Creation of the French Foreign Legion

Date: March 10, 1831 • Location: Aubagne, France

The French Foreign Legion is created by Louis Philippe, the King of France, from the foreign regiments of the Kingdom of France.

The French Foreign Legion is a corps of the French Army created to allow foreign nationals into French service. The Legion was founded in 1831 and today consists of several specialities, namely infantry, cavalry, engineers, and airborne troops. It formed part of the Armée d'Afrique, French Army units associated with France's colonial project in North Africa, until the end of the Algerian War in 1962.