1.
France
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France, officially the French Republic, is a country with territory in western Europe and several overseas regions and territories. The European, or metropolitan, area of France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, Overseas France include French Guiana on the South American continent and several island territories in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. France spans 643,801 square kilometres and had a population of almost 67 million people as of January 2017. It is a unitary republic with the capital in Paris. Other major urban centres include Marseille, Lyon, Lille, Nice, Toulouse, during the Iron Age, what is now metropolitan France was inhabited by the Gauls, a Celtic people. The area was annexed in 51 BC by Rome, which held Gaul until 486, France emerged as a major European power in the Late Middle Ages, with its victory in the Hundred Years War strengthening state-building and political centralisation. During the Renaissance, French culture flourished and a colonial empire was established. The 16th century was dominated by civil wars between Catholics and Protestants. France became Europes dominant cultural, political, and military power under Louis XIV, in the 19th century Napoleon took power and established the First French Empire, whose subsequent Napoleonic Wars shaped the course of continental Europe. Following the collapse of the Empire, France endured a succession of governments culminating with the establishment of the French Third Republic in 1870. Following liberation in 1944, a Fourth Republic was established and later dissolved in the course of the Algerian War, the Fifth Republic, led by Charles de Gaulle, was formed in 1958 and remains to this day. Algeria and nearly all the colonies became independent in the 1960s with minimal controversy and typically retained close economic. France has long been a centre of art, science. It hosts Europes fourth-largest number of cultural UNESCO World Heritage Sites and receives around 83 million foreign tourists annually, France is a developed country with the worlds sixth-largest economy by nominal GDP and ninth-largest by purchasing power parity. In terms of household wealth, it ranks fourth in the world. France performs well in international rankings of education, health care, life expectancy, France remains a great power in the world, being one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council with the power to veto and an official nuclear-weapon state. It is a member state of the European Union and the Eurozone. It is also a member of the Group of 7, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the World Trade Organization, originally applied to the whole Frankish Empire, the name France comes from the Latin Francia, or country of the Franks
2.
Cross for Military Valour
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The Cross for Military Valour is a military decoration of France. The Cross for Military Valour is usually awarded for security or peacekeeping operations and it was established in 1956 to reward soldiers, sailors, and airmen serving in Algeria who had committed acts of valour or gallantry in combat. Algeria was a department of France at the time, so it was not considered a declared war, therefore, the War Cross for foreign operational theatres, which had been awarded for valiant service in Indochina, was not considered appropriate. Médaille de la Valeur Militaire was created on 11 April 1956 with a system of distinctions. To put it on the level as the Croix de guerre. Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Tchad, cape Verde Central African Republic Chad Congo | Zaïre | Democratic Republic of the Congo Haiti Irag and Syria Ivory Coast Lebanon Liberia Libya. Sénégal, Burkina Faso, Mauritanie, Mali and Niger, tunisia The grades of the Cross are insignia of a mention in dispatches, which can be of one of five levels matching the valour displayed by the recipient while in presence of an enemy. They are named after historical formation of the French military, the 1956 Cross was meant principally for soldiers, but a provision was made for civilians participating in a peacekeeping operation. On 2 December 2005 this provision was amended in order to reward only civllian employees of the Ministry of Defence on official missions overseas, originally, the cross was not awarded to members of foreign militaries or governments. This restriction was lifted on 9 November 2011 for acts of valour or performed valiant service while on joint operations with French forces, collective awards can be made to military units, both French and foreign, since 2011. When a unit has decorated twice with the Cross at its highest level, the four first grades of the Cross can be awarded by Chef détat-major des Armées, but the Cross with Palm decoration is only awarded by the Minister of Defence. Medal, suspended from a ribbon is a 36 mm bronze cross, with an effigy of the Republic crowned with a wreath, with the edge embossed, on the reverse is the inscription, Croix de la Valeur militaire. Ribbon, a red bar with three white bands, a centered 7 mm band, with a smaller 2 mm band on each end. La marque du courage, croix de guerre, valeur militaire, site traitant des décorations militaires et civiles françaises Les décorations françaises
3.
Mariano Goybet
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Mariano Francisco Julio Goybet was an general officer in the French Army. He was brigadier general in 1917 and retired with the rank of general in 1921. Later, they bacame merchants, mayors, military and industrial people and he was the son of Pierre-Jules Goybet manufacturer, and Marie Bravais. His grand mother Louise de Montgolfier, was a niece of Joseph and Jacques-Étienne de Montgolfier. He married in 1887 Marguerite Lespieau, daghter of général Théodore Lespieau, Goybet was born in Zaragoza, Spain. He was educated at the college of Lyon, then at the École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr and he served in the 2nd Regiment of Tirailleurs Algériens, where he married Marguerite Lespieau, the daughter of his commanding officer, general Theodore Lespieau. He was promoted to lieutenant in the 140th Regiment of Infantry, stationed in Grenoble and he served on the staff of the 27th Infantry Division, was promoted to capitaine in 1893 and was appointed as orderly officer to General Zédé, Governor of Lyon, in 1896. He commanded a company of the 99th Regiment of Infantry then, following another staff appointment, in 1907 he took command of the 30th Battalion of Chasseurs Alpins as lieutenant-colonel. He was still in command of this battalion when he was promoted to colonel, at the start of World War I he was assigned to the Vosges front with his Alpine battalion. He seized a convoy of infantry at Col Manday and he was placed at the head of the 152nd infantry regiment, then he took command of the 81st Brigade and his troops took Steinbach in Alsace. His son, Sergeant Frederic Goybet, was killed, having fought in the Vosges, months later he lost another son, the adjutant Adrien Goybet, who died conducting his section towards the trenches in 1915. He was wounded twice at Hartmannswillerskopf, afterwards, he joined the 98th Infantry Regiment at the Verdun front. In autumn his division was transported north to the Battle of the Somme and he was awarded the Order of the Army by Marechal Philippe Pétain on March 19,1915. In the beginning of 1917 he took command of the 25th Infantry Division and, as the enemy retreated, in August his men seized the woods of Avocourt after heavy fighting. In December, he was promoted to the rank of brigadier general. In May 1918, General Goybet was called by Headquarters to command the 157th Division, which had been decimated after the “Chemin des Dames. ”It was reconstituted by putting together the 333rd Infantry Regiment with the American 371st and the 372nd American Regiments. The 157th Division participated with the Fourth Army in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, with violent attacks, General Goybet broke the enemy front at Monthois, taking many prisoners and considerable materiel. After that he occupied the Vosges at the front of Sainte Marie les Mines, in 1920 General Goybet was called by the General Henri Gouraud to command the Third Division of the Levant
4.
Paul Azan
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Paul-Jean-Louis Azan was a French general and author. He is remembered for his missions to the United States during World War I and his French historical, a graduate of the Saint-Cyr military academy, Paul Azan served in the 2nd régiment de zouaves in colonial Algeria along the Moroccan border, prior to its conquest by France. Later receiving a doctorate in literature, his thesis and first book Hannibal dans les Alpes brought him attention as a military historian, in 1902 he was transferred to the Armys Historical Service. There he authored a number of works on the Algeria Question, how France might best assimilate and his works argued against the Assimilationist French policy, arguing that North African Muslims could not become full French citizens. His most notable work on the subject was 1905s Sidi-Brahim, on the Algerian leader during the period of colonialism in the 1840s. He took part as an officer in the campaign against the Beni Snassen, prior to the First World War, Azan was assigned the French home garrison at Autun. At the outbreak of war, Azan was reassigned to the Army High Command, wounded first at Yser in Belgium, he was soon made chef de bataillon and was again wounded — this time more seriously — during the Artois offensive of May 1915. Following his recovery Azan was made an instructor in the VIth Army under General Fayolle. Promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel, Azan was made Chief of the Information Mission to the United States in the spring of 1917, while there he received much attention as instructor of the Harvard University officers training unit. Translated to English, his The War of positions and The Warfare of to day received much acclaim in the United States. Following the 1918 Armistice, Azan was made chief of staff to General Franchet d’Esperey in Constantinople and Thrace, returning to North Africa, Colonel Azan commanded the 6th Regiment of the Tirailleurs Algérien at Tlemcen. There he wrote his history of Lyauteys earlier expedition and a biography of Algerian resistance leader and he also commanded troops in the suppression of the Abd el-Krims revolt against French occupation in the Rif War. Promoted to Général de brigade in 1928 General Azan was made head of the Service historique de larmée, asGénéral de division he was head of military forces in French Tunisia from 1933 to 1936. Two months prior to the German occupation in the Second World War, the retired Azan was briefly named Général de corps darmée, Légion dhonneur, Chevalier, officier, commandeur, grand officier. Croix de guerre 1914-1918 with 2 palmes, croix de guerre des Théâtres dopérations extérieures with 1 palme. Colonial Medal with agrafe de vermeil Maroc 1925-1926, médaille commémorative du Maroc with agrafes Casablanca Oudjda. Médaille commémorative de la guerre 1914–1918 Italy, Officer of the Order of la Couronne, Tunisia, Officier, grand officier of Nichan Iftikhar. Les guerres et les mots du général Paul Azan, soldat et historien, annibal dans les Alpes, Oran, imp. de D. Heintz,1902
5.
