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A Moi La Legion! Australians in the the French Foreign Legion

Joseph Cosgrove

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I was asked by former (?) forum member Ossie O. to have a look at a legion book which was researched, written and published by Paul de Pierres.

The title is A MOI LA LEGION! Australian in the French Foreign Legion.
front cover.jpg Front cover back cover.jpg Back cover L to R David Mason, Brian Smith, Ossie O.

Many of the photos have been donated by Ossie O, who asked me to give a write-up about it in the Books Reviews thread. I received the book on Monday and haven’t been able to put it down yet.

Here is extract from the introduction :

Australians have joined the French foreign legion for diverse reasons. Some were soldiers of fortune, others were on the run from all sorts of situations, some just wanted to be soldiers somewhere and others wanted the French passport that a completed Legion contract offers. Many sought adventure, travel and hopefully opportunities that might come with the tag of ex-legionnaire in their curriculum vitae…

However there are not just Australian nationals. There are Germans, Norwegians, Spanish, Belgians etc. That which binds them, other than the legion, is that they all now reside or are laid to rest in Australia.
inside.jpg __________ inside 2.jpg __________ Inside 3.jpg

There are at least 132 stories, most recounted by the legionnaires themselves. Here is a quote from Ossie O.’s story :

You go to the legion- The legion doesn’t come to you! The legion doesn’t have the time or resources to handle people with kid gloves, you have to learn fast, it’s fit in or **** off…
Ossie O kitting up for a night dive.jpg photo from the book of Ossie O. getting ready for a night aquatic recce with 3rd Cie REP


The stories, as far as I can tell are authentic. One of them tells of a legionnaire who completed his five years from 1985 -1990 says:

He served as a medic in 13 DBLE and then 2 REI finishing in 1 RE. Things were relatively quiet while he was serving in the legion

Another went on to admit that he had deserted from the REP a short while before the Kolwezi jump recounts:

… sat on park bench and cried my heart out: my regiment had gone into action, real action, not just peace keeping, and I had missed it…

David Mason, whom I had met while in the 13, Djibouti says:

We were called out for operation Godoria, This operation was brought on by the collapse of the Mengistu regime in Ethiopia. The just over 4000 troops in the Djiboutian army were no match for the 40 000 mainly military refugees, tanks and heavy weapons of a defeated army…

I remember this operation well and played a (very) small part in it. I’ll tell you about it another day and also a funny anecdote which I’m sure will stir up a few memories for those that were there.

So I’ll sum up by saying that this is a must read for anyone who is interested in the legion, it’s history and stories recounted by those who were there.
Contents

Adjoining Battle of Camerone
Page 2 1850 -1919
Page 22 Famous Legionnaires
Page 23 1920 - 1939
Page 37 Myths and Realities
Page 38 1940 - 1945
Page 47 Demise of a Legion Platoon
Page 48 1946 - 1954
Page 58 1955 - 1962
Page 66 !963 - 2016
Page 95 Acknowledgments/ Bibliography
Page 96 Amicale
Page 97 Index

If anyone is interested in buying a copy, drop me a PM and I will send you Paul de Peirres’ email. Understandably he doesn’t want it pasted all over the forum.

The price is A$35 equivalent to €22 + post and packaging.

And no I don’t get a cut !:rolleyes:

The author of A moi la Legion ! is not limited to this book, he has among others, written

“Allies forever”

“To learn And to Serve”

“Under two flags”



David Mason has published a book “Marching with the devil.

The question is when is Ossie O. going to bring out his book?
 
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USMCRET

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Marching with the devil sounds like an interesting title.

Also, Joe, I was thinking on Camerone, you guys have the Captain's prosthetic hand as a relic, and we, the Marines have our Blood Stripe, the red stripe down our trouser seams. Only NCOs and Officers are authorized to wear the Blood Stripe. Essentially, we the Marines and US were in Mexico fighting in the same time frame.
 

