The 46th Infantry Regiment an infantry regiment 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 ...

. During the whole of the First World War it was part of the 10th Infantry Division. It was initially based in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. It saw action during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, particularly during the Argonne offensive, where, in October 1914—along with the rest of the division—it saw heavy fighting and suffered heavy casualties. It took part in the Battle of Vauquois in February the following year, where, the regimental band—playing the ''

Marseillaise "La Marseillaise" is the national anthem of France. It was written in 1792 by Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle in Strasbourg after the declaration of war by the First French Republic against Austria, and was originally titled "". The French Nati ...

'' for the 46th, 76th, and 89th as they attacked—were among the first to be killed. The regiment's

standard bearer A standard-bearer, also known as a colour-bearer or flag-bearer, is a person who bears an emblem known as a Standard (flag), standard or Military colours, standards and guidons, military colours, i.e. either a type of flag or an inflexible ...

was Collignon, a former councillor of state, while its

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed ...

was Maurice Cazeneuve,

tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...

of the

Opéra-Comique The Opéra-Comique () is a Paris opera company which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular Théâtre de la foire, theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with – and for a time took the name of – its chief riva ...

. Both were

killed in action Killed in action (KIA) is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their personnel at the hands of enemy or hostile forces at the moment of action. The United States Department of Defense, for example, ...

at Vauquois. During the Battle of Verdun in May it was commanded by

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

Gustave Cohen Gustave Cohen (24 December 1879 – 10 June 1958) was a French medievalist. Cohen was born and grew up in Brussels. He fought for the French army in World War I. He became professor of medieval literature at the Sorbonne, encouraging his student ...

After the end of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the regiment was disbanded on 30 April 1946, becoming the 46th Infantry Battalion of the 10th Demi-Brigade Infantry. Reporting to the French Forces in Berlin from November 1947, after the Quadripartite Agreement on Berlin, it was stationed at Quartier-Napoléon with the 11th Regiment of Hunters. These two units were “successor” to the '' Fallschirm-Panzer-Division 1. Hermann Göring''. Having become a regiment again, the 46th RI was dissolved on September 14, 1994. It was recreated on July 1, 1995, as a reserve regiment associated with the

24th Infantry Regiment The 24th Infantry Regiment is a unit of the United States Army, active from 1869 until 1951, and since 1995. Before its original dissolution in 1951, it was primarily made up of African American soldiers. History The 24th Infantry Regiment (on ...

Vincennes Vincennes (; ) is a commune in the Val-de-Marne department in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. Vincennes is famous for its castle: the Château de Vincennes. It is next to but does not include the ...

. It is responsible for missions of protection of the populations and assistance to the authorities before final dissolution on June 30, 1997.

References

Sources

* * * * {{cite book, last=Stone, first=D., title=Cold War Warriors, year=1998, publisher=Pen and Sword, location=Barnsley, isbn=978-1-47381-325-0 Infantry regiments of France Infantry regiments of France in World War I Infantry regiments of France in World War II Military units and formations established in 1644 Military units and formations disestablished in 1997