Rif War
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The Rif War, also called the Second Moroccan War, was fought in the early 1920s between the colonial power Spain and the Berbers of the Rif mountainous region. Led by Abd al-Karim, the Riffians at first inflicted several defeats on the Spanish forces by using guerrilla tactics, during the early 20th century, Morocco had fallen into the French and Spanish spheres of influence, becoming divided into protectorates ruled by the two European nations. The Rif region had been assigned to Spain, but given that even the Sultans of Morocco had been unable to control over the region. For centuries, the Berber tribes of the Rif had fought off any attempt to impose outside control on them, though nominally Muslim, the tribes of the Rif had continued many pagan practices such as worshipping water spirits and forest spirits that were contrary to Islam. Attempts by the Moroccan sultans to impose orthodox Islam on the Rif had been resisted by the tribesmen. For centuries Europeans had seen the Rif mountains and the outlines of people on the mountains from ships in the Mediterranean Sea, but almost no European had ever ventured into the mountains. Walter Burton Harris, the Morocco correspondent for The Times, who covered the war wrote that as late as 1912 only one or two Europeans had been able to visit the forests that lie south of Fez. A few had traveled in the southern Atlas and pushed on into the Sus. the reason for, as Harris wrote, was the Berbers were often as inhospitable to the Arab as they were to the foreigner, and generally killed any outsiders who ventured into their territory. The Rif was also rich in iron, which could be easily extracted via open pit mining. The Spanish state could collect money in the form of taxes and royalties from the iron mining. When King Alfonso XIII of Spain ascended to the throne in 1886, Spain could at least make the pretense of being a power, having colonies in the Americans, Africa, Asia. To compensate for the lost empire in the Americas and Asia, there emerged a powerful faction in Spain led by Alfonso. For all these reasons, Spain had been pushing into the Rif since 1909, the Berber tribesmen had a long tradition of fierce fighting skills, combined with high standards of fieldcraft and marksmanship. They were capably led by Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Karim al-Khattabi, commonly called Abd el-Krim, however, the Rifian regular army was never a very large force. The elite of the Rifian forces formed regular units which according to Abd el-Krim, other sources put it much lower, at around 2,000 to 3,000. The remaining Rifians were tribal militia selected by their Caids and not liable to serve away from their homes and farms for more than 15 consecutive days. General Goded estimated that at their peak, in June 1924, however, this force was largely adequate in the early stages of the war. In the final days of the war Rifian forces numbered about 12,000 men, in addition Rifian forces were not well armed, with weapons badly maintained and in poor condition
6.
French West Africa
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French West Africa was a federation of eight French colonial territories in Africa, Mauritania, Senegal, French Sudan, French Guinea, Ivory Coast, Upper Volta, Dahomey and Niger. The capital of the federation was Dakar, the federation existed from 1895 until 1960. Until after the Second World War almost all the Africans living in the colonies of France were not citizens of France, rather, they were French Subjects, lacking rights before the law, property ownership rights, rights to travel, dissent, or vote. Anyone able to prove they were born in these towns was legally French and they could vote in parliamentary elections, which had been previously dominated by white and Métis residents of Senegal. The Four Communes of Senegal were entitled to elect a Deputy to represent them in the French Parliament in the years 1848–1852, 1871–1876, in 1914, the first African, Blaise Diagne, was elected as the Deputy for Senegal in the French Parliament. In 1916, Diagne pushed through the National Assembly a law granting citizenship to all residents of the so-called Four Communes. In return, he had promised to help millions of Africans to fight in World War I. Thereafter, all black Africans of Dakar, Gorée, Saint-Louis and these conquered areas were usually governed by French Army officers, and dubbed Military Territories. The first Governor General of Senegal was named in 1895, and in 1904, Gabon would later become the seat of its own federation French Equatorial Africa, which was to border its western neighbor on the modern boundary between Niger and Chad. While the latter fell to Free France already after the Battle of Gabon in November 1940, following World War II, the French government began a process of extending limited political rights in its colonies. In 1945 the French Provisional Government allocated ten seats to French West Africa in the new Constituent Assembly called to write a new French Constitution, of these five would be elected by citizens and five by African subjects. The elections brought to prominence a new generation of French-educated Africans and they were all re-elected to the 2nd Constituent Assembly on 2 June 1946. In 1946, the Loi Lamine Guèye granted some limited rights to natives of the African colonies. The French Empire was renamed the French Union on 27 October 1946, in late 1946 under this new constitution each territory was for the first time able elect local representatives, albeit on a limited franchise, to newly established General Councils. These elected bodies had only limited powers, although they did approve local budgets. The Loi Cadre of 23 June 1956 brought universal suffrage to elections held after that date in all French African colonies, the first elections under universal suffrage in French West Africa were the municipal elections of late 1956. On 31 March 1957, under universal suffrage, territorial Assembly elections were held in each of the eight colonies, the leaders of the winning parties were appointed to the newly instituted positions of Vice-Presidents of the respective Governing Councils — French Colonial Governors remained as Presidents. The Constitution of the French Fifth Republic of 1958 again changed the structure of the colonies from the French Union to the French Community, each territory was to become a Protectorate, with the consultative assembly named a National Assembly
7.
French Equatorial Africa
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Established in 1910, the federation contained five territories, French Congo, Gabon, Oubangui-Chari, Chad, and French Cameroon, although the last was not organized as a separate entity until 1920. The Governor-General was based in Brazzaville with deputies in each territory, in 1911, France ceded parts of the territory to German Kamerun as a result of the Agadir Crisis. The territory was returned after Germanys defeat in World War I, during the late 1920s and early 1930s an anti-colonial movement Société Amicale des Originaires de lA. E. F. was established by André Matsoua, seeking French citizenship for the territorys inhabitants. Under the Fourth Republic, the federation was represented in the French parliament, when the territories voted in the September 1958 referendum to become autonomous within the French Community, the federation was dissolved. In 1959 the new republics formed an association called the Union of Central African Republics. Until 1934, French Equatorial Africa was a federation of French colonies like French West Africa and that year, however, the AEF became a unitary entity and its constituent colonies became known as regions, later becoming known as territories in 1937. There was a budget for the unified colony, prior to unification. As of 1942, the AEF was administered by a governor-general, however, his power was limited in practice by Frances centralising colonial policy. Most important legislation is enacted in Paris, wrote the authors of the 1942 British naval intelligence handbook for the colony, whilst the governor-general fills in minor details and penalties. The governor-general was assisted by a council of administration composed of important local officials and some members. Under the unified colony, three of the constituent territories were administered by a governor, while Moyen-Congo was under the purview of the governor-general, each had a council of local interests similar to the council of administration. Locally, the territories were subdivided into départments and subdivisions overseen by appointed officials, the only municipalities were the capitals of the territories, which were classified as communes mixtes as opposed to Senegals communes de plein exercise which had democratically elected councils. Although these municipalities possessed certain powers of local self-government, their mayors, territories, Chad Oubangui-Chari French Congo Gabon The postal administrations of the four territories were separate until 1936, each issuing its own stamps. In that year, stamps of Gabon and Middle Congo were overprinted AFRIQUE / ÉQUATORIALE / FRANÇAISE, a definitive series for the colony followed in 1937, featuring local scenes and key figures in the formation of the colony, with various color and value changes each year through 1940. The 1937 series was overprinted AFRIQUE FRANÇAISE / LIBRE or just LIBRE in 1940 by the Free French, List of colonial heads of French Equatorial Africa French colonial empire French West Africa List of French possessions and colonies French colonial flags French North Africa Pakenham, Thomas
8.