Le petit caporal

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The Argylles and Sutherland highlanders have the thin red line on there trousse, too
Dates back to the Crimea war
1 regiment, extented, held a full Russian regiment and stopped their advance (is a film, very realistic, some where out there)
 

Papillon

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The Argylles and Sutherland highlanders have the thin red line on there trousse, too
Dates back to the Crimea war
1 regiment, extented, held a full Russian regiment and stopped their advance (is a film, very realistic, some where out there)
It’s on the Glengarry not the trousers, hold it on the side the red and white checks make a “thin red line” the rest of the regiments glengarrys at different!
 
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It’s on the Glengarry not the trousers, hold it on the side the red and white checks make a “thin red line” the rest of the regiments glengarrys at different!
Did you ever know a Sgt Muir, his Name was William Muir i think. was a Sgt in stirling ACIO 85. Good bloke.
 
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Most Australians i´ve met are good blokes. Had a couple on Exchange with us.
 

Joseph Cosgrove

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do one topic about Romanians in the FFL .
Hi seba, to be quite honest, I haven't got around to reading all the stories yet. If you are interested drop me a PM and you can get in contact directly with the author.
 

Le petit caporal

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Knew one Aussie who joined up with me in FdN and then went to the Rep. .Doyle (Jim)was his name
 

scouse arley

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I was asked by former (?) forum member Ossie O. to have a look at a legion book which was researched, written and published by Paul de Pierres.

The title is A MOI LA LEGION! Australian in the French Foreign Legion.
View attachment 3930 Front cover View attachment 3931 Back cover L to R David Mason, Brian Smith, Ossie O.

Many of the photos have been donated by Ossie O, who asked me to give a write-up about it in the Books Reviews thread. I received the book on Monday and haven’t been able to put it down yet.

Here is extract from the introduction :

Australians have joined the French foreign legion for diverse reasons. Some were soldiers of fortune, others were on the run from all sorts of situations, some just wanted to be soldiers somewhere and others wanted the French passport that a completed Legion contract offers. Many sought adventure, travel and hopefully opportunities that might come with the tag of ex-legionnaire in their curriculum vitae…

However there are not just Australian nationals. There are Germans, Norwegians, Spanish, Belgians etc. That which binds them, other than the legion, is that they all now reside or are laid to rest in Australia.
View attachment 3932 __________ View attachment 3933 __________ View attachment 3934

There are at least 132 stories, most recounted by the legionnaires themselves. Here is a quote from Ossie O.’s story :

You go to the legion- The legion doesn’t come to you! The legion doesn’t have the time or resources to handle people with kid gloves, you have to learn fast, it’s fit in or **** off…
View attachment 3935 photo from the book of Ossie O. getting ready for a night aquatic recce with 3rd Cie REP


The stories, as far as I can tell are authentic. One of them tells of a legionnaire who completed his five years from 1985 -1990 says:

He served as a medic in 13 DBLE and then 2 REI finishing in 1 RE. Things were relatively quiet while he was serving in the legion

Another went on to admit that he had deserted from the REP a short while before the Kolwezi jump recounts:

… sat on park bench and cried my heart out: my regiment had gone into action, real action, not just peace keeping, and I had missed it…

David Mason, whom I had met while in the 13, Djibouti says:

We were called out for operation Godoria, This operation was brought on by the collapse of the Mengistu regime in Ethiopia. The just over 4000 troops in the Djiboutian army were no match for the 40 000 mainly military refugees, tanks and heavy weapons of a defeated army…

I remember this operation well and played a (very) small part in it. I’ll tell you about it another day and also a funny anecdote which I’m sure will stir up a few memories for those that were there.

So I’ll sum up by saying that this is a must read for anyone who is interested in the legion, it’s history and stories recounted by those who were there.
Contents

Adjoining Battle of Camerone
Page 2 1850 -1919
Page 22 Famous Legionnaires
Page 23 1920 - 1939
Page 37 Myths and Realities
Page 38 1940 - 1945
Page 47 Demise of a Legion Platoon
Page 48 1946 - 1954
Page 58 1955 - 1962
Page 66 !963 - 2016
Page 95 Acknowledgments/ Bibliography
Page 96 Amicale
Page 97 Index

If anyone is interested in buying a copy, drop me a PM and I will send you Paul de Peirres’ email. Understandably he doesn’t want it pasted all over the forum.

