Red berets are different
Next week, France will celebrate its national holiday La Fete du 14 juillet in a big way, it is known to Russians as Bastille Day.
The key action of this event will be a military parade on the Champs Elysees, this time red berets will take part in the defile, soldiers of the 8 parachute regiment of the marines, their representatives visited Russia with a friendly visit to 1997 and 2001 and competed with our blue berets always lost.
But here's the catch, in the special forces of France there are other “red berets” - the real elite of the ground forces of the Fifth Republic.
WHO IS THE BEST
The 1 th Marine Parachute Regiment (1PMP) of the special forces of the French army also carries red berets, is part of the Special Forces Brigade and is subordinated to the Special Forces Command (the word “sea” in the name of the regiment is a tribute to tradition).
The motto of this regiment Qui ose gagne - "Resolute wins" - borrowed from the British regiment of special forces. In the original, the motto is: Who Dares Wins.
The location of the regiment itself is symbolic. It is based in the citadel named after General Georges Berger of the city of Bayonne, which is located in Aquitaine, in the south-west of France, 35 km from the Spanish border and in close proximity to the beaches of the Atlantic coast. Once these lands belonged to the Duchy of Gascony, so here every inch of land and the air itself are imbued with the militant, romantic spirit of the Gascons.
The regiment is also the heir stories and the traditions of various military units of parachutists, infantry of the metropolis and marines of the colonial French troops.
The emergence of 1PMP is associated with the times when Paris was occupied by the Wehrmacht, 15 September 1940 of England in the town called Ringway from the French volunteers was created 1-I airborne infantry company (1-I AMP), which was headed by captain Georges Berger. The first operation, codenamed “Savannah”, of the newly created unit was the landing of an officer group of five headed by the company commander in March 1941 in Brittany to conduct large-scale reconnaissance activities and build links with the Resistance. In April, 1941, the 1-I AMR was reformed into a similar parachute division, but already in the ground forces. In May, the sabotage group of this unit successfully conducted an operation to destroy a large transformer station in the city of Pessac. And in September of the same year, the company was part of the Air Force, as well as a parachute, and was transferred to Lebanon, then to Syria. It was stationed first in Beirut, then in Damascus and on October 15 was renamed the 1 th rangers paratrooper company. In January of the following year, she joined Major Stirling's Special Forces Special Forces Brigade under the name French Squadron, on the basis of which a battalion was deployed in July 1943 (first under the name 1 th airmobile, then 4 th), which was deployed Cabrith (Egypt) and Kimberley (England).
In 1942 – 1943, the unit participated in various operations of British special forces against the North African Wehrmacht Group of Forces, including sabotage actions in Crete, in Tunisia and Libya. In the summer of 1944, the battalion took part in the parachute landing of the special forces of the allies in Brittany, Bordeaux and the Pyrenees, and participated in the liberation of Paris. In July of 1944, he was deployed to a regiment, which became part of the special forces, like the 2 st huntry parachute. In the autumn of 1944, the soldiers of the regiment fought in Champagne, and in December in the Ardennes. In April 1945, the regiment fighters participated in battles against Wehrmacht troops in the Netherlands. In August, the 1945 of the year was joined by servicemen from the disbanded 3 th Chasseur Parachute Regiment.
In February, the 1946 shock fighting battalion of special airmobile forces (CAC) was later formed for combat operations in Indochina from the 1 and 2 chasseurs of paratrooper regiments, later renamed to parachute parachute. In the same way the second battalion was created. In June, the 1 of the year two battalions brought into a semi-brigade, then reformed into one battalion, which from January 1, 1947, was named the 1948-th colonial battalion of paratroopers commandos. In July 1, the battalion was disbanded, and in December 1948 was re-created. He then changed the name several times due to a change in the tasks assigned to him, until September 1949 was disbanded a second time.
In parallel, during the war in Indochina, special purpose brigades were formed, which were also a prototype of 1PMP. In October, a colonial paratroop command team was created in Brittany in Brittany with the subordination of CAC.