Suez Crisis
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The Suez Crisis, also named the Tripartite Aggression and the Kadesh Operation or Sinai War, was an invasion of Egypt in late 1956 by Israel, followed by the United Kingdom and France. The aims were to regain Western control of the Suez Canal, after the fighting had started, political pressure from the United States, the Soviet Union, and the United Nations led to a withdrawal by the three invaders. The episode humiliated Great Britain and France and strengthened Nasser, on October 29, Israel invaded the Egyptian Sinai. Britain and France issued a joint ultimatum to cease fire, which was ignored, on November 5, Britain and France landed paratroopers along the Suez Canal. The Egyptian forces were defeated, but they did block the canal to all shipping and it later became clear that the Israeli invasion and the subsequent Anglo-French attack had been planned beforehand by the three countries. The three allies had attained a number of their objectives, but the Canal was now useless and heavy political pressure from the United States. U. S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower had strongly warned Britain not to invade, historians conclude the crisis signified the end of Great Britains role as one of the worlds major powers. The Suez Canal was closed from October 1956 until March 1957, Israel fulfilled some of its objectives, such as attaining freedom of navigation through the Straits of Tiran. The Suez Canal was opened in 1869, after ten years of work financed by the French, the canal instantly became strategically important, as it provided the shortest ocean link between the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean. The canal eased commerce for trading nations and particularly helped European colonial powers to gain, in 1875, as a result of debt and financial crisis, the Egyptian ruler was forced to sell his shares in the canal operating company to the British government of Benjamin Disraeli. They were willing buyers and obtained a 44 percent share in the operations for less than £4 million. With the 1882 invasion and occupation of Egypt, the United Kingdom took de facto control of the country as well as the canal proper, the 1888 Convention of Constantinople declared the canal a neutral zone under British protection. In ratifying it, the Ottoman Empire agreed to international shipping to pass freely through the canal, in time of war. The Convention came into force in 1904, the year as the Entente cordiale between Britain and France. Following the Japanese surprise attack on the Russian Pacific Fleet based at Port Arthur, the British denied the Russian fleet use of the canal and forced it to steam around Africa, giving the Japanese forces time to consolidate their position in East Asia. The importance of the canal as an intersection was again apparent during the First World War. The attempt by German and Ottoman forces to storm the canal in February 1915 led the British to commit 100,000 troops to the defense of Egypt for the rest of the war. The canal continued to be strategically important after the Second World War as a conduit for the shipment of oil, petroleum business historian Daniel Yergin wrote of the period, In 1948, the canal abruptly lost its traditional rationale
9.
Marianne
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Marianne is a national symbol of the French Republic, an allegory of liberty and reason, and a portrayal of the Goddess of Liberty. Marianne is displayed in places in France and holds a place of honour in town halls. She symbolizes the Triumph of the Republic, a bronze sculpture overlooking the Place de la Nation in Paris. Her profile stands out on the official government logo of the country, is engraved on French euro coins and appears on French postage stamps, Marianne is one of the most prominent symbols of the French Republic, and is officially used on most government documents. Marianne is a significant republican symbol, opposed to monarchy, in classical times it was common to represent ideas and abstract entities by gods, goddesses and allegorical personifications. Less common during the Middle Ages, this practice resurfaced during the Renaissance, during the French Revolution of 1789, many allegorical personifications of Liberty and Reason appeared. These two figures finally merged into one, a figure, shown either sitting or standing, and accompanied by various attributes, including the tricolor cockade. This woman typically symbolised Liberty, Reason, the Nation, the Homeland, in September 1792, the National Convention decided by decree that the new seal of the state would represent a standing woman holding a spear with a Phrygian cap held aloft on top of it. A feminine allegory was also a manner to symbolise the breaking with the old monarchy headed by kings, even before the French Revolution, the Kingdom of France was embodied in masculine figures, as depicted in certain ceilings of Palace of Versailles. Furthermore, France and the Republic themselves are, in French, feminine nouns, as are the French nouns for liberty, the use of this emblem was initially unofficial and very diverse. A female allegory of Liberty and of the Republic makes an appearance in Eugène Delacroixs painting Liberty Leading the People, Marianne made her first major appearance in the French spotlight on a medal in July 1789, celebrating the storming of the Bastille and other early events of the Revolution. From this time until September 1792, the image of Marianne was overshadowed by other such as Mercury. It was not until September 1792 when the new Republic sought a new image to represent the State that her popularity began to expand. Marianne, the allegory of Liberty, was chosen to represent the new regime of the French Republic. The imagery of Marianne chosen as the seal of the First French Republic depicted her standing, young and it was symbolic of the First Republic itself, a newly created state that had much to prove. Marianne is clad in a classical gown, in her right hand, she wields the pike of revolution with the Phrygian cap resting on it, which represents the liberation of France. Marianne is shown leaning on a fasces, a symbol of authority, although the initial figure of Marianne from 1792 stood in a relatively conservative pose, the revolutionaries were quick to abandon that figure when it no longer suited them. By 1793, the figure of Marianne had been replaced by a more violent image
10.
Mentioned in dispatches
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In a number of countries, a servicemembers name must be mentioned in dispatches as a condition for receiving certain decorations. In the British Armed Forces, the despatch is published in the London Gazette, for 1914–1918 and up to 10 August 1920, the decoration consisted of a spray of oak leaves in bronze. This decoration was established in 1919, but it had retroactive effect. From 1920 to 1993, the decoration consisted of a bronze oak leaf. In a change introduced in 2014 to the British Armed Forces, prior to this change, even if the soldier was mentioned in dispatches more than once, only a single such decoration was worn. In Britain, since 1993, the decoration is a silver oak leaf. In each case the decoration is pinned or sewn diagonally on to the campaign medal ribbon. If no campaign medal is awarded, the oak leaf is worn on the left breast of the dress uniform, prior to 1979, a mention in dispatches was one of the three awards that could be made posthumously, the others being the Victoria Cross and George Cross. The 1979 reform removed the all or nothing lottery, soldiers can be mentioned multiple times. The British First World War Victoria Cross recipient John Vereker, later Field Marshal Viscount Gort, was mentioned in dispatches nine times, the Australian general Gordon Bennett was mentioned in dispatches a total of eight times during the First World War, as was Field Marshal Sir John Dill. Similarly, the equivalents of the MiD for acts of bravery by civilians, the reformed and comprehensive system is now as follows, The Commendation for Gallantry is now the fourth level decoration for gallantry. The Commendation for Brave Conduct recognises acts of bravery carried by soldiers not directly fighting the enemy, a mention in dispatches – in French, Citation à lordre du jour – gives recognition from a senior commander for acts of brave or meritorious service, normally in the field. The Mention in dispatches is among the list of awards presented by the Governor General of Canada, personnel can be mentioned in dispatches posthumously and multiple awards are also possible. A recipient of a mention in a dispatch is entitled to wear an emblem and they are also issued with an official certificate from the Ministry of Defence. The emblem, which was regarded as a decoration, was worn on the ribbon of the Victory Medal, only one emblem was worn, irrespective of the number of times a recipient had been mentioned. The Afrikaans rendition of mentioned in dispatches is Eervolle Vermelding in Berigte, the mention in dispatches was one of only four awards which could be made posthumously. The others were the Victoria Cross, the George Cross, the oak leaf emblem was worn on the ribbon of the War Medal 1939–1945. The Kings Commendation was denoted by a bronze King Protea flower emblem worn on the ribbon of the Africa Service Medal and it could be awarded posthumously and was the equivalent of a mention in dispatches for services rendered away from the battlefield
11.
Regiment
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A regiment is a military unit. Their role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, in Medieval Europe, the term regiment denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted in one geographical area, by a leader who was often also the feudal lord of the soldiers. By the 17th century, a regiment was usually about a thousand personnel. In many armies, the first role has been assumed by independent battalions, battlegroups, task forces, brigades and other, similarly-sized operational units. By the beginning of the 18th century, regiments in most European continental armies had evolved into permanent units with distinctive titles and uniforms, when at full strength, an infantry regiment normally comprised two field battalions of about 800 men each or 8–10 companies. In some armies, an independent regiment with fewer companies was labelled a demi-regiment, a cavalry regiment numbered 600 to 900 troopers, making up a single entity. With the widespread adoption of conscription in European armies during the nineteenth century, the regimental system underwent modification. Prior to World War I, a regiment in the French, German, Russian. As far as possible, the battalions would be garrisoned in the same military district, so that the regiment could be mobilized. A cavalry regiment by contrast made up an entity of up to 1,000 troopers. Usually, the regiment is responsible for recruiting and administering all of a military career. Depending upon the country, regiments can be either combat units or administrative units or both and this is often contrasted to the continental system adopted by many armies. Generally, divisions are garrisoned together and share the same installations, thus, in divisional administration, soldiers and officers are transferred in and out of divisions as required. Some regiments recruited from specific areas, and usually incorporated the place name into the regimental name. In other cases, regiments would recruit from an age group within a nation. In other cases, new regiments were raised for new functions within an army, e. g. the Fusiliers, the Parachute Regiment, a key aspect of the regimental system is that the regiment or battalion is the fundamental tactical building block. This flows historically from the period, when battalions were widely dispersed and virtually autonomous. For example, a regiment might include different types of battalions of different origins, within the regimental system, soldiers, and usually officers, are always posted to a tactical unit of their own regiment whenever posted to field duty
12.
