The French Battalion of the United Nations Organisation ( French : Bataillon français de l'Organisation des Nations unies , or BF-ONU ) was a battalion of volunteers made up of active and reserve French military personnel sent to the Korean Peninsula as part of the UN force fighting in the Korean War .
31-661: Lieutenant General Raoul Magrin-Vernerey , better known under his nom de guerre , Monclar, Inspector of the French Foreign Legion and a hero of World War II , supported Chief of Staff of the French Army General Clément Blanc's decision to form a volunteer force and agreed to command the new unit, accepting a demotion back to the rank of lieutenant-colonel . The French Battalion arrived in Pusan , South Korea on November 29, 1950, and
62-704: A fourth run to Australia, arriving in Melbourne, again, with 1,316 refugees on 13 April 1950. On 25 April 1950, General W. M. Black picked up repatriating Dutch soldiers from Java, arriving in Rotterdam on 18 May 1950. General W. M. Black was reacquired by the Navy 1 March 1950, and assigned to MSTS . Crewed by civilians, she operated out of New York in the Atlantic until 1 September, when she shifted her homeport to San Francisco. Between 1950 and 1953, she steamed to
93-467: A lieutenant outranks a sergeant major ). Several countries (e.g. Balkan states) use the rank of lieutenant colonel general instead of lieutenant general, in an attempt to solve this apparent anomaly. In contrast, in Russia and a number of other countries of the former Soviet Union , lieutenant general is a rank immediately below colonel general , and above major general – in these systems there
124-618: A month later, where it suffered heavy casualties. Between its arrival in Indochina and the cease-fire on July 20, 1954, the 1st Battalion suffered 238 killed or wounded, and the 2nd Battalion 202 killed or wounded. In addition, 34 Indochinese assigned to the battalion were killed in action. On September 1, 1954, the Regiment de Corée was disbanded and reduced to battalion size. The battalion remained in Indochina until July 17, 1955, when it embarked from Saigon to Algeria to participate in
155-409: Is no use of the brigadier general of many Western countries. In addition, some countries use the lieutenant general as the rank of divisional commander, and some have designated them with French revolutionary system . For example, some countries of South America use divisional general as the equivalent of lieutenant general. USS General W. M. Black USS General W. M. Black (AP-135)
186-1033: The United Nations Memorial Cemetery in Busan , South Korea. In an address to a joint session of the United States Congress on 22 May 1952, General Ridgway said the following: ...I shall speak briefly of the Twenty-Third United States Infantry Regiment, Col. Paul L. Freeman commanding, with the French battalion... Twice isolated far in advance of the general battle line, twice completely surrounded in near zero weather, they repelled repeated assaults by day and night by vastly superior numbers of Chinese infantry...I want to record here my conviction that these American fighting men with their French comrades in arms measured up in every way to
217-716: The Far East and transported more than 65,000 troops and their combat equipment in support of the Korean War . After the Korean armistice, she continued transpacific voyages, deploying troops to Japan , Korea, and Alaska and returning veterans of the Korean fighting to the United States. In June 1955, she carried troops and cargo to the Bering Sea during Operation "Mona Lisa". Following her return to San Francisco, she
248-671: The French are still there! On October 22, 1953, the French battalion embarked on the USS ; General W. M. Black and headed for Indochina , where it was expanded into a two battalion regiment and formed the nucleus of the French Groupement mobile 100. During their service in Indochina , the unit (under its new title of Le Regiment de Corée ) participated in the brutal battles Mang Yang Pass along Route coloniale 19 in June 1954, and Chu Dreh Pass along Route Coloniale 14
279-648: The North Korean advance. It was followed by the Battle of the Twin Tunnels (February 1–2, 1951) and of Chipyong-ni (February 3–16, 1951). These battles, during which the battalion resisted the attacks of four Chinese divisions for three days, allowed the 8th Army to score a victorious counter-offensive. Three weeks later, the battalion was engaged in combat for Hill 1037 (about 50 miles east of Seoul ) and lost 40 dead and 200 wounded while attacking and capturing
310-848: The North Korean and Chinese forces from reaching Seoul. After the signing of the Korean Armistice Agreement in July 1953, the French Battalion left Korea with five French Citations to the Order of the Army; the French Fourragère in the colors of the Military Medal; two Korean Presidential Citations; and three American Distinguished Unit Citations. Forty-four of the French casualties were eventually buried at