The price is A$35 equivalent to €22 + post and packaging.

And no I don’t get a cut !:rolleyes:

The author of A moi la Legion ! is not limited to this book, he has among others, written

“Allies forever”

“To learn And to Serve”

“Under two flags”



David Mason has published a book “Marching with the devil.

The question is when is Ossie O. going to bring out his book?
I remember Godoria i was with CCAS at the time with section Milan. I still remember the vision of looking at the sea of people walking towards us, wagons carrying people people walking, never seen anything like that. We searched everything from people too wagons, the amount of weapons ammunition all the way up too Rusian Milan type weapons (sorry I can't remember the name but I think it was something l
I was asked by former (?) forum member Ossie O. to have a look at a legion book which was researched, written and published by Paul de Pierres.

The title is A MOI LA LEGION! Australian in the French Foreign Legion.
View attachment 3930 Front cover View attachment 3931 Back cover L to R David Mason, Brian Smith, Ossie O.

Many of the photos have been donated by Ossie O, who asked me to give a write-up about it in the Books Reviews thread. I received the book on Monday and haven’t been able to put it down yet.

Here is extract from the introduction :

Australians have joined the French foreign legion for diverse reasons. Some were soldiers of fortune, others were on the run from all sorts of situations, some just wanted to be soldiers somewhere and others wanted the French passport that a completed Legion contract offers. Many sought adventure, travel and hopefully opportunities that might come with the tag of ex-legionnaire in their curriculum vitae…

However there are not just Australian nationals. There are Germans, Norwegians, Spanish, Belgians etc. That which binds them, other than the legion, is that they all now reside or are laid to rest in Australia.
View attachment 3932 __________ View attachment 3933 __________ View attachment 3934

There are at least 132 stories, most recounted by the legionnaires themselves. Here is a quote from Ossie O.’s story :

You go to the legion- The legion doesn’t come to you! The legion doesn’t have the time or resources to handle people with kid gloves, you have to learn fast, it’s fit in or **** off…
View attachment 3935 photo from the book of Ossie O. getting ready for a night aquatic recce with 3rd Cie REP


The stories, as far as I can tell are authentic. One of them tells of a legionnaire who completed his five years from 1985 -1990 says:

He served as a medic in 13 DBLE and then 2 REI finishing in 1 RE. Things were relatively quiet while he was serving in the legion

Another went on to admit that he had deserted from the REP a short while before the Kolwezi jump recounts:

… sat on park bench and cried my heart out: my regiment had gone into action, real action, not just peace keeping, and I had missed it…

David Mason, whom I had met while in the 13, Djibouti says:

We were called out for operation Godoria, This operation was brought on by the collapse of the Mengistu regime in Ethiopia. The just over 4000 troops in the Djiboutian army were no match for the 40 000 mainly military refugees, tanks and heavy weapons of a defeated army…

I remember this operation well and played a (very) small part in it. I’ll tell you about it another day and also a funny anecdote which I’m sure will stir up a few memories for those that were there.

So I’ll sum up by saying that this is a must read for anyone who is interested in the legion, it’s history and stories recounted by those who were there.
Contents

Adjoining Battle of Camerone
Page 2 1850 -1919
Page 22 Famous Legionnaires
Page 23 1920 - 1939
Page 37 Myths and Realities
Page 38 1940 - 1945
Page 47 Demise of a Legion Platoon
Page 48 1946 - 1954
Page 58 1955 - 1962
Page 66 !963 - 2016
Page 95 Acknowledgments/ Bibliography
Page 96 Amicale
Page 97 Index

If anyone is interested in buying a copy, drop me a PM and I will send you Paul de Peirres’ email. Understandably he doesn’t want it pasted all over the forum.

The price is A$35 equivalent to €22 + post and packaging.

And no I don’t get a cut !:rolleyes:

The author of A moi la Legion ! is not limited to this book, he has among others, written

“Allies forever”

“To learn And to Serve”

“Under two flags”



David Mason has published a book “Marching with the devil.