Brigade
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A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment, two or more brigades may constitute a division. Brigades formed into divisions are usually infantry or armored, in addition to combat units, they may include combat support units or sub-units, such as artillery and engineers, and logistic units or sub-units. Historically, such brigades have sometimes been called brigade-groups, on operations, a brigade may comprise both organic elements and attached elements, including some temporarily attached for a specific task. Brigades may also be specialized and comprise battalions of a branch, for example cavalry, mechanized, armored, artillery, air defence, aviation, engineers. Some brigades are classified as independent or separate and operate independently from the division structure. The typical NATO standard brigade consists of approximately 3,200 to 5,500 troops, however, in Switzerland and Austria, the numbers could go as high as 11,000 troops. The Soviet Union, its forerunners and successors, mostly use regiment instead of brigade, a brigades commander is commonly a major general, brigadier general, brigadier or colonel. In some armies, the commander is rated as a General Officer, the brigade commander has a self-contained headquarters and staff. Some brigades may also have a deputy commander, the headquarters has a nucleus of staff officers and support that can vary in size depending on the type of brigade. On operations, additional specialist elements may be attached, the headquarters will usually have its own communications unit. In some gendarmerie forces, brigades are the organizational unit. The brigade as a military unit came about starting in the 15th century when the British army, as such a field army became larger, the number of subordinate commanders became unmanageable for the officer in general command of said army, usually a major general, to effectively command. In order to streamline command relationships, as well as effect some modicum of control, especially in regard to combined arms operations. The terms origin is found in two French roots, which together, meant roughly those who fight, the so-called brigada was a well-mixed unit, comprising infantry, cavalry and normally also artillery, designated for a special task. The size of such brigada ranged from a company of up to two regiments. The brigada was the forerunner of the battalion task force, battle group. The brigade was improved as a unit by the Swedish king Gustavus Adolphus
13.
Division (military)
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A division is a large military unit or formation, usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. Infantry divisions during the World Wars ranged between 10,000 and 30,000 in nominal strength, in most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, in turn, several divisions typically make up a corps. In the West, the first general to think of organising an army into smaller units was Maurice de Saxe, Marshal General of France. He died at the age of 54, without having implemented his idea, victor-François de Broglie put the ideas into practice. He conducted successful practical experiments of the system in the Seven Years War. The first war in which the system was used systematically was the French Revolutionary War. It made the more flexible and easy to manoeuvre. Under Napoleon, the divisions were grouped together into corps, because of their increasing size, napoleons military success spread the divisional and corps system all over Europe, by the end of the Napoleonic Wars, all armies in Europe had adopted it. In modern times, most military forces have standardized their divisional structures, the peak use of the division as the primary combat unit occurred during World War II, when the belligerents deployed over a thousand divisions. With technological advances since then, the power of each division has increased. Divisions are often formed to organize units of a particular type together with support units to allow independent operations. In more recent times, divisions have mainly been organized as combined arms units with subordinate units representing various combat arms, in this case, the division often retains the name of a more specialized division, and may still be tasked with a primary role suited to that specialization. For the most part, large cavalry units did not remain after World War II, in general, two new types of cavalry were developed, air cavalry or airmobile, relying on helicopter mobility, and armored cavalry, based on an autonomous armored formation. The former was pioneered by the 11th Air Assault Division, formed on 1 February 1963 at Fort Benning, on 29 June 1965 the division was renamed as the 1st Cavalry Division, before its departure for the Vietnam War. After the end of the Vietnam War, the 1st Cavalry Division was reorganised and re-equipped with tanks, the development of the tank during World War I prompted some nations to experiment with forming them into division-size units. Many did this the way as they did cavalry divisions, by merely replacing cavalry with AFVs. This proved unwieldy in combat, as the units had many tanks, instead, a more balanced approach was taken by adjusting the number of tank, infantry, artillery, and support units. A panzer division was a division of the Wehrmacht and the Waffen-SS of Germany during World War II
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Corps
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A corps is a military unit usually consisting of several divisions. Some military service branches are also called corps, such as the Military Police Corps, Royal Logistic Corps, Quartermaster Corps, a few civilian organizations use the name corps to imply a similar service level, such as the Peace Corps. In many armies, a corps is a formation composed of two or more divisions, and typically commanded by a lieutenant general. During World War I and World War II, due to the scale of combat. In Western armies with numbered corps, the number is indicated in Roman numerals. II Corps was also formed, with Militia units, to defend south-eastern Australia, sub-corps formations controlled Allied land forces in the remainder of Australia. I Corps headquarters was assigned control of the New Guinea campaign. In early 1945, when I Corps was assigned the task of re-taking Borneo, the Canadian Corps consisted of four Canadian divisions. After the Armistice, the peacetime Canadian militia was organized into corps and divisions. Early in the Second World War, Canadas contribution to the British-French forces fighting the Germans was limited to a single division, after the fall of France in June 1940, a second division moved to England, coming under command of a Canadian corps headquarters. This corps was renamed I Canadian Corps as a corps headquarters was established in the UK. I Canadian Corps eventually fought in Italy, II Canadian Corps in NW Europe, after the formations were disbanded after VE Day, Canada has never subsequently organized a Corps headquarters. The Chinese Republic had 133 Corps during the Second Sino-Japanese War, the Corps became the basic tactical unit of the NRA having strength nearly equivalent to an allied Division. The French Army under Napoleon used corps-sized formations as the first formal combined-arms groupings of divisions with reasonably stable manning, Napoleon first used the Corps dArmée in 1805. The use of the Corps dArmée was an innovation that provided Napoleon with a significant battlefield advantage in the early phases of the Napoleonic Wars. The Corps was designed to be an independent military group containing cavalry, artillery and infantry and this allowed Napoleon to mass the bulk of his forces to effect a penetration into a weak section of enemy lines without risking his own communications or flank. This innovation stimulated other European powers to adopt similar military structures, the Corps has remained an echelon of French Army organization to the modern day. As fixed military formation already in peace-time it was used almost in all European armies after Battle of Ulm in 1805, in Prussia it was introduced by Order of His Majesty from November 5,1816, in order to strengthen the readiness to war
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Field army
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A field army is a military formation in many armed forces, composed of two or more corps and may be subordinate to an army group. Likewise, air armies are equivalent formation within some air forces, a field army is composed of 100,000 to 150,000 troops. Particular field armies are named or numbered to distinguish them from army in the sense of an entire national land military force. In English, the style for naming field armies is word numbers, such as First Army, whereas corps are usually distinguished by Roman numerals. A field army may be given a name in addition to or as an alternative to a numerical name, such as the British Army of the Rhine. The term is derived from the fact that they were commanded by Roman emperors, while the Roman comitatensis is sometimes translated as field army, it may also be translated as the more generic field force or mobile force. In some armed forces, an army is or has been equivalent to a corps-level unit, prior to 1945, this was the case with a gun within the Imperial Japanese Army, for which the formation equivalent in size to a field army was an area army. In the Soviet Red Army and the Soviet Air Forces, an army was subordinate in wartime to a front and it contained at least three to five divisions along with artillery, air defense, reconnaissance and other supporting units. In peacetime, a Soviet army was subordinate to a military district. Modern field armies are large formations which vary significantly between armed forces in size, composition, and scope of responsibility. For instance, within NATO a field army is composed of a headquarters, a battle is influenced at the field army level by transferring divisions and reinforcements from one corps to another to increase the pressure on the enemy at a critical point. NATO armies are controlled by a general or lieutenant general, Military unit Military history List of numbered armies
16.
