Legion

1951 · 184909 — Nha Trang: c.1951. Honneur et Fidélité" - showing the legion throughout Vietnam A snapshot of life in the French Foreign Legion during the First Indochina War. The album shows the regiment on parade aerial shots of gun emplacements and the Col de Nuages Hai Van Pass which would see a fatal derailment in 1953. One of the photographs shows future prime minister Tran Van Huu inspecting troops alongside a legion officer. This album contains many photographs of south Vietnam including Nha Trang Ai Nghia Hoa My Dong Phu and Quang Nam. Some the prints are tourist photographs of local people or official studio photography of military parades but the majority are more candid shots of soldiers and gun emplacements which seem to have been taken by the legionnaire. The opening leaves focus on the French Foreign Legion's Camerone Day celebrations on 30 April 1951 showing the regiment parading its colours and with the popular Pionniers unit in full dress. A number of the senior officers are identified on the reverse of the prints. "The 1st Battalion under Major Le Toulec left Africa and landed in Indochina in early 1949. It was stationed in Annam present-day Central Vietnam south of Tourene now Da Nang. This city was about 300 miles 500 km north of Nha Trang the 2e REI HQ. The legionnaires were mainly tasked with maintaining order in the sector as well as patrolling the main routes and keeping them safe and passable" French Foreign Legion Information. There are some images taken in Port Said and Djibouti. In addition three of the loosely inserted photographs are aerial shots of Tunisia annotated in red with directions to Kalaa Djerda Tajerouire and Haïdra. Kalaa Djerda was an important French airfield prior to the Second World War and the German invasion of Tunisia. Landscape quarto 235 x 345 mm. With 175 gelatin silver photographs various sizes landscape or portrait most with deckle edges mounted recto and verso on 20 tissue-guarded leaves many inscribed in blue ink on verso manuscript ink captions on a few leaves 2 photographs printed on postcards with printer's blind stamp; 6 loosely inserted gelatin silver photographs approximately 120 x 163 mm landscape 3 annotated in red ink 2 inscribed on verso in blue ink; 3 loosely inserted folding colour maps trimmed to size crossing neatlines 535 x 373 mm to 490 x 650 mm. Contemporary black lacquer souvenir album tied with red and yellow cord through holes as issued front board with metal hinges and lacquered with colour village design. Housed in a grey archival box. Photographs bright a little toning and creasing as expected album worn but holding maps with some rubbing and closed tears along fold lines: a very good example. French Foreign Legion Information "1st Battalion 2e REI in Vietnam's Faifo around 1950" 2025. unknown