Zouave

The Zouaves were a class of light infantry regiments of the French Army serving between 1830 and 1962 and linked to French North Africa; as well as some units of other countries modelled upon them. The zouaves were among the most decorated units of the French Army.

It was initially intended that the zouaves would be a regiment of Berber volunteers from the Zwawa group of tribes in Algeria ("Zwawa" being the origin of the French term '' zouave'') who had gained a martial reputation fighting for local rulers under the Ottoman Empire. The regiment was to consist of 1,600 Zwawa Berbers, French non-commissioned officers and French officers. 500 Zwawa were recruited in August and September 1830. However, twelve years later, this idea was dropped. More zouave regiments were raised and the men recruited to serve in them were almost exclusively French or people of French descent born in French Algeria (pied-noirs), a policy which continued until the final dissolution of said regiments after the Algerian War.

In the 1860s, zouave units arose in many other countries. The Papal Zouaves were organized by Louis Juchault de Lamoricière, a former commander of North African zouaves, while a former zouave sergeant, François Rochebrune, organized the Polish Zouaves of Death who fought against Russia in the January Uprising of 1863–1864. In the 1870s, former Papal Zouaves formed the cadre for a short-lived Spanish zouave unit. The "zouave" title was also used by Brazilian units of black volunteers in the Paraguayan War, possibly due to a perceived link with Africa.

In the United States, zouaves were brought to public attention by Elmer E. Ellsworth, who created and ran a drill company called the "Zouave Cadets". The drill company toured nationally. Zouave units were then raised on both sides of the American Civil War of 1861–1865; including a regiment under Ellsworth's command, the 11th New York Infantry—the New York "Fire Zouaves".

The distinctive uniforms of French and other zouave units was of North African origin. It generally included short open-fronted jackets, baggy trousers (''serouel''), sashes, and a fez-like ''chéchia'' head-dress.

Etymology

The word "zouave" () is a French language derivative of ''Zouaouas''; the original name of the Kabyle Berbers recruited for French service.

French zouaves

Recruitment

The zouaves of the French Army were first raised in Algeria in 1831 with one and later two battalions, initially recruited primarily from the Zouaoua (or Zwāwa), a tribe of Berbers located in the mountains of the Jurjura Range (see Kabyles). The Zouaoua had formerly provided soldiers for the deys of Algiers and in August 1830 the commander of the French expeditionary force which had occupied the city recommended their continued employment in this role. The existence of the new corps was formally recognised by a Royal decree dated 21 March 1831.

From their beginning the zouave units included a French European element, initially drawn from the demobilized ''Garde royal'' of Charles X and other Parisian volunteers. From March 1833 each zouave battalion was organised into ten companies, of which eight were Muslim Berbers and Arabs and two French. In 1838 a third battalion was raised, and the regiment thus formed was commanded by Major de Lamoriciere. Shortly afterwards the formation of the '' Tirailleurs algériens'', the ''Turcos'', as the infantry corps for Muslim troops, changed the basis for enlistment of the zouave battalions. For most of their remaining history the zouaves became an essentially French body, until in 1956 a new policy of partial racial mixing was introduced amongst units of the Army of Africa.

Zouave regiments

Initially constituted as battalion sized units, the zouaves were reorganized as separate regiments in 1852:
*The 1st Zouaves were linked to Algiers and central Algeria. The 1st Zouaves had a continuous existence from 1852 to 1949. After disbandment the regiment was recreated between 1956 and 1960
*The 2nd Zouaves were linked to Oran and western Algeria, 1852–1962
*The 3rd Zouaves were linked to Constantine and eastern Algeria, 1852–1962
*The 4th Zouaves were linked to Tunis and Tunisia. They were first formed as the Zouaves of the Imperial Guard in 1854, and became the 4th Zouves on the establishment of the Third Republic in 1870. They remained in existence under this title until 1962.

At the end of the Algerian War six zouave regiments were in existence, of which the ''1er'' was disbanded in 1960 and the remainder in 1962.

Other provisional regiments of zouaves were raised in 1914 and 1939 for the First and Second World Wars respectively. During World War I nine ''regiments de marche'' of zouaves were created; comprising active, reserve, and new battalions seconded from other regiments. In World War II the number reached fourteen.

The zouave regiments raised in 1914 for the First World War were the 8th and 9th. The 13th Zouaves were raised in 1919 and dissolved in 1940. The zouave regiments raised in 1939 for the Second World War were the 11th, 12th, 14th, and 21st, all of which were dissolved after the fall of France in 1940. Other regiments raised later in the Second World War were the 9th ('reactivated'), 22nd, 23rd, and 29th.

