History of The French Foreign Legion - The French Foreign Legion in Spain

The French Foreign Legion in Spain

In order to support Isabella's claim to the Spanish throne against her uncle, the French government decided to send the Legion to Spain and so, on June 28, 1835, the Legion was handed over to the Spanish government. This had the added benefit that in the event that France decided to remove itself from the conflict in Spain, the government would not have to deal with the issue of extricating Frenchmen from conflict. The Legion disembarked at the port of Tarragona in Catalonia on 17 August with around 4,100 men. The locals in Tarragona greeted the Legion, calling them Los Argelinos (the Algerians) due to their previous posting. Upon his arrival Colonel Bernelle was granted the rank Marshall of the Royal Armies of Her Majestsy Isabelle II.

Read more about this topic:  History Of The French Foreign Legion

Famous quotes containing the words french, foreign, legion and/or spain:

    Central heating, French rubber goods, and cookbooks are three amazing proofs of man’s ingenuity in transforming necessity into art, and of these, cookbooks are perhaps most lastingly delightful.
    M.F.K. Fisher (b. 1908)

    Let us waive that agitated national topic, as to whether such multitudes of foreign poor should be landed on our American shores; let us waive it, with the one only thought, that if they can get here, they have God’s right to come.
    Herman Melville (1819–1891)

    I am sometimes told that “Women aint fit to vote. Why, don’t you know that a woman had seven devils in her: and do you suppose a woman is fit to rule the nation?” Seven devils aint no account; a man had a legion in him.
    Sojourner Truth (c. 1797–1883)

    How the devil am I to prove to my counsel that I don’t know my murderous impulses through C.G. Jung, jealousy through Marcel Proust, Spain through Hemingway ... It’s true, you need never have read these authorities, you can absorb them through your friends, who also live all their experiences second-hand. What an age!
    Max Frisch (1911–1991)