Belgian Gendarmerie Chevrolet CMP's

[Oliver Missing]

Though not exactly my stuff (Lend-Lease to Russia), I didn't want to leave this pic unpublished on the forum.
Believe it or not, it's already downsized to 20 percent...
It shows the 1954 autopark of the Belgian Gendarmerie and is part of the collection of the "Historical Service of the Belgian Federal Police".
I received it via a fellow truck painter, Mr. Christian Toumpsin from Brussels.
He wrote me :
"In 1945, the Gendarmerie was equipped with lot of Commonwealth and US surplus :
- Chevrolet CMP,
- Scout Car White,
- Scout Car Daimler MkI,
- Staghound Armored Car with cannon and
- Staghound with twin AA guns,
- Scout Car Humber Mk I.
The Chevrolet CMP remained in active use till mid-fifties.
They were replaced by Ford F5 Cargo, Bedford RLC Cargo and FN 4RM "Ardennes" Police Squad Truck."
Regards,
Oliver.

http://www.o5m6.de/pics/CMP_BelgianPolice_20.jpg

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally posted by Oliver Missing
Though not exactly my stuff (Lend-Lease to Russia), I didn't want to leave this pic unpublished on the forum.

Great picture, thanks for sharing it with us!

Keith Webb also has a couple of pictures on his site taken by Christian Toumpsin showing a C15A which was recently restored by the Historical Service of the Police.


Source: http://www.oldcmp.net/c15a.html

[Dave Page]

Hi,
that is a great shot, got any more? The Daimler is a MkIII or at the very least a MkII converted post-war to MkIII specs. There are also very early Land Rovers and an RL Bedford. Can anybody name the rest?
Thanks for sharing the picture,
Dave

[Alex Blair (RIP)]

Originally posted by Dave Page
Hi,
that is a great shot, got any more? The Daimler is a MkIII or at the very least a MkII converted post-war to MkIII specs. There are also very early Land Rovers and an RL Bedford. Can anybody name the rest?
Thanks for sharing the picