A FULLY ILLUSTRATED STUDY OF THE COLOURFUL REGIMENTS RAISED FOR FRANCE'S LATE 19TH-CENTURY COLONIAL WARS IN AFRICA AND VIETNAM. France's colonial wars in sub-Saharan Africa and South-East Asia were very largely fought by an organization completely separate from both the home-defence Metropolitan Army and the _Armée d'Afrique_ in Algeria. The Naval Troops (_Troupes de la Marine_) were volunteers, and earned a reputation for greater toughness and hardiness than the conscripted Metropolitan Army. Spread throughout the French Empire, Naval Troops in this period were characterized by very large infantry and artillery regiments based in France, mixed race regiments (_Régiments Mixtes_), and entire native regiments raised in West Africa, Madagascar and Indochina. The latter, the so-called '_Tirailleurs_' were organized and led by officers and cadres from the Naval Troops, and wore very varied and colourful uniforms based on formalized versions of traditional local costumes. _French Naval & Colonial Troops 1872–1914 _uses rich and detailed full colour plates as well as thorough analysis to detail the story of these tough colonial units which bore the brunt of French colonial campaigns in Africa and Vietnam.