List of foreign volunteers explained
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]
Mixed nationality units
Historic
Current
Also including nationals
- 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]
- The Lafayette Escadrille in the French Air Force, World War I
- A number of American pilots flew with No. 32 Squadron RAF during World War I
- The 7th Air Escadrille (also known as the Kościuszko Squadron) in the Polish Air Force, Polish-Soviet War
- The Lincoln Brigade on the Republican side of the Spanish Civil War
- The Eagle Squadrons in the Royal Air Force, World War II
- The Flying Tigers in the Republic of China Air Force, World War II
- Before the US entered the war, many Americans joined the Canadian Forces, especially the RCAF, and served in ordinary Canadian units.
- Rachel Cox in Into the Dust and Fire records the history of five Ivy Leaguers (Chuck Bolte, Jack Brister, Bill Durkee, Heyward Cutting, and Robert Cox) who enlisted in the British Army and became the first Americans to fight the Nazis[5]
- The Crippled Eagles – American volunteers in Rhodesia (1965–1979)
Albanian
Bangladeshi
- 8,000 young men from Bangladesh volunteered to enlist in the PLO in 1987
Belgian
British
Bulgarian
Bosnian
Chinese
Croatian
- 20 to 30 Croatians fought as part of the far-right Azov volunteer battalion against Russian-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine since 2014[10] [11]
- A total of 456 international volunteers from as many as 35 countries participated in the Croatian War of Independence (139 English, 69 French, 55 Germans, 33 Hungarians, 27 Dutch, 15 Australians)[12]
- The 369th (Croatian) Reinforced Infantry Regiment as part of German Wehrmacht, fought in World War II
- The 369th (Croatian) Infantry Division, as part of German Wehrmacht, fought in World War II
- The 373rd (Croatian) Infantry Division, as part of German Wehrmacht, fought in World War II
- The 392nd (Croatian) Infantry Division, as part of German Wehrmacht, fought in World War II
- The Croatian Air Force Legion, as part of German Luftwaffe fought in World War II on the Axis' side
- The Croatian Anti-Aircraft Legion, as part of German Luftwaffe fought in World War II on the Axis' side
- The Croatian Naval Legion, as part of the German Kriegsmarine, fought in World War II on the Black Sea
- The Italian-Croatian Legion, unit of about 1,000 Croatian volunteers fighting for the Royal Italian Army[13]
- Four Croatian Provisional Infantry Regiments of the French Imperial Army fought in the Napoleonic Wars.[14]
- The Royal Cravat Cavalry Regiment of the French Royal Army founded in 1667 and disbanded in 1815[15]
Czech
Estonian
Filipino
- Two hundred fifty French mercenaries served with British forces that invaded Manila in 1762. They changed sides and fought for the Spanish.
- In the 1770s, the Spanish colonial army in the Philippines had an Infantry Company of Cavite Malabars
- Filipinos served in the French military during the Cochinchina Campaign.
- Filipinos served in the Ever Victorious Army.
- The Philippine Revolutionary Army included commissioned officers who were American, Chinese, Cuban, English, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish.
- The Philippine Constabulary in its early years had commissioned officers from Belgium, Cuba, England, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Philippines, Poland, Puerto Rico, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, and Turkey.
- Twenty-four Filipinos served in the French Army during World War I.
- Filipinos fought on both sides of the Spanish Civil War.
- During the Pacific War, Filipinos served in various pro-Japanese militias:
- The Bisigbakal ñg Tagala (Tagalog "Iron Arm of Tagala") was formed in January 1945 to assist the Japanese in maintaining peace and order in Manila. The Bisig Bakal received weapons, uniforms, and training from the Japanese.
- About five thousand Filipinos served in a militia called the Makapili, which was under Japanese command. The unit was formed on 10 November 1944 and was issued around two thousand rifles by the Japanese. Its headquarters was located at the Christ the King compound in Quezon City. The organization was active in the Manila area, and in the nearby provinces of Rizal, Laguna, Bulacan, and Nueva Ecija. This militia made its last stand at Marikina in 1945. Other militias similar to the Makapili were: the Borong-Borong Gang, Kaigun Hatai, and Nishimura Butai.
