France France! Shame on you :-(

[Chris Boonzaier]

Narvik, Bir Hachim, any many other places on the globe....

The famous 13eme DBLE has for all intents and purposes been disolved....

The traditions of one of the premiere units tossed into a drawer... :-(

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nk1NqUlNG8g

[Veteran]

Hi Chris

Are you sure the 13e DBLE is being disolved ? I have read it was to be moved from Côte des Somalis to some other assignment..

The Half-Brigade are sorry they leave that part of Africa where they have been stationed for a very long time. Understandable ! On the other hand, they were "lent" to an foreign if friendly country which is quite free to feel it can do without the French.

More later ?

Regards

Veteran

[Chris Boonzaier]

Hi,

apparently the 5e Regt Interarmes d'outre Mer will be staying, the 13e will be moving to the United Arab Emirates.

It will be reduced to a command section/staff with just a few fixed elements and will rely on Compagnies sent from the REGs, REI or REP. (Apparently just 80 men belonging to the unit, just a shell).

I doubt the new Emirates posting will be anything like Djibouti for the legionnaires, either from the training, or the Legion Life.

It is really the end of an Era.

As I have said before, with the French Army now being Proffessional, the need for the Legion is reduced :-(

By the time my son is old enough to join... it may not be there anymore... :-(((

[Chris Boonzaier]

Although.....

it does not seem that bad....

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/may/26/france-military-base-uae

[Veteran]

Chris

I am glad you found this information. The Foreign Legion is a professionnal part of the French Forces. As such it is used as the French Government sees appropriate. Legionnaires know that, as they know they can individually be posted in whatever unit of the Legion is necessary; Part of the contract, remember ? The Regiment de Marche de la Legion Etrangère became the 3rd Regiment Etranger d'Infanterie overnight in July 1945;

The move from Djibouti was overdue, the people there wishing to have less French military presence. We can all understand that, as we can understand that men who had developped strong ties with local people would gripe at the change. That is just human nature,

The "shell" 13 DBLE is still the 13 DBLE; To be brought up to fighting strength if needed the day it is. C'est la Legion, mon ami! Serve where ordered!.

Best regards

Veteran

[Bernhard H.Holst]

Hello readers:

Just having access to a computer while traveling the Black Hills region of South Dakota I have read this post with great interest. I take the liberty for sentimental reasons to add little bit of information on this very distinguished regiment, the 13.DBLE.

- this regiment has the sad distinction of having lost in action three of its regimental commanders (chef de corps) , Lt,.Col. Prince Amilakvari during the battles in North Africa in 1942, Lt.Col. Segretain during an ambush on a convoi in Annam, Central Vietnam and lastly Lt.Col. Gaucher at Dien Bien Phu on the opening battle on 13. March, 1954. That night the III./13.DBLE practically disappeared.

While on active duty in Vietnam (Tonkin) 1951 - 1953 and again in 1954 my unit (an amphibious formation of the 1.REC) we oftentimes operated with units of the 13.DBLE, mainly the III/13.DBLE. I had a dear friend who died of wounds in Central Vietnam in 1952 during his second tour of duty and still in 12./13.DBLE. I had the good fortune to encounter him before his death a few, too few times during operations and his comrades always gave matter of fact reports of the spirit this unit possessed.I believe that this regiment again and again displayed a great combat performance. This also goes for the Vietnamese personnel integrated in the I. - III. Battalions and the IV. Battalion consisting of nearly all Vietnamese. As you may know the French Forces call that "esprit de corps" which is also something which persists even with transfers to other regiment(s) one maintains a particular tight attachment to one or the other.

Nostalgia wrote the above and this writer indulged.

As Veteran wrote of his former regiment and one could add others (6.REI dissolved a longtime ago and is now the 6.REG; 5.REI became the 5.Regiment Mixte du Pacifique and so on . The French Army respects traditions and I believe performance in the field does reflect that. The British Army I believe went through more than one transformation since WW I without suffering in quality.

Bernhard H. Holst

[Veteran]

Hello Bernhard

Nice to have your opinion. I would like to put in two additionnal remarks to your message.

I believe Secretain, who was the Tranmission Officer of the Regiment de Marche de la Legion Etrangere (R.M.L.E.) when I was serving with the Regiment, was rather the C.O. of the Bataillon Etranger de Parachutistes (B.E.P.) which he had created in Indochina. I have never heard mention that he was with the 13e D.B.L.E.

As you say, the French Army always makes sure that disbanded units with a glorious past have an "heir". This is usually an other Regiment, or a part of a unit (Company or Batallion) who takes over the battle honors of the dissolved unit. This is why the 3rd Regiment Etranger d'Infanterie (3e R.E.I.) now serving in Guyana wears the U.S. Presidential Unit Citation badge we earned in 1944/1945; That regiment is the "heir" of the R.M.L.E.

Best regards.

Veteran

[Bernhard H.Holst]

Hello Veteran:

Thank you for your post reminding me indirectly not to overly rely on my memory when I mentioned the Commandant Segretain as one of the regimental commanders of the 13.DBLE who lost their lives for France. He was indeed killed during the unfortunate attempt to evacuate the Cao Bang garrison in October 1950 commanding the 1.BEP which he formed just as you report. .

In fact it is the Lt.Col. de Sarigne killed during an ambush on a convoy on the road to Dalat the 1 March 1948. He already served in the then 13. DBMLE (Demi Brigade de Marche Legion Etrangere) later the 13.DBLE during the Narvik operation in 1940.

It may also be of interest to readers that the 3.REI, the successor of the RMLE as you , to my knowledge is the second highest decorated regiment in the French Army after the RICM (Regiment d'Infanterie Colonial du Maroc which while deployed in Indochina was an armored unit!).

Thank you again ,

Bernhard H. Holst