Chasseurs alpins French Army Components Armée de terre Troupes de marine French Foreign Legion Chasseurs alpins List of current regiments Structure of the French Army Administration État-major de l'armée de Terre Equipment Modern Equipment History History of the French Army Timeline of the French Army Personnel List of senior officers Rank insignia The Chasseurs Alpins ( Alpine Hunters or Alpine Chasers ) are the mountain infantry and an elite unit of the French Army . They are trained to operate in mountainous terrain and in urban warfare . Modern unit Chasseurs alpins wear a special wide beret called `` tarte '' ( = `` pie '' ) . Since 1999 they have been ( with other units ) part of the 27th Mountain Infantry Brigade ( Brigade d'Infanterie de Montagne ) , and are currently organised into three battalions : 7th Battalion , Bourg-Saint-Maurice 13th Battalion , Chambéry 27th Battalion , Cran-Gevrier ( Annecy ) All three battalions are based in cities in the French Alps , thus the name of the units . Training includes climbing , cross-country skiing , plus winter and summer mountain leadership and mountain guiding skills . Traditional training included mountain survival skills such as to build an igloo shelter and to sleep in by temperatures around 0°C. Modern troops may be transported in all-terrain VMBs VACs or untracked VAB personnel carriers . Personal weaponry includes the FAMAS assault rifle , Minimi machine gun , FRF-2 sniper rifle , PGM Hecate II heavy sniper rifle , and LGI light mortar , while group weapons included the M2 machine gun , LLR 81mm mortar , and vehicle-mounted 20mm autocannon , plus AT4 , ERYX and MILAN anti-tank missiles . The Chasseurs are easily recognised by their wide beret ( when not in battle uniform ) , named tarte ( = pie ) . The British Army adopted the wearing of the beret in the 1920s after having seen similar berets worn by the 70th Chasseurs Alpins ( now disbanded ) . [ citation needed ] Unit origins Until 1859 , Italy was n't yet an unified state but a sum of kingdoms and independent republics ( Kingdom of Naples , Venician States , Papal States , etc . ) . The situation changed since 1859 with the help of Garibaldi and Cavour trying to create an unified and solid nation . This geopolitical change was seen as a possible threat from the other side of the Alps border , partially as the Italians were the first to have mountain warfare specialized troops . The French solution was to create its own mountain corps in order to oppose an Italian invasion through the Alps . By December 24 , 1888 , a law is applied about the creation of a troupes de montagne ( `` mountain troops '' ) corps. 12 out of the 31 existing Chasseurs à Pied ( `` Hunters on Feet '' or `` Chasers on Feet '' ) battalions are selected to be converted . These first units are named Bataillons Alpins de Chasseurs à Pied ( `` Hunters on Feet Alpine Battalions '' ) which will be later shortened to Bataillons de Chasseurs Alpins ( `` Alpin Hunters Battalions '' ) . Ranks Increasing . 1er Cul ( 1st ass ) Capo ( Corporal ) Capo Chef ( Corporal-Chief ) Sergent ( Sergeant ) Chef ( Chief ) Adjudant ( Adjutant ) etc . Note : the common warrant officer ranks Brigadier and Maréchal des Logis are not used in the Chasseurs Alpins corps . Important figures General Alain Le Ray , first military chief of the Vercors maquis . Gallery Dress uniform Soldiers in Summer uniform Chasseurs alpins in battle snow camouflage , with FAMAS rifles . The VHM special high mountain armoured vehicles . See also Ski warfare Military of France External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to : Chasseurs alpins 7 ème Bataillon de Chasseurs Alpins 13 ème Bataillon de Chasseurs Alpins Categories : Articles with unsourced statements | French Army In other languages : Deutsch | Français Chasseurs alpins 