Irish Posted October 23, 2011 Posted October 23, 2011 I have been away from the forum for a bit due to work load. I am posting again with a French Foreign Legion Uniform in my collection. This uniform was purchased from a museum closing here in the USA. Here is what I think I know. The veteran was a memeber of the 13th Demi Brigade. Looks to be a WW2 era uniform worn after into early Indochina. It is named on the tailor tag in the pocket and initials that match have been sewn into the pants and jacket. The ribbon bar was in the upper pocket all else is as I received it. The name in the pocket is Capt B. Stelle Delle. Can any of our knowledgeable French and Legion Veterans help me in describing this veterans likely service and time served. Or does anyone recognize the name??? Hopefully this post will not be too picture heavy. Please correct any of the assumptions I have made. Thank You John
ralstona Posted October 23, 2011 Posted October 23, 2011 Lovely uniform. My great-grandfather was one of 55 officers with the 13 DBLE at the Battle of Narvik in Norway in 1940. He won the Legion of Honour there. He was a reserve Leiut. when he was hand picked for the 13th DBLE (he was Swiss and could ski... so they thought he would be valuable). He ended up returning to Algeria once the Legion made it to England. I bet he knew this man. Thanks for posting. Art
Chris Boonzaier Posted October 23, 2011 Posted October 23, 2011 Hi, what is the bar on the colonial medal? Best Chrid
Irish Posted October 23, 2011 Author Posted October 23, 2011 Chris the Colonial Medal has the Extreme Orient bar. The WW2 ribbon has France and Liberation
Veteran Posted October 24, 2011 Posted October 24, 2011 That forrage cap looks strange. It has certainly nothing to do with the 13th DBLE. It is distinctly Regiment de Marche de la Legion Etrangere (1943-1945), and the rank stripes seem different. That type of head gear did not have a grenade. The 13DBLE, during the 1944-45 campaign in France liked to wear a distinctive British style kaki beret. As for the rest of the uniform, it seems to have been taylored in London. An interesting lot.
Irish Posted October 24, 2011 Author Posted October 24, 2011 Thanks Veteran. The hat was with it when I purchased it and assumed it went together. What can you tell by the service ribbons?. Where had this veteran served and time period?
Veteran Posted October 24, 2011 Posted October 24, 2011 (edited) The ribbons are strange. Legion d'honneur Commandeur. That rank would be a General's or at least a Colonel's if he had seen a lot of outstanding war services Croix de Guerre WW2; One star which means one mention (citation). Creditable, but far from outstanding Croix de Guerre TOE. Overseas services i.e. Indochina. One palm + one star. The palm could go with an award of the Legion d'honneur for outstanding war bravery or services. The Viet-Nam bravoury cross would go with the same campaign. Black Star Commandeur. (the light blue ribbon with the rosette on silver). Again a high ranking officer with possible colonial services. Ouissam Alaouite Officer. Services in Marocco as an officer, not necessarily high ranking (earlier period of his carreer ?). Merite Libanais. Services in the Near East before 1945; The campaign ribbons point to services in France during the 1939-1940 campaign and again in1944-1945 after the Allied landings in France. The Colonial medal and Indochina commemorative go together. A rather strange combination. Quite certainly an officer's. Most of the services could have been in the French colonial empire. The two orders at commander levels would belong to a very senior officer, not really a Major (chef de bataillon / commandant). The service with the Free French as they appear from the chevrons on the sleeve would certainly call for the Free French Forces commemorative ribbon, wich is missing here. I cannot help wondering if the ribbons belong with the tunic, which is a very credible Free French uniform (the rank stripes on the right shoulder are upside-down). That's the best I can make of it, and I may well be wildly off the track. Veteran Edited October 24, 2011 by Veteran
Irish Posted October 24, 2011 Author Posted October 24, 2011 Thanks Veteran. Does the shoulder loops "rank" match the rank shown on the overseas cap? It is possible the museum which this came from combined items for their display. The ribbon bar was in the pocket. I could see the outline of a previous ribbon bar on the chest which did not line up exactly with this bar. The lower sleeves have areas where the rank was worn at one time and than I assume moved to the shoulders.
Veteran Posted October 27, 2011 Posted October 27, 2011 Yes, the overseas cap and the shoulder boards are for a "commandant" (i.e.Major). They don't necessarily go together, but they might. Your remark about rank stripes on the lower parts of sleeves of the tunic would be consistant with the other badges typical of Free French Forces (i.e.Gaullists) in the earlier 1940s. I am not sure when the rank stripes moved up to the shoulder, but this may have been after 1942 when French forces were reorganised in North Africa to make up the French 1st Army which came in the war after they were landed in Southern France.(August 1944). I believe you are right.
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