Action Man French Foreign Legionnaire

You cannot talk about the French and not mention the French Foreign Legion. Anyway, at the rate the French football team is playing in the 2010 World Cup, these are the only French worth watching ;p even if they are only 12 inches tall and 1/6 scale LOLZ

The Action Man French Foreign Legionnaire (1973) uniform consists of Kepi with separate white cotton cover and neck flap, plain white collarless undershirt, navy blue silk body belt or cumberband / sash, greatcoat (navy blue serge M1877 double breasted greatcoat), white trousers, ankle boots, waist belt and M1892 'Y' braces and three pouches - two at the front and one at the back plus a bayonet frog for the scabbard which holds the bayonet (which is 2.5 inches long), horizon blue M1877 2-litre water bottle or canteen with two spouts, 1886 Lebel rifle (longest rifle in the Action Man line at 9 inches), and sand colored backpack.

The French Foreign Legion (French: Légion étrangère) is a unique military unit in the French Army established in 1831. The legion was specifically created for foreign nationals wishing to serve in the French Armed Forces, but commanded by French officers. [SOURCE: WIKI]

The French Foreign Legion was created by Louis Philippe, the King of the French, on 10 March 1831. The direct reason was that foreigners were forbidden to serve in the French Army after the 1830 July Revolution, so the Legion was created to allow the government a way around this restriction.

The purpose of the Legion was to remove disruptive elements from society and put them to use fighting the enemies of France. Recruits included failed revolutionaries from the rest of Europe, soldiers from the disbanded foreign regiments, and troublemakers in general, both foreign and French. Algeria was designated as the Legion's home.

The Legion was primarily used to protect and expand the French colonial empire during the 19th century, but it also fought in almost all French wars including the Franco-Prussian War and both World Wars. The Foreign Legion has remained an important part of the French Army, surviving three Republics, The Second French Empire, two World Wars, the rise and fall of mass conscript armies, the dismantling of the French colonial empire and the French loss of the legion's base, Algeria.

What has come before:
Action Man French Resistance Fighter, part of the Action Man Soldiers of the Century series, first introduced during 1967/1968 and
Polistil Action Man French Officer pictures posted HERE