page_title: Lebanese Armed Forces
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Lebanese Armed Forces / History
caption_attribution_description: العربية: بطاقة فيها صورة مجموعة من الجنود اللبنانيين المحليين خلال فترة شبه مستقلة، بحكومة مسيحية، في فترة موتاسارفية من جبل لبنان [1861-1914] ، والتي أعقبت صراع 1860 بين الموارنة والدروز في سوريا ولبنان. English: Post-card of local Lebanese soldiers during the semi-Independent, Christian governed, Mutasarrifia period of Mount Lebanon [ 1861-1914 ], which followed the 1860 conflict between the Maronites and the Druze of Syria and Lebanon. " The Governor appointment is subject to the approval of the six great powers and cannot be removed without the consent of their Ambassadors at Constantinople. Lebanon has its own army of volunteer militias&#160;; and the free independent bearing of these mountaineers is in striking contrast to that of the underpaid, underfed and poorly clothed conscripts of the regular army. Yet since the 1861 the mountaineers, Druzes and Maronites alike, have enjoyed an unprecedented quit and increasing material prosperity. " [ SYRIA THE LAND OF LEBANON, LEWIS GASTON LEARY, 1913.]
context_page_description: The Lebanese Armed Forces or Forces Armées Libanaises in French, also known as the Lebanese Army, is the military of the Lebanese Republic. It consists of three branches, the army, the air force, and the navy. The motto of the Lebanese Armed Forces is "Honor, Sacrifice, Loyalty". The Lebanese Armed Forces symbol consists of a Lebanon cedar tree surrounded by two laurel leaves, positioned above the symbols of the three branches: the ground forces represented by the two bayonets, the navy represented by an anchor, and the air force represented by two wings.
context_section_description: Being a part of the Levant, the crossroads of the ancient world, Lebanon was inhabited by various different empires and nations over the time. As a result, the natives had to defend themselves in various ways. The Phoenicians, who were a Canaanite people that inhabited the coast from Ashkelon to Latakia in antiquity, fought off foreign invasions using irregular conscripts and mercenaries in wars. They regularly took parts in revolts against powers of the region, including the Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians and Persians. After the end of the Persian rule, Lebanon came under Hellenic control and was largely Hellenized. After Pompey conquered the eastern Mediterranean in 64 BC, Lebanon became a part of the Roman empire for 6 centuries. Veterans of two Roman legions under Augustus were established in the city of Beirut (the Legio V Macedonica and the Legio III Gallica). 
  However, The Lebanese Army finds its original local roots in the armed forces that were first formed under the various native dynasties that ruled Lebanon, notably Maan (c. 1490 - 1697) from Chouf, Harfush (c. 1497 - 1860) from Bekaa, Hamadas (c. 1550 - 1775) from Jbeil & Keserwan, Ali al-Saghir (c. 1630 - 1865) from Jabal Amil and Shihabs (c. 1697 - 1842) from Hasbaya. As the realm of the Lebanese dominion sometimes extended as far as Cilicia in Turkey and Arish in Egypt under Fakhreddine II, and as far as Palmyra in 1568 under Ali ibn Musa Harfush of Baalbek. These dynasties formed the defensive barrier of Lebanon since the late 15th century until the Ottoman departure. The first major victory came on October 31, 1622 against the Ottoman Empire Army under the lead of the Pasha of Damascus in the Battle of Majdel Anjar. Outnumbered (5,000 Lebanese soldiers against 12,000 Syrians), Fakher el-Din was nevertheless victorious and was able to capture the Pasha of Damascus himself and take over Syria, Galilee and parts of Transjordan.
  During the period of the semi-autonomous province (Mutasarrifia) period of Mount Lebanon between 1861 and 1914, no Turkish troops were allowed to station within its boundary. Lebanon established its own army made up of volunteer militias; "the free independent bearing of these mountaineers was in striking contrast to that of the underpaid, underfed and poorly clothed conscripts of the regular [Turkish] army".
  The beginnings of the modern Lebanese Army arose during 1916, when the French government established the "Legion of the Orient", which included Lebanese soldiers. After a post World War I League of Nations mandate was established over Lebanon in April 1920, France formed the Army of the Levant, which was later reorganized into the "Troupes Spéciales du Levant" (Special Troops of the Levant). These troops were composed of Lebanese and Syrian enlisted personnel, but were commanded predominantly by French officers; however, the percentage of Lebanese and Syrian officers in the force gradually increased in size to approximately 90% of the total number by 1945.
  Later in 1926, the Lebanese First Sharp Shooters Unit was created out of the Special Troops of the Levant; it is considered to be a direct precursor to the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF).
  During World War II, Lebanese troops fought in Lebanon with the Vichy French forces against Free French and British forces. After the Vichy forces in the Middle East surrendered in July 1941, volunteers from the Troupes Spéciales du Levant enlisted in the Free French forces and participated in combat in Italy, North Africa, and southern France. In 1943, prior to the declaration of Lebanese independence, all the military units were combined in one brigade, the Fifth Brigade, under the command of General Fouad Chehab. On the day Lebanon declared independence, the Lebanese Third Sharp Shooters Regiment was placed at the disposal of the Lebanese government in order to maintain security. In June of the same year, the French reconstituted units of the Troupes Spéciales du Levant, which were then attached to the British forces in the Middle East. The majority of the Lebanese Armed Forces remained a
caption: Lebanese soldiers during the mutasarrif period
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