- The Pambansang Pag-asa ng mga Anak ni Rizal (Tagalog "National Hope of the Children of Rizal") consisted of Ganáps in Pililla, Rizal, who were organized into a semi-military unit with the assistance of the Japanese. Also known as Pampar, they wore blue denim uniforms with short pants and were drilled along Japanese military lines. They performed sentry duties for the Japanese, and functioned as auxiliary troops of the Japanese army. They independently conducted raids against guerrilla camps.
- The Yoin, incorrectly known as U.N. or United Nippon, were members of the Japanese Auxiliary Army drawn from the ranks of the Ganáp Party. They were trained for military purposes and wore Japanese regular uniforms. They were used as replacements in the ranks of Japanese infantry. Their counterparts in the Japanese Empire were the Koreans, Formosans, and Manchuokuans pressed into the Japanese army.
- One American joined the Huks.
- One Italian pilot participated in the overthrow of the Marcos administration.
- Filipinos, recruited by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, fought in the Soviet–Afghan War. (See Abdurajak Abubakar Janjalani)
- One German ex-paratrooper participated in the 1989 coup
- Filipinos hired by private military companies worked in Afghanistan and Iraq.
- Filipinos fought in the Syrian Civil War.
- Forty foreign fighters, from Indonesia, Malaysia, Yemen, and Chechnya, fought in the Siege of Marawi.
Finnish
French
German
- Landsknecht
- Hessian (soldier)
- King's German Legion in the Napoleonic Wars.
- During the American Civil War Germany was the place of birth for thousands of Union soldiers. Several German speaking regiments existed such as the 9th Ohio Infantry, or the 74th Pennsylvania Infantry.
- In the Spanish Civil War, the state-sponsored Condor Legion fought for the Nationalists, while the Thaelmann Battalion fought for the Republicans.
- From 1991 to 1994, during the Croatian War of Independence and the Bosnian War, a number of former Bundeswehr and East-German army members fought alongside the Croats in the King Tomislav Brigade.[17] The brigade's executive officer at the time of the outbreak of the Bosnian Croat War was former Bundeswehr officer Jürgen Schmidt, who died while leading his troops against Bosnian Muslim forces near Gornji Vakuf, in January 1993.[18] In another action, a German-volunteer patrol, led by former Bundeswehr member Michael Homeister, ambushed and killed two Serbs manning an observation post.
Greek
Indian
Irish
See also Irish military diaspora.
Israeli
- Mahal – Program for non-Israelis between the age of 18–24 to serve in the IDF.
Italian
Japanese
Korean
Moroccan
Nepalese
Polish
- Brigades in the Spanish Civil War.
- Polish Lancers and other Polish forces in the Army of Napoleon.
- Polish Volunteers in many wars and revolutions of the 19th century, including Spring of Nations, Crimean War (on Turkish side) and The Paris Commune.
- The Blue Army, fought on the western front for the Allies during WW1.
- The Polish Legions, which fought for the Central Powers.
- Polish Volunteers served in the RAF during WW2.
Portuguese
Rhodesian
Russian
- The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation have since 2010 or so begun to recruit CIS volunteers. See Armed Forces of the Russian Federation#Personnel.
- A number of Russian soldiers would fight for Ukraine during the Russo-Ukrainian War as part of the Freedom of Russia Legion.
- Soviet Volunteer Group, between 1937-1941 as part of the Republic of China Air Force during the Second Sino-Japanese War.
- Some Russians fought for the Allies on the Western Front of WW1 as part of the Russian Legion. They were former members of the Russian Expeditionary Force.
- A small group of White Russian emigres fought for Nationalist Spain as part of the Spanish Legion.
- Asano Brigade, a unit of White Russian Emigres in Manchukuo.
- Various Russian collaborators, nicknamed Hiwis fought in both the Wehrmacht and the Waffen SS.
- Russian Emigres served in the Shanghai Volunteer Corps, a multinational volunteer force of the Shanghai International Settlement.