By the beginning of 1948, the colonial forces included two commandos semi-brigades in Brittany and Indochina, respectively, the first and second. In 1948 alone, more than 40 airborne combat operations were carried out during the year. In 1950, French Indochina was divided into three states - Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. The main battles took place near the Sino-Vietnamese border, where the French command repeatedly threw parachutists into the fire. In November 1951, about 2, thousands of paratroopers landed in the Hao Bin area, one of the main supply centers of the Viet Minh army, and captured it, but in late January they had to leave their positions. In October, during the evacuation of the small 574 garrisons, the paratrooper was forced to hold back attacks of more than 10 thousand Vietnamese soldiers for about two days. In November, 1952, paratroopers took part in battles in the Na-San valley, in July, 1953, in central Annam, and in November in Dienbienfu, in June, they covered the evacuation of French troops from Tonkin (North Vietnam). During the Suez crisis, in 1956, the French paratroopers, together with the British, successfully landed in Port Said and Port Fuad (Egypt). Marines fought in Algeria (1954 – 1962). By the beginning of 1955, a full-blooded brigade was formed on the basis of the first half-brigade. In February, 1958, she became an academic. A little later, in December, it was reformed into a parachute brigade for actions in the interests of protecting the French overseas territories, this explains the presence of the phrase “marines” in the name of the regiments of red berets. At the end of 1960, the parachute brigade of the Marine Corps finally formed, at the end of 1961, it was disbanded. The battle flag of this brigade and its traditions were later transferred to 1PMP.
In November 1960, a special forces training center was established, whose base is located in the citadel of Bayonne. From this point on, the regiment calculates its history, but formally it looks like its modern look 1 January 1973, its structure, subordination and list of tasks were finally determined.
The regiment's battle flag has four honorary inscriptions glorifying the participation of French special forces in operations in Crete and Libya in 1942, in the south of Tunisia in 1943, in the liberation of France in 1944, in the Belgian Ardennes and in Holland in 1945 and Indochina in 1946 – 1954. The cloth is decorated with numerous awards: the Cross of the Legion of Honor, the Cross for the liberation of France, the Cross of War 1939 – 1945 with six palm trees, the Cross for difference in foreign operations with three palm trees, the Belgian Military Cross, the Bronze Star (USA), the Bronze Lion (Netherlands).
STRUCTURE AND PREPARATION
The organization of 1PMP corresponds to its tasks. According to official data, this is a regiment of company personnel. It includes one transport and management company, one training company, three special-purpose combat companies (fr. RAPAS), one communications company and non-combat support and maintenance units.
According to its armament and technical equipment, the regiment refers to light infantry, but with reservations. The peculiarity in the training of personnel and that the weapons and equipment are of a special nature and correspond to the specifics of the tasks performed. From open sources it is known that in the arsenal of the regiment there are semi-automatic 9-mm pistols MAS G1, HK USP, Glock 17; assault 5,56-mm automatic rifles HK 416, COLT M4, M16 723, FAMAS; rocket launchers: under-barrel - M203 and 40-mm manual - HK69; 9-mm submachine gun HK MP5, 5,7-mm - FN Herstal P90; Benelli M3T super 90 pump caliber 12 caliber; 5,56-mm and 7,62-mm light machine guns Minimi; sniper rifles: 7,62-mm - PGM Ultima, HK417 and 12,7-mm - Hecate II of the same company; heavier weapons - MILAN ATGMs, light mortars, 20-mm automatic cannons. Light vehicles have Buggy and ATVs, also light armored personnel carriers armed with an 7,62-mm machine gun M134D, 12,7-mm - М2 or an automatic grenade launcher MK19.
