List of foreign volunteers

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Emir Abdelkader, wearing the sash of the Legion d'Honneur presented to him by the French government.
The exiled Muslim Algerian, along with his 1,000 volunteers, protected most of the diplomats and thousands of Christians during the 1860 Mount Lebanon civil war. He was awarded the highest decorations by European governments. DamascusabdulKader.jpg
Emir Abdelkader, wearing the sash of the Legion d'Honneur presented to him by the French government.
The exiled Muslim Algerian, along with his 1,000 volunteers, protected most of the diplomats and thousands of Christians during the 1860 Mount Lebanon civil war. He was awarded the highest decorations by European governments.

The armed forces of many nations have, at one time or another, used foreign volunteers who are motivated by political, ideological or other considerations to join a foreign army. [1] These may be formed into units of a given nationality or may be formed into mixed nationality foreign units. Sometimes foreign volunteers were or are incorporated into ordinary units. The practice has a long history, dating back at least as far as the Roman Empire, which recruited non-citizens into Auxiliary units on the promise of them receiving Roman citizenship for themselves and their descendants at the end of their service. [2]

Contents

Mixed nationality units

Historic

Current

Also including nationals

  • The Interbrigades of the Russo-Ukrainian War.
  • Tercio de Extranjeros, or Tercio, or Spanish Legion - prior to 1987 and in the 2000s, after the abandonment of conscription, the Spanish Army is again accepting foreigners from select nationalities. The Legion today accepts male and female native Spanish speakers, mostly from Central American and South American states. Recruits are required to have a valid Spanish residence permit.

Only including foreigners

Units by nationality

American

During both world wars, American volunteers served on the allied side before the US joined the war. During World War I, there were even a few Americans who volunteered to fly for the Imperial German Flying Corps. [4]

Albanian

Bangladeshi

Belgian

British

Bulgarian

Bosnian

Canadian

Chinese

Croatian

Czech

Danish

Estonian

Filipino

Finnish

French

German

Greek

Indian

Irish

See also Irish military diaspora .

Israeli

Italian

Japanese

Korean

Moroccan

Nepalese

Polish

Portuguese

Rhodesian

Russian

Serbian

Scottish

South African

Spanish

Swedish

Swiss

Taiwanese

Ukrainian

Yugoslav

See also

References

  1. Grasmeder, Elizabeth M.F. "Leaning on Legionnaires: Why Modern States Recruit Foreign Soldiers". International Security . Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  2. Webster, Graham (1979). The Roman Imperial Army (Second ed.). London: A & C Black. p. 144. ISBN   0-7136-1909-0.
  3. McKernan, Bethan (27 February 2022). "Ukraine appeals for foreign volunteers to join fight against Russia". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  4. Herris, Jack (2010). Aircraft of World War I, 1914-1918 (2017 reprint ed.). London: Amber Books Ltd. p. 55. ISBN   978-1-906626-65-5.
  5. Webcast Author Interview Rachel Cox Into the Fire 2012 ISBN   9780451234759
  6. Mojzes, Paul (2011). Balkan Genocides: Holocaust and Ethnic Cleansing in the 20th Century. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 94–95. ISBN   978-1-4422-0665-6.
  7. Graciela Iglesias Rogers, British Liberators in the Age of Napoleon: Volunteering under the Spanish Flag in the Peninsular War (Bloomsbury Academic, London and New York, 2013) ISBN   978-1-4411-3565-0
  8. Richard Baxell, Unlikely Warriors: The British in the Spanish Civil War and the Struggle Against Fascism (Aurum Press, London, 2012)
  9. 1 2 Arielli, Nir. "In Search of Meaning: ForeignVolunteers in the Croatian Armed Forces, 1991–95". Academia.edu.
  10. "Bosnia struggles with return of ISIS widows". POLITICO. 2018-11-06. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
  11. Grgurinovic, Matea (February 28, 2022). "Croatian Volunteer Fighters Head for Ukrainian Frontline". Balkan Insight.
  12. "Serbian, Croatian volunteers fight on Ukraine's front line – DW – 01/31/2023". dw.com. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
  13. Braniteljski (2020-12-08). "Strani dragovoljci u Domovinskom ratu (I. DIO)". Braniteljski (in Croatian). Retrieved 2023-08-22.
  14. admin (2020-08-04). "Croatian Volunteers in the Wehrmacht in WWII". Feldgrau. Retrieved 2023-08-19.
  15. Robert (2019-09-29). "Les Français en Croatie - 1809-1813". Histoire du Consulat et du Premier empire (in French). Retrieved 2023-08-19.
  16. Bogros, Denis (1996). "Les chevaux de la Cavalerie française à la fin du XVIIe siècle". Histoire, Économie et Société. 15 (1): 105–112. doi:10.3406/hes.1996.1855. ISSN   0752-5702.
  17. 1 2 Krott, Rob (2008). Save the Last Bullet for Yourself: A Soldier of Fortune in the Balkans and Somalia. Casemate. pp. 168–69. ISBN   978-1935149712.
  18. Krott (2008, p. 148)
  19. "Venezuela's Irish Legacy Copyright 1991 by Brian McGinn". Archived from the original on 2013-02-16. Retrieved 2019-01-07.
  20. "Garibaldi Division". Vojska.net. Retrieved 2013-09-17.
  21. "Portparol Međunarodne legije u Ukrajini: Ovde Hrvati i Srbi ratuju rame uz rame". N1 info. 20 March 2022.
  22. Kuloglija, Nermina (March 8, 2022). "Serb Volunteers Answer Call to Fight in Ukraine". Balkan Insight.
  23. Kumm, Otto (1978). Vorwärts, Prinz Eugen!: Geschichte d. 7. SS-Freiwilligen-Division "Prinz Eugen" (in German). Munin. p. 79. ISBN   978-3-921242-34-6.