Grandes Unités Françaises (full title: ''Guerre 1939-1945 Les Grandes Unités Françaises'') is a monumental six-volume (the fifth volume is actually composed of four separate works)

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

order of battle In modern use, the order of battle of an armed force participating in a military operation or campaign shows the hierarchical organization, command structure, strength, disposition of personnel, and equipment of units and formations of the armed ...

and military unit history reference compiled by the historical service of the chief of staff of the

French Army History Early history The first permanent army, paid with regular wages, instead of feudal levies, was established under Charles VII of France, Charles VII in the 1420 to 1430s. The Kings of France needed reliable troops during and after the ...

. The volumes were published in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

by the Imprimerie Nationale. The volumes progress chronologically through the war, are divided by sections devoted to each corps or division of the French Army, and detail, day-by-day, the subordination of the units, their sub-units, location of the command posts, and the actions of the units. The volumes are written in French, but the tabular organization of much of the information allows the volumes to be used by any researcher familiar with French Army terminology of World War II. The entire series runs to thousands of pages; Part 2 of Volume 5 alone has 1,422 pages. The volumes, their content, and their publication date are: :Volume 1. 1940: Corps, Fortified Regions, and Groups. 1967. :Volume 2. 1940: Infantry Divisions, Light ''

Chasseur ''Chasseur'' ( , ), a French term for "hunter", is the designation given to certain regiments of French and Belgian light infantry () or light cavalry () to denote troops trained for rapid action. History This branch of the French Army orig ...

'' Divisions, and North African Divisions. 1967. :Volume 3. 1940: Colonial Divisions, African Divisions, Light Infantry Divisions, Polish Divisions, Light Cavalry Divisions, Armored Divisions,

Spahi Spahis () were light-cavalry regiments of the French army recruited primarily from the indigenous populations of Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco. The modern French Army retains one regiment of Spahis as an armoured unit, with personnel now ...

Brigades, Defensive and Fortified Sectors, and Fortress Divisions. 1967. :Volume 4. November 1942 - July 1944: French forces in North Africa, French Expeditionary Corps in Italy, subordinate divisions of these corps, and the operations on Corsica and Elba. 1970. :Volume 5, Part 1. August 1944 - May 1945: 3rd Algerian, 4th Moroccan, 9th Colonial, and 27th Alpine Divisions. 1972. :Volume 5, Part 2. August 1944 - May 1945: 1 March, 2nd Moroccan, 10th Infantry, 14th Infantry, 1st Armored, 2nd Armored, and 5th Armored Divisions. 1975. :Volume 5, Part 3. August 1944 - May 1945: I and II Corps. 1976. :Volume 5, Part 4. Maps to accompany Volume 5, Parts 1 through 3. 1976. :Volume 6. August 1944 - May 1945: The Atlantic and Alpine Fronts. 1980. Among order of battle researchers and enthusiasts, the volumes are often referred to as the ''GUF'', or sometimes, the ''LGUF''.

External links

Stone Books summary of ''GUF''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grandes Unites Francaises French non-fiction books Books about military history