France Legion ID

[Chris Boonzaier]

While clearing up this week I found this in a drawer.

These used to hang on a board in the company office. When a legionnaire wanted to go into town he presented himself in the office, the Caporal on duty would take a look at his Class-A uniform, then give him the card. He would then pass by the gaurd post where the Sgt or Caporal of the Guard would take a look at his uniform (again), check to see if he was smuggling out civvie clothes, then let him out, keeping the card.

When he came back to the base he would pass by the guard house and collect the card, then return it to the company office.

if in the morning the card was still at the guard house he was presumed missing and the military police would come fetch the cards and have photo IDs of the AWOLS. At the company office at morning roll call they could see at a glance whose cards were not on the board.

You can see when i was "Recitfied" the "Jack Brewster" was changed to "Chris Boonzaier" (error on the name ;-) by the simple use of liquid paper/Typex. Possible as these were not official IDs, simply a control mechanism for the guys leaving base.

[Paul L Murphy]

Interesting document, thanks for sharing it. Do you recall, if you got any certificates or citations before rectification were they in your true name or your alias ? The reason I ask is that all of the Legion groups in my collection have documents which were in people's true name for their entire career, and some of these guys would probably have found an alias useful (Germans enlisting in 1946 with some interesting German documents alongside their French ones).

:cheers:

[Chris Boonzaier]

Hi,

everything before was under alias, everything after true name.

I was rectified officially in Bosnia but as my UN ID card was under the name of brewster i carried it to the end of the tour (They figured the UN would not understand the name change thing)...

Once back in France I had to give up my regular army ID card, carried an Ersatz doc for a week, then got an ID card in the name of Boonzaier.

There was some kind of little paper slip declaring Cpl Brewster had been rectified to Cpl Boonzaier... I must dig them out.

[Chris Boonzaier]

Here are the papers saying I have no ID due to administrative process (Rectification)

I have the official doc as well, just a Xerox of the orders.

best

Chris

[Paul L Murphy]

Many thanks for that information, very interesting.

I have a number of groups to Germans who served in the Legion in Indochina and Algeria. Most are obviously to people who joined for economic reasons post 1946 but there are some who are to former Wehrmacht soldiers who joined in late 45 and early 46 where I would have thought the use of an alias could have come in handy. In every case, however, the names on all the French paperwork are the same throughout, and the same as the names on their earlier WWII era German medal certificates so I can be sure it is the real name. Interesting why they never used an alias !

Once I get round to taking decent photos of them I will post them here. Some of them are fascinating groups, and some of the recipients certainly look like hard men.

Paul

[Bernhard H.Holst]

Hello Chris.

I found the procedure re. control of absent with leave personnel very interesting and am/was not familiar with such a system while serving my enlistment from 1951 - 1957. Of course a check of class A uniform was done also when passing through the gate. No exchange of any ID took place in my experience neither while on duty at headquarters at Sidi Bel Abbes ( where the large volume of personnel would have such a procedure very difficult to implement) nor while stationed in smaller formation stations. The evening roll call in which I was too often involved being on duty would have revealed an "absent without leave"guy quite quickly.

My "rectification" ( or reestablishment of my civil status as being correct and indeed that under which I was accepted for enlistment) took place requiring birth certificate and the completion of a special form containing my mugshot and requiring two persons of my acquaintance ( no family or relations) to certify it was me indeed and the whole thing to be certified at the city-hall. No change of name under which I enlisted, had taken place. Such "rectification" would have aided me in possibly residing in France or territories after discharge, possibility of spending leave(s) in my homeland, consideration to become a reserve officer and a few other perks.

Paul: it was my understanding that during the time span of my service and possibly earlier French citizens were prohibited to enlist in the Legion. To circumvent that law they were assigned a fictitious name and the nationality of another french speaking European country. But to other nationalities this did not apply. However some special individual circumstances may have prevailed where such a disguise of name did occur but it was not a common procedure. having had an assignment to HQ in a capacity dealing with new and more veteran personnel as stated above which also brought me into close contact with two persons who were assigned to A. directly to the personnel department and b. to criminal investigations section concerned with the background of new candidates for enlistmentI believe to have had some insight in the workings regarding personnel matters . This may explain your findings in certain documents in your possession.

Of course matters may have changed fundamentally since my service so far back.

Bernhard H. Holst

ex-matricule 80921

[Ulsterman]

Bernhard!

I had no idea!

You must have some GREAT stories to tell.

Did the criminal investigators ever catch anyone interesting/(in)famous?

[Bernhard H.Holst]

Bernhard!

I had no idea!

You must have some GREAT stories to tell.

Did the criminal investigators ever catch anyone interesting/(in)famous?

Hi Ulsterman.

he did not reveal any individual stories but I learned for instance that up to four months after a contract was signed , sealed and entered into , the Legion could without giving any reason dissolve the contract and ship you back to whence you came. Authorities could well be waiting at the border or wherever you were shipped to. However an enlistee had no such means to get out of his contract short of deserting (usually unsuccessful), making a very poor soldier, butting up against the military system to be found unwanted (faking it usually did not work and there was such a unit which took care of most offenders , the "Compagnie de Discipline". At my discharge a small number of such "undesirables" were part of the total party being shipped back to Metropolitan France then to go their separate ways.

Ihope i did not belabor the point.

Bernhard H. Holst

ex-mle 80921

[Veteran]

Hi all

Very interesting stories come up on this forum !

If I may add a few remarks to the very accurate previous posts, I would like to say this ;

1. I confirm that Frenchmen CANNOT enlist as such in the Foreign Legion. They have an obligation to serve with the "Reguli?re" i.e. French national forces. One can only enlist under an assumed citizenship (mostly Belgian & Swiss). I enlisted a a Canadian. Was later "rectified" i.e. reassumed my french citizenship, and I became a Frenchmen serving as a foreigner (Fran?ais servant ? titre ?tranger). Service with the Legion was nevertheless credited to my further services as a reserve officer with the "R?guli?re".

2. While I was waiting to be demobed, I was with the D?pot Commun des R?giments Etrangers at Sidi-bel-Abbes in late 1945. Since I could write french reasonnably well, I was assigned as a secretary to the outfit in charge of enlisting new men. A very large number of German prisonners, mostly from the Afrika Corps, joined at that time. I cannot remember one who did not come up with his "Soldbuch" with complete services. There were also a number who had requested enlisment from prisoner-camps located in metropolitan France. Strangely one of them had been captured by my own Company (10e III/RMLE) in April near Stuttgart.

3. The walking out formalities were simpler in those days. You had to request evening leave with the adjudant-de-compagnie who delivered a permit. This was shown to the sergent de garde who checked your uniform. If you were OK he would let you walk out. If not he would thumb you back to your living quaters (chambr?e) without a word of explaination : a large mirror was available which you could consult to find what was wrong. Then you went all the way back to your chambr?e, attended to whatever was needed and took your chances with a very careful look-over.

But those were the days...

Veteran Mle 17.888 LE

Edited September 17, 2008 by Veteran