French Liberation Army

The French Liberation Army (French: Armée française de la Libération or AFL) was the reunified French Army that was created in 1943 when the Army of Africa (Armée d'Afrique) led by General Giraud was combined with the Free French Forces (Forces Françaises Libres) of General de Gaulle.[1]

French Liberation Army
Armée française de la Libération
Active	January 8, 1943 (1943-01-08)–1945 (1945)
Country	France Second French Colonial Empire
Type	Army
Size	1 300 000
Engagements	Italian campaign Liberation of Corsica Battle of Marseille Operation Overlord Liberation of Paris Operation Dragoon Campaign of France Colmar Pocket
Commanders
Notable commanders	Henri Giraud Charles de Gaulle
Insignia
Identification symbol

The AFL participated in the campaigns of Tunisia and Italy; during the Italian campaign the AFL was known as the French Expeditionary Corps in Italy (Corps Expéditionnaire Français en Italie or CEFI) making a quarter of the troops deployed. The AFL was key in the liberation of Corsica, the first French metropolitan department to be liberated.[1] The troops that landed on D-Day were the 1st Battalion Marine Commando Fusiliers (1er Bataillon de Fusiliers Marins Commandos) better known as Commando Kieffer.[2] During the Allied invasion of Provence, on 15 August 1944, the AFL made the majority of the troops landing on French shores, capturing the ports of Toulon and Marseille.[3] One of the AFL's garrison and second-line formations, which later helped man the French occupation zone of Germany, was the 10th Infantry Division.