French Foreign Legion information. An online project dedicated to the famous Foreign Legion.
This new part of our PHOTOS series features a portrait taken in France and dated June 19, 1945. At first glance, it looks like many other wartime photographs of French Foreign Legion soldiers. Look a little closer, though, and you will find a badge that few collectors have ever seen in a period photograph. And as it turns out, the badge’s story may be quite different from the one told in official sources.
Read morePHOTOS: Salamander – A Rare Photograph of the Original 3e REI Badge
General Christian Piquemal, who commanded the French Foreign Legion from 1994 to 1999, died on October 23, 2026, at the age of 85. A funeral Mass was held on October 30 at the Church of Saint-Sauveur in Aubagne, the Legion’s main garrison town. In accordance with his final wishes, his ashes are to be laid to rest in the Legion veterans’ communal vault at the Foreign Legion Institution for Disabled Veterans (IILE) in Puyloubier.
80 years ago, in late September 1946, a story of one of the least-known units of the French Foreign Legion came to an end. When the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment (3e REI) was officially disbanded in 1943, its mounted and motorized companies were deliberately kept in service in Morocco, then part of French North Africa, so that the name of one of the French Army’s two most decorated regiments would not vanish entirely. Grouped together in 1944, they spent the rest of World War II and the immediate postwar years in almost complete isolation, far from the battlefields of Europe and Indochina, on the edge of the Sahara, understrength and equipped with outdated weapons.
Read more80 Years Ago: A Little-Known Chapter in the 3e REI’s History Came to a Close
On September 12, 2026, the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment (3e REI) celebrated Fourragère Day, its regimental day, in Kourou, French Guiana. The day honors the history and sacrifices of the regiment and of its predecessor, the Foreign Legion Marching Regiment (RMLE, 1915–1920). Usually held on September 14, the date was moved this year because the regiment is currently committed to protecting the Guiana Space Center.
As we reported earlier, the French Foreign Legion went through a whole series of changes of command this summer, with several of its regiments getting new commanding officers. One of them was the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment (3e REI), the only Legion unit permanently stationed in South America. On July 23, 2026, Colonel Grossin handed over command of the regiment to Colonel Gauzence de Lastours at a ceremony held at its home base in Kourou, French Guiana, a French overseas department on the northeastern coast of the continent.
In summer 2026, the French Foreign Legion saw five changes of command at the regimental level, reflecting the French Army’s regular two-year command rotation cycle. These changes affected units stationed in metropolitan France and overseas, including some of the Legion’s most prominent operational formations.
Read moreForeign Legion: 2026 Changes of Command in Five Regiments
July 14 marks France’s national holiday, Bastille Day. Beyond the main military parade in Paris, where the French Foreign Legion was represented once again this year, Legion units also take part in local celebrations held across the country and in France’s overseas territories.
On May 8, 2026, French Foreign Legion units commemorated the 81st anniversary of the end of the Second World War in Europe, marking the definitive overall surrender of Nazi Germany to the Allied forces in 1945. As every year, legionnaires took part in ceremonies held both in France and overseas to honor the veterans and fallen soldiers of the conflict.
In mid-March 2026, the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment (3e REI), based in Kourou, French Guiana, officially reopened Camp Fabert following several months of renovation work.
On February 12, 2026, legionnaires from the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment (3e REI), based in Kourou, French Guiana, helped secure the area around the Guiana Space Center (CSG) during Operation Titan. Their mission was to protect the spaceport and the Ariane 64 launch campaign from any external threat, including intrusion or disruption from outside the site.
In mid-December 2025, a series of Challenges de Noël (Christmas Challenges) took place in regiments of the French Foreign Legion, both in France and abroad. These anual events are friendly competitions between companies of the same regiment. They are not about winning alone, but about building fighting spirit, teamwork, and unit cohesion. For hard-working legionnaires, the challenges also bring a moment of fun and relaxation. They are usually organized shortly before Christmas.