The question is when is Ossie O. going to bring out his book?
I remember Godoria i was with CCAS at the time with section Milan. I remember looking at the sea of people walking towards us never seen anything like that. We searched everything from people too wagons. the amount of weapons and ammunition we found was amazing .The people had walked miles they were exhausted, the view of the helicopters dropping water and food and the people like locusts devouring it was amazing. I felt sorry for the medics because of some of the people they had to treat. One of my first jobs was too check inside tipper body wagons, I won't go into detail but the smell and sight i will never forget.
 

scouse arley

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Hi Scouse, come on we want the gory details !
Hiya Joe, it was basically the first time i had really seen death on a large scale. My ADJ told me to check a few tipper wagons, the very first one i climbed i could smell the smell before I had even put my head over the side. When I looked over there was a oldish woman holding a man , that's when i realised she was the only one alive. There must have been at least 60 bodies inside? she was the only one alive. Men woman and children i found out by my ADJ once he had looked that most had died by the heat and malnutrition but quitea few had been beaten or chopped up or the kindest way shot. This was pretty much the same for the other 2 wagons.
 
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Hiya Joe, it was basically the first time i had really seen death on a large scale. My ADJ told me to check a few tipper wagons, the very first one i climbed i could smell the smell before I had even put my head over the side. When I looked over there was a oldish woman holding a man , that's when i realised she was the only one alive. There must have been at least 60 bodies inside? she was the only one alive. Men woman and children i found out by my ADJ once he had looked that most had died by the heat and malnutrition but quitea few had been beaten or chopped up or the kindest way shot. This was pretty much the same for the other 2 wagons.
Woow....nice story bro 😎😎 big big up 💪💪☝️
 
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Cultural Revolution, we were picking up bodies on a daily basis. Due to Chairman Maos' excesses. Bloated from sea and river exposure. Stench from built up bodily fluids and gas unpleasant to put it mildly.
 

Joseph Cosgrove

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Hiya Joe, it was basically the first time i had really seen death on a large scale. My ADJ told me to check a few tipper wagons, the very first one i climbed i could smell the smell before I had even put my head over the side. When I looked over there was a oldish woman holding a man , that's when i realised she was the only one alive. There must have been at least 60 bodies inside? she was the only one alive. Men woman and children i found out by my ADJ once he had looked that most had died by the heat and malnutrition but quitea few had been beaten or chopped up or the kindest way shot. This was pretty much the same for the other 2 wagons.
I've got a few photos from Ossie O. who was on compagnie tournante at the time. For thos who don't know, in the 13 Djibouti, the REP would send a combat company for 4 months at a time and were lodged up in Arta. The place is in the mountains and about 1 hour's drive (left) from Gabode, which is where the 13 has it's main base. At the bottom of the hill is where the escadron Cavalry was kept. Another half hour (right) brings you to the CECAP.
photo 1.JPG Entrance photo 3.JPG Kiwi Trembath (check out hose wings !)

In each combat company in the REP is a support section which has a Milan group an mortars group and, in those days, a canon 20 mm group.

photo 2 - Copy.JPG MILAN or, anti tank missile.

The whole of the regiment was put on alert because neighboring Ethiopia was undergoing a civil war. And like any civil war in Africa, most of their military wanted out.
photo 5.JPG What I can presume was Russain made MILAN. Check out the stocks of AK 47s in the background.

photo 2 (2) - Copy.JPG A small selection of weapons confiscated.

photo.JPG Ossie O on the right, 3rd Cie REP and Dave Mason on the Left 3rd CIE 13. Some ex-soviet vehicle confiscated in the back ground.
photo 1 (1).JPG To give you an idea of the amount of people coming in.
 

scouse arley

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I've got a few photos from Ossie O. who was on compagnie tournante at the time. For thos who don't know, in the 13 Djibouti, the REP would send a combat company for 4 months at a time and were lodged up in Arta. The place is in the mountains and about 1 hour's drive (left) from Gabode, which is where the 13 has it's main base. At the bottom of the hill is where the escadron Cavalry was kept. Another half hour (right) brings you to the CECAP.
View attachment 3940 Entrance View attachment 3941 Kiwi Trembath (check out hose wings !)

