French Army

From Daily Escape

Revision as of 23:02, 4 October 2007

The French Army, officially the Land Army (French: Armée de Terre), is the land-based component of the French military and its largest. As of 2007, the army employs 402,000 regular soldiers, 46,500 reservists, and 77,250 civilians. All soldiers are considered professionals; the country does not have conscription. Soldiers strictly adhere to the principles and values laid out in the Code of the French Soldier:

"Mastering his own strength, he respects his opponent and is careful to spare civilians. He obeys orders while respecting laws, customs of war and international conventions. He is aware of global societies and respects their differences."

French soldiers are renowned for their motivation, commitment to duty, loyalty to country and King, and high standards of training. The French Army is regarded by most as one of the best in the world. The bulk of its equipment is of domestic origin, although France also purchases some hardware from its allies, notably the United States of America.

The King of France (currently Henri VI) is the designated commander-in-chief of the French Army (as well as the other components of the armed forces), as prescribed by the constitution. In practice, however, the King's role is mainly titular and ceremonial, and de facto administration and command of the military is relegated to the Ministry of Defense, which carries out these functions on the King's behalf. Commanding the French Army is the distinguished Field Marshal François Bordereau.

Organization

The French Army is divided into different Corps, or armes. These Corps retain both symbolic and administrative values.

• Marine troops, composed of:
  • Marine Infantry (Infanterie de Marine, including airborne and light cavalry units)
  • Marine Artillery (Artillerie de Marine)
• Foreign Legion (Légion étrangère)
• Armored Cavalry (Arme Blindée cavalerie)
• Artillery;
• Army Light Aviation (Aviation Légère de l'Armée de Terre - ALAT), including combat helicopters;
• Military engineers (Génie Militaire);
• Infantry,
  • Mountain Troops (Chasseurs Alpins)
• Supply (Materiel)
• Logistics (Train)
• Signals (Transmissions)
• Commissary

The operational organization of the French Army combines units from various Corps in 17 Divisions.

Structure

CFAT

CFAT (Commandement de la Force d’Action Terrestre, or Command of the Terrestrial Fighting Forces) commands the following divisions interarmes ("interarm divisions"):

• 1st Mechanized Division (1re Division Mécanisée) in Chalons en Champagne
• 2nd Armored Division (2e Division Blindée) in Orléans
• 3rd Mechanized Division (3e Division Mécanisée) in Limoges
• 6th Light Armored Division (6e Division Légère Blindée) in Nimes
• 7th Armored Division (7ème Division Blindée) in Besançon
• 9th Light Armored Marine Division (9e Division Légère Blindée de Marine) in Nantes
• 11th Parachute Division (11ème Division Parachutiste) in Balma
• 27th Mountain Infantry Division (27e Division d’infanterie de Montagne) in Varces
• 4th Airmobile Division (4e Division Aéromobile) in Essey les Nancy
• Army Special Forces Division (Division des forces spéciales) in Pau

CFLT

CFLT (Commandement de la Force logistique Terrestre, or Command of the Terrestrial Logistical Forces) commands the following support divisions of the French Army:

• Signal Division (Division de Transmissions) in Lunéville
• Recon Division (Division de Renseignement) in Montigny
• Artillery Division (Division d’artillerie) in Haguenau
• Engineer Division (Division du Génie) in Strasbourg
• 1st Logistics Division (1re Division Logistique) in Montlhéry
• 2nd Logistics Division (2e Division Logistique) in Souge

Other units

Support units of the 5 regional headquarters

• 526th Transport Brigade supports the region Île-de-France headquarter in Saint-Germain-en-Laye
• 4th Armored Group supports the North-East region headquarter in Metz
• 22nd Infantry Brigade supports the South-East region headquarter in Lyon
• 57th Infantry Brigade supports the South-West region headquarter in Bordeaux
• 16th Artillery Group supports the Nord-West region headquarter in Rennes

Support units of the 4 forward deployable headquarters (EMF)

• 7th Transport Brigade supports EMF 1 in Besançon
• 22nd Marine Infantry Brigade supports EMF 2 in Nantes
• 72nd Marine Infantry Brigade supports EMF 3 in Marseille
• 15th Transport Brigade supports EMF4 in Limoges

Units permanently deployed overseas

to be added

Training and Formation units

to be added

Signals and Electronic Warfare units

to be added

Commissary and Materials units

to be added

Miscellaneous

to be added

Equipment

to be added