Serbian
- Volunteers from both Serbia and the Bosnian Serb entity, Republika Srpska, fought on the Russian side in the Donbas since the first military conflict in Ukraine in 2014[21]
- The Serb Volunteer Guard, Fought in the Croatian War of Independence and the Bosnian War supporting the Serb forces like the Army of Republika Srpska
- The Serbian Guard was a Serbian volunteer organization, armed wing of the Serbian Renewal Movement, active in Croatia in 1991
- Kninjas were Serbian volunteer organization commanded by Dragan Vasiljković, active in Croatia
- White Eagles were Serbian volunteer organization, armed wing of the Serbian Radical Party, active in Bosnia and Croatia
- Over 1,000 ethnic Serbs volunteered for the 7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division Prinz Eugen at General Phelps' office, most of whom were either ideologically or otherwise motivated to fight against the Partisans.[22]
- The Serbian Volunteer Corps was an Axis collaborationist group during WWII that helped fight against partisan forces in Serbia
- First Serbian Volunteer Division was a military formation of the First World War. This independent volunteer unit was primarily made up of South Slav Habsburg prisoners of war, detained in Russia
Scottish
- Scots have a long history of service in the armies of Kings of France since at least the ninth century. The Scottish Guard was formally created by the French King Charles VII in 1422, and existed until the end of the Bourbon Restoration period in 1830.
South African
Spanish
- The Blue Division of World War II fighting with Germany against the USSR.
- The Blue Legion was formed late in the Second World War out of Blue Division soldiers who refused to leave after Franco required all Spaniards to leave Axis forces.
- The 9th Armoured Company of the Free French Forces, which consisted of Spanish Republican exiles
- The Spanish Legion accepts foreign recruits.
Swedish
Swiss
Taiwanese
Ukrainian
Yugoslav
See also
Notes and References
- Web site: Leaning on Legionnaires: Why Modern States Recruit Foreign Soldiers . Grasmeder. Elizabeth M.F.. 30 July 2021 . International Security.
- Book: Webster, Graham. The Roman Imperial Army. 1979. Second . A & C Black. London . 0-7136-1909-0 . 144 .
- News: McKernan . Bethan . 27 February 2022 . Ukraine appeals for foreign volunteers to join fight against Russia . 28 February 2022 . The Guardian.
- Book: Herris . Jack . Aircraft of World War I, 1914-1918 . 2010 . Amber Books Ltd . London . 978-1-906626-65-5 . 55 . 2017 reprint.
- http://www.pritzkermilitarylibrary.org/Home/Rachel-Cox.aspx Webcast Author Interview
- Book: Mojzes, Paul . 2011 . Balkan Genocides: Holocaust and Ethnic Cleansing in the 20th Century . 94–95 . Rowman & Littlefield . Lanham, Maryland . 978-1-4422-0665-6 .
- 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)
- [Richard Baxell]
- Web site: 2018-11-06 . Bosnia struggles with return of ISIS widows . 2023-08-22 . POLITICO . en.
- Web site: Grgurinovic . Matea . February 28, 2022 . Croatian Volunteer Fighters Head for Ukrainian Frontline . Balkan Insight.
- Web site: Serbian, Croatian volunteers fight on Ukraine's front line – DW – 01/31/2023 . 2023-08-22 . dw.com . en.
- Web site: Braniteljski . 2020-12-08 . Strani dragovoljci u Domovinskom ratu (I. DIO) . 2023-08-22 . Braniteljski . hr.
- Web site: admin . 2020-08-04 . Croatian Volunteers in the Wehrmacht in WWII . 2023-08-19 . Feldgrau . en.
- Web site: Robert . 2019-09-29 . Les Français en Croatie - 1809-1813 . 2023-08-19 . Histoire du Consulat et du Premier empire . fr-FR.
- Bogros . Denis . 1996 . Les chevaux de la Cavalerie française à la fin du XVIIe siècle . Histoire, Économie et Société . 15 . 1 . 105–112 . 10.3406/hes.1996.1855 . 0752-5702.
- Web site: In Search of Meaning: ForeignVolunteers in the Croatian Armed Forces, 1991–95. Academia.edu. Arielli. Nir.
- Book: Krott, Rob. Save the Last Bullet for Yourself: A Soldier of Fortune in the Balkans and Somalia. Casemate. 2008. 978-1935149712. 168–69.
- Krott (2008, p. 148)
- Web site: Venezuela's Irish Legacy Copyright 1991 by Brian McGinn . 2019-01-07 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130216231428/http://www.illyria.com/irish/irishven.html . 2013-02-16 . dead .
- Web site: Garibaldi Division . Vojska.net . 2013-09-17.
- Web site: Kuloglija . Nermina . March 8, 2022 . Serb Volunteers Answer Call to Fight in Ukraine . Balkan Insight.
- Book: Kumm, Otto. Vorwärts, Prinz Eugen!: Geschichte d. 7. SS-Freiwilligen-Division "Prinz Eugen". 1978. Munin. 978-3-921242-34-6. 79. de.