Aims of the raid included destroying local installations, acquiring prisoners of war and military intelligence on the Gilbert Islands, and diverting Japanese attention and reinforcements from the Guadalcanal campaign and battle of Tulagi and Gavutu–Tanambogo.

[3] At the time of the Makin raid the total force opposing the American landing consisted of 71 armed personnel of the Japanese seaplane base led by Warrant Officer (Heisouchou) Kyuzaburo Kanemitsu of the Special Naval Landing Force equipped with light weapons.

At 05:13, Companies A and B of the 2nd Raider Battalion, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Evans Carlson, successfully landed on Makin.

Peatross's unit killed eight Japanese and Kanemitsu, knocked out a machine gun, and destroyed the enemy radios, while suffering three dead and two wounded.

At 19:30 on 17 August the Raiders began to withdraw from the island using 18 rubber boats, many of which no longer had working outboard motors.

Having lost most of their weapons and equipment, the exhausted survivors struggled back to the beach to link up with 20 fully armed men, who had been left on the island to cover their withdrawal.

At 23:08, having managed to signal the submarines to meet his Raiders at the entrance to Makin Lagoon, Carlson had a team led by Lieutenant Charlie Lamb build a raft made up of three rubber boats and two native canoes powered by the two remaining outboard motors.

Using that raft, 72 exhausted Raiders sailed 4 miles (6.4 km) from Makin to the mouth of the lagoon, where the submarines picked them up.

[5] Of the remaining 11 Marines missing in action, 9[6] were inadvertently left behind or returned to the island during the night withdrawal.

Japanese records indicate 46 killed of all ranks (not including the purported large casualties Carlson reported for the boats he had sunk).

[9] Although the Marine Raiders succeeded in killing over half of the Imperial Japanese garrison on the island, the raid failed to meet its other material objectives.

In 2000, 58 years after the raid, the remains of 19 Marines were found on Makin Island through bioarchaeological excavation and recovery then sent to the Defense Department's Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii where they were identified.

The remaining 13 were buried with full honors at Arlington National Cemetery after a funeral service at Fort Myer Chapel at which Commandant James L. Jones spoke.