The 6th Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment was an airborne 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...

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Indochina

Formed as the 6th Colonial Commando Parachute Battalion in Quimper, Brittany on 16 May 1948 from elements of the 1st Colonial Commando Parachute Demi-brigade, disembarks in Saigon, French Indochina

French Indochina

French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887....

, in July 1949. The battalion distinguished itself in fighting throughout the First Indochina War

First Indochina War

The First Indochina War was fought in French Indochina from December 19, 1946, until August 1, 1954, between the French Union's French Far East...

. It was dissolved after the 1954 Battle of Dien Bien Phu

Battle of Dien Bien Phu

The Battle of Dien Bien Phu was the climactic confrontation of the First Indochina War between the French Union's French Far East Expeditionary Corps and Viet Minh communist revolutionaries. The battle occurred between March and May 1954 and culminated in a comprehensive French defeat that...

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North Africa

Reformed in Marrakech

Marrakech

Marrakech or Marrakesh , known as the "Ochre city", is the most important former imperial city in Morocco's history...

, French protectorate of Morocco, in 1 August 1955 and named 6th Colonial Parachute Regiment. Active in the French colonies of French protectorate of Tunisia

French Protectorate of Tunisia

The French protectorate of Tunisia was established in 1881, during the Scramble for Africa, and lasted until Tunisian independence in 1956....

, French protectorate of Morocco and, particularly, 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...

 during the Algerian War.

France

The regiment leaves French Algeria in 6 July 1961 and regroups in Verdun

Verdun

Verdun is a city in the Meuse department in Lorraine in north-eastern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.Verdun is the biggest city in Meuse, although the capital of the department is the slightly smaller city of Bar-le-Duc.- History :...

. From January 1963 it was stationed in Mont-de-Marsan

Mont-de-Marsan

Mont-de-Marsan is a commune and capital of the Landes department in Aquitaine in southwestern France.Mont-de-Marsan airbase « Constantin Rozanoff » is a major installation of the French Air Force. The base includes CEAM , an air defense radar command reporting centre, and an air defence control...

, the old instruction base for Colonial Parachute Brigade. The regiment was dissolved 30 June 1998.

Commanders

Major Vernières (1948-1950) Captain Balbin (1950-1951) Major Marcel Bigeard Marcel Bigeard Marcel "Bruno" Bigeard was a French military officer who fought in World War II, Indochina and Algeria. He was one of the commanders in the Battle of Dien Bien Phu and is thought by many to have been a dominating influence on French 'unconventional' warfare thinking from that time onwards...  (1952-1954) Major Victor Chaudrut (1954-1955) Lieutenant Colonel Jacques Romain-Desfossés (1955-1958) Lieutenant Colonel Pierre Ducasse (1958-1959) Lieutenant Colonel Balbin (1959-1962) Lieutenant Colonel Picherit (1962-1963) Lieutenant Colonel Bley (1963-1965) Lieutenant Colonel Le Guillou (1965-1967) Lieutenant Colonel Ziegler (1967-1969) Lieutenant Colonel de Llamby (1969-1971) Lieutenant Colonel Vincendon (1971-1973)

Lieutenant Colonel de Tonquedec (1973-1975) Lieutenant Colonel Béal (1975-1977) Lieutenant Colonel Dentin (1977-1979) Lieutenant Colonel Bertin (1979-1981) Lieutenant Colonel Serpol (1981-1983) Lieutenant Colonel Urwald (1983-1985) Lieutenant Colonel Quadri (1985-1987) Lieutenant Colonel Bordron (1987-1989) Lieutenant Colonel Gandouly (1989-1991) Lieutenant Colonel Perrin (1991-1993) Lieutenant Colonel Champenois (1993-1995) Lieutenant Colonel Caille (1995-1997) Lieutenant Colonel Dumousseau (1997-1998)

Lineage

• 1948: 6th Colonial Commando Parachute Battalion
• 1951: Dissolved
• 1952: 6th Colonial Parachute Battalion
• 1953: Dissolved
• 1955: 6th Colonial Parachute Regiment
• 1958: 6th Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment
• 1998: Dissolved

Decorations

• Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures
  Croix de guerre des Théatres d'Opérations Exterieures
  The Croix de guerre des théâtres d’opérations extérieures is a French medal rewarded for military service in foreign countries. It is granted to individuals who have received citations for their actions while engaged in military service overseas.-History:...
  
  with 5 palms.