French Marine Infantry

Description

Eight French infantry figures in sun helmets, 2 each of the four types shown below.

The 1er Batallion d’ Infanterie de Marine (BIM), stationed in Chad, fought the Italians in 1941-2, capturing Al Kufra from the Italians in March 1941. At Bir Hakim the battalion was part of the French 1st Brigade. Due to their heavy losses, they were amalgamated with the Bataillon du Pacifique to become the Bataillon d’Infanterie de Marine et du Pacifique (BIMP).

The battalion became part of the 1st Free French Division (1er DFL) in 1943.

For a complete history of this interesting unit, see the blog post on our Askari Information site.

NOTE: All figures are sold plain (not primed or painted) and without the extra bases shown.