The 6th Foreign Engineer Regiment (french: 6^e régiment étranger de génie) was a unit of the Foreign Legion in the

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed Force ...

, part of the rapid reaction force and component of the 6th Light Armoured Division, (6^e DLB). The 6th Foreign Engineer Regiment became the

1st Foreign Engineer Regiment The 1st Foreign Engineer Regiment (french: 1er Régiment étranger de génie, 1er REG) is one of two combat engineer regiments of the Foreign Legion in the French Army. The regiment provides the combat engineering component of the 6th Light Arm ...

(1^e REG) in 1999.

Creation and names

The 6th Foreign Engineer Regiment (6^e REG) was created on July 1, 1984 at Laudun ( Gard). The regiment was redesignated as the

(french: 1^er Regiment Etranger de Genie) on June 30, 1999 with the creation of the 2nd Foreign Engineer Regiment 2^e REG. At creation, the 6th Foreign Engineer Regiment (6^e REG) comprised a command, 3 combat companies, reconnaissance and support company (CCAS). On the eve of the regiment change to the 1st Foreign Engineer Regiment, 1er REG; the 6th Foreign Engineer Regiment already included: * Legion Pionniers Groups * 1st Amphibious Combat Company * 2nd Combat Company of Assault Mechanized Engineering * 3rd Combat Company of Aerotransportable Assault Engineering * 4th Combat Company was created in 1996 * The Combat Reconnaissance Company ( CA ) compromising heavy equipments * The Command and Logistics Company ( CCs ) * DINOPS Teams of Nautical Subaquatic Intervention Operational Detachment ( french: Détachement d'Intervention Nautique Operationnelle Subaquatique ) specialized in Parachute, Underwater Demolition and Diving.

History -- garrison, campaigns and battles

Chad Chad (; ar, تشاد , ; french: Tchad, ), officially the Republic of Chad, '; ) is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Repub ...

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Operation Epervier Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...

) *

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

(

Opération Daguet Opération Daguet (, ''Operation Brocket'') was the codename for French operations during the 1991 Gulf War. 18,000 members of the French Armed Forces were deployed during the conflict and they represented the second largest European contingent ...

). During the

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...

, DINOPS operated in support of the U.S. Army's

82nd Airborne Division The 82nd Airborne Division is an airborne infantry division of the United States Army specializing in parachute assault operations into denied areasSof, Eric"82nd Airborne Division" ''Spec Ops Magazine'', 25 November 2012. Archived from thor ...

, and provided EOD services to the division. After the ceasefire they conducted a joint mine clearing operation alongside a

Royal Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the principal naval force of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (CN) Vice Admiral Mark Hammond AM, RAN. CN is also jointly responsible to the Minister of ...

Clearance Diver Team Unit. *

Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constitut ...

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Operation Oryx The Arabian oryx (''Oryx leucoryx''), also called the white oryx, was extinct in the wild as of 1972, but was reintroduced to the wild starting in 1982. Initial reintroduction was primarily from two herds: the "World Herd" originally started at t ...

) *

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailan ...

(

United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia The United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) ar, سلطة الأمم المتحدة الانتقالية في كمبوديا, italics=off zh, , italics=offfrench: Autorité provisoire des Nations unies au Cambodgerussian: Орг ...

) (Opérations Marquis 1 et 2) * Former

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label= Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavij ...

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other languages'') is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajev ...

(

UNPROFOR 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 ...

) * Former Yugoslavia - Sarajevo/Rajlovac (IFOR) *

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Eur ...

(

Kosovo Force The Kosovo Force (KFOR) is a NATO-led international peacekeeping force in Kosovo. Its operations are gradually reducing until Kosovo's Security Force, established in 2009, becomes self sufficient. KFOR entered Kosovo on 11 June 1999, two days ...

)

Traditions

The 6th Foreign Engineer Regiment (6^e REG) inherits the traditions and battle honors of the 6th Foreign Infantry Regiment.

Insignias

File:Pionniers.png, Insignia of the Pionniers of the

1st Foreign Regiment The 1st Foreign Regiment (french: 1er Régiment étranger, 1er RE) and the 2nd Foreign infantry Regiment are the original and most senior founding regiments of the Foreign Legion in the French Army. The regiment is also responsible for running s ...

. File:6° REG Type 1.jpg, Insignia Type 1 of the 6th Foreign Engineer Regiment The insignia symbolizes the 6th Foreign Infantry Regiment in the form of a hexagon, the three

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...

columns of the

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called church (building), churches), Hindui ...

Jupiter Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass more than two and a half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined, but slightly less than one-thousandt ...

Baalbek Baalbek (; ar, بَعْلَبَكّ, Baʿlabakk, Syriac-Aramaic: ܒܥܠܒܟ) is a city located east of the Litani River in Lebanon's Beqaa Valley, about northeast of Beirut. It is the capital of Baalbek-Hermel Governorate. In Greek and Roman ...

to the left of the insignia and the symbols of the

French Foreign Legion The French Foreign Legion (french: Légion étrangère) is a corps of the French Army which comprises several specialties: infantry, cavalry, engineers, airborne troops. It was created in 1831 to allow foreign nationals into the French Army ...

: red and green colors with a

grenade A grenade is an explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade g ...

with seven flames in its center. The specialty of the regiment is symbolized by the "pot en tête" (metal military helmet) and armor used by sergeants at arms in the 13th century and later worn by pionniers sapeurs. The number of the regiment is indicated in the grenade underneath the armor while the motto of the regiment is inscribed to the left and right of the hexagon.

Regimental colors

6e régiment étranger d'infanterie-drapeau

Regimental song

Chant de Marche : Sapeurs, mineurs et bâtisseurs 1er couplet Sixième étranger d’infanterie. Nous sommes tous les héritiers. Syrie, Liban et Tunisie Partout les combats sans pitié Par le sang versé Rendirent gloire. Au vieux régiment du levant. De nos anciens chantons la gloire Et reprenons d’un même élan. Refrain Sapeurs, mineurs et bâtisseurs À l’assaut légionnaire du Six Et de la force des vainqueurs Portons très haut notre devise Parfois détruire. Souvent construire. Toujours servir avec Honneur et Fidélité. 2e couplet Sixième étranger de génie Légion, Dans les combats les plus violents, En première ligne nous serons mis, Comme les Pionniers en défilant. Et pour la gloire de la Légion Nous remplirons avec ardeur, Dans le respect des traditions Notre mission de constructeurs.

Decorations

* La

Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures The ''Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieurs'' (War Cross for foreign operational theatres), also called the ''Croix de Guerre TOE'' for short, is a French military award denoting citations earned in combat in foreign countri ...

with 1 palm, the regiment for engagement in

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the no ...

, 1990. Image:Croix de guerre des TOE.jpg,

Battle Honors

* Camerone 1863 *Musseifre 1925 *Syria 1925-1926 *Kuwait 1990–1991

Regimental Commanders

* 1984 - 1985 :

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

Degre * 1985 - 1987 : Colonel Boileau * 1987 - 1989 : Colonel Martial * 1989 - 1991 : Colonel Manet * 1991 - 1993 : Colonel Petersheim * 1993 - 1995 : Colonel Danigo * 1995 - 1997 : Colonel Hourbon * 1997 - 1999 : Colonel Ganascia

References

{{French Foreign Legion navbox French engineer regiments Regiments of the French Foreign Legion Military units and formations established in 1984 Military units and formations disestablished in 1999 Military units and formations established in 1999 1999 establishments in France