UNITED WE CONQUER – Commandos Marine, ils racontent leur histoire

The history of the Commandos Marine told by those who lived it, magnificently photographed by one of their own. Preface by Rear Admiral Pierre de Briançon, Commander of the Naval Fusiliers and Commandos Maritime Force.

Léon Gautier passed away in June 2023, aged 100. He was the last representative of the 1er Bataillon de Fusiliers Marins Commandos, created in 1942 in London by Philippe Kieffer to serve Free France. The last of those 177 Frenchmen to have taken part in the Normandy landings of 6 June 1944. The 1er BFMC is the origin of the seven Commandos Marine, the only French units that wear their green beret in the British fashion, tilted to the right, in reference to their history. The badge of the brig L'Aventure crossed by the commando dagger, worn on the left of the beret, proudly bears the Cross of Lorraine. Likewise, their motto, "United we conquer", is spoken in the language of Shakespeare.

Ordinarily disinclined to speak openly, commandos from several eras have chosen to share part of their story through these pages. Magnificently illustrated with photographs by Kellian Bier and drawings by Hubert Dumont Saint Priest, the fifty-three accounts and testimonies gathered by Jean Huck reveal the unknown facets of the ordeals these Special Forces undergo and trace, in outline, a history of the Commandos Marine.

From the Red Sea to the Sahelian desert, from the port of Marseille to the waters off French Guiana, you will join them in those suspended moments where the outcome of an operation hangs on a split second, where the destiny of these men who have chosen to serve France can tip irrevocably.