Editing Royal Marines (section)

===Status and roles===
Through much of the 18th and 19th centuries Marine officers had a lower standing status than their counterparts in the Royal Navy. A short-lived<ref>{{cite book|first=Peter C.|last=Smith|page=91|title=The Royal Marines|isbn=978-0-946771-32-5|year=1988|publisher=Spellmount }}</ref>
effort was made in 1907, through the common entry or "[[Selborne scheme]]", to reduce the professional differences between RN and RM officers through a system of common entry that provided for an initial period of shared training.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://snr.org.uk/class-warfare-selborne-scheme-royal-navys-battle-technology-social-hierarchy/|title=Class Warfare and the Selborne Scheme: The Royal Navy's battle over technology and social hierarchy|publisher=The Mariner's Mirror|access-date=30 January 2015|date=2014-11-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160102173845/http://snr.org.uk/class-warfare-selborne-scheme-royal-navys-battle-technology-social-hierarchy/|archive-date=2 January 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

By the early twentieth century the Royal Marines had achieved a high professional status, although there was a serious shortage of junior officers. Numbering about 15,000 during the Edwardian era,<ref>{{cite book|first=Peter C.|last=Smith|page=87|title=The Royal Marines|isbn=978-0-946771-32-5|year=1988|publisher=Spellmount }}</ref> enlistment for other ranks was for at least 12 years, with entitlement to a pension after 21 years of service. After basic training new recruits were assigned to one of three land-based divisions and from there to warships as vacancies arose.<ref>{{cite book|first=Peter C.|last=Smith|page=92|title=The Royal Marines|isbn=978-0-946771-32-5|year=1988|publisher=Spellmount }}</ref> From 1908 onwards one gun turret on each battleship was manned by RMA gunners. The RMLI continued their traditional role of providing landing parties and shore-based detachments. Specialist positions on board ship, such as postmen, barbers, lamp trimmers and butchers, were reserved for Royal Marines. After 1903 the Royal Marines provided bands for service on board battleships and other large vessels.<ref>{{cite book|first=Peter C.|last=Smith|page=94|title=The Royal Marines|isbn=978-0-946771-32-5|year=1988|publisher=Spellmount }}</ref>