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About “la taule” and 17 years of service

Le petit caporal

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When I knew him, october/november 83 I had only 5 or 6 months service, my mle 167848. G had returned from a 2 year posting in Tahiti, ,eave included and also instruction. It says in link mle 164*** = yeah it is him (isn't wearing his glasses... sniper rifle FR F1, he must of been in peloton commando, a kind of recce and protection unit for the escadrons tanks. Am sure it was 2e escadron/peloton commando/1 REC
Was a cool guy and a good laugh. Am sorry to have learnt this

En taule... c'est jamais trop tôt
Mitard... c'est jamais trop tard
Remise de peine... c'est pas la peine
 
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maim

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On training a Djibouti Army sniper course we lived in tents at Ali Sabieh. During sieste Gallacher kept playing the same Eurythmics cassette over and over again with his ghetto blaster. I went over and switched it off, when I got back to my tent he switched it on again. I went over with a moustiquaire piquet and smashed the shit out of his musical equipment. We had a bit of a tussle and I went back to my lit picot, fuming. I waited for about 20 mins and then went over and started giving him a hiding with foresaid metal rod, he knew I'd be coming back and had his Opinel (a typical French knife brand) in his hand under the pillow and jumped up and shived me. The scuffle got broken up by the other caporaux and I went back to my tent. I was only wearing a towel and sandals and Charlie Roberts pointed out that I was leaking claret. Bigou (the vampire of Djibouti, long story) stitched me up. Gall had to dig a Milan post trench overnight and fill it in in the morning. Ah, the good old days.
His brothers were Garty and McFadden and their cousin was Slash.
 

dusaboss

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Interesting story maim. It's really not my business, but was not been enough for you that you smashed stereo?

And from a safe distance :)

 

Le petit caporal

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She is from Aberdeen and used to work in the fish factory, gutting harengs and. ..things
Previous group. The Tourists. ..might intrest some wannabe
She hasent lived in Scotland longer than i, yet she advice Scots to vote no for Scottish independance
 

dusaboss

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She is from Aberdeen and used to work in the fish factory, gutting harengs and. ..things
Previous group. The Tourists. ..might intrest some wannabe
She hasent lived in Scotland longer than i, yet she advice Scots to vote no for Scottish independance
Annie Lennox? Man, you write in riddles! anyway I like you. Be well and don't drink too much (If you do drink :))
 

jonny

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Hi Thadeusz,
If you are still interested, I served 5 years in Algeria during the Algerian war, and most of that time in 2e REP. I was good at breaking the Legion rules without getting caught, but I failed twice. Once in Phillippeville (now Skikda) I was on medical leave from having contracted hepatitis, a common medical problem in Algeria, due to bad food and water. While on convalescence, I was drinking beer with some sailors from a British ship in the harbour one evening (of course alcohol is not supposed to be good for you when you are recovering from hepatitis, but I was like that).

Then there was an 11 pm curfew and the sailors invited me back to their ship for a drink, which I readily accepted of course, (I was a bit like that). Since there was a curfew there would be no chance of getting back to my barracks, but never mind, I reckoned, I can always sleep on the ship. Anyway, to shorten the story a bit, I was betrayed by a Spanish ‘cabo-chef’, colloquial term for caporal-chef (they are a bit like that) and ended up with 15 days en taule, charged with desertion. I knew my case looked bad, having been caught red-handed onboard a ship in the harbour, which was strictly off limits to start with.
But I had one card up my sleeves that I could play in my defence. I had signed my contract with the Legion as an underage boy at 16, i.e. my contract was not valid, and I could get my parents in Norway to get me out anytime I wished.

But I didn’t want to leave the Legion so I didn’t play that card and took the punishment instead. I was worried the Legion would throw me out if I played my trump card, although a conviction for desertion did prevent me from being promoted to even corporal during my first five years of service. Anyway, Adjudant-chef Bethery, in charge of prison, was sympathetic to my cause and granted me ‘repos en prison’, which meant just hanging about doing nothing much until the prisoners who had been on kitchen duty during the day returned with jerrycans of wine smugled into the prison. Then it was party time, dancing and singing. Legion taules can be quite fun, I reckon.
 

