than-air aircraft that can rain bombs from above.

Airborne Unit
The Airborne Unit (空挺部隊 Kūtei Butai) uses airships to carry Eldians who are parachuted over a target area and transformed by Zeke's scream into pure Titans, who upon transforming lose their parachutes and fall violently on the enemy's territory, the kinetic force destroying much of the bombarded zone. Although a large percentage of the Titans die due to the fall, the remaining ones then proceed to decimate the surviving enemy forces. Members of the Nine Titans serving Marley such as the Armored and Beast Titans can then be parachuted as well, although from a lower altitude, to continue with the attack.

Fort Salta
Fort Salta (スラトア要塞 Suratoa-yōsai) is an airship research base located in Marley's southern montainous region. It held a sizeable fleet of airship and its garrison was put there with the purpose of developping new aerial combat prototypes. Currently, Fort Salta serves a rallying point for the mostly decimated Marleyan military in order to combat Eren Jaeger and his Colossal Titans. Despite its efforts, most of the garrison has been slaughtered by Eren, including the entire fleet of airships. The current commanding officer of the base is Secretary Muller.

Marley Public Security
The Marley Public Security (マーレ治安当局 Māre Chian Tōkyoku) is a Marleyan internal military force. Its primary purpose is to control the Eldian minority inside the internment zones within the Marleyan mainland. The MPS repression of Eldians for multiple decades drove Grisha Jaeger into becoming an Restorationist and led to the creation of several Titans which ravaged the Walled society in Paradis Island.

Trivia

 * The Marleyan military is often translated in English as "Marleyan army," but this is not to be confused with the ground division which is also translated as the "army." The Japanese terms are different, with the latter including the kanji 陸 riku, meaning "land."
 * The Marley army's equipment seems like a mix of WW1 German and British gears. For example, Marleyan servicemen wear a headgear that shaped like, while Eldian soldiers wear what appear to be.
 * Furthermore, the Marleyan service rifle heavily resembles a Mauser Gewehr 98 rifle. In Episode 63, Reiner attempts to commit suicide with a Gewehr 88 Commission Rifle, suggesting both weapons were used in Marleyan service. Strangely, the former rifle was used in Reiner's childhood while the latter rifle was used as a training weapon in the present day, even though the Gewehr 98 was a more advanced rifle in real life. At one point, Zeke is depicted with an M1A1 Carbine.

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