The French Foreign Legion is an exceptional multicultural society, having no parallel on this planet. Consisting of around 8,500 men of more than 140 nationalities (of all races and religions), the Legion runs like clockwork for decades, even in heavy combat conditions. Its strict policy of “close your mouth, forget about your past and adapt you to your new family as quickly as possible”, which forms the newcomers into a solid block of men being ready to fight and even lay down their life for the new Fatherland, always fascinates the rest of the world. This Monday, the French Ministry of the Armed Forces (since May 2017, formerly Ministry of Defence) released a new documentary about the Legion to show slightly how this policy looks in practice.
The 2017 documentary called “Legionnaire, my brother” is focused on the initial instruction during the first four weeks of the 4-month basic training, taking place on one of the three farms of the 4th Foreign Regiment (4e RE), the training unit of the Legion. During that period, the volunteers from all over the world have to forget about their past rapidly. They are forced to build one cohesive team with the esprit de corps, even if they don’t understand French yet… and even if they don’t understand one another.
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Related posts:
Documentary 2015: Foreign Legion – For adventure and for France
4e RE: Foreign Legion Basic Training 2016
4e RE: Camerone 2017
4e RE: Remise de Képis blancs at Auriol