chasseur, (French: “hunter”), member of various branches of the French army. Originally (1743) chasseurs, or chasseurs à pied (“on foot”), were light-infantry regiments. By the outbreak of World War I there were 31 battalions of chasseurs of which 12 were known as chasseurs alpins—units specially trained for mountain warfare. After World War I, chasseurs were formed as independent battalions for administrative purposes but were grouped into demibrigades of three battalions for war. Just prior to World War II a few battalions were integrated into armoured divisions as motorized infantry called chasseurs portés.
The light-cavalry (chasseurs à cheval) regiments were first instituted in 1779. They performed notable service in the European campaigns of the Second Empire. At the close of World War I they were represented by five regiments of chasseurs d’Afrique, originally recruited in 1831 for service in Algeria. The number of such cavalry units was increased after World War I, and they were progressively reorganized into armoured formations. In the process, the term chasseurs de chars was added to distinguish units specifically designed as tank-destroyer units.