Editing Master gunnery sergeant (section)

==History==
The grade was derived from another grade unique to the United States Marine Corps, the [[gunnery sergeant]], and has been in use (though not continuously) since the time of the [[Spanish–American War]] (April 25 – August 12, 1898).

Establishment of the grade in its current form and pay grade occurred during a sweeping reorganization of grades in 1958 and 1959. The grade was included, along with the grade of [[Master Sergeant]], in a new career path for the pay grades of E-8 and E-9 which allowed senior SNCO [[billet]]s to be filled by occupational specialists. This move was designed to officially acknowledge the ever-increasing complexity of modern warfare, while still keeping the [[First Sergeant]] and [[sergeant major]] career paths with their historic command emphasis intact. (During and prior to World War II, this was reversed; the sergeant major at the time was an administrative position, while the master gunnery sergeant was part of the [[Staff (military)#Operations (3)|S-3 section]] and enforced discipline.)