The 3rd Marine Infantry Regiment (french: 3
e Régiment d'Infanterie de Marine, 3
e RIMa) is a unit of the
French Army in the
French Forces. The 3
e RIMa is one of the oldest of the
troupes de marine. This regiment is one of the "Quatre Grands" of marine
infantry once garrisoned within the four military ports, ready to embark : the «
Grand Un », the «
Grand Deux », the « Grand Trois » and the «
Grand Quatre ». The « Grand Trois » has participated actively to the various far expeditions of the 19th century in
Africa, the
Americas
The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World.
Along with th ...
,
Oceania and the Orient. Surnamed also the "3rd Marine", the unit was part of the «
Blue Division » which illustrated capability at the
Battle of Bazeilles on August 31 and September 1, 1870. The regiment was subordinated to the
9th Marine Infantry Brigade.
Creation and different nominations
* 1854 : the 3rd Marine Infantry Regiment was stationed at Rochefort.
* 1869 : the 3rd Marine Infantry Regiment was spread between Rochefort, Cochinchine, Réunion, New Caledonia and Tahiti.
* 1870 : the 3rd Marching Marine Infantry Regiment.
* 1890 : the 3rd Marine Infantry Regiment was doubled and formed the 7th Colonial Infantry Regiment (french: 7
e Régiment d'infanterie coloniale, 7
e RIC).
* 1900 : the 3rd Marine Infantry Regiment was designated 3rd Colonial Infantry Regiment (french: 3
e Régiment d'infanterie coloniale, 3
e RIC).
* 1914 : the 3rd Colonial Infantry Regiment was garrisoned at Rochefort. The regiment was part of the 3rd Colonial Brigade;
3rd Colonial Infantry Division 3
e DIC.
* 1946 : 3rd Colonial Infantry Battalion 3
e BIC.
* 1958 : Instruction Center of the 3
e RIC.
* 1958 : Instruction Center of the 3
e RIMa.
* 1963 : 3rd Marine Infantry Regiment 3
e RIMa.
History
Ancien Regime
Wars of the Revolution & Empire
* 1813 :
German Campaign of 1813
** October 16–19 :
Battle of Leipzig
The Battle of Leipzig (french: Bataille de Leipsick; german: Völkerschlacht bei Leipzig, ); sv, Slaget vid Leipzig), also known as the Battle of the Nations (french: Bataille des Nations; russian: Битва народов, translit=Bitva ...
* 1814 :
Campaign of France
** February 14, 1814 :
Battle of Vauchamps
1815 to 1848

Foundation was merged with those of the marine infantry (french: « infanterie de marine » ) whom were at the source of the
Compagnie Ordinaire de la Mer created by
Richelieu
Richelieu (, ; ) may refer to:
People
* Cardinal Richelieu (Armand-Jean du Plessis, 1585–1642), Louis XIII's chief minister
* Alphonse-Louis du Plessis de Richelieu (1582–1653), French Carthusian bishop and Cardinal
* Louis François Armand ...
in 1622. A Royal Ordinance of
King Louis Philippe I, the
King of the French reconstituted in 1831 two regiments of marine infantry (french: régiments d'infanterie de marine) from the 45th, the 51st Line Infantry Regiment (french: 51
e Régiments d'infanterie de ligne) and 16th Light Infantry Regiment which was garrisoned at the time in the colonies; a new decree ordinance dated November 20, 1838 created a third regiment of arms (french: troisième régiment de l'arme). Each regiment counted 30 active companies, out of which 4 grenadier, 4 de voltigeurs and 22 du centre, a headquarter staff and a company hors rang. The 1st regiment garrisoned at Brest, Cherbourg and Guadeloupe, the 2nd regiment at Brest, Rochefort and Martinique; the 3rd at Toulon, Cayenne, Senegal and the Bourbon island (current Reunion island).
