32 years ago: A sad bomb attack in Djibouti killed four French soldiers

32 years ago, on the 18th March of 1987, a bomb attack occurred in Djibouti, the capital of a small country of the same name located in the Horn of Africa. The attack was aimed at L’Historil, a restaurant frequented by Western guests, mainly French Army personnel. At least 11 people were killed, including a French Foreign Legion non-commissioned officer…

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65 years ago: A decisive battle started in then French Indochina

65 years ago, a decisive battle started in then French Indochina between French troops, including legionnaires, and the Viet Minh. The two-month battle occurred in a remote valley of Dien Bien Phu in northeastern Vietnam. On 13 March 1954, the Viet Minh launched a bloody assault on a defensive position held by a Foreign Legion battalion. After several hours of severe fighting, the position would be overrun…

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10 March 1831: When a Legion was born

188 years ago, on 10 March 1831, a royal ordinance of Louis Philippe I, King of the French was issued. The ordinance ordered the establishment of the Foreign Legion, to engage a number of foreign deserters asking to serve France. Until the 2000s, the 10th March of 1831 marked the official birthday of the current French Foreign Legion which derived its origin from that original Legion. Nevertheless, the lineage of the Legion is far more complex and because of that, the official birthday was quietly changed in the last decade to the more neutral 9th March.

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