The French Foreign Legion
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Joining the Legion is not a recommended pursuit for anyone. Nevertheless, men seek to volunteer for its ranks in droves.
What Is The French Foreign Legion?
The French Foreign Legion is a military formation of approximately 8500 men serving as a branch of the regular Armed Forces of France. It differs from other military units by accepting foreigners from any country in the world into its ranks.
There are several things to consider before making the leap from simply thinking of joining the Legion, to actually travelling to France and enlisting at a recruiting centre:
- Appraise your physical condition. Activities in the Legion tax your physical endurance and abilities to the maximum. The most important physical requirement is running. You are advised to be able to run at least 10 kilometres with ease. Medical problems of any nature will almost surely disqualify you. Even seemingly minor issues such as poor eyesight can prevent you from being accepted. Recommended minimum physical prerequisites are:
- 30 pushups.
- 50 situps.
- Climb a 20 foot rope without using your feet.
- Run 8 kilometres with a 12 kilogram rucksack in less than one hour.
- 8 chinups with your palms away from you as you grip the bar.
- The age range for joining is 18 to 40.
- You can't join if you're married.
- Women aren't allowed to join. UPDATE: On October 12, 2000 the Legion was ordered to accept women into its ranks. FURTHER UPDATE: According to a statement by Legion spokesman Lt. Col. Yann Peron, the announcement that women would be allowed to join was due to a "miscommunication." Changes that will allow women to serve in almost every function in the French Army would not apply to the Legion, although female officers may be able to transfer from military schools. An article concerning this development appeared in the November 5, 2000 edition of the New York Times.
- You don't need to be able to speak French when you enlist but it is a good idea to learn as much as you can beforehand. It will be necessary to speak it in order to do your job.
- You will need a valid passport and possibly a visa to enter France. You must enter France at your own expense. You are not reimbursed if they don't accept you.
- Think about preparing a last will and testament.
- You can't have a bank account in France. The Legion maintains an account for you and you can arrange to transfer money anywhere in the world.
- A criminal history may be overlooked if the offenses are minor but there are no guarantees.
Don't take anything you don't want to lose. Everything you bring will be stored in a duffel bag when you reach Aubagne. You will never see your belongings again if you're accepted. You are permitted to keep:
- A French-English dictionary.
- Shaving gear, toilet articles, a towel.
- Cigarettes.
- Your watch.
- Your wallet and approximately 200 francs.
- An address book or personal contact list.
There are 16 recruiting centres throughout France where you can enlist:
- 94120 Fontenay-sous-Bois (Paris), Fort de Nogent, Tel. 01 48 77 49 68
- 21000 Dijon, Caserne Junot, 66 avenue du drapeau, Tel. 03 80 73 54 86
- 59000 Lille, La Citadelle, Tel. 03 28 36 08 72
- 67000 Strasbourg, Quartier Lecourbe, rue d'Ostende, Tel. 03 88 61 53 33
- 44000 Nantes, Quartier Degrees-du-Lou, rue Gambetta, Tel. 02 40 74 39 32
- 51000 Reims, Quartier Colbert, 32 bis, avenue de la Paix, Tel. 03 26 88 42 50
- 76038 Rouen cedex, rue du Colonel Trupel, Tel. 02 35 70 68 78
- 13007 Marseille, La Malmousque, Chemin du Genie, Tel. 04 91 31 85 10
- 86000 Poitiers, Quartier Aboville, Tel. 05 49 41 31 16
- 57000 Metz, Quartier de-Lattre-de-Tassigny, Tel. 03 87 66 57 12
- 64100 Bayonne, 18 Quai de Lesseps, Tel. 05 59 50 14 84
- 69007 Lyon, Quartier Générale Frère, Tel. 04 78 58 40 21
- 06300 Nice, Caserne Filley, rue Sincaire, Tel. 04 93 80 59 06
- 66020 Perpignan, Caserne Mangin, 8 rue François-Rabelais, Tel. 04 68 35 05 38
- 31000 Toulouse, Caserne Perignon, avenue Camille-Pujol, Tel. 05 61 54 21 95
- 33000 Bordeaux, 260 rue Pelleport, Tel. 05 56 92 99 64
- 13400 Aubagne, Quartier Vienot, Tel. 04 42 18 82 57
Although Aubagne is listed here it does not conduct the initial processing of recruits. The nearest centre where you can enlist is the Malmousque in Marseille.