* Accordingly, the origin of the 3
e RIMa dates back to 1831. With the actual
2nd Marine Infantry Regiment
The 2nd Marine Infantry Regiment (french: 2e Régiment d'Infanterie de Marine, 2e RIMa) is an infantry regiment of the Troupes de marine in the French Army, the only regiment to bear 16 battle honours inscriptions of the regimental colors. The re ...
2
e RIMa, the regiment is the oldest of the "quatre vieux". The regiment garrisoned in Rochefort from 1838 to 1946.
* Campaign in Senegal from 1833 to 1835.
* Plata expedition in 1840.
* Operations of Oceania from 1843 to 1846.
* First expeditions in Morocco in 1844.
* Second Plata expedition in 1850.
Second Empire
Napoleon III expressed a plentiful of solicitude for the troupes coloniales; a decree of 1854 reorganised the marine infantry by creating four regiments each associated with its home port.
* Crimean War and during the expedition of the Baltic (1854).
* Campaign of China (1855–1860).
* Campaign of Senegal (1863).
* Campaign of Annam, Cochinchine and Cambodia (1858–1868).
* 1869 : dispersed between Rochefort, Cochinchine, the Reunion, New Caledonia and Tahiti.
* For a first time, the 3rd Marine engaged in combat on metropolitan soil. On August 31 and September 1, 1870, engaged at the corps of the Blue Division, the 3
e RIMa disappeared at Bazeilles during a combat until the "dernière cartouche".
On August 17, 1870, the 3rd Marching Marine Infantry Regiment was part of the
Armée de Châlons (1870) (french:
Armée de Châlons (1870)) of
Marshal
Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...
de MacMahon.
* With the
2nd Marching Marine Infantry Regiment of colonel Alleyron, the 3
e under the orders of the colonel Lecamus, formed the 2nd Brigade at the orders of général Charles Martin des Pallières. This 2nd Brigade with the 1st Brigade of général Reboul, three batteries de 4, two batteries de 4 and one machine gun battery of the marine artillery regiment, one engineer company, constituted the 3rd Infantry Division commanded by division général De Vassoigne. This infantry division evolved at the corps of the
12th Army Corps, commanded by division general Lebrun.
– August 23 to 26 1870 – March towards the east.
– August 31, 1870 –
Battle of Bazeilles.
1870 to 1914
* New Caledonia (1878)
* Indochina (1822–1885)
* Africa (1882–1894)
* Formose (1884)
* Nouvelles-Hébrides (1886)
* Diégo-Suarez (1898)
* Crete (1898)
* China (1900)
* Morocco (1911–1913)
World War I
Division attachment
* From August 1914 to February 1916 :
3rd Colonial Infantry Division, 3
e DIC
* From February 1916 to November 1918 :
17th Colonial Infantry Division (France)
17th Colonial Infantry Division was an infantry division of the French Army during the First World War. It was deployed overseas, seeing action during the Gallipoli campaign, and thereafter on the Salonika front, fighting alongside British troop ...
, 17
e DIC
* The regiment illustrated capability during the war, at the
Battle of Rossignol,
la Marne
La Marne (; br, Maeron) is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department
Department may refer to:
* Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility
Government and military
*Department (administra ...
, and at Beauséjour prior to being engaged on the Orient front until June 1919.
1914
* Operations of the
IIIrd and
IVth armies.
*
Battle of the Frontiers
* August 22 : Battle of Rossignol
* August 24 : Saint-Vincent
* August 26 to 29 : combats in the sector of Luzy-Saint-Martin – Cesse with the 21st Colonial Artillery Regiment 21
e RAC
* September 6–7 :
First Battle of the Marne : Écriennes, Vauclerc
1915
* February 16–23 : Champagne : fortin de Beauséjour
* May 15 : Ville-sur-Tourbe
* September 25 :
battle of Champagne: Main-de-Massiges, Côte 191, Bois de l'Oreille.