341-1268: The USS General W. M. Black arriving in Buenos Aires, Argentina from Genoa, Italy on Jan 24th, 1949, with displaced persons and refugees (Austrian DP camps (Ukrainians, Polish, etc.) The USS General W. M. Black departed Bremerhaven Germany with several hundred Displaced Persons aboard, arriving in Halifax, Nova Scotia Canada on 16 March 1949....her 9th voyage. She departed Naples , on 29 May 1949, arriving 25 June 1949, in Melbourne. with 826 more displaced persons. The USS General W. M. Black made 3 voyages from Bremerhaven to Pier 21 in Halifax Canada, transporting Displaced persons (Jewish Poles) 700 persons arriving on 15 June 1948, an unknown number arriving on 16 March 1949 and 822 persons arriving on 12 August 1949 (Reference Pier 21 ship arrival records https://pier21.ca/research/immigration-records ) On 16 November 1949, she again departed Naples, with 1,314 refugees, this time arriving in Sydney , on 13 December 1949. General W. M. Black made
SECTION 10
#1732772214424372-632: The United Nations while serving with the Third Company, French Battalion, attached to the 23rd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division, in action against enemy forces at Pia-ri, Korea on September 26, 1951. As a squad leader in an attack on "Heartbreak Ridge," Sergeant Misseri led his squad through an intense barrage of enemy mortar and artillery fire to the slope on which enemy bunkers were located. Dividing his squad into two sections, he personally led one section of three men in an assault upon
403-441: The United States, a lieutenant general has a three star insignia and commands an army corps , typically made up of three army divisions , and consisting of around 60,000 to 70,000 soldiers. The seeming incongruity that a lieutenant general outranks a major general (whereas a major outranks a lieutenant ) is due to the derivation of major general from sergeant major general , which was a rank subordinate to lieutenant general (as
434-733: The United States, she rotated tens of thousands of troops and patients to and from the European theater in this period of nearly a year. Departing Boston 31 August 1945, General W. M. Black sailed for India via the Suez Canal . A unit of the " Magic-Carpet " fleet, she returned to Boston in October with 3,000 veterans of the South Pacific fighting. After making a similar voyage during November and December, she moored at New York 5 January 1946. She decommissioned there 28 February 1946 and
465-527: The battle conduct of the finest troops America or France has produced throughout their national existence. One member of the French Battalion, Louis Misseri , was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross by the United States for his actions. His citation reads: The Distinguished Service Cross is presented to Louis Misseri, Sergeant, Army of France, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy of
496-433: The bunkers. While his comrades covered his advance, he moved forward alone through a hail of fire, attacked the first bunker, and silenced it. He continued his assault until the way had been cleared for his squad to advance and reorganize. When the enemy launched a counterattack, Sergeant Misseri, although seriously wounded, drove them back, inflicting fifteen casualties with his rifle. When this position became untenable and he
527-470: The fall of 1952, after a lethal war of positions, similar to the Battle of Verdun during World War I , the battalion put a halt in Chongwon , South Korea, to a Chinese offensive toward Seoul. This resistance resulted in 47 dead and 144 wounded. The total Chinese losses against the French battalion were estimated at 2000 men. In the winter and the spring of 1953, the battalion took part in battles which kept
558-657: The first of 13 transatlantic, round-trip voyages when she departed Norfolk 28 July with 2,700 fighting men bound for Naples , and returned to New York 31 August with 3,000 homeward-bound troops and casualties. From 12 September to 19 August 1945 the busy transport made 10 similar round-trip troop-carrying voyages (5 from New York, 3 from Boston , and 2 from Norfolk) to the United Kingdom ( Plymouth , Liverpool , Southampton ); France ( Cherbourg , Le Havre , Marseilles ); North Africa ( Oran ); and Germany ( Bremerhaven ). In addition to carrying German prisoners of war to
589-632: The highest credit on him and uphold the finest traditions of the Army and the Republic of France. Paul L. Freeman Jr., the commander of the 23rd Infantry Regiment, said of the French Battalion: When you order them [the French] in defence, you're sure they'll hold the position. When you show them a hill to be seized, you're sure they'll manage to get atop. You may leave for two days, storms of shells and waves of enemies may swarm over them,
620-503: The hill. In the spring of 1951, the battalion crossed the 38th parallel into the Hwacheon region. The destruction of an engineering platoon led to a partial rout of the French Battalion. However, it allowed U.S. forces to stop the new Chinese offensive. In the fall of 1951, the French took part in the Battle of Heartbreak Ridge . In the course of these combats which lasted a month, 60 French soldiers were killed and 200 were wounded. In