Maxime Weygand
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Maxime Weygand was a French military commander in World War I and World War II. Weygand mainly served as an officer to Ferdinand Foch in World War I. Weygand was born in Brussels of unknown parents and he was long suspected of being the illegitimate son of either Empress Carlota of Mexico, or of her brother Leopold II, King of the Belgians, and Leopolds Polish mistress. Van der Smissen always seemed a likely candidate for Weygands father because of the resemblance between the two men. In 2003, the French journalist Dominique Paoli claimed to have evidence that Weygands father was indeed van der Smissen. Paoli further claimed that Weygand had been born in mid-1865, not January 1867 as is generally claimed, regardless, throughout his life Weygand maintained he did not know his true parentage. While an infant he was sent to Marseille to be raised by a widow named Virginie Saget, at age 6 he was transferred to the household of David Cohen de Léon, a financier of Sephardic origins who was a friend of Leopold II. Upon reaching adulthood, Weygand was legally acknowledged as a son by Francois-Joseph Weygand, in his memoirs he says little about his youth, devoting to it only 4 pages out of 651. He mentions the gouvernante and the aumônier of his college, who instilled in him a strong Roman Catholic faith and his memoirs essentially begin with his entry into the preparatory class of Saint-Cyr Military School in Paris, as if he had wished to disregard his connection with Mme. Saget and M. Cohen de Leon and he was admitted to the École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr, under the name of Maxime de Nimal as a foreign cadet. Graduating in 1887, he was posted to a cavalry regiment, after changing his name to Weygand and receiving French nationality, he became an instructor at Saumur. Once promoted to Captain, Weygand chose not to attempt the difficult preparation to the École Supérieure de Guerre because of his desire, he said and this did not prevent him from later becoming an instructor at the Cavalry School at Saumur. He was one of the few to attend the Centre des Hautes Etudes Militaires, set up in the spring of 1909, as a Lieutenant-Colonel Weygand attended the last prewar French maneoeuvres, in 1913, and commented that had revealed “intolerable insufficiencies” such as two divisions becoming mixed up. Weygand passed World War I as a staff officer, at the outbreak, he satisfied his taste for contact with the troops by spending 26 days with the 5ème Hussars. On 28 August, he joined the staff of General Ferdinand Foch, Weygand was promoted to Général de Brigade in 1916. British Prime Minister Lloyd George pushed for the creation of a Supreme War Council, keen to sideline the British CIGS General Robertson, he insisted that, as French Army Chief of the General Staff, Foch could not also be French Permanent Military Representative on the SWC. Paul Painlevé, French Prime Minister until 13 November, believed that Lloyd George was already pushing for Foch to be Supreme Allied Commander so wanted him as PMR not French Chief of Staff. The new Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau wanted Foch as PMR to increase French control over the Western Front, Clemenceau told President Wilsons envoy Colonel House that he would put in a “second- or third-rate man” as PMR and “let the thing drift where it will”
17.
Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque
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Philippe François Marie Leclerc de Hauteclocque was a French general during the Second World War. He became Marshal of France posthumously in 1952, and is known in France simply as le maréchal Leclerc or just Leclerc, the son of an aristocratic family, de Hauteclocque graduated from the École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr, the French military academy, in 1924. After service with the French Occupation of the Ruhr and in Morocco and he was awarded the croix de guerre des théâtres dopérations extérieures for leading goumiers in an attack on caves and ravines on Bou Amdoun on 11 August 1933. During the Second World War he fought in the Battle of France and he was sent to French Equatorial Africa, where he rallied local leaders to the Free French cause, and led a force against Gabon, whose leaders supported Vichy France. From Chad he led raids into Italian-controlled Libya, after his forces captured Kufra, he had his men swear an oath known today as the Serment de Koufra, in which they pledged to fight on until their flag flew over the Strasbourg Cathedral. The forces under his command, known as L Force, campaigned in Libya in 1943, covered the Eighth Armys inland flank during its advance into Tunisia, L Force was then transformed into the 2e Division Blindée, although it was often referred to as La Division Leclerc. It fought under Leclercs command in the Battle of Normandy, and participated in the liberation of Paris, after the end of World War II in Europe in May 1945, he was given command of the French Far East Expeditionary Corps. He represented France at the surrender of the Japanese Empire in Tokyo Bay on 2 September 1945 and he quickly perceived the necessity for a political solution to the nascent conflict in Indochina, but once again was ahead of his countrymen, and was recalled to France in 1946. He was killed in an air crash in Algeria in 1947, Philippe François Marie de Hauteclocque was born on 22 November 1902 at Belloy-Saint-Léonard in the department of Somme. He was the fifth of six children of Adrien de Hauteclocque, comte de Hauteclocque, Philippe was named in honour of an ancestor killed by Croats in 1635. De Hauteclocque came from an old line of country nobility and his direct ancestors had served in the Fifth Crusade against Egypt, and again in the Eighth Crusade of Saint Louis against Tunisia in 1270. They had also fought at the Battle of Saint-Omer in 1340, the family managed to survive the French Revolution. Three members of the served in Napoleons Grande Armée and a fourth. The third son, Constantin, who had served in Napoleons Russian Campaign, was created a chevalier by King Louis XVIII, the older, Alfred Francois Marie, died childless. The younger, Gustave Francois Marie Joseph, became a noted Egyptologist, Gustave, in turn, had three sons. The first, Henry, and third, Wallerand, became officers in the French Army, serving during the colonial campaigns, both were killed in the early fighting of the First World War. The second son was Adrien, who enlisted in August 1914 as a trooper in the 11e Régiment de Chasseurs à Cheval, Adrien was later commissioned, and was twice awarded the Croix de Guerre for gallantry. He survived the war, and inherited the title and estate in Belloy-Saint-Léonard
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Manley Laurence Power
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He is chiefly remembered for leading the 26th Destroyer Flotilla that sank the Japanese cruiser Haguro in the Malacca Strait during Operation Dukedom. Born the son of Admiral Sir Laurence E. Power KCB, CVO, Power was educated at the Royal Naval Colleges at Osborne and he joined the Royal Navy as a cadet in 1917. In the early part of his career, he served mainly in submarines, in 1939 he was promoted to Commander and appointed as Staff Officer to the Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean, Vice-Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham. He was promoted to Captain in 1943, and Deputy Chief of Staff, and stayed in the Mediterranean until March 1944, planning the invasion of Italy and the Anzio landings. He was then appointed to command HMS Saumarez in the Eastern Fleet, following this he served as Flag Captain to the Commander-in-Chief, Home Fleet, then in May 1952 as Chief of Staff to the Commander-in-Chief Mediterranean. He was promoted to rear-admiral in 1953, and in the year was appointed Senior Naval Member of the Directing Staff of the Imperial Defence College. Promoted to vice-admiral, he became Flag Officer Aircraft Carriers in 1956 and Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff, promoted to admiral in 1960, his final appointments were as Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth and Allied Commander-in-Chief, Channel in 1959 before retiring in 1961. He married Barbara Alice Mary Topham in 1930 and the couple had a daughter and a son
19.
Edgard de Larminat
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Edgard de Larminat was a French general, who fought in two World Wars. He was one of the most important military figures who rejoined the Free French forces in 1940 and he was awarded the Ordre de la Libération. Larminat joined the French Army at the outbreak of the First World War as a private and by 1915 had completed his officer training, during the course of the war, Larminat was wounded three times and gassed once. He achieved the rank of captain by the close of the war, completing his military studies at Saint-Cyr in October 1919, Larminat volunteered to serve in the colonial infantry. In this capacity, he saw combat against rebels in Morocco, at the outbreak of the Second World War, Larminat was a lieutenant-colonel stationed in the Levant. Larminat was still serving in the Middle East when France surrendered in June,1940 and he refused to comply and was imprisoned in Damascus, but escaped and fled to join Free French forces in Palestine. De Larminat led the bombardment of the city of Royan in April 1945. After the war, Larminat served in positions, notably as the Inspector-General of overseas troops. He also served as the first president of the Association of the Free French, before the court convened, Larminat committed suicide on 1 July 1962. p
20.