The tasks that can be assigned to 1PMP personnel encompass almost the entire spectrum of what the special forces of the armies of all developed countries do. In wartime, these are actions of a different plan - from reconnaissance and sabotage to the organization of partisan formations in the deep rear of the enemy. In peacetime, groups 1PMP can participate in special operations anywhere in the world. To do this, the fighters have the skills of airborne and maritime landing, scuba diving, action in the arctic and hot dry climate, in the mountains, in the jungle, in temperate zones and in settlements. One of the challenges of our time is the increased terrorist danger almost everywhere in the world. Fighters 1PMP attracted to the fight against terrorism and the release of hostages, in recent years, this task has been given much attention. Based on the importance of the task, the RAPAS groups can be formed only from officers or include the entire staff of the regiments of non-commissioned officers and specialists.
1PMPP is an elite part of the special forces of the ground forces, and the approach to the selection and training of personnel is special here. When appointing officers to this regiment, first of all, their combat experience and personal professional, physical and moral qualities, like all other categories of military personnel, are taken into account, they pass the corresponding tests. Naturally, they are required to be able to plan and organize special operations and direct them. The officers in 1PMP can only be people to whom subordinates have personal respect.
The selection of non-commissioned officers and volunteers, and the equipment of the regiment takes place on a voluntary basis, the approach is also very strict. At the selection stage, all juices are squeezed out of a recruit, only the most hardy and motivated get the right to proceed to the first stage of preparation. Dropout is also in the process of learning, but not in the form of competition, but solely on personal qualities. After completing training in a training company for 10 months, the fighters are assigned to combat companies, where they receive special training. At the disposal of the regiment - a great training ground and equipped with the latest technology training center. Special attention is paid to the team spirit. Group coherence is not a simple formality during special operations, there is no place for competition, if someone made a mistake, everything is in charge (and often at the cost of living). So the saying of Un pour tous et tous pour un (“One for all and all for one”) is not just a beautiful phrase, but a way to act, survive and win.
WHERE WERE NOT ONLY
The combat route1PMP is the history and geography of the actions of special groups formed from its military personnel. One of the first episodes was the military conflict between Tunisia and France in the 1961 year and in the Western Sahara (before the 1963 year). Immediately make a reservation, it is not possible to list all operations in which the military personnel of 1PMP participated, since not everything is made public.
In 1964, there were “business trips” to Senegal, Cameroon and Congo. The following year, actions in the Central African Republic (CAR) were added to the Congolese epic. Until the end of 60, the political situation demanded the constant presence of French military contingents in countries of so-called French Africa, the regiment's fighters were in its composition. In 1969 – 1970, the 1PMP task forces again found themselves in Senegal and operated there until the end of 1974, simultaneously participating in hostilities in the Republic of Chad. In 1977, the regiment fighters operated in Mauritania, Western Sahara and Zaire. And again in the Republic of Chad, 1978 – 1987 performed combat missions, providing assistance to government forces. In 1979 – 1981, regiment groups operated in the CARs as part of the military operation Barracuda. In 1986, paratroopers 1PMP landed in Togo. And in 1990-m in Gabon participated in the operation, codenamed Requin (fr. Shark).
In 1990 – 1993 acted against Tutsi guerrillas in Rwanda. In 1991, the special RAPAS groups operated as part of the coalition forces in Iraq. In the same year, they conducted Operation Verdier in Togo. The following year, the 1PMP groups were sent to Zaire (Operation Bomme), Somalia (Operation Orix), and to the Comoros (Operation Ozit). In 1995, they participated in the Azale operation in Comora. In 1996, the regiment fighters participated in Operation “Almandin2”, then “Almandin2 bis” in the CAR and the following year in Operation “Pelican” in the Congo.
The geography of further “business trips” is as follows: Gabon (2004), Côte d'Ivoire (2007), Afghanistan (2003 – 2010), Burkina Faso (2011 – 2013), Libya (2011). From the beginning of 2013 to the present, the 1PMP fighters have been present in Mali and in neighboring Niger. There, France has special interests associated with the world's largest uranium deposits. According to the German weekly Der Spiegel, uranium mines are located there, which are operated by the French nuclear corporation Areva, the region has uranium raw materials, the reserves of which, according to IAEA estimates, are about 4,7 million tons.
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