651-760: The most active ships of her type, General W. M. Black plied the world's oceans and touched many distant ports in completing her varied missions as a troopship. On her first voyage she embarked 3,500 Army troops and sailed from San Francisco 26 March 1944, delivering them at Pearl Harbor before returning to San Francisco 9 April with nearly 500 veterans. Underway again 22 April, General W. M. Black carried 3,500 troops from San Francisco to New Caledonia and Guadalcanal . She departed Guadalcanal 14 May, embarked 2,700 at Balboa, Canal Zone , and reached New Orleans 8 June. The transport subsequently steamed to Kingston, Jamaica , where she embarked 2,400 passengers and sailed to Norfolk , arriving 26 June. General W. M. Black began
SECTION 20
#1732772214424682-598: The regiment suffered 48 killed in action in Algeria. The regiment was repatriated to France after the Évian Accords and disbanded upon its return to France in 1962. Lieutenant General Lieutenant general ( Lt Gen , LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank originates from the Old European System . The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages , where
713-549: The suppression of the ongoing insurrection . On August 10, 1955, the battalion landed in Algiers and began a series of garrison and search-and-destroy operations in the Constantine Department . On September 1, 1960, the battalion was amalgamated with the 156th Infantry Regiment ( French : 156 Régiment d'Infanterie ) and received the designation of 156 Régiment d'Infanterie- Régiment de Corée. All told,
744-413: The title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a captain general . In modern armies, lieutenant general normally ranks immediately below general (or colonel general ) and above major general ; it is equivalent to the navy rank of vice admiral , and in air forces with a separate rank structure, it is equivalent to air marshal . In
775-597: Was a General G. O. Squier -class transport ship for the U.S. Navy in World War II . The ship was crewed by the U.S. Coast Guard until decommissioning. She was named in honor of U.S. Army general William Murray Black . She was transferred to the U.S. Army as USAT General W. M. Black in 1946. On 1 March 1950 she was transferred to the Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) as USNS General W. M. Black (T-AP-135) . She
806-488: Was later sold for commercial operation under the name SS Green Forest , before being scrapped in 1980. General W. M. Black (AP-135) was laid down under a Maritime Commission contract (MC #658) 26 November 1942 by Kaiser Co., Inc. , Yard 3, Richmond, California ; launched 23 July 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Decatur S. Higgins; acquired by the Navy 26 January 1944; converted to a transport by Matson Navigation Co. , San Francisco ; and commissioned 24 February 1944. One of
837-693: Was one of almost 150 voyages by some 40 ships bringing refugees of World War II to Australia. General W. M. Black made three more such trips herself. On 30 September 1948, she arrived in Ilha das Flores, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with Eastern European refugees, many of whom had been in (Villach/St. Maarten) Austrian DP camps (Ukrainians, Polish, etc.) On 21 October 1948 she set sail from Bremerhaven, Germany and arrived in New York on 30 October 1948. sailing out of Bremerhaven, sometime in September. There are records of
868-450: Was ordered to withdraw, he sent his men back one by one while he covered their withdrawal. The last man to leave the hill, except for one other who helped him because of his wounded condition, he would not allow himself to be evacuated until he had made a complete report of his mission. One of the very few men to reach the top of "Heartbreak Ridge" during this costly attack, Sergeant Misseri's gallantry and extraordinary devotion to duty reflect
899-561: Was placed out of service 26 August, and was transferred back to the Maritime Administration . She was then berthed in the National Defense Reserve Fleet at Suisun Bay, California . There she remained until 1967, (some sources say 1965 ) when she was purchased by Central Gulf Steamship Co. of New Orleans . She was renamed Green Forest , USCG ON 508061, IMO 6801171, after being rebuilt as
930-488: Was placed under the operational control of the U.S. 23rd Infantry Regiment , 2nd Infantry Division . Despite initial fears about French forces being "on the rout", the battalion carried out several successful early actions and earned the respect of General Matthew Ridgway , commander of the U.S. Eighth Army . From January 7–12, 1951, the French Battalion participated in the First and Second Battle of Wonju where it stopped
961-668: Was returned to service as an Army transport. On 16 February 1948, General W. M. Black arrived first in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, carrying 1,500 Italians, Hungarians, Croats, etc. and after, in Peru, on 24 February 1948, carrying 626 Croats from a refugee camp in Italy, Camp Fermo. On 2 March 1948, General W. M. Black left Bremerhaven, with 860 displaced persons from Europe and arrived in Melbourne , on 27 April 1948. This voyage