Marcel Bigeard
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Marcel Bruno Bigeard was a French military officer who fought in World War II, Indochina and Algeria. He was one of the commanders in the Battle of Dien Bien Phu and is thought by many to have been an influence on French unconventional warfare thinking from that time onwards. A former resistant, he is associated mainly with the war of Indochina, Marcel Bigeard was born in Toul, Meurthe-et-Moselle on 14 February 1916, the son of Charles Bigeard, a railway worker, and Sophie Bigeard, a domineering housewife. He also had a sister, Charlotte Bigeard, fours years his senior. Lorraine instilled a strong patriotism in him and his mother a will to win, at fourteen, Bigeard quit school to help his parents financially by taking a position in the local Société Générale bank, where he did well. Following a 6-year career in Société générale, Marcel Bigeard conducted his military service in France at Haguenau at the corps of the 23rd Fortress Infantry Regiment. Incorporated in the regiment as a soldat de deuxième classe in September 1936, caporal-chef, he was relieved of duty, volunteer for the franc corps, he led a combat group at Trimbach in Alsace and became quickly a sergent-chef then adjudant at the age of 24. On June 25,1940, he was captured and made prisoner of war spending 18 months in captivity in a stalag. Following his third attempt to escape on November 11,1941, he managed to make his way to the zone in France. Volunteering for the French Occidental Africa, he was assigned in February 1942 to a camp in Senegal, promoted to sous-lieutenant in October 1943, he was directed with his regiment to Morocco. One of these audacious ambushes against superior German forces gained him a British decoration and his nickname of Bruno has its origins in his radio call sign. Decorated with the Légion dhonneur and the British Distinguished Service Order for his actions in Ariège, Bigeard was first sent to Indo-China in October 1945 to assist with French efforts to reassert their influence over the former French colonies. He commanded the 23rd Colonial Infantry and then volunteered to train Thai auxiliaries in their interdiction of Viet Minh incursions around the Laos border along the road R. C. In the middle of 1945, captain Bigeard was entrusted with the command of the 6th company of the 23rd Colonial Infantry Regiment. Designated to participate to the corps in Indochina, the regiment dismebarked in Saigon on October 25,1945. During this epoque, the Bruno surname started to circulate, on March 8,1946, a detachment of the 2nd Armored Brigade 2e DB and 9th Colonial Infantry Division, which the 23rd Colonial Infantry Regiment 23e RIC was part of, disembarked in Tonkin. On July 1,1946, Bigeard left the 23e RIC and formed south-east of Dien Bien Phu, at the return of his men in metropole, mid-October 1946, he assumed command of the 3rd company, constituted of almost 40 men. He then left Indochina on September 17,1947 and reached France three days later, volunteer for another séjour in Indochina, Bigeard was assigned on February 1,1948 to the 3rd Colonial Parachute Commando Battalion 3e BCCP
21.
Alphonse Juin
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Alphonse Pierre Juin was a senior French Army officer who became a Marshal of France. A graduate of the Saint-Cyr class of 1912, he served in Morocco in 1914 in command of native troops, upon the outbreak of the First World War, he was sent to the Western Front in France, where he was gravely wounded in 1915. As a result of wound, he lost the use of his right arm. After the war, he attended the École Supérieure de Guerre and he chose to serve in North Africa again. After the outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939, he assumed command of a division, the division was encircled in the Lille pocket during the Battle of France and Juin was captured. He was a prisoner of war until he was released at the behest of the Vichy Government in 1941, and was assigned to command French forces in North Africa. After Operation Torch, the invasion of Algeria and Morocco by British and American forces in November 1942, Juin ordered French forces in Tunisia to resist the Germans and his great skills were exhibited during the Italian campaign as commander of the French Expeditionary Corps. His expertise in warfare was crucial in breaking the Gustav Line. Following this assignment he was Chief of Staff of French forces, in 1947 he returned to Africa as the Resident General in Morocco, where he opposed Moroccan attempts to gain independence. Next came a senior NATO position as he assumed command of CENTAG until 1956, during his NATO command, he was promoted to Marshal of France in 1952. He was greatly opposed to Charles De Gaulles decision to grant independence to Algeria and he was the French Armys last living Marshal of France until his death in Paris in 1967, when he was buried in Les Invalides. He was named after his paternal grandfather, when he was six, his family moved to Constantine, where he went to primary school, and learnt Arabic from the local boys. In 1902 he was awarded a bursary to study at the Lycée dAumale in Constantine, in 1909 he passed the entrance examination for the École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr. Classes are named, and his class, the 94th, was known as promotion de Fès after the Moroccan city of Fès that was at the centre of the Agadir Crisis of 1911. There would remain a special bond between members of the class, and de Gaulle would always address Juin using the pronoun tu. Juin, de Gaulle and Béthouart would give their names to the Saint-Cyr classes of 1966–68, 1970–72, after graduating on 1 October 1912, Juin was commissioned as a sous-lieutenant in an Algerian regiment, the 1er régiment de tirailleurs algériens. He soon saw service in Morocco in the Zaian War, participating in the fighting around Taza, Juin joined Chef de Bataillon Joseph-François Poeymiraus 2e Régiment des Chasseurs Indigènes as a lieutenant. On 5 September, the joined the fighting in the First Battle of the Marne
22.
Georges Thierry d'Argenlieu
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He was the chancellor of the Ordre de la Libération. He was born in Brest on 7 August 1889, in a family of Navy officers and he joined the École navale at 17. DArgenlieu served on the Du Chayla as a midshipman, taking part in the campaign in Morocco, during the campaign, he was awarded the Legion of Honour, and befriended Hubert Lyautey, something that dArgenlieu later recalled as one of the happy memories in his life. During the First World War, dArgenlieu served in the Mediterranean, in 1915, while on leave in Malta and he was promoted to lieutenant de vaisseau in 1917. The next year, as commanding officer of a patrol boat and that year, he entered the novitiate of the Discalced Carmelite friars in Avon, Seine-et-Marne. He professed his religious vows as a member of the Order on 15 September 1921 and was given the religious habit. DArgenlieu then studied theology for four years at the Catholic University of Lille and he finished his studies there and was ordained a priest there in 1925. The Discalced Carmelite friars re-established a Province of Paris in 1932, in September 1939, dArgenlieu was mobilised as a reserve Navy officer, rising to the rank of capitaine de corvette in 1940. During the Battle of France, dArgenlieu was captured as he was defending the arsenal of Cherbourg, after three days, he escaped from the prisoner train to Germany and joined Charles de Gaulle on the 30 June. He was made chief of staff in July, in November, he directed successful operations in Gabon. DArgenlieu was made a capitaine de vaisseau, and chancellor of the newly created Ordre de la Libération, in 1941, he rose to counter admiral, he undertook several missions to administer French colonies loyal to Free France. In 1943, he was commanding officer for the naval forces in Great Britain On 14 June 1944, he ferried de Gaulle to France aboard the Combattante. After the defeat of Japan, dArgenlieu was sent to French Indochina as part of the French Far East Expeditionary Corps to restore the French colonial administration, in 1946, he was promoted to vice-amiral descadre, and soon later to admiral. During the war, his actions grew more and more controversial, back in France, he was made inspector general of the Naval Forces before retiring to a monastery. In 1958, sick, dArgenlieu resigned his position of chancellor of the Ordre de la Libération and he died on 7 September 1964 in Brest and was buried in Avrechy. net
23.
Pierre Jeanpierre
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Pierre Paul Jeanpierre was a Frenchman, a soldier of legend in the French Foreign Legion who initially served in the French Army. He fought during World War II, the First Indochina War, the Suez Crisis and the Algerian War, uncomparable prestigious commander, colonel Jeanpierre will always remain the symbol of the 1st Foreign Parachute Regiment. Pierre advanced and placed his foreign regiment within the best assault troops amongst the French Armed Forces elite, in French Algeria, the name Jeanpierre surpassed the reputation that of Bigeard, with this nuance however, Pierre never did anything to showcase nor claim the later. Pierre was born in 1912 at Belfort in a French family, Pierre was raised by the paternal sight of his mother and enlisted in the infantry at barely 18 years of age. Pierre endured the Phoney War Drôle de Guerre and was put at disposition and he was also deeply marked by the defeat of 1940. Pierre joined instead the French Resistance under the alias Jardin and integrated the ranks of the movement Ceux de la Libération, recruiting and arming over 60 volunteers. Pierre was arrested at Orléans on January 19,1944 and was deported to as a prisoner interred in the Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp after passing by the camp of de Compiègne. With forced labor, Pierre would be among only 2 survivors out 45 in his stalag when the camp was liberated by the Allies on May 5,1945, liberated and healed, Pierre was nominated as a Captain at the center of recruitment of the Legion in Kehl. In July 1948, learning that in Algeria would be created a foreign parachute battalion,3 month later, the battalion was in the high region of Indochina. 1er Bataillon Etranger de Parachutiste, 1er BEP - I, II, III Formations - Pierre sailed to Indochina as second-in-command to Pierre Segrétain in the of the 1st Foreign Parachute Battalion in 1948. During the evacuation of RC4, route de sang, he, on October 1950, tasked with taking Dong Khé during the disaster of Cao Bang, the mission was to save column Charton which was unfolding. From the hundreds of legionnaires that constituted the 1st Foreign Parachute Battalion, commandant Segrétain was killed during combat at arms and Lieutenant Faulque fell pierced with projectiles, none of which were mortal. Seriously wounded, he was made prisoner and liberated 4 years later, the 1st Foreign Parachute Battalion with the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment were annihilated in Coxa. Following, Pierre rejoined the Legion in Mascara where he retook his passion, the 1er BEP was recreated, however, the last combats in Indochina would take place without his leadership. A Para legionnaires legionnaire, Pierre returned to Indochina to command the of the reconstituted 1st Foreign Parachute Battalion after its second annihilation at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. Reconstituted in a on May 19,1954, Pierre took command of the 3rd reconstituted 1e BEP on November 1,1954, the 1er BEP left Indochina on February 8,1955. The 1er BEP totaled 5 citations at the orders of the armed forces, the 1er BEP became the 1st Foreign Parachute Regiment in Algeria on September 1,1955. This beautiful instrument of combat became a regiment didnt serve any worthy cause
24.
