501e Régiment de chars de combat

501e Régiment de chars de combat
Regimental Insignia of the 501e RCC
Active	1918 – present
Country	France
Branch	French Army
Part of	2nd Armoured Brigade
Engagements	World War I World War II First Indochina War Lebanese Civil War Multinational Force in Lebanon War on Terror (2001 - present)
Battle honours	Aisne 1918 Soissonnais 1918 Champagne (1918) Belgique 1918 El- Alamein 1942 Paris 1944 Strasbourg 1944
Commanders
Notable commanders	Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque

World War I
World War II
First Indochina War
Lebanese Civil War

The 501^e Régiment de chars de combat 501^e RCC in French, (501^e R.C.C, or 501st Combat Tank Regiment) is an armoured tank unit of the French Army created on May 13, 1918, and which took part in the two world wars, the Indochina war and Algerian war.

The regiment participated to the campaigns of Free France, then the liberation of Europe at the corps of the 2nd Armoured Division 2^e DB of général Philippe François Marie Leclerc de Hauteclocque.

Merged with the 503^e Régiment de chars de combat 503^e RCC to form the 501^e-503^e Régiment de chars de combat 501^e-503^e RCC, the regiment was redesignated as 501^e RCC on June 23, 2009.

On April 16, 1917, 132 Schneider CA1 mount an assaut on Berry-au-Bac. Considered the first monted tank assault in times. From this tank groupment, the 501st Assault Artillery Regiment (French: 501^e Régiment d'artillerie d'assaut, 501^e RAS.) was created on May 20, 1918.

the 501^e RAS, designated RCC, would be the first unit formed with the new organization of the armoured troops in the beginning og 1918.

Initially composed of the first Groupment of Schneider tanks and of the 1st and 2nd battalions of light tanks (the 1^er and 2^e BCL), created respectively on February 19 and March 18, 1918 and equipped with Renault FT 17. the 3rd battalion, formed on March 27, was initially assigned to the 508^e Régiment de chars de combat 508^e RCC then transferred to the 501^e RCC since May 29, 1918.