Une compagnie de la 2e legion sur les champs de mars

The 2nd Foreign Legion (french: Deuxième legion) was created by the King. On June 29 1835,

Louis Philippe I Louis Philippe (6 October 1773 – 26 August 1850) was King of the French from 1830 to 1848, and the penultimate monarch of France. As Louis Philippe, Duke of Chartres, he distinguished himself commanding troops during the Revolutionary War ...

, the

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

ceded the Foreign Legion to

Queen Isabella II of Spain Isabella II ( es, Isabel II; 10 October 1830 – 9 April 1904), was Queen of Spain from 29 September 1833 until 30 September 1868. Shortly before her birth, the King Ferdinand VII of Spain issued a Pragmatic Sanction to ensure the successio ...

. Subsequently, 4100 men which included foreigners in service of

and French officers passed accordingly into the ranks of the Spanish Army, which was in confrontation with the Carlists. Nevertheless, the campaign of

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required numerous troops, accordingly on December 16 1835, the King signed a Royal Ordinance which created a New Legion.

Creation of the Second Legion

The format was first limited to one

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...

. The others were later successively constituted, and only if they were required. All the dispositions of the Royal Ordinance of March 10 1831 (date of creation of the 1831 Legion) were placed rigorously in application. The first battalion was immediately formed in Pau. On February 3 1836,

chef de bataillon Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

(

Commandant Commandant ( or ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ran ...

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

) Marie Alphonse Bedeau was entrusted with command. One month later, the general staff headquarters of the battalion and the first two

companies A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared go ...

were formed. Six other companies where formed later in June 1836.

New dissolution

However, in the following month of August, the battalion was licensed and the government proposed to the Officers, Sous-Officiers, and Legionnaires which formed the battalion to serve

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in the ranks of the '' French Auxiliary Division'', called ex-Legion, which was fighting there for almost a year already. Those who refused were sent back to their foyers. Those which volunteered for service in Spain formed a new battalion which was directed on

Pamplona Pamplona (; eu, Iruña or ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. It is also the third-largest city in the greater Basque cultural region. Lying at near above ...

under the orders of

lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...

Conrad.

Recreation and departure to Algeria

Despite the dismissal of the Foreign Legion, foreigners were still vibrant in their volunteerism at the corps of the French Army. Accordingly, new depot companies were created and in October 1836, a total of six companies were formed, rapidly followed by the formation of two more in November. This new battalion was placed under the commandment of

Marie-Alphonse Bedeau. On December 5 1836, the battalion left Pau to embark on the ''Suffren'', at

Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...

, making its way by sea to

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. The battalion integrated accordingly the 2nd Brigade of the Army of Africa, commanded by

général is the French word for general. There are two main categories of generals: the general officers (), which are the highest-ranking commanding officers in the armed forces, and the specialist officers with flag rank (), which are high-level offic ...

Négrier. The second battalion was formed on July 1837. The creation of three others were echeloned until 1840. Following the apprehension of

Constantine Constantine most often refers to: * Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I *Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria Constantine may also refer to: People * Constantine (name), a masculine given name ...

, in October 1837, during which the Legion battalion illustrated capability,

battalion chief A battalion chief is the rank and title of a subordinate fire chief or commanding officer in the firefighting command structure. The title of battalion chief is usually synonymous with firefighting in the United States and Canada. A battalion chi ...

Bedeau was promoted to

Lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...

and the formation of elite companies was authorized. To award these arms accomplishments, the Legion received on June 7 1840, the flag which was given in 1832, to the first

Legion Legion may refer to: Military * Roman legion, the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army * Spanish Legion, an elite military unit within the Spanish Army * Legion of the United States, a reorganization of the United States Army from 179 ...

Notes

* some material sourced from

Képi Blanc (publication) ''Képi Blanc'' is the monthly French magazine of the Foreign Legion in the French Army. The press magazine is sold exclusively under membership subscription. The subscription fees are channeled to the ''Foyer d'entraide de la Légion étrangè ...

* some material sourced from Division histoire et patrimoine de la Légion étrangère {{French Foreign Legion navbox French Foreign Legion