Chasseurs alpins

Chasseurs Alpins

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Chasseurs alpins

The Chasseurs Alpins are the elite mountain

Mountain

A mountain is a landform that stretches above the surrounding land in a limited area usually in the form of a peak. A mountain is generally steeper than a hill....
infantry

Infantry

Infantry are soldiers who are primarily trained for the role of fighting on foot. A soldier in the infantry is known as an infantryman. Infantry units have more physically demanding training than other branches of armies, and place a greater emphasis on fitness, physical strength and aggression....
of the French Army

French Army

The French Army, officially the Arm?e de Terre , is the Army component of the Military of France and its largest. As of 2007, the army employs 134,000 regular soldiers, 15,500 reservists, and 25,750 civilians....
. They are trained to operate in mountainous terrain and in urban warfare.

e 1999 they have been (with other units) part of the 27th Mountain Infantry Brigade (Brigade d'Infanterie de Montagne), and are currently organised into three battalion

Battalion

A battalion is a military unit of around 500-1500 men usually consisting of between two and seven company and typically commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel....
s: All three battalions are based in cities in the French Alps

French Alps

The French Alps are those parts of the Alps mountain range which lie in France. They are within the regions of Provence-Alpes-C?te d'Azur and Rh?ne-Alpes....
, thus the name of the units.

Training includes climbing

Climbing

Climbing is the activity of using one's hands and feet to ascend a steep object. It is done both for recreation and professionally, as part of activities such as maintenance of a structure, or military operations....
, cross-country skiing

Cross-country skiing

Cross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles. It is popular in many countries with large snowfields, primarily Northern Europe, Canada, Alaska and the Upper Midwest....
, plus winter and summer mountain leadership and mountain guiding skills.

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Encyclopedia

The Chasseurs Alpins are the elite mountain

Mountain

A mountain is a landform that stretches above the surrounding land in a limited area usually in the form of a peak. A mountain is generally steeper than a hill....
infantry

Infantry

French Army

Modern unit

Since 1999 they have been (with other units) part of the 27th Mountain Infantry Brigade (Brigade d'Infanterie de Montagne), and are currently organised into three battalion

Battalion

A battalion is a military unit of around 500-1500 men usually consisting of between two and seven company and typically commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel....
s:

7th Battalion, Bourg-Saint-Maurice
Bourg-Saint-Maurice

Bourg-Saint-Maurice , popularly known as Bourg, is a communes of France of the Savoie departments of France, in France. It is the last large town along the Tarentaise valley in the heart of the French Alps....
13th Battalion, Chambéry
Chambéry

Chamb?ry is the capital of the Departments of France of Savoie, France. It has been the historical capital of the Savoy region since the 13th century, when Amadeus V of Savoy made it his seat of power....
27th Battalion, Cran-Gevrier
Cran-Gevrier

Cran-Gevrier is a France Communes of France, located in the department of Haute-Savoie in the Rh?ne-Alpes Regions of France....
(Annecy
Annecy

Annecy is a city in the Rh?ne-Alpes Regions of France in southeastern France. It lies on northern tip of Lake Annecy , 35 kilometers south of Geneva....
)

All three battalions are based in cities in the French Alps

French Alps

Climbing

Cross-country skiing

Igloo

An igloo , translated sometimes as snowhouse, is the Inuit word for house or habitation, and is not restricted exclusively to snowhouses but includes traditional tents, sod houses, homes constructed of driftwood and modern buildings....
shelter and to sleep in temperatures around 0°C. Modern troops may be transported in all-terrain VMBs VACs(Bandvagn 206

Bandvagn 206

Bandvagn 206 is a tracked articulated, all-terrain carrier developed by H?gglunds for the Swedish Army. It consists of two units, with all four tracks powered....
) or untracked VAB personnel carriers. Personal weaponry includes the FAMAS assault rifle

Assault rifle

An assault rifle is a rifle designed for combat, with selective fire . Assault rifles are the standard small arms in most modern Army, having largely superseded or supplemented battle rifles such as the World War II-era M1 Garand rifle and SVT-40....
, Minimi

Minimi

Minimi can refer to:*The FN MINIMI, a belt-fed machine gun.*The religious order known as the Minimi — see Minim .*Abductor minimi digiti muscle , a muscle in the hand...
machine gun

Machine gun

A machine gun is a Automatic firearm mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire List of rifle cartridgess in quick succession from an Belt or large-capacity Magazine , typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
, FRF-2

FRF2

The FR F2 is the standard light sniper rifle of the Military of France.It is an upgrade from the FR F1.It was manufactured by MAS . MAS now belongs to GIAT Industries now NEXTER....
sniper rifle

Sniper rifle

In military and law enforcement terminology, a sniper rifle is a rifle used to ensure accurate placement of bullets at longer ranges than small arms....
, PGM Hecate II

PGM Hecate II

The Hecate II is the standard heavy sniper rifle of the French Army, sometimes known as the FR-12,7 .It is manufactured by PGM Pr?cision of France....
heavy sniper rifle, and LGI light mortar

