13th Free French Half Brigade, Foreign Legion image - D-Day June 1944 & Afrika 43 for Blitzkrieg Mod for Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts

NEW EXCLUSIVE AFRIKA 43 UNIT: For the first time in COH i give you the French Foreign Legion, heroes of Bir Hakeim, 3700 mens against 32000 of the 3 best divisions of the Afrika Korps... there is no doubt without this decisive battle the 8th army would be flanked and destroyed by Rommel, half or them never came back, just for that i had to put them :)

Possession of Bir Hakeim had made longer the Axis supply route, which caused many losses and after the defeat at the Cauldron, the British got more time to recover. The French impressed the Axis forces against them and raised morale among the Free French. From 2–10 June the Luftwaffe flew about 1400 sorties over the fort about in which 49 Germans and Italians aircraft were shot down by the Free French.

In 2 weeks of combats: Axis losses of 3,300 dead or wounded, 227 captured, 164 vehicles destroyed, the Free French lost 1400 mens.

British General Claude Auchinleck said on June 12, 1942, about Bir Hakeim: "The United Nations need to be filled with admiration and gratitude, in respect of these French troops and their brave General Kœnig". After the war, German Generalmajor Friedrich von Mellenthin wrote, "In the whole course of the desert war, we never encountered a more heroic and well-sustained defence.

The term Free French was replaced by Fighting French after the battle showed the world that a revival, after the catastrophic defeat in 1940 due to poor forces managements and strategy was under way.

A big thanks to Don_durandal leader of TGW 1918 who shared his French " Képi" for my work, thank you very much!