Chris Boonzaier

Here are 3 Pre WW1 postcards showing the Colours of 2eme Regiment Etrangere, although the one card was mailed in the 1960s

The Legion Barracks at Beni Ounif and the Redoute and Camp at Le Kreider

That is fantastic on every level.... of course the BILA bit just makes it "cool times two" ... fantastic find.

Mama Mia... that one is to die for!!

Ahhh... the generic term being "Chaude Pisse"

Saida was very "residential" compared to the redoubt in the infamous Colomb Bechar..... Notice the badge of the 1 Regiment Etrangere...

AIXIA was a small firm founded (apparently) by an ex legionnaire. They made badges in the early 90s for 2-3 legion regiments. Not regular everyday badges, but usually cast out of silver, hand finished items. They usually made special occasion or "OPEX" (deployment) commemorative badges. They made a number of badges for the units who deployed to Cambodia in the early 90s,  for the 3rd Compagnie 2REI in Zaire etc. They also made the Officers X-Mas gift badge for 2 REI in 1991, and the 150th Anniversary for the regiment in the same year (Which had the El Mounghar Skirmish info in the back). The badges were cast in silver and were all unique with the small imperfections which can be found in hand made products (See the finishing difference below the banner on the Baumier badge).

The OPEX badges were commemorative in nature and were not to be worn. The 2 REI badge could be worn instead of the mass produced item if you had a taste for quality.

Also shown are what seem to be a test strike for the Noel 91 2REI badge, and what looks to be one that did not pass the Quality control and had its loops snipped off. I assume the last was cast, had the loops added amd when it went onto the next stage was rejected due to casting imperfections and had its loops snipped and was never finished.

So the badge was rather short lived... Here is a Legion Barracks in Syria in 1923

Very occasionally one of these will turn up... a regimental badge in gold... these are factory made gold. Abvanced French collectors surmise they may have been gifts for dignitaries.

Details of the elusive "dissolution" badge...

Long the home of 2eme Regiment Etrangere.... The Barracks in Saida

Drill at Sidi Bel Abbes

The CM, or mounted Company were the elite, the rest had to go everywhere on foot... Legionnaires from the Advance post at Merada return after an exercise...

Stealing the thread name from a recent book about the Legion, I thought a study of Legion Postcards would be good fun...

The Compagnie Montee of the 1er Regiment Etranger returns to Bou-Denib. It was part of the Haut Guir Column. The Mounted Company had a 2 men 1 mule system. Every hour the men changed, one dismounted, his partner mounted... and they continued moving without having to stop. As the one slid of he pulled the other Legionnaire up.

There are certain waves in Legion history... a post WW1 wave were many Russian recruits fleeing Red Russia... and in post WW1 Germany quite a number of Germans died..... Here the Good Cunduct certificate of what must have been a Russian And a German soldier who had fought in WW1, joined the Legion, then left after 5 years.....

Then... An Italian Legionnaire, born in 1902.... leaving the Legion in August 1939! I wonder which uniform he was wearing a year later???

Hi, about 15 by 18mm...

Nope, no von anywhere near him ?

The other part is a little lid, was initially sealed with the gold paper. I was wondering if it was maybe a "von2 who gave them as gifts?

And is it a German or French style of symbol?

I found this in a small group belonging to a German Legionnaire... it is a round box, blue with gold trimming, and inside a seal... is it some kind of gift? what seal could it be?

Thanks

Chris

A Beret belonging to a German Legionnaire and his para wings awarded in 1959. This seems to be a very early Private Purchase beret

Here are some variations of the same theme ... am not sure is they are the same maker... some date back to private purchase in Algeria, They are still made today I think... Does anyone know anything about these makers?

I am busy reading a fantastic study of Germans in the Foreign Legion. Apparently in the late 1940s you actually needed parental permission to join if you were under 20, but Germans 18-12 were accepted without. It was a political issue until the French changed it in about 1951.

So this from 1948 is quite interesting, either he lied about his date of birth, or the recruiter suggested he did... then at a later date it was rectified.

He did 2 years in Indochina, but was repatriated with a bunch of nasty bacteria... can anyone make any sense of the column on the right?

A Balme and a Drago in their original little baggies.....

The 1961 pattern badges are ,,,

Y. Delsart 89100 Sens

Coinderoux Paris

Beraudy – Vaure 63600-Ambert

No Maker

J.Balme Saumur

Beraudy – Vaure Ambert (P.DE.D) . 9.

Drago Paris (Smooth Back)

Insigne Militaire G.1772 Drago Rue de Romainville Paris

Drago Paris

The 2 REI badges are

No Maker

Beraudy – Vaure 63600-Ambert

J. Balme Saumur

Coinderoux Paris

LR Paris

Y. Boussemart (Dated 2000)

This was the universal Legion beret Badge adopted in 1961. It was not widely worn because most regiments were wearing the numbered Grenade badges and the 2 REI adopted the grenade with the Mule shoe, but this was meant for all units other than the Legion para who had the regular French Para Beret badge, the Cavalier who had this badge in Silver... by about 1964 most units returning to France adopted this, the 2REI stayed in the Sahara with the Grenade and Horse Shoe badge until 1968 when they returned to France and adopted the Universal badge....

This is the "new" badge that we recieved in 1992-93... the Verdion for the 2 REI... i prefered the old one... but hey... noone asked me.....

The 7th Company 2 REI had night combat and action behind enemy lines as its specialty. Formed in 1964 the Compagnie was dissolved in 1983, or rather renamed the 3rd Company as the 2 REI changed its numbering to 1st-4th Compagnie... on the left the badge of the 7th Company, in the middle, still sealed in its packet the badge given to Legionnaires at the dissolution of the company, it reads  "2e RÉGIMENT ÉTRANGER D'INFANTERIE – 7e COMPAGNIE COMMANDO » then badge of the 3rd company.

The badge of the 3 REI CM was adopted by the 4th REI and us now the badge of the 1st Basic Training Company of the 4th RE. This is the eraly Version of the 3 REI CM badge made by AUGIS used from about 1935-1943 if I undestand correctöy. The AUGIS ones are the very early one. Then the badge for the Compagnie Portee de Kenifra of the 4th REI, used from about 1953-1955. The Compagnie Portee were motorised and you see Cogs on some of their badges