jonny

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The attach pic is of a group of legionnaires from 2 REP, serving time en taule, on corve in Phillippeville, Algeria abt 1960. While in taule they were not allowed to wear their kepis.
94A5DB8F-88FD-487D-8843-B7E476F579A0.jpeg
 

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Hey Jonny, if im right you was not mentioned or did not participate in the book "Nordmenn i fremmedlegionen" that came out last year. Any reason for that? I was so god damn stoked about reading your stories..
 

jwaltos

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One fellow I was en taule with in Guyane wanted to do something else other than be Piquemal's driver. One morning he put salt instead of sugar into the Colonel's coffee, that was good for seven days and a re-assignment. He was a good egg.
 

jonny

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Hey Jonny, if im right you was not mentioned or did not participate in the book "Nordmenn i fremmedlegionen" that came out last year. Any reason for that? I was so god damn stoked about reading your stories..
Hi, never heard of that book. I wonder if my best mate, Johnny Berg from 2 REP got a mention. Thanks for telling me. I’ll see if I can find it on the net.
 

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Hi, never heard of that book. I wonder if my best mate, Johnny Berg from 2 REP got a mention. Thanks for telling me. I’ll see if I can find it on the net.

I dont believe Johnny Berg was mentioned, but a guy named Jonny Jacobsen from Vennesla was there, he served in the late 50s.
Some others who had their stories in the book who served in the late 50s was Svein Skjalg, "Tore S" , Per Aune, Tore Antonsen and Roar Gulbrandsen.
 
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jonny

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I dont believe Johnny Berg was mentioned, but a guy named Jonny Jacobsen from Vennesla was there, he served in the late 50s.
Some others who had their stories in the book who served in the late 50s was Svein Skjalg, "Tore S, Per Aune, Tore Antonsen and Roar Gulbrandsen.
Hi, thanks for that. The only name I recognise from your list is Per Aune. From Trondheim, I think. I heard he had a sad end to his life, but I never actually met him. I had a friend who knew him, though. I’m surprise if the Norwegian sergeant Nor that I met in CP 3 in Sidi Bel Abbes didn’t get a mention . ( I never knew his first name.)

Otherwise I didn’t meet many Norwegian legionnaires in Algeria, only the odd one that I don’t remember the name of. However, in 2 REP we had a Scandinavian beer drinking club that we decided to call The Eskimo Club, containng two Norwegians, two Swedes, one Dane and one Finn, plus a Turkish sailor who had sailed on Norwegian ships and spoke some Norwegian. We decided to rename him from Varotsis to Hansen. He is, incidentally, also being given a mention in Simon Murray’s book. (But not as an honouraryEskimo.)
 

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Very interesting that you mention sergeant Nor. I have read about him in the 1980 book "Legionen er vårt fedreland"by Jan Bjørkelund which is based on Arne Gulbæks experiences from the legion 1946-1954, including Dien Bien Phu. As the book has many flaws and something in the book clearly isnt true, i somewhat believed that sergeant Nor was a created figure in the book, so thanks for confirming that he really has existed. In the book "Legionen er vårt fedreland" they dont mention Nor´s first name, and they dont tell much about him but they speculate that he might have had some experience from some shady business during WWII. If you got more info about Nor i would be really interested in it. I believe he was from Bergen. In the book Arvid Gulbæk is in one of the first groups to join the newly created 1BEP, and sergeant Nor is an instructor there, so i guess Nor had served at least from mid-late 40s and at least until you met him, so quite a long service time.


As for Per Aune the book "Nordmenn i fremmedlegionen" says he joined in April 1956, and i dont know how long he served. He served in the Suez crisis and with 1REP during the Battle of Algier.
There was also a Bjørn Erik Holm which joined in 1952 and served at least until 1955, dont know if you know about him.
"Henning H" joined in 1962 and served until 1973, so he joined when you left.

Roar Gulbrandsen served from 57-62, then joined the Norwegian armed forces, then becamse a pacifist and a artist
Jonny Jacobsen tried to desert and got "la taule" if i remember correct from the book, then he tried to desert again and then got help from the Norwegian consulate to get out of the legion
 
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jonny

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By the way: Apart from myself, the only other member of the Eskimo Club that I have a photo of in my collection from Algeria is of one of the two Swedish legionnaires who was a machine gunner in, I think the 3rd Co, but I’m not sure. His Legion name was Smith, not very Swedish sounding, I know. A great guy to share a couple of cases of Kronenbourg beer with (he is the one on the right, in case you wonder).

