3e REI: 2023 Fourragere Day | French Foreign Legion Information

In mid-September 2023, the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment (3e REI) celebrated both the regimental holiday and the 50 years of the 3e REI’s presence in French Guiana. See some images.

The festivities took place in the Quartier Commandant Forget in Kourou, between September 15 and 17. They were presided by General Youchtchenko, the new commander-in-chief of the Legion.

Fourragere Day, the regiment’s holiday, marks breaking Germany’s Hindenburg Line during WWI. An important defensive position built in 1916-1917, it was broken through during the Battle of Vauxaillon in mid-September 1918, with the help of men from the Foreign Legion’s RMLE, predecessor to the current 3e REI. Thanks to the battle, the regiment gained the rare double fourragère and became the most decorated unit of the then French Army at the time. However, during the battle, at least 275 men of the regiment were killed (including 10 officers) and 1,158 men were wounded. This year, it was the 105th anniversary of the action.

At the same time, the 3e REI commemorated the regiment’s arrival in French Guiana (South America) in September 1973, after having left Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. See the photos.

PHOTOS. Fourragere Day in Kourou, September 2023.
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PHOTOS. Fourragere Day sports activities, September 2023.
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PHOTOS. Fourragere Day in Kourou, September 2023.
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