Mortar (weapon)

A mortar is a Muzzleloader indirect fire weapon that fires shell at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing Ballistics trajectories. It typically has a barrel length less than 15 times its caliber....
, while group weapons included the M2 machine gun, LLR

LLR

LLR may stand for*Log-likelihood ratio*Lucas-Lehmer-Riesel - an algorithm to find the primality of a number of the form k*2^n-1.*Lunar laser ranging...
81 mm mortar, and vehicle-mounted 20 mm autocannon

Autocannon

File:Autocannon MLG27.jpgAn autocannon is a rapid fire projectile weapon. Autocannon often have a larger caliber than a machine gun , but there is no maximum or minimum caliber that makes a weapon an autocannon....
, plus AT4

AT4

The AT4 is a portable one-shot anti-tank weapon built in Sweden by Saab Bofors Dynamics . In the United States and NATO inventory, it replaces the M72 LAW ....
, ERYX

Eryx

In Greek mythology, Eryx was the son of Aphrodite and King Butes of the Elymian people on Sicily. Eryx was an excellent Boxing but died when Heracles beat him in a match....
and MILAN

Milan

Milan is the second largest city of Italy, located in the plains of Lombardy. It is the capital in the Province of Milan, as well as the Regions of Italy capital of Lombardy....
anti-tank missiles.

The Chasseurs are easily recognised by their wide beret (when not in battle uniform), named tarte (= pie).

Unit origins

Until 1859, Italy wasn't yet a unified state but a sum of kingdoms and independent republics (Kingdom of Naples

Kingdom of Naples

The Kingdom of Naples is the modern day name for a polity which existed on the southern part of the Italian peninsula. Also known contemporaneously, and somewhat confusingly, as the Kingdom of Sicily, this kingdom was founded after the secession of the island of Sicily from the old Kingdom of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers...
, Republic of Venice

Republic of Venice

The Most Serene Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice . It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century AD until the year 1797....
, Papal States

Papal States

The Papal States, State of the Church or Pontifical States were one of the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia ....
, etc.). The situation changed since 1859 with the help of Garibaldi and Cavour

Cavour

Cavour or similar may refer to:* Cavour in Italy* Count Camillo Benso di Cavour* Cavour * Italian battleship Conte di Cavour* Cavor is a character in The First Men in the Moon....
trying to create a unified and solid nation. This geopolitical change was seen as a possible threat from the other side of the Alps border, partially as the Italians were the first to have mountain warfare specialized troops. The French solution was to create its own mountain corps in order to oppose an Italian invasion through the Alps. By December 24, 1888, a law is applied about the creation of a troupes de montagne ("mountain troops") corps. 12 out of the 31 existing Chasseurs à Pied ("Hunters on Foot") battalions are selected to be converted. These first units are named Bataillons Alpins de Chasseurs à Pied ("Hunters on Foot Alpine Battalions") which will be later shortened to Bataillons de Chasseurs Alpins ("Alpine Hunters Battalions").

Ranks

Caporal (Lance Corporal
Lance Corporal

Lance Corporal is a military rank, used by many armed forces worldwide, and also by some police forces and other uniformed organizations. It is below the rank of Corporal, and is typically the lowest Non-commissioned officer or enlisted rank, usually equivalent to the Ranks and insignia of NATO....
)
Caporal Chef (Corporal
Corporal

Corporal is a Military rank in use in some form by most militaries and also by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. It is usually equivalent to Ranks and insignia of NATO....
)
Sergent (Sergeant
Sergeant

Sergeant is a Military rank used in some form by most militaries, police forces, and other uniformed organizations around the world. Its origins are the Latin serviens, "one who serves", through the French term Sergent....
)
Sergent-Chef (Colour Sergeant
Colour Sergeant

File:Face to face.jpgColour Sergeant is a non-commissioned officer rank in the Royal Marines and infantry regiments of the British Army, ranking above Sergeant and below Warrant Officer Class 2....
)
Adjudant (Warrant Officer 1)
Adjudant-Chef (Warrant Officer 2)
Major (Warrant Officer 3)

etc.

Note: the NCO

Non-commissioned officer

A non-commissioned officer , also known as an NCO or Noncom, is an enlisted rank member of an armed force who has been given authority by a officer ....
ranks Brigadier
Brigadier

Brigadier is a military Military rank, the meaning of which has a considerable variation....
and Maréchal-des-logis are not used in the Chasseurs Alpins corps.

Important figures

General Alain Le Ray, first military chief of the Vercors maquis

Maquis (World War II)

The Maquis were the predominantly rural guerrilla warfare bands of the French Resistance. Initially they were composed of men who had escaped into the mountains to avoid conscription into Vichy France's Service du travail obligatoire to provide Forced labor in Germany during World War II....
.

Chasseurs alpins

Modern unit

Unit origins

Ranks

Important figures

Gallery

See also

External links