1916
* February 26 around 1500 : more than half of the regiment (5 companies) were lost at sea while in transit to Thessaloniki, to join the
17th Colonial Infantry Division (France)
17th Colonial Infantry Division was an infantry division of the French Army during the First World War. It was deployed overseas, seeing action during the Gallipoli campaign, and thereafter on the Salonika front, fighting alongside British troop ...
.
1917
French Army of the Orient (french: Armée française d'Orient, AFO)
* April to May :
Battle of the Crna Bend (1917)
1918
* Serbia: Sokol,
Dropolje, Kravtiza, battles during which the regiment was cited at the orders of the armed forces. During these five years of war, the 3
e endured the loss of 4750 men.
* September 15 to 18 : Vetrenik
* September 23 to 24 : Gradsko
* The regiment endured the loss of 4617 men morts au champ d'honneur.
Interwar period
* In 1925, the 3
e RIC was engaged in Morocco.
* 1919 – 1939 : garrisoned at Rochefort.
World War II
Phoney War
The 3rd Infantry Colonial Regiment 3
e RIC was one of the three infantry regiments of the
1st Colonial Infantry Division. This division was placed in reserve of the
IInd Army which was the first in line to protect the
Maginot Line
The Maginot Line (french: Ligne Maginot, ), named after the French Minister of War André Maginot, is a line of concrete fortifications, obstacles and weapon installations built by France in the 1930s to deter invasion by Germany and force the ...
in a turning manoeuvre.
Battle of France
* Combats in the region of Bouzanville and Beaumont-en-Argonne. At the corps of 21st corps, movement towards the north of meuse to intercept. Accordingly, the 3
e was found engaged in combat for a third time in the same region. Following, the 3
e protected the unfolding of the 1
re DIC on Saulx. During these engagements, the 3
e endured the loss of 500 men. The 3
e RIC was cited at the orders of the armed forces.
* 1940 : the 3
e RIC was dissolved.
* 1944 : battalion formed from
Maquis
Maquis may refer to:
Resistance groups
* Maquis (World War II), predominantly rural guerrilla bands of the French Resistance
* Spanish Maquis, guerrillas who fought against Francoist Spain in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War
* The network ...
of the south-west which gave formation to the 3
e RIC. Action in dordogne. Occupation of Bergerac and entry into Bordeaux. These units participated to the operations in North Africa.
1945 to present
* From 1955 to 1957 : the regiment participated, under the form of a marching battalion, to operations in Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria.
* Absorbed by other colonial regiments, the battalion's regiments would not bear the insignia of the 3rd Marine. On December 31, 1957, the 3
e RIC was transformed into the center of instruction of the 3
e RIC which became that of the 3
e RIMa, on December 1, 1958.
* On March 1, 1963 : the regiment was reconstituted at Vannes by merger with the
Régiment d'infanterie-chars de marine and the
9th Marine Infantry Brigade.
* Passed under the "motorized" type since 1969, the regiment was the first to be completely professionalized. With the DEVOM (Volunteer Detachment for Outre-Mer) destined to assume, during fifteen month, the relief of the
2nd Foreign Parachute Regiment
The 2nd Foreign Parachute Regiment (french: 2e Régiment étranger de parachutistes, 2e REP) is the only airborne regiment of the Foreign Legion in the French Army. It is one of the four infantry regiments of the 11th Parachute Brigade and part o ...
2e REP in Tchad. The 3rd Marine Infantry Regiment was accordingly able to participate to all major exterior theatres of operations.
* The first regiment to be professionalized in 1973.
* From 1978 to 1980 : Opération Tacaud in Tchad. During this operation, the 3
e RIMa endured the loss of four with twelve wounded. The regiment was accordingly cited at the orders of the armed forces.
* The 3
e RIMa was engaged part of the
Multinational Force in Lebanon and partook also in
peacekeeping
Peacekeeping comprises activities intended to create conditions that favour lasting peace. Research generally finds that peacekeeping reduces civilian and battlefield deaths, as well as reduces the risk of renewed warfare.
