Legionnaire: Five Years in the French Foreign Legion

Legionnaire: Five Years in the French Foreign Legion

â€œA pleasure to read and nearly impossible to put down.â€
â€“Army Times

â€œEmbodies an experience that many have enjoyed in fantasyâ€“few in reality.â€
â€“The Washington Post

The French Foreign Legionâ€“mysterious, romantic, deadlyâ€“is filled with men of dubious character, and hardly the place for a proper Englishman just nineteen years of age. Yet in 1960, Simon Murray traveled alone to Paris, Marseilles, and ultimately Algeria to fulfill the toughest contract of his life: a five-year stint in the Legion. Along the way, he kept a diary.

Legionnaire is a compelling, firsthand account of Murrayâ€™s experience with this legendary band of soldiers. This gripping journal offers stark evidence that the Legionâ€™s reputation for pushing men to their breaking points and beyond is well deserved. In the fierce, sun-baked North African desert, strong men cracked under brutal officers, merciless training methods, and barbarous punishments. Yet Murray survived, even thrived. For he shared one trait with these hard men from all nations and backgrounds: a determination never to surrender.

â€œThe drama, excitement, and color of a good guts-and-glory thriller.â€
â€“Dr. Henry Kissinger

From the Paperback edition.
Country USA
Manufacturer Presidio Press
Binding Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate 2007-12-18
Format Kindle eBook