From political exile to colonial military service : White Russians in the French Foreign Legion in the 1920s

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dc.contributor.authorLIMA, Salvador Daniel
dc.date.accessioned2025-07-28T07:54:00Z
dc.date.available2025-07-28T07:54:00Z
dc.date.issued2025
dc.descriptionPublished online: 21 July 2025
dc.description.abstractDuring the interwar era, the French Foreign Legion underwent a significant transformation, expansion and reorganization amidst colonial restructuring, geopolitical unrest, economic hardship and mass migration. As a professional unit that did not demand documents or passports from potential volunteers, the Legion was an attractive destination for defeated soldiers and exiled activists. This paper addresses the case of the White Russians from the Army of Wrangel, who enlisted in the Legion after their defeat in the Russian Civil War and served in Africa during the 1920s. The French Republic recognized the value of those experienced anti-Communist soldiers, leading to over 4000 White Russians enlisting in the Legion between 1920 and 1925, making up about 20% of its personnel. The Russian experience was part of an expanded regimental organization in the French Army of Africa. By examining French archival materials and the accounts of pertinent officers stationed in North Africa, this paper aims to piece together the Foreign Legion’s recruitment practices, its methods for enlisting military exiles and the Russian legionnaires’ journeys.
dc.identifier.citationEuropean review of history : revue européenne d'histoire, 2025, OnlineFirst
dc.identifier.doi10.1080/13507486.2025.2521806
dc.identifier.issn1350-7486
dc.identifier.issn1469-8293
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1814/93064
dc.language.isoen
dc.orcid.putcode1814/83168:188735225
dc.publisherRoutledge
dc.relation.ispartofEuropean review of history : revue européenne d'histoire
dc.subjectWhite Russians
dc.subjectForeign Legion
dc.subjectWrangel
dc.subjectémigrés
dc.subjectcounterrevolution
dc.titleFrom political exile to colonial military service : White Russians in the French Foreign Legion in the 1920s
dc.typeArticle
dspace.entity.typePublication
person.identifier.orcid0000-0001-5206-651X
person.identifier.other47887
relation.isAuthorOfPublication9ce811ac-f4a1-474f-8da5-40617e894d98
relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscovery9ce811ac-f4a1-474f-8da5-40617e894d98
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