You can join the Legion at any time. Its recruiting offices are open 365 days a year.
A képi blanc is a traditional white peaked hat that is a symbol of the Foreign Legion recognized throughout the world. You will be permitted to wear it after completing a 50 kilometre march a month into your training. You don your képi for the first time following a ceremony during which you recite the Code of Honour.
You won't be able to phone or write anyone until you've been in Castel for roughly two months. After this there should be no further restrictions on contacting the outside world either during basic training or in your combat regiment.
In most regiments laundry is done by hand using a bar of soap and a brush. This is slowly changing and washing and drying machines are becoming available.
Meals in the Legion are mediocre at best. Breakfast isn't much more than bread and coffee. Noon and evening meals are comprised of some type of meat and vegetable, cheese and dessert. Beer and wine are available on tap to use at your discretion. In the combat regiments it is mandatory that you eat at noon but you have the option of declining the evening fare.
March or Die is an ominous motto from the Legion's past, alluding that stragglers on a march either kept up or were left behind to perish. Things aren't this severe anymore but the spirit of these words lives on.
Several commando centres are located throughout France. The training focuses on advanced soldiering techniques during a three week period. You are likely to complete at least one commando course during your career in the Legion. On one of these courses, a week is completed in Mont Louis in the Pyrenees mountains with the second week conducted at Collioure, located on the coast south of Perpignan. The final week consolidates the lessons learned during the first two.
The following activities are covered:
- Rappelling and scaling techniques.
- Confidence and obstacle courses.
- Instruction on boobytraps and explosives.
- Hand to hand combat.
- Touching the tracks of a tank as it rolls towards you then letting it roll over you as you lay between its tracks.
- Building rope bridges.
- Methods of fighting in built-up areas.
- Instruction on kayaks and Zodiac inflatable dingies.
- Swimming in the sea without a life vest carrying rucksacks and rifles.
- Eating raw sardines and mussels.
Africa is a regular destination of the Legion. The only countries you would normally conduct operations in are Chad and Djibouti though the possibility always exists for French troops to be deployed anywhere. French interests in Africa are still widespread. Africa is a volatile continent due to incessant tribal disputes and there is a regular need for foreign intervention.
You are paid once per month in cash. You can't have a bank account outside the Legion. You can re-deposit a portion of your pay into an account the Legion maintains for you or arrange to have it transferred to your home country. Your Legion account does not pay interest. An approximation of what you can expect to earn is as follows:
| Légionnaire | 5500 francs/month |
| Caporal | 6000 francs/month |
| Caporal-chef | 6300 francs/month |
Pay varies depending on the regiment you belong to. Your earnings can double during a tour in Africa.
Theft is rampant within the ranks of the Legion. The Legion invariably attracts those of dubious character so you will eventually encounter this problem. Since you are paid large sums of money in cash, it can be difficult to protect it from opportunity seekers when your guard is down. Material theft is also a major headache.
One of the biggest problems the Legion has always faced, and continues to experience, is desertion. Desertions from the Legion number into the hundreds each year. Too many men join without having considered what they are getting themselves into. Numerous factors play a part in a person's decision to call it quits and flee their obligations.
If you decide you've had enough and choose to desert, there are a number of steps you can take to improve your odds of not being caught. The easiest means of deserting is to wait until your unit is granted leave. You should then have at least two weeks to find a way out of France.
In spite of the hardships there are many positive factors about being a Legionnaire. One of the more appealing advantages is an unmistakable amount of celebrity status.
Peacekeeping
The Legion has undergone a slow transformation from a machine of war to an instrument of peace. Peacekeeping is destined to be an important part of its future. Recent operations have included involvement in Kosovo, Bosnia, Cambodia, Rwanda, Somalia, and Lebanon in the early 1980s.
Is a French Foreign Legionnaire a mercenary? By definition, yes. By what he knows to be true, no. A Legionnaire is merely a soldier who happens to be serving in another country. Is that somehow wrong just because it's in a military capacity?
Fin De Contrat
Your last week in the Legion is spent in Aubagne completing the final clearance phase of departure. You'll undergo a final medical exam, have your identity re-established if you had your name changed and was not yet changed back, and be given paperwork as proof of your passage through the Legion. A free train ticket to anywhere in France will be issued to you.
WOWOW
Unbelievable
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