Within the United N ...
missions part of the
United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon.
* 1991 : the regiment participated in the Gulf War as a unit of
Division Daguet The Division Daguet was a French Army division formed in September 1990 in Saudi Arabia as part of France's contribution to Operation Desert Shield. The French military contribution to the allied cause to liberate Kuwait from Iraqi occupation was na ...
. The regiment was cited at the orders of the armed forces.
* 1995 : the 3
e RIMa illustrated capability at the
Battle of Vrbanja Bridge. Actions led by the regiment allowed the blue helmets of the
FORPRONU
The United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR; also known by its French acronym FORPRONU: ''Force de Protection des Nations Unies'') was the first United Nations peacekeeping force in Croatia and in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Yugoslav War ...
to exit from a passive position due to a first time engagement in hostile responses. Two casualties resulted from this event with seventeen others wounded.
* 2002 : the regiment was deployed to Kosovo at the corps of TF-MN north from October 2002 to January 2003 and formed first the BIMOTO 9 prior to constituting the BatFra 1 within the cadres of forces restructuration and the BiMéca.
* 2003 : following the launching of a Guepard alert, the regiment was projected to Bunia in the Democratic Republic of Congo from June to September 2003 with the cadre of
Operation Artemis under the guidance of the EU. The deployment was reinforced by a M120 battery of the
11th Marine Artillery Regiment
The 11th Marine Artillery Regiment (France) (french: 11e Régiment d'Artillerie de Marine, 11e RAMa) is an artillery regiment of the French Army. The regiment constitutes the fire support unit of the 9th Marine Infantry Brigade. The regiment empl ...
11
e RAMa, a squadron of the
1st Parachute Hussard Regiment
The 1st Parachute Hussar Regiment (french: List of French paratrooper units, 1er Régiment de Hussards Parachutistes, List of French paratrooper units, 1er RHP) is an List of French paratrooper units, airborne cavalry unit in the French Army, fou ...
1er RHP and an engineer combat company of the
6th Engineer Regiment
The 6th Engineers Regiment (french: 6e Régiment du Génie) is a regiment of the ''génie militaire'' of the French Military constituted under the IIIrd Republic. It is the only Engineers Regiment among the Troupes de Marine (French Marine Co ...
6
e RG.
* 2009 : the 3
e RIMa integrated the corps of the
GTI Kapisa since June 15, 2009, for six months. Until September 5, 2009, the GTIA led four main combat operations. Missions endured the loss of 5 and nine wounded.
* The 3rd Marine has also deployed to Soudan, Rwanda, Republic of Central Africa and Albania...
Missions
Regularly projected in outre-mer missions (notably Guyana) and Africa (Chad, Gabon, Central) as all units that used to be referred as the "Colonial", the 3
e RIMa distinguished capability within Division Daguet during the first Gulf War and the former Yugoslavia, particularly in Sarajevo at the capture of the Vrbanja bridge in May 1995.
Since 2002, personnel of the regiment are deployed six months per year:
* 2002: NATO Kosovo Operation Trident – Bimoto then BATFRA 1
* 2003: Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire
* 2003: Democratic Rep. of Congo Ituri Bunia – En Ops Fr MAMBA + EU ARTEMIS
* 2004: Afghanistan, New Caledonia
* 2004–2005: Côte d'Ivoire
* 2005: Kosovo, RCA
* 2006–2007: Côte d'Ivoire
* 2008: Kosovo, RCA
* 2009: Afghanistan (Task Force Korrigan)
* 2012–2013: Mali
Organisation
The regiment is articulated into 8 companies with approximately 1300 men and women:
* Compagnie de Commandement et de Logistique (CCL) – Command and Logistics Company
* 1
re Compagnie de Combat (1
re Cie) – 1st Combat Company
* 2
e Compagnie de Combat (2
e Cie) – 2nd Combat Company
* 3
e Compagnie de Combat (3
e Cie) – 3rd Combat Company
* 4
e Compagnie de Combat (4
e Cie) – 4th Combat Company
* 5
e Compagnie de Combat (5
e Cie) – 5th Combat Company
* Compagnie Antichar (CAC) longue portée – Long Range Anti-Tank Company (dormant since 2008)
* Compagnie d'Eclairage et d'Appui (CEA) – Reconnaissance and Support Company
* 6
e Compagnie de reserve (6
e Cie) – 6th Reserve Company
Traditions
The anniversary is celebrated for combats in
Bazeilles
Bazeilles () is a commune in the Ardennes department in the Grand Est region of northern France. On 1 January 2017, the former communes of Rubécourt-et-Lamécourt and Villers-Cernay were merged into Bazeilles.
