13eme RDP
Fighting in Algeria (1955-1962) from Kabylia to Constantine

This work is dedicated to the thousands who served in the dragoon parachute regiments, those of all ranks who went "above and beyond" what was thought possible between 1955 and 1962, specifically the 84 men who landed on the other side of the Mediterranean during the war and who have resisted identifying themselves for many years. Splendidly illustrated with several hundred photos displaying uniforms and insignia from the period, Bruschi brings to life the faces and landscape that have been transformed throughout the years.<p>The fruit of long years of research, the author has relied upon the most precise sources and provides a voice for the many men who, from all corners of France, accepted to bear witness of their Algerian fate for the men of the 13th during these years of war. These are the men who we will follow throughout the course of Bruschi's work, across the snow-covered mountains and the deep forests of Kabylia, on the rocky paths of Constantine, all the way to the burning sand of the Sahara. These men who, in their late twenties, encountered extreme fatigue, fear, and death in order to finally achieve, in what was face-to-face combat with the enemy, "that which could only come from the depths of their beings."<p>Born in 1977, the author, historian and professor, is the son of one of men who served in the 13th RDP. Having completed his brevet parachutiste pre'militaire certification, he has since then specialized in the study of French airborne troops and has collaborated for many years with the journal Uniforme.<p>13e'me RDP includes 300 photos of which 100 are color, action shots and images documenting the uniforms and equipment.