In each combat company in the REP is a support section which has a Milan group an mortars group and, in those days, a canon 20 mm group.

View attachment 3942 MILAN or, anti tank missile.

The whole of the regiment was put on alert because neighboring Ethiopia was undergoing a civil war. And like any civil war in Africa, most of their military wanted out.
View attachment 3943 What I can presume was Russain made MILAN. Check out the stocks of AK 47s in the background.

View attachment 3944 A small selection of weapons confiscated.

View attachment 3945 Ossie O on the right, 3rd Cie REP and Dave Mason on the Left 3rd CIE 13. Some ex-soviet vehicle confiscated in the back ground.
View attachment 3946 To give you an idea of the amount of people coming in.
i remembered we were on guard at officer's quarter when we got the the orders to get back to the camp, we all thought we were going over the water to desert storm because when we got back we went straight to the armoury to collect our Milans.
 

Joseph Cosgrove

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As with most civil wars in Africa, the soldiers would shed all military uniforms and try and sell any military kit. I won't pretend to know what was happening in Ethiopia at the time, but what I can tell you is the legion was called in to help out the Djibouti army who were way out of their depth. The REP, escadron, and 3rd Cie 13 + SML and 120 Morters and CCAS miscellaneous (including yours sincerely) were all mobilized. If I remember correctly it was Comagnie de travaux who took over the guard duties.
Scouse Arley told us what the conditions for the civvies was like, and I can confirm that that is true. The chef de corps gave specific orders that no-one was to take photos. Obviously some did.

So what was my role in all this? At the time I was working as a life guard in the regiment's swimming pool. The pool came under the BOI which is bureau des operations et d'instruction. So we were used as goffers around the the head quarters tents.

One thing I will never forget is when we saw A huge - I mean humungus- dust storm coming our way. the ground began to vibrate and and the rumbling noise got louder. It came over the radio that there was a column of tanks heading towards us. We knew that they were going to surrender :unsure: but even still. Even though they were old T54/55s they were still tanks.
I am not telling a word of a lie here, the commanding officer steps onto the road/track, on his own and pulls out his PA 9mm (pistol):ROFLMAO: WTF !

I didn't get to see anymore heroics, because there were Italians ex-Pats being put in Gabode and I was ordered back to open up the swimming pool. Oh well such is war.
 
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Open up the swimming Pool....haha, Standards must be kept up.
 

scouse arley

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As with most civil wars in Africa, the soldiers would shed all military uniforms and try and sell any military kit. I won't pretend to know what was happening in Ethiopia at the time, but what I can tell you is the legion was called in to help out the Djibouti army who were way out of their depth. The REP, escadron, and 3rd Cie 13 + SML and 120 Morters and CCAS miscellaneous (including yours sincerely) were all mobilized. If I remember correctly it was Comagnie de travaux who took over the guard duties.
Scouse Arley told us what the conditions for the civvies was like, and I can confirm that that is true. The chef de corps gave specific orders that no-one was to take photos. Obviously some did.

So what was my role in all this? At the time I was working as a life guard in the regiment's swimming pool. The pool came under the BOI which is bureau des operations et d'instruction. So we were used as goffers around the the head quarters tents.

One thing I will never forget is when we saw A huge - I mean humungus- dust storm coming our way. the ground began to vibrate and and the rumbling noise got louder. It came over the radio that there was a column of tanks heading towards us. We knew that they were going to surrender :unsure: but even still. Even though they were old T54/55s they were still tanks.
I am not telling a word of a lie here, the commanding officer steps onto the road/track, on his own and pulls out his PA 9mm (pistol):ROFLMAO: WTF !

I didn't get to see anymore heroics, because there were Italians ex-Pats being put in Gabode and I was ordered back to open up the swimming pool. Oh well such is war.
I remember the lads from the 120's told us they were on the balcony of CCAS when a Mi-24 popped over the trees it was going to the airport too surrender as the Russians had pulled out of Ethiopia. the lads said all hell broke out in Gabode eventually we heard that 2 Mi-24 had landed at the far end of the airport.
 
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