Newsletter

The 1st Free French Division (DFL)

Parade of FFI (Forces Françaises de l’Intérieur) troops in liberated Dijon. From 23 September 1944, many FFI joined the 1st French Army. Source: SCA – ECPAD

The 1st DFL (Free French Division) was officially created in June 1942, but some of the units making it up had already been fighting since the start of the war, and all were made up of men who fought constantly since 1939. They were motivated by the famous words of General de Gaulle's appeal of 18 June.

The French illustrated press during the First World War

Le Pays de France, août 1914. Source : Libre de droit

Printemps 1918 : les offensives allemandes

Brothers in arms on Mount Kemmel: a French colonel and two English colonels surrounded by officers from their regiments

Les quatorze points de Wilson (8 janvier 1918)

General Pershing landing in Boulogne from the freighter

The liberation of Corsica, 9 September - 4 October 1943

Bombing of Bastia, October 1943. Source: Service Historique de la Défense

On 4 December 1938, in response to Mussolini's clams: ”Corsica, Savoia, Tunisia a noi!”, thousands of Corsicans took an oath in front of the war memorial in Bastia, ”Before the world, with all our souls, on our glories, on our tombs, on our cradles, we swear to live and die French”.

French presence in Indochina

Captain Borbal-Combret (centre), officers in the 2nd company of the 3rd Tonkinese Infantry Regiment and Tonkinese soldiers in Lang Nac near Bac Ninh. This photo is one of the oldest taken in French Indochina in the collection owned by the ECPAD (French ministry of defence’s photo and video banks). December 1885. Source: ECPAD – Colonel Laroche’s collection.

Le capitaine Borbal-Combret (au centre), des officiers de la 2e compagnie du 3e régiment de tirailleurs tonkinois et des soldats tonkinois à Lang-Nac près de Bac-Ninh. Décembre 1885. Source : ECPAD – collection colonel Laroche

Relations between France and the region known as Indochina began in the 17th century, when Jesuit missionaries arrived in the Far East and attracted an important following when the Jesuits, led by Pigeau de Béhaine, lent support to Emperor Annam Gia Long's attempts at unification. The Emperor, helped by French military advisors, was the first to unify Vietnam, in the late 17th century, where his dynasty ruled until 1955.

The Battle of Bois des Caures

Map of the Bois des Caures, indicating the positions of the hunters on 21 February 1916. Source: Musée Emile Driant.

On 20 February, Driant wrote in one of his final letters: ”On General Bapst's order... the visit by Joffre yesterday proves that the time is nigh and, deep down, I feel a satisfaction to know that my predictions of a month ago were right… their attack may happen tonight or in several days' time, but it is certain.”

L'émancipation des femmes dans la Grande Guerre

Soldering works at the Gillet brothers factory in Lyon, June 1917

La naissance des associations d'anciens combattants

The pennant of the Union nationale des combattants. A banner made of fabric, comprising three bands in red, white and blue and bearing the three letters UNC

Aux origines de la France Libre

Ardennes, Elements of the 10th Panzer-Division cross the Meuse. (15th - 20th May 1940)

Subscribe to French