The 1st Armored Division was an armored unit of the French Army

French Army

The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...

. The division fought during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 as a part of the First French Army and was active during the Cold War

Cold War

The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...

. It was disbanded in 1999, but its honors and traditions are carried on by the 1st Mechanized Brigade

1st Mechanised Brigade (France)

The 1st Mechanised Brigade is a mechanised unit of the French Army. The brigade is heir to the honours and traditions of the 1st Armoured Division, created during World War II.-History:...

.

World War II

The 1st Armored Division was created 1 May 1943 in Mascara, French Algeria

French Algeria

French Algeria lasted from 1830 to 1962, under a variety of governmental systems. From 1848 until independence, the whole Mediterranean region of Algeria was administered as an integral part of France, much like Corsica and Réunion are to this day. The vast arid interior of Algeria, like the rest...

, under the command of Major General Jean Touzet du Vigier

Jean Touzet du Vigier

Lieutenant General Jean-Louis-Alain Touzet du Vigier Lieutenant General Jean-Louis-Alain Touzet du Vigier Lieutenant General Jean-Louis-Alain Touzet du Vigier (1888-1980 was a French army officer during World War II and an advocate of military mechanization, particularly the motorization of the...

.

The division landed in Provence

Provence

Provence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...

 on 15 August 1944, as part of the "Garbo Force", a part of General de Lattre de Tassigny's

Jean de Lattre de Tassigny

Jean Joseph Marie Gabriel de Lattre de Tassigny, GCB, MC was a French military hero of World War II and commander in the First Indochina War.-Early life:...

 First French Army. It took part in the liberation of Toulon

Toulon

Toulon is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence....

 and Marseille

Marseille

Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...

. It was the first to reach the Rhone (25 August 1944), the Rhine (19 November 1944) and the Danube (21 April 1945). The division was mentioned in dispatches three times, but was disbanded on 31 March in 1946.

Post-Cold War

Units of the division took part in the Gulf War

Gulf War

The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...

, and it sent units to Bosnia under the framework of UNPROFOR

United Nations Protection Force

The United Nations Protection Force ', was the first United Nations peacekeeping force in Croatia and in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Yugoslav wars. It existed between the beginning of UN involvement in February 1992, and its restructuring into other forces in March 1995...

 from 1992, as part of the IFOR

IFOR

The Implementation Force was a NATO-led multinational peacekeeping force in Bosnia and Herzegovina under a one-year mandate from 20 December 1995 to 20 December 1996 under the codename Operation Joint Endeavour. Its task was to implement the military Annexes of The General Framework Agreement for...

 from 1995 and provided the HQ in Mostar

Mostar

Mostar is a city and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the largest and one of the most important cities in the Herzegovina region and the center of the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation. Mostar is situated on the Neretva river and is the fifth-largest city in the country...

for the Multi-National Division South between August and November 1997.

When the French Army was reorganized in 1999 the division was dissolved and its honors and traditions are carried on by the 1st Mechanized Brigade created on 1 July 1999.