In addition, four mixed zouave and ''tirailleur'' regiments (''régiments mixtes de zouaves et tirailleurs'') were raised for the First World War, all of which were redesignated Algerian ''tirailleur'' regiments in 1918 or 1920.

The 9th Zouaves were the last French zouave unit. The first 9th Zouave regiment existed from 1914 until the fall of France in 1940, a second 9th Zouaves was raised in the Second World War and disbanded after the Algerian War (1954–1962), and a third 9th Zouaves existed as a nominal unit from 1982 to 2006 (representing a commando training school). There was no zouave regiment in existence between 1962–1982 and none now survive in the French Army.

Early history

The zouaves saw extensive service during the French conquest of Algeria, initially at the Mouzaia Pass action (March 1836), then at Mitidja (September 1836) and the siege of Constantine (1837). Recruited through voluntary enlistment or transfer from other regiments of men with at least two years service, the zouaves quickly achieved the status of an elite amongst the French Army of Africa.

The Second Empire

By 1853, the French Army included three regiments of zouaves. Each of the three line regiments of zouaves was allocated to a different province of Algeria, where their depots and peace-time garrisons were located. The Crimean War was the first service which the regiments saw outside Algeria. They subsequently served as effective light infantry in the Franco-Austrian War of 1859, the Mexican Intervention (1864–1866) and the Franco-Prussian War (1870). The distinctive dress and dash of the zouaves made them well known outside France and they were frequently portrayed in the illustrated publications of the period. The 2nd Zouaves (popularly known as "the Jackals of Oran") had their mutilated eagle decorated with the ''Legion d' Honneur'' following the Battle of Magenta in 1859.

On 23 December 1854 a fourth regiment was created, the Zouaves of the Imperial Guard. The actual formation of this unit was delayed until 15 March 1855 when detachments from the zouave regiments already serving in the Crimea were brought together before Sebastopol for this purpose. Having earned the unusual distinction of being created on the field of battle, the Zouaves of the Imperial Guard served through the remainder of the Crimean War and subsequently in all the campaigns of the Second Empire. Their peace-time garrisons were initially at Saint-Cloud and then Versailles from 1857. This regiment wore the classic zouave uniform but with yellow braiding and piping substituted for the red of the line regiments.

In the opening stages of the Franco-Prussian War the bulk of the serving zouave units were amongst the Imperial field army defeated at Sedan in September 1870. Drawing on remnants of the Imperial forces, depot troops from Algeria and volunteers it was possible to reconstitute all four regiments as part of the Army of the Loire and the Republican defenders of Paris.

The Third Republic

After 1871 the zouaves lost their status as an élite corps solely made up of long-service volunteers; they became a force mainly composed of conscripts from the French settlers in Algeria and Tunisia, undertaking their compulsory military service. Shortfalls in numbers were made up by detachments from the southern ''régions militaires'' of mainland France (''Métropole''). The zouave regiments did however retain significant numbers of long-service volunteers (''engages volontiers et réengages'') who contributed to the high morale and steadiness of these units.

Two zouave battalions (under ''chefs de bataillon'' Simon and Mignot) served in Tonkin during the closing weeks of the Sino-French War (August 1884 to April 1885). One of these battalions was roughly handled on 23 March 1885 in the Battle of Phu Lam Tao. A third zouave battalion (''chef de bataillon'' Metzinger) joined the Tonkin Expeditionary Corps shortly after the end of the war, and took part in operations against Vietnamese insurgents.

In 1899 a law created for each regiment of zouaves a 5th Battalion, "to be stationed in France" in ''groupes des 5e bataillons de Zouaves''. The 5th battalions of the 1st and 4th Zouaves were stationed as part of the ''Gouvernement militaire de Paris''. The 5th battalions of the 2nd and 3rd Zouaves were stationed in the ''région militaire de Lyon''. Upon mobilization for war in France, these battalions would form the nucleus of ''Régiments de Marche de Zouaves'', each of 3 battalions. This permanent presence in the two key garrisons of metropolitan France facilitated subsequent arrival and participation by other elements of the 19th Military Region as reinforcements, in the event of an attack on mainland France.

Zouave battalions subsequently saw active service in China during the Boxer Rising (1900–1901) and in Morocco (1908–1914). From the very beginning of World War I zouave regiments and detached battalions saw extensive service on the Western Front. Others served in the Dardanelles, Macedonia (within the 156th Division), Tonkin, Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco. Twelve zouave battalions were recruited for exclusively North African service from French-speaking prisoners-of-war and deserters from German Alsace-Lorraine, who had volunteered to join the French Army.