FD99F74C-7BDB-45E5-AE5A-00CD6D21047D.jpeg

Very interesting that you mention sergeant Nor. I have read about him in the 1980 book "Legionen er vårt fedreland"by Jan Bjørkelund which is based on Arne Gulbæks experiences from the legion 1946-1954, including Dien Bien Phu. As the book has many flaws and something in the book clearly isnt true, i somewhat believed that sergeant Nor was a created figure in the book, so thanks for confirming that he really has existed. In the book "Legionen er vårt fedreland" they dont mention Nor´s first name, and they dont tell much about him but they speculate that he might have had some experience from some shady business during WWII. If you got more info about Nor i would be really interested in it. I believe he was from Bergen. In the book Arvid Gulbæk is in one of the first groups to join the newly created 1BEP, and sergeant Nor is an instructor there, so i guess Nor had served at least from mid-late 40s and at least until you met him, so quite a long service time. (...)
Ok, I arrived in Sidi Bel Abbes from Dakar, via Algiers, some times in July 1957. I was quartered in tat part of the legion barracks known as Centre de Passage No. 3, or CP 3 for short. That’s where all new arrivals was billeted before being sent off to one of the instruction companies in Saida and Mascara.
When I walked into the receiving area someone barked something to me in French that I did not understand, so I looked puzzled, I suppose. Then somebody behind me barked in Norwegian “empty your pockets on that table.” I turned around in amazement and said ‘Er du norsk?’
Behind me stood a tough looking sergeant with several medal ribbons on his chest. He said, ‘ingen diskusjon, tømm lommene dine’ (no discussion, just empty your pockets). That was sergeant Nor. I have a few more stories about Sgt Nor, but will continue tomorrow.
 

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Dusaboss, I know that the Legion is rough but that it is far from medieval life... and torture! That much, my son wrote to me.

I also know that one day, taking in account his problems in Belgium and personal private problems, he decided to go to the Legion. He then told me that he had inquired and that he was informed. He was of age, it was his choice, I have nothing to say except that I gave him my benediction.

Remains two questions :
a) what is the difference between “la taule” and “arrêts simples”
b) it is a fact that my son did not come back to Belgium since he left for the Legion, but is this only his choice (which we will accept since he is an adult, sadly accept but accept) or this due to a Legion rule forbidding him to leave Corsica, where his regiment is, even during a "permission"

I could also ask whether as "young legionnaire" having a lot to learn in order to be really molded into an efficient legionnaire, he has any permission at all for the time being ?

Even the US Military has prisons and Brigs. The Brigs (Brig Marine Corps/Naval terminology the Army uses Stockade) are for serious infractions, drugs, Driving under the Influence, serious misdemeanors and felonies.

For simple screw ups or in Legion terminology when someone commits a Banana, they are confined to Quarters, that is they are placed on restriction, it is a form of house arrest and it is usually for 45 days.

Then same is Joe states, the Heads (bathrooms) need to be cleaned, the bottom of rocks painted, and when I was at Guantanamo Bay Cuba in 1990, our First Sergeant (Legionnaire in the Adjutant rank I believe) dumped several 50 pound boxes of nail of all sizes and the knuckleheads had to sort them and he would dump them all over again, and don't forget rake the rocks, paint the rocks, clean the heads, and ........

Thadeusz, being Belgian, Spanish, German, Swiss or whatever has nothing to do with it. In his first year I believe he only has 15 days that he can put in for. Normally, as I said previously, he will probably be confined to the island. This is just the way it is. It's the REP. Also, in his first year he will still be running around trying to make his place, give him time. If he is not due to go overseas at Camerone, you could always go and see him. The regiment, as do all the others, has two days of "open door" (portes ouvertes). You will be able to see where he lives, what the town of Calvi has to offer, see some jumps, watch legionnaires guzzle beer and so on.


I would highly encourage this Thadeuz
 

thadeusz

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Thanks to all of you for these additional details. I think that Jonny's story helps me understand what's happening with my son !

Good idea to go to a Camerone ceremony : where does it take place and how does one get a ticket (or anything else) for that?

Am I correct to assume it takes place on May 1st?
 
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