The 2nd Armoured Brigade () is an armoured

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...

of the

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (, , ), is the principal Army, land warfare force of France, and the largest component of the French Armed Forces; it is responsible to the Government of France, alongside the French Navy, Fren ...

. It is heir to the honours and traditions of the 2nd Armoured Division famously commanded by

Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque Philippe François Marie Leclerc de Hauteclocque (22 November 1902 – 28 November 1947) was a Free France, Free-French general during World War II. He became Marshal of France posthumously in 1952, and is known in France simply as or ju ...

. In 1970 the 2nd Armoured Brigade at

Saint-Germain-en-Laye Saint-Germain-en-Laye () is a Communes of France, commune in the Yvelines Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the Kilometre Zero, centre of Paris. ...

was part of the 8th Armoured Division, headquartered at

Compiègne Compiègne (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Oise Departments of France, department of northern France. It is located on the river Oise (river), Oise, and its inhabitants are called ''Compiégnois'' (). Administration Compiègne is t ...

, alongside two mechanised brigades. In 1977 the 2nd Armoured Brigade appears to have been disbanded, and the 2nd Armoured Division reformed. The reorganisation of the French Army in 1999 transformed and downsized the 2nd Armoured Division to the 2nd Armoured Brigade. From 1999 to 2010 the brigade headquarters was located in the ''quartier Bellecombe'' in

Orléans Orléans (,"Orleans"
(US) and Illkirch-Graffenstaden Illkirch-Graffenstaden () is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. It is the second-largest suburb of the city of Strasbourg, and is adjacent to it on the south-southwest. Illkirch-Graffenstaden's population ...

, neighbouring

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

, at the ''quartier Leclerc'' (near the

2e Compagnie de Commandement et de Transmissions E, or e, is the fifth letter and the second vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''e'' (pronounced ); plu ...

and the 291st Jäger Bataillon). The general commanding the brigade is at the same time the Military Governor of Strasbourg. He loges in the :fr:Palais du Gouverneur militaire de Strasbourg situated in the

place Broglie The Place Broglie (''Bröjel'' in Alsatian German) is one of the main squares of the city of Strasbourg in the French departement of Bas-Rhin. The square is located on the Grande Île, the ancient city center, and has an elongated rectangul ...

in Strasbourg. Since 2023, the headquarters is also located in Strasbourg.

Structure 2016

The brigade consists of seven regiments. * 2 Compagnie de Commandement et de Transmissions (2 CCT) – Command and Signals Company in

Illkirch-Graffenstaden Illkirch-Graffenstaden () is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. It is the second-largest suburb of the city of Strasbourg, and is adjacent to it on the south-southwest. Illkirch-Graffenstaden's population ...

with

Véhicule de l'Avant Blindé The or VAB (literally meaning "Armoured Forward Vehicle"; but more appropriately translated: "Armoured Vanguard Vehicle") is a French armoured personnel carrier and support vehicle designed and manufactured by ''Renault Trucks Defense'' (now kno ...

(VAB) * 12 Régiment de Cuirassiers (12 RC) – Armoured Regiment in Olivet with 60 AMX-56 Leclerc main battle tanks *

501e Régiment de chars de combat The 501e Régiment de chars de combat 501e RCC in French, (501e R.C.C, or 501st Combat Tank Regiment) is an armoured tank unit of the French Army created on 13 May 1918, and which took part in World War I, World War II the Russian Civil War, the ...

(501 RCC) – Armoured Regiment in

Mourmelon-le-Grand Mourmelon-le-Grand () is a commune in the Marne department in north-eastern France. Population Camp de Châlons The ''camp de Châlons'', also known as ''camp de Mourmelon'', is a military camp of circa 10,000 hectares near Mourmelon-le-G ...

with 60 Leclerc *

Régiment de Marche du Tchad The ''Régiment de marche du Tchad'' (RMT, " ''Ad hoc'' Regiment of Chad") is a mechanised unit of the French Army, belonging to the '' Troupes de Marine''. It is part of the 2nd Armoured Brigade. Formerly garrisoned north of Noyon it was moved ...

(RMT) – Marine Infantry Regiment in Meyenheim with

VBCI The véhicule blindé de combat d'infanterie ( English: ''armoured infantry fighting vehicle'') or VBCI is a French Infantry fighting vehicle designed and manufactured by ''GIAT Industries'' (now Nexter Systems) and Renault Trucks Defense (now ...

* 16 Bataillon de Chasseurs (16 BC) – Infantry Battalion in

Bitche Bitche (English pronunciation: , ; German and Lorraine Franconian: ) is a commune in Moselle department, in the region of Grand Est in northeastern France. It is the Pays de Bitche's capital city, and the seat of the Canton of Bitche and the ...

with VBCI * 92 Régiment d'Infanterie (92 RI) – Infantry Regiment in

Clermont-Ferrand Clermont-Ferrand (, , ; or simply ; ) is a city and Communes of France, commune of France, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions of France, region, with a population of 147,284 (2020). Its metropolitan area () had 504,157 inhabitants at the 2018 ...

with VBCI * 40 Régiment d'Artillerie (40 RA) Self-propelled Howitzer Regiment in

Suippes Suippes () is a commune in the Marne department in north-eastern France. It was part of the so-called ''la Champagne pouilleuse'', a region battered by conflict during World War I. In the early months of the war, British soldiers were deployed ...

with 32

GCT 155mm The AMX-30 AuF1 is a French self-propelled gun vehicle currently in use by the armies of France and Saudi Arabia. It replaced the former Mk F3 155mm in French Army service. The AuF1 primary advantage is that it incorporates full armor and nuclea ...

and 12 120mm mortars * 13 Régiment du Génie (13 RG) – Engineer Regiment in

Valdahon Valdahon () is a commune in the Doubs department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in eastern France. Population Climate See also * Communes of the Doubs department The following is a list of the 563 communes of the Doubs depart ...

Other units include: * Batterie de renseignement brigade de Suippes *"Centre de formation initial des militaires du rang, le Bataillon de renfort de la 2e Brigade blindée" (CFIM, BR 2BB), dépositaire des traditions of the 12th Régiment of the

Chasseurs d'Afrique ''Chasseur'' ( , ), a French language, French term for "hunter", is the designation given to certain regiments of France, French and Belgium, Belgian light infantry () or light cavalry () to denote troops trained for rapid action. History T ...

Notes

References

*www.defense.gouv.fr

External links

*Official site �
2 BB
{{DEFAULTSORT:2nd Armoured Brigade (France) Armoured Brigade, 2nd Military units and formations established in 1999 1999 establishments in France