Peter J. Ortiz
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Pierre Julien Ortiz OBE was a United States Marine Corps colonel who received two Navy Crosses for extraordinary heroism as a major in World War II. He served in both North Africa and Europe throughout the war, as a member of the Office of Strategic Services and he became an American film actor after the war. Although born in New York to a Spanish-American mother and French-American father and he spoke ten languages, including Spanish, French, German and Arabic. On February 1,1932, at the age of 19 and he was sent first to the Legions training camp at Sidi Bel-Abbes, Algeria. He later served in Morocco, where he was promoted to corporal in 1933 and he was awarded the Croix de guerre twice during a campaign against the Rif. He also received the Médaille militaire, an acting lieutenant, he was offered a commission as a second lieutenant if he would re-enlist. Instead, when his contract expired in 1937, he went to Hollywood to serve as an adviser for war films. With the outbreak of World War II and the United States still neutral, he re-enlisted in the Foreign Legion in October 1939 as a sergeant and he was wounded while blowing up a fuel dump and captured by the Germans during the 1940 Battle of France. He escaped the following year via Lisbon and made his way to the United States and he enlisted in the U. S. Marine Corps on June 22,1942. As a result of his training and experience, he was commissioned as a lieutenant after only 40 days in service. He was promoted to captain on December 3, with his knowledge of the region, he was sent to Tangier, Morocco. He conducted reconnaissance behind enemy lines in Tunisia for the Office of Strategic Services, at the time, though most of Morocco was a French protectorate, Tangiers was a protectorate of neutral Spain. During a night mission, Ortiz was seriously wounded in the hand in an encounter with a German patrol and was sent back to the United States to recover. In 1943, Ortiz became a member of the OSS and he drove four downed RAF pilots to the border of neutral Spain, before leaving France with his team in late May. Promoted to major, Ortiz parachuted back into France on August 1,1944 and he was captured by the Germans on August 16. On April 29, the camp was liberated and he rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel in the Marine Corps Reserve. He was discharged from duty in 1946 and returned to Hollywood. On March 1,1955, he retired in the Marine Corps, in April 1954, he volunteered to return to active duty to serve as a Marine observer in Indochina
25.
Croix de guerre (Belgium)
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The Croix de guerre or Oorlogskruis, both literally translating as War Cross, is a military decoration of the Kingdom of Belgium established by royal decree on 25 October 1915. It was primarily awarded for bravery or other military virtue on the battlefield, the award was reestablished on 20 July 1940 by the Belgian government in exile for recognition of bravery and military virtue during World War II. The post-1940 decoration could also be awarded to units that were cited, the decoration was again reestablished by royal decree on 3 April 1954 for award during future conflicts. The World War I Croix de guerre was established by decree on 25 October 1915 as an award for bravery or other military virtue on the battlefield. It was only awarded to individuals, the Croix de guerre was not only awarded for bravery but also for three years or more of service on the front line, or for good conduct on the battlefield. The World War I Croix de guerre was a 40mm wide bronze Maltese cross with 3mm in diameter balls at its eight points. It had a 14mm in diameter central medallion bearing the image of a lion rampant on its obverse. Two 37mm long crossed swords point upwards between it arms, the World War I Croix de guerres ribbon is red with five 2mm wide light green longitudinal stripes, three at the center separated by 3mm and one on each side 3mm from the edges. The individuals listed below were awarded the World War I Croix de guerre, Sergeant William Mabbott resident of Uttoxeter, Staffs and Mansfield Woodhouse and it was still mainly awarded to individuals, but was now also authorized as a unit award. Award of the fourragère was not automatic and required a specific decree of the Belgian Government, the fourragère is in the same colours as the ribbon of the World War II Croix de guerre. The Belgian fourragère was only worn by those who were members of the unit at the time of the award. The World War II Croix de guerre was constructed in the dimensions as its World War I predecessor. The new ribbon was red with light green stripes but there were now six, 1mm wide. The same ribbon devices were used as in World War I except the palms were now adorned with the monogram L. Dick Winters Christopher Peto General Carl Spaatz William P. Straitiff Sgt. S/Sgt Donald Thad Smith On 3 April 1954, the Belgian government re-established the Croix de guerre and this decoration is intended to be awarded in a manner akin the World War II statute during potential future wars. The 1954 Croix de guerre has not yet been awarded, the post-1954 Croix de guerre is similar to the previous variants but with a different reverse center medallion now bearing the Coat of arms of Belgium in lieu of a royal monogram. The ribbon is a reversal of the World War II Croix de guerre ribbon. Cornet R.1982, Recueil des dispositions légales et réglementaires régissant les ordres nationaux belges, borné A. C.1985, Distinctions honorifiques de la Belgique, 1830–1985 Paul Hieronymussen,1967, Orders Medals and Decorations of Britain and Europe in colour, 2nd Ed.1970
26.
International Standard Book Number
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The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an e-book, a paperback and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, the method of assigning an ISBN is nation-based and varies from country to country, often depending on how large the publishing industry is within a country. The initial ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering created in 1966, the 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108. Occasionally, a book may appear without a printed ISBN if it is printed privately or the author does not follow the usual ISBN procedure, however, this can be rectified later. Another identifier, the International Standard Serial Number, identifies periodical publications such as magazines, the ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 in the United Kingdom by David Whitaker and in 1968 in the US by Emery Koltay. The 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108, the United Kingdom continued to use the 9-digit SBN code until 1974. The ISO on-line facility only refers back to 1978, an SBN may be converted to an ISBN by prefixing the digit 0. For example, the edition of Mr. J. G. Reeder Returns, published by Hodder in 1965, has SBN340013818 -340 indicating the publisher,01381 their serial number. This can be converted to ISBN 0-340-01381-8, the check digit does not need to be re-calculated, since 1 January 2007, ISBNs have contained 13 digits, a format that is compatible with Bookland European Article Number EAN-13s. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an ebook, a paperback, and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, a 13-digit ISBN can be separated into its parts, and when this is done it is customary to separate the parts with hyphens or spaces. Separating the parts of a 10-digit ISBN is also done with either hyphens or spaces, figuring out how to correctly separate a given ISBN number is complicated, because most of the parts do not use a fixed number of digits. ISBN issuance is country-specific, in that ISBNs are issued by the ISBN registration agency that is responsible for country or territory regardless of the publication language. Some ISBN registration agencies are based in national libraries or within ministries of culture, in other cases, the ISBN registration service is provided by organisations such as bibliographic data providers that are not government funded. In Canada, ISBNs are issued at no cost with the purpose of encouraging Canadian culture. In the United Kingdom, United States, and some countries, where the service is provided by non-government-funded organisations. Australia, ISBNs are issued by the library services agency Thorpe-Bowker
27.
