For the Monagasque Force Publique, see Force Publique (Monaco).
Former gendarmerie and military force
Force Publique
Force Publique soldiers on parade with their Belgian officer in the late 1940s
Active
1877–1960
Allegiance
Congo Free State (to 1908)
Belgian Congo (1908–1960)
Republic of the Congo (1960)
Type
Colonial army
Size
c. 17,000 (1914)[1] c. 23,500 (1960)[2]
Nickname(s)
FP
Engagements
Congo–Arab War World War I World War II
Military unit
The Force Publique (French:[fɔʁspyblik], "Public Force"; Dutch: Openbare Weermacht) was a gendarmerie and military force in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1877 (when the territory was known as the Congo Free State), through the period of Belgian colonial rule (Belgian Congo – 1908 to 1960). The FP was retitled as the Congolese National Army or ANC in July 1960 after independence.
The ForcePublique (French: [fɔʁs pyblik], "Public Force"; Dutch: Openbare Weermacht) was a gendarmerie and military force in what is now the Democratic...
1960, soldiers of the garrisons of Léopoldville and Thysville of the ForcePublique, the army of the newly independent Republic of the Congo mutinied against...
the Belgian government in exile. Militarily, Congolese troops of the ForcePublique fought alongside British forces in the East African Campaign, and a...
garrison force. Despite its military success during the conflict, the ForcePublique was vulnerable to internal agitation. In 1944, a ForcePublique garrison...
rubber cheaply and maximise profit. The Free State's military force, the ForcePublique, enforced the labour policies. Individual workers who refused...
early defeat, Ngongo Lutete betrayed Sefu bin Hamid and defected to the ForcePublique. In response to this, Sefu put the Resident of Kasongo, Lieutenant Joseph...
to honor himself and his country. To enforce the rubber quotas, the ForcePublique was called in and made the practice of cutting off the limbs of the...
Janssens' speech to the ForcePublique on 5 July 1960 Lieutenant-General Émile Janssens, the Belgian commander of the ForcePublique, refused to see Congolese...
in a painful manner, as it took off the worker's hair with it. The ForcePublique (FP), Leopold's private army, was used to enforce the rubber quotas...
Congo Free State to him. Leopold ran the Congo by using the mercenary ForcePublique for his personal gain. He extracted a fortune from the territory, initially...
the Congo was literally unexplored if not inaccessible." Leopold's ForcePublique, a private army that terrorized natives to work as forced labour for...
Organic Law 130. The first organised Congolese troops, known as the ForcePublique, were created in 1888 when King Leopold II of Belgium, who held the...
prison, he was ordered to serve seven years in the colonial army, the ForcePublique (FP). This was a usual punishment for rebellious students. Mobutu found...
what was then the Congo Free State. His people were attacked by the ForcePublique, established by King Leopold II of Belgium as a militia to oppress the...
Prìncipu; "Prince's Company of Riflemen") is the Infantry branch of the ForcePublique, and one of the limited number of militaries that recruits foreigners...
disbandment in March 1867. From 1885 the ForcePublique was established as the military garrison and police force in the Belgian Congo, then under the direct...
resources. The war ended in January 1894 with a victory of Leopold's ForcePublique. Initially, the Free State collaborated with the Arabs. Still, competition...
Kasa-Vubu. On 8 July, Lumumba renamed the ForcePublique as the "Armée Nationale Congolaise" (ANC). He Africanised the force by appointing Sergeant Major Victor...
Public force could be used to refer to either police or military forces. The first use of the concept of a public force, in French ForcePublique, is in...
lieutenant general who served in both world wars, and a commander of the ForcePublique in the Belgian Congo. After joining the Belgian Army in 1910, Gilliaert...
Supremo African World War II Veterans Histoire de la ForcePublique (History of the ForcePublique) by Lieutenant-General Emile Janssens, Wasmael-Chalier...
the Congo with help from Belgian soldiers and former officers of the ForcePublique. Belgian troops also provided much of the early training for the Gendarmerie...
Spanish Guinea Corps of Colonial Marines Dubats French Colonial Forces ForcePublique Goumier Gurkhas Indian auxiliaries Indios reyunos Khyber Rifles King's...