In December 1917, the 3rd Provisional Brigade was activated in Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, and was subsequently deployed to Cuba to protect U.S. sugar producing interests, which were becoming victim to sabotage by Cuban rebels. Upon arrival in Cuba with the 9th Marine Regiment, the Brigade took control of the 7th Marine Regiment and began to protect U.S. owned property, freeing up the Cuban Army to chase the rebels. In early 1918 rebel activity had subsided and the Brigade was relocated in August 1918 to Galveston, Texas to serve as a ready force should a contingency arise in the Caribbean. The following April the Brigade was deactivated.
 
In March 1927, the 3rd Marine Brigade was again activated at MCB Quantico. The Brigade subsequently deployed to Shanghai, China, under Brigadier General Smedley D. Butler during the Chinese revolution. Once they arrived in China, the Brigade took control of the 4th Marine Regiment and the 6th Marine Regiment upon their arrival in May. During this period, the Brigade was responsible for protecting American citizens and keeping the Chinese out of the international settlement, which was becoming a target of Chinese anti-foreign sentiment. In 1928, Chiang Kai-shek became the nominal leader of China and the Brigade was subsequently withdrawn and deactivated in January 1929.

In March 1942, the Brigade was reactivated at Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina, and deployed to Western Samoa to garrison and defend the island during WWII. The Brigade was again deactivated in November 1943.
  
Post-war Southern California and the newly established Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton saw many Marines and units returning from the war in the Pacific. In September 1946, as replacement draftees were being sent overseas to allow the combat veterans performing occupation duties to return home, the 3rd Marine Brigade was again established with the 6th Marine Regiment as its nucleus. The Brigade consisted primarily of administrative groups and some infantry units as they returned to the states to be deactivated. On July 16,1947, the 1st Marine Division reclaimed the rest of the personnel returning from overseas as well as those in the Brigade, which again was deactivated.

In May 1962, the 3d Marine Expeditionary Brigade was formed from 3rd Marine Division personnel and began landing 3,000 Marines as a show of force in Udorn, Thailand, during Operation Millpond to limit Communist influence in pro-West Thailand. Shortly after, 3d MEB responded to the Pathet Lao Army in Laos during the Laotian Crisis, from May to August 1962. The Brigade was part of a force sent to limit Communist influence in Laos. The MEB forces included the 3rd Battalion, 9th Marines, HMR-261 and VMA-332. The show of force was over by August and the MEB was reabsorbed into the 3rd Marine Division.

On 8 March 1965, the 9th Marine Expeditionary Brigade (MEB), commanded by Brigadier General Frederick J. Karch, landed at Da Nang, Vietnam. The brigade consisted of two Marine battalions, one arriving by air and the other over the beach. The following day, the MEB assumed control of Marine Task Unit 79.3.5 at Da Nang, which became Marine Aircraft Group (MAG) 16.

Significance: This was the first deployment of a battalion-sized U.S. combat unit to Vietnam. Although the mission of the 9th MEB was limited to the defense of the airbase at Da Nang, it was indicative that the U.S. advisory phase in the Vietnam War was to be transformed into more direct U.S. participation.

Between May and June 1965, the 9th MEB was transformed into the III Marine Expeditionary Brigade at Camp Hague, Okinawa. They boarded transport ships from the 7th Fleet and sailed for the Republic of Vietnam. Enroute to the Republic of Vietnam, the MEB was redesignated as the 3rd Marine Amphibious Brigade. Shortly thereafter, they became the III Marine Amphibious Force (III MAF). III MAF consisted of the forward elements of the 3d Marine Division and the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing (MAW). Major General William R. Collins commanded both III MAF and 3d Marine Division. 

In January 2000, III MEF Forward stood down and the 3d Marine Expeditionary Brigade was reactivated in the midst of supporting an international force in East Timor to provide logistical support for the Australian-led peacekeeping mission during Operation Stabilize.   

In November 2007, Cyclone Sidr struck Dhaka, Bangladesh, killing close to 3,000 people and displacing nearly one million from their homes. 3d MEB deployed to provide humanitarian assistance and disaster relief in support of Operation Sea Angel II where they delivered over 25,000 gallons of water the first day and over 352,000 lbs. of food, tents, and clothing throughout the operation.

In 2009 and 2010, 3d MEB deployed to the Philippines to provide humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. On Oct. 18, 2010 Typhoon Juan (known as Megi locally) struck the Philippines during a bilateral exercise leaving 26 dead and 39 injured. 3d MEB was already on scene and was able to team up with the Armed Forces of the Philippines to provide over 170,000 lbs. of relief supplies to those in need.

On March 11, 2011, the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami devastated the coastal areas of northeastern Japan, 3d MEB deployed to mainland Japan as a part of Operation Tomodachi representing the III MEF forward. 3d MEB deployed KC-130J aircraft and helicopters from Okinawa to Sendai to assist with relief operations and distribution of emergency food, water, and shelter.

In December 2012, 3d MEB was designated as the command element for the Asia-Pacific region’s alert contingency Marine Air-Ground Task Force (ACM).

More recently, 3d MEB deployed to the Republic of the Philippines to support humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations in the wake of Super Typhoon Haiyan (known locally as Yolanda) in November 2013 during Operation Damayan. More than 14 million people were affected by the super typhoon and 3d MEB was able to respond to the request of the Government of the Philippines within hours under the direction of USAID and the Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance. More than 2,000 tons of relief supplies were delivered using the Marine Corps’ MV-22 Osprey aircraft, and more than 20,000 victims were evacuated from affected areas around Tacloban. 

In April and May 2015, 3d MEB deployed to Nepal for Operation Sahayogi Haat to aid victims of the magnitude 8.1 earthquake, which killed 9,000 people, injured 22,000, toppled buildings throughout the capital Kathmandu, and created numerous landslides and avalanches. The MEB deployed C-130s, MV-22 Ospreys and UH-1Y Venoms to deliver 115 tons of relief supplies and evacuate 75 people from isolated areas.

In October of 2022, 3d MEB integrated with the Navy's Task Force 76, Seventh Fleet to form Task Force 76/3.

In August of 2023, elements of 3d MEB with Task Force 76/3 partnered with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit and USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance to carry out Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations after volcanic eruptions of Mount Bagana, Papua New Guinea, in July displaced numerous communities in the area and cut off access to food and water for them.

3d MEB is always prepared to respond within 24 hours to crises throughout the region. In the event of a contingency, 3d MEB will mitigate foreign or domestic crises, protect U.S. citizens and territories, or counter threats to U.S. national interests as needed. 3d MEB remains the resilient, ready and relevant crisis response force in the Indo-Asia-Pacific Region and is actively engaged in ongoing regional contingency planning as well as participating in numerous joint and combined exercises to increase regional security and stability.