Orders, decorations, and medals of France
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This is a list of some of the modern orders, decorations and medals of France. Some like the Legion of Honour are awarded to both the forces and civilians. Others are decorations of a civilian or military character. Only four of the 19 Ministerial orders have survived the reform of the French system of decorations in 1963, the others were replaced by the Ordre national du Mérite. The ministerial honours include French military decorations, the existing ministerial orders, ministerial awards for acts of courage and honor medals, ribbons of the French military and civil awards
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Order (honour)
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Modern national orders and orders of merit developed in the 19th century, emerging out of the culture of chivalric orders of the Middle Ages. The modern distinction between orders and decorations is somewhat vague, except that most historic chivalric orders imply a membership in a group, in a few exclusive European orders, membership is or was also limited in number. Orders often come in multiple classes, including knights and dames in imitation of the chivalric orders. They were essentially courtly in nature, characterised by close personal relations between the members and the orders sovereign. By the time of the Renaissance, most European monarchs had acquired an existing order of chivalry, or created new ones of their own, to reward loyal civilian. Such orders remained out of reach to the public, however. In the 18th century, these ideas gradually changed and the orders developed from honourable societies to visible honours, an example of this gradual development can be seen in two orders founded by Maria Theresa of Austria. Still today many dynastic orders are granted by royal families to worthy individuals for service, in 1802 Napoleon created the Légion dhonneur, which could be awarded to any person, regardless of status, for bravery in combat or for 20 years of distinguished service. While still retaining many trappings of an order of chivalry, it was the first modern order of merit and is still Frances highest award today. Curiously, orders of merit based on the French Legion of Honour typically retain five classes in accordance with habits of chivalric orders. In communist countries, orders of merit usually come in one to three grades, with only a badge worn with or without a ribbon on the chest, an example of a communist order of merit was the one-class Order of Lenin of the Soviet Union. Unlike Western orders, however, communist orders could be awarded more than once to an individual, after the collapse of the Soviet bloc, most Eastern European countries reverted to the Western-style orders originally established before the rise of communism. Today many countries have some form of order of merit or national decorations, both Thailands Order of the White Elephant and Japans Order of the Rising Sun are over 100 years old. In Canada and some Commonwealth Realms, the Order of Merit is the highest civilian honour, Canada has the Order of Canada and provincial orders such as the Order of Nova Scotia. Australia has the Order of Australia, and New Zealand awards the Order of New Zealand, the Order of Mapungubwe is the highest honour in South Africa, while the Orders of Luthuli, and the Baobab exist alongside other decorations. The United States awards the Medal of Honor to members of its military for acts of valour, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, switzerland does not award any orders. Article 12 of the 1848 Swiss Constitution prohibited the acceptance of honours, the current Constitution of 1999 has no specific prohibition, but a federal statute effectively continues the prohibition by barring holders of foreign orders from holding public office. In 1974 the Cabinet of Sweden passed a regulation forbidding the Monarch of Sweden from awarding membership in orders to Swedish citizens
29.
Legion of Honour
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The Legion of Honour, full name National Order of the Legion of Honour, is the highest French order of merit for military and civil merits, established 1802 by Napoléon Bonaparte. The order is divided into five degrees of increasing distinction, Chevalier, Officier, Commandeur, Grand Officier and Grand-Croix. The orders motto is Honneur et Patrie and its seat is the Palais de la Légion dHonneur next to the Musée dOrsay, in the French Revolution, all French orders of chivalry were abolished, and replaced with Weapons of Honour. The Légion however did use the organization of old French orders of chivalry, the badges of the legion also bear a resemblance to the Ordre de Saint-Louis, which also used a red ribbon. Napoleon originally created this to ensure political loyalty, the organization would be used as a facade to give political favours, gifts, and concessions. The Légion was loosely patterned after a Roman legion, with legionaries, officers, commanders, regional cohorts, the highest rank was not a grand cross but a Grand Aigle, a rank that wore all the insignia common to grand crosses. The members were paid, the highest of them extremely generously,5,000 francs to an officier,2,000 francs to a commandeur,1,000 francs to an officier,250 francs to a légionnaire. Napoleon famously declared, You call these baubles, well, it is with baubles that men are led, do you think that you would be able to make men fight by reasoning. That is good only for the scholar in his study, the soldier needs glory, distinctions, rewards. This has been quoted as It is with such baubles that men are led. The order was the first modern order of merit, under the monarchy, such orders were often limited to Roman Catholics, and all knights had to be noblemen. The military decorations were the perks of the officers, the Légion, however, was open to men of all ranks and professions—only merit or bravery counted. The new legionnaire had to be sworn in the Légion and it is noteworthy that all previous orders were crosses or shared a clear Christian background, whereas the Légion is a secular institution. The jewel of the Légion has five arms, in a decree issued on the 10 Pluviôse XIII, a grand decoration was instituted. This decoration, a cross on a sash and a silver star with an eagle, symbol of the Napoleonic Empire, became known as the Grand Aigle. After Napoleon crowned himself Emperor of the French in 1804 and established the Napoleonic nobility in 1808, the title was made hereditary after three generations of grantees. Napoleon had dispensed 15 golden collars of the legion among his family and this collar was abolished in 1815. The Légion dhonneur was prominent and visible in the French Empire, the Emperor always wore it and the fashion of the time allowed for decorations to be worn most of the time
30.
Order of Liberation
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The Order of Liberation is a French Order which was awarded to heroes of the Liberation of France during World War II. It is a high honour, second only after the Légion d’Honneur. Very few people, military units and communes were ever awarded it, a different order, the Médaille de la Résistance was created and awarded for lesser but still distinguished deeds by members of the Resistance. The Order of Liberation was established by General de Gaulle in order n°7, the object of the Order was to “reward people, of the military or civilian communities, who will have distinguished themselves in the task of liberating France and her Empire”. There were no restrictions as to age, sex, rank, origin or nationality, nor any regarding the nature of the deeds, the Order has a single rank, the title of Compagnon de la Libération. General de Gaulle, founder of the Order, was the only Grand Maître of the Order, the Order was usually bestowed by the traditional French military ceremony of prise darmes. The last awards to French citizens, units and communes were made on 23 January 1946, awards to foreign nationals were made until 1960. The medal of the Order is called the Croix de la Libération and it is a 31 mm wide by 33 mm high rectangular bronze shield bearing a 60 mm high vertical gladius on its obverse. On the blade of the gladius, a black enamelled Cross of Lorraine, on the reverse, in Latin, a relief inscription in bold letters on four rows, “PATRIAM SERVANDO VICTORIAM TULIT”. Green represents hope, black represents mourning, symbolizing the state of France in 1940, the ribbon at first had diagonal black stripes, but the Order was only awarded in that form during August–September 1942. Amongst the 1036 Companions of the Order,65 were killed before the end of the war, members of the French resistance, especially the more famous ones, often received the Order under their nom de guerre. The youngest, Mathurin Henrio, was 14 when he was dead by Nazi officers for refusing to answer questions on the whereabouts of Maquisards. On June 18,1996, at Mont Valérien, the 18 military units which had awarded the Cross of Liberation were given a green. Occupied by German troops and subjected to the harshest of repression, has given to the French, by individual and collective actions. By the blood of her children, showed to the whole World the French will for national liberation. Grenoble, awarded on May 4,1944 Heroic city at the vanguard of the French Resistance, draped in her pride, despite the arrest and the massacre of her best sons, put up a fierce fight to the Germans at every instant. Despising the interdictions given by the invaders and their accomplices, demonstrated on November 11,1943 her certainty of Victory and her will to take part in it. By her courage in the presence of the invader and by the energy with which she sustained the harshest of trials
31.
National Order of Merit (France)
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The National Order of Merit is a French order of merit with membership awarded by the President of the French Republic, founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle. It comprises about 187,000 members worldwide, the President of the French Republic is the Grand Master of the order and appoints all its members by convention on the advice of the Government of France. The order has a common Chancellor and Chancery with the Legion of Honour, every Prime Minister of France is made a Grand cross of the order after 24 months of service. The medal of the order is a six-armed Maltese asterisk in gilt enamelled blue, the obverse central disc features the head of Marianne, surrounded by the legend République française. The reverse central disc has a set of crossed tricolores, surrounded by the name of the order, the badge is suspended by a laurel wreath. The star is worn by Grand-Croix and Grand Officier respectively, it is a twelve-armed sunburst, the central disc features the head of Marianne, surrounded by the legend République française and the name of the Order, and in turn surrounded by a wreath of laurel. The ribbon for the medal is a blue field. For the grade of Officier and above, a rosette is centered in the field, for the grades of Commandeur, Grand Officier, and Grand-Croix, the rosette is centered bar of silver, silver and gold, and a solid gold respectively
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