The four zouave regiments of the French Army wore their traditional colorful dress during the early months of the First World War. The development of the machine gun, rapid-fire artillery, and improved small-arms obliged them to adopt a plain khaki uniform from 1915 onwards, in common with other units of the '' Armée d'Afrique''. From 1927 to 1939 the "oriental dress" of red fez ("chéchia"), blue sash, braided blue jackets with waistcoats and voluminous red trousers was reintroduced as off-duty dress for re-enlisted NCOs and other long-service regulars in the zouave regiments.
It was also worn by colour guards and other detachments on ceremonial occasions. White trousers of the same style had earlier been worn as an item of hot-weather dress. The four regiments were distinguished by the colours (red, blue, white and yellow) of the "tombeaus" or false pockets on the front of their open-fronted jackets.

The zouaves played a major role in the 1914–1918 War with their numbers being expanded to nine ''regiments de marche''. These units retained much of their traditional panache, especially in attack. They became however less conspicuous in World War II, seeing service mainly during the opening stages of the war in the Battle of France (1940) and in the course of the liberation of France (1944).

Post-1945

As predominantly conscript units the zouaves did not serve in Indochina between 1945 and 1954. They were, however, employed extensively as sector troops during the Algerian War. Their history as a corps of high-profile elite infantry, closely identified with French Algeria, made for higher morale and effectiveness than that of most conscript units from metropolitan France assigned to Algeria. The 9th Zouaves based in the Casbah, played a major role in the 1957 Battle of Algiers.

At the end of the Algerian War, remaining zouave and tirailleur units were incorporated in a short-lived ''Force locale de l'ordre Algérienne'': created under the Évian Accords of March 1962 and intended to provide a transitional peace-keeping force acceptable to both Muslim and European communities. The zouave regiments were finally disbanded in 1962 following Algerian independence. This was inevitable since their recruitment base was the European population of Algeria, which dispersed with the ending of French rule.

The traditions of the zouave regiments were maintained until 2006 by the French Army's Commando Training School (CEC), which occasionally paraded colour parties and other detachments in zouave dress. With the closure of the CEC school that year and the putting into store of the flag of the 9th Zouaves in 2010, any direct link between the former zouaves and active units of the modern French Army ceased. While other branches of the old French Army of Africa have either survived or been reestablished as representative units in recent years (notably the Foreign Legion, Chasseurs d'Afrique, Tirailleurs, and Spahis), France does not have any known plans to recreate one of its most distinctive and best known military corps.

Papal Zouaves

The Papal Zouaves were a corps of volunteers formed as part of the Army of the Papal States. The Zouaves evolved out of a unit formed by Lamoricière in 1860: the Franco-Belgian Tirailleurs. On January 1, 1861, the unit was renamed the Papal Zouaves.Joseph Powell, ''Two Years in the Pontifical Zouaves'', p. 2

The ''Zuavi Pontifici'' were mainly young men, unmarried and Roman Catholic, who volunteered to assist Pope Pius IX in his struggle against the Italian Risorgimento. They wore a similar style of uniform to that of the French Zouaves but in grey with red trim. A grey and red kepi was substituted for the North African fez.

All orders were given in French, and the unit was commanded by a Swiss Colonel, M. Allet.Joseph Powell, ''Two Years in the Pontifical Zouaves'', p. 287 The regiment was truly international, and by May 1868 numbered 4,592 men including 1,910 Dutch, 1,301 French, 686 Belgians, and 240 Italians. A total of three hundred volunteers came from Canada, the United States and Ireland; while the remaining 155 Zouaves were mostly South American.

The Papal Zouaves assisted in the notable Franco/Papal victory at the Battle of Mentana on November 3, 1867. They suffered the brunt of the fighting, sustaining 81 casualties in the battle, including 24 killed (the Papal forces suffered only 30 dead in total). The official report of the battle prepared by the French commander, General de Failly cited the bravery of the Zouaves. They were also mentioned in Victor Hugo's poem ''Mentana''.

The Papal Zouaves also played a role in the final engagements against the forces of the newly united Kingdom of Italy in September 1870, in which the Papal forces were outnumbered almost seven to one. The Zouaves fought bravely before surrender, inflicting losses on the Bersaglieri of the regular Italian Army as the latter stormed the Porta Pia.
Several Papal Zouaves were reportedly executed or murdered by the Italian forces following the surrender.

The French component of the Papal Zouaves regrouped as the ''Volontaires de l'Ouest'' (Volunteers of the West) to fight on the French side in the Franco-Prussian War, where they kept their grey and red Papal uniforms. The Zouaves saw action outside Orléans