French Foreign Legion information. An online project dedicated to the famous Foreign Legion.
50 years ago, on August 1, 1973, a small independent unit of the Foreign Legion was officially activated in the South Indian Ocean, near Madagascar. Its main mission was to control the strategically important Mozambique Channel, as well as keep French presence in the region.
Read more50 years ago: A new Foreign Legion unit in the Indian Ocean was born
In May 2023, an operational training detachment (DIO) of the Foreign Legion Detachment in Mayotte (DLEM) provided military training to local soldiers in Botswana, Southern Africa.
The 30th of April 2023 marked the 160th anniversary of the 1863 Battle of Camerone, an epic moment in the history of the French Foreign Legion in which its 65 men faced some 2,000 Mexican adversaries. The famous battle is portrayed as a pure example of bravery and the determination to fight to the finish, and gave the Legion its character and esprit de corps. Therefore, Camerone Day became the most important holiday for all current or former members of this exceptional military unit. See 2023 Camerone Day pictures from several Legion regiments.
Christmas Eve marks the second most important holiday within the French Foreign Legion, traditionally a pro-Catholic institution. Thus, for that day, legionnaires in all units of the Legion create original nativity scenes and compete to see which one is the nicest and most original. This Legion tradition is unique within the French Army.
In France, the 11th of November marks Armistice Day. That day – known as Remembrance Day (or Veterans Day) in mostly English-speaking countries – the entire nation in France and abroad commemorates the end of hostilities of World War I. Thus, yesterday, on November 11, even the French Foreign Legion – as well as the rest of the French Armed Forces – commemorated the 104th Armistice Day, and remembered the 36,000 legionnaires and foreign volunteers who were killed or wounded during WWI. See the photos.
In early September 2022, a group of instructors with the Foreign Legion Detachment in Mayotte (DLEM) returned from Madagascar, a large island in the Indian Ocean located south-east of Mayotte. In Madagascar, the men provided military training to local soldiers.
Since March 16, 2022, the men of the Foreign Legion Detachment in Mayotte (DLEM) have been deployed to the Glorioso Islands, a French overseas territory in the Indian Ocean, located north of Madagascar.
The 11th of November marks Armistice Day in France. That day the entire nation commemorate the end of hostilities of World War I. Thus last Thursday, on November 11, the French Foreign Legion – as well as the rest of the French Armed Forces – commemorated the 103rd Armistice Day, and remembered the 36,000 legionnaires and foreign volunteers being killed or wounded during the war. See the photos.
The Foreign Legion Detachment in Mayotte (DLEM) is a lesser-known Foreign Legion unit that is stationed in Mayotte, an island in the Indian Ocean, and an overseas department and region of France. See the unit’s activities in August 2021.