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The battle that gave birth to the foreign legion

posted 18 years ago by 2lturbo
9 replies | jump to latest

at the beginning, legion was mostly used as connon fodder and french regular army had little respect for legionnaires.
For those interested in the legion etrangere, i suggest that you read this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Camar%C3%B3n
you will find countless websites talking of the battle of camerone (camaron in spanish)
After this infamous battle, which is celebrated each year by the legionnaires, the foreign legion gained huge respect in france.
this battle sounds like the antique battle where 100 soldiers for sparta could defeat 10,000 persians

[–] theShroud 18 years ago

300 Spartans, give or take a few.. and those 300ish Spartans didn't defeat the Persians.

[–] zonecrazy 18 years ago

It was roughly 200 - 300 spartans and those spartans knew they would not make it back home thats why they made dog tags out of wood that they straped to their arms ... they held off I think about 30 000 persians at the rocky bottle neck for about a week or so until they were flanked and every spartan was killed... but they were able to slow the persians down long enough for the greeks to mass the navel strengh at Salamis, where a major navel battle followed....

[–] udt101 18 years ago

On August 9, 480 BC, at Thermopylae, 300 Spartans and about 6,700 other Greeks held off a Persian force numbering somewhere between 200,000 and 2 million (including support units) for two days (actual number of attacking troops is somewhere in the 80,000+ range). On the third day, roughly 6,000 Greeks departed, while roughly 300 Spartans and 700 Thespians stayed.

The Persians flanked through a hidden mountain pass that was poorly guarded by Phocians (Greeks). The Greeks that chose to stay and fight at Thermopylae were killed to the last man. Not including the Greeks that died on the first two days, at least 1,000 Greeks died at the battle while some 20,000 to 50,000 Persians died.

-J.P. French

[–] lambrettaguy200 17 years ago

The Legion has done a few Camerones in its time, as well as the famous action on 30 April 1863.

Have you been to the Legion's website ? http//www.legion-etrangere.com ?

You've heard of prehistoric Piltdown Man ? Come to Edinburgh today and meet Pilton Man !

[–] Xardas 16 years ago

Screw the Spartans.

LEGIO PATRIA NOSTRA!

This sig has been deleted by an administrator

[–] Cocainefarm 15 years ago

"300 Spartans, give or take a few.. and those 300ish Spartans didn't defeat the Persians."

Well the 60 legionnaires didn't defeat the 2000 mexicans either.

[–] 15 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Cocainefarm 15 years ago

I didn't see it as just correcting but as if he was trying to say that
it's winning that counts when mentioning that the Spartans didn't win.

My point was that in both cases it's not the winning that counts but
the act itself.

Also, by the time the last legionnaires did their bayonet charge captain
Danjou was already dead.

[–] ztpt 14 years ago

I have a relative that served in the legion,and he told me they have the wooden hand of the captain(Cpt. Danjou?) of the unit that fought to the death still on display,and they always bring it out every year on "camarone day" ,wich is a big deal for the FFL..and the only day the barracks are open for visitations from outsiders..