USS Raleigh (LPD-1), the lead ship of her class of amphibious transport docks, was the fourth ship of the United States Navy named for the capital of North Carolina, which in turn honors the English explorer Sir Walter Raleigh, the first to attempt the establishment of an English settlement in the United States of America.

In January 1963, she steamed for shakedown to Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, but returned to the building yard in late February for the correction of design deficiencies in her aviation gasoline system.

Returning to Guantánamo in April, she completed shakedown, then assisted Commander, Amphibious Force, Atlantic in hosting the Navy League national convention in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Raleigh proved herself during this deployment by simultaneously landing troops and equipment by means of boats and amphibious vehicles from her well and by helicopters from her flight deck.

From 25 April through 6 June, she operated off the Dominican Republic, evacuating 558 refugees who were later transferred to USS Yancey for transit to San Juan.

After upkeep and coastal training operations, Raleigh steamed for northern Europe on 27 August to participate in "Bar Frost 65," a NATO amphibious exercise featuring a landing in Norway's fjords north of the Arctic Circle.

In April 1966, as part of the National Trials, the U.S. Navy operated a Hawker Siddeley Kestrel off the commando assault ship and were impressed with the aircraft.

During that deployment, Raleigh and her Marines participated in a number of amphibious landing operations with British, Greek and Italian naval units.

Returning to CONUS (Continental United States) in August 1972, the ship participated in several "transportation" deployments to various Naval Bases on the East Coast before her entry to the Berkley Shipyards in Norfolk, Virginia, for overhaul.

In November of that year Raleigh deployed again to the Mediterranean, this time to link up with the Marine Amphibious Group sortied at Souda Bay, Crete.

During the summer of 1974, Raleigh prepared for an extensive overhaul in Baltimore, Maryland, and following its first phase, she ran aground in Chesapeake Bay and returned to her homeport in Norfolk.

On 18 April 1975 Captain John McIntyre took command and took her through an extended shakedown and two overseas deployments, including the evacuation of Americans from Beirut in May 1976, for which the ship and crew received the Humanitarian Service Medal.

In September 1977 Raleigh participated in "Marg" 2-77 (8 Sept 1977 to 13 March 1978) During this Med cruise she had ports of call in Rota and Malaga, Spain, Catania, Sicily, Genoa and Naples, Italy.

Her first stop was the Shetland Islands for ops with the British Army then to Copenhagen, Denmark where 2/2/2 disembarked for travel to then-West Germany by land to exercise with the Bundeswehr.

After the conclusion of that exercise, she embarked the Marines at Bremerhaven and sailed for ports of call at Copenhagen and Edinburgh, Bergen Norway, Goteborg Sweden.

In February – March 1984, USS Raleigh (LPD-1) took part in "Teamwork '84" which included US Navy and USMC personnel as well as forces from Canada, Belgium, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Germany, France, Norway and Denmark.