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13th Parachute Dragoon Regiment | |
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13e Régiment de Dragons Parachutistes | |
Active | October 4, 1676 – present |
Country | France |
Branch | French Army |
Type | Special Forces |
Role | Special Reconnaissance |
Part of | French Army Special Forces Command |
Garrison/HQ | Martignas-sur-Jalle |
Motto(s) | Au-delà du possible (Beyond the possible) |
Abbreviation | 13e RDP |
The 13e Régiment de Dragons Parachutistes (English: 13th Parachute Dragoon Regiment) or 13e RDP is a special reconnaissance unit of the French Army. It belongs to the French Army Special Forces Command, and therefore to the Special Operations Command. The regiment is based in Martignas-sur-Jalle.
First raised in 1676 in the form of a regiment of dragoons (mounted cavalry) during the Ancien Regime by the Marquis de Barbezières in Languedoc, this cavalry regiment, one of the oldest, adopted the appellation of 13e Régiment de dragons (13th Dragoon Regiment) during the reorganization of the French cavalry units in 1791. The regiment was then transformed into an armoured unit in 1936, then an airborne-capable reconnaissance unit in 1952.