The inhabitants of the commune are ...
, the village which was apprehended and abandoned four consecutive times under orders, respectively on August 31 and September 1, 1870.
;''Et au Nom de Dieu, vive la coloniale !''
'' In the Name of God, vive la coloniale !''
The Marsouins and the Bigors have for Saint, God. This war calling concludes intimate ceremonies which part life in the regiments. Often also at origin as an act of grace to
Charles de Foucauld.
Motto
"''Debout les Morts''". This sentence, which became the motto of the regiment is credited to Adjudant Péricard (3
e RIC) who voiced on February 27, 1915, to stimulate the troops, during the reapprehension of a fort. For this battle, the regiment endured the for the 1st and 2nd battalions of the 3
e RIC: 189 killed, 575 wounded and 250 missing.
Insignia of the 3e RIMa
A Marine anchor with inscription "Bazeilles", a
French Imperial Eagle, and the number 3. In 1975, during a regimental inspection, colonel Jean Joubert, regimental commander of the 3rd Marine Infantry Regiment noticed a sketch drawing realized by sergent-chef De Muynck of the 3rd section, 3rd company; accordingly the new insignia of the 3
e RIMa was created.
Regimental Colors
Decorations
The regimental colors of the 3rd Marine Infantry Regiment 3
e RIMa is decorated with:
*
Croix de guerre 1914–1918 with:
** 1 palm & 1 star
*
Croix de guerre 1939–1945
The ''Croix de Guerre 1939–1945'' (English: War Cross 1939–1945) is a French military decoration, a version of the ''Croix de Guerre'' created on 26 September 1939 to honour people who fought with the Allies against the Axis forces at any ti ...
with:
** 1 palm
*
croix de la Valeur militaire with:
** 1 palm
* Commemorative Medal with:
** clasp "Serbia"
The 3
e RIMa was cited at the orders of the armed forces in 1978 and in 1991.
The regiment was awarded on October 16, 2014 the
Fourragere with colors of the Croix de guerre 1914–1918.
Honours
Battle Honours
* Magador 1844
* Alma 1854
* Palikao 1860
* Ki-Hoa 1861
* Bazeilles 1870
* Sontay 1883
* La Marne 1914
* Champagne 1915
* Dobropolje 1918
* Koweït 1990–1991
Regimental Commanders
3e RIC
* 1914: Colonel Lamolle
* September 5, 1914: Lieutenant-Colonel Condamy
* November 1, 1914 – December 6, 1914: Colonel Claudel
3e RIMa
Notable officers and marines
*
Joseph Gallieni
References
Sources and bibliography
*
* Erwan Bergot, ''La coloniale du
Rif au
Tchad 1925–1980'', imprimé en France : décembre 1982, n° d'éditeur 7576, n° d'imprimeur 31129, sur les presses de l'imprimerie Hérissey.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marine Infantry Regiment, 3rd
Marines regiments of France
Infantry regiments of France
Military units and formations established in 1838
Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France)
Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France)
Military units and formations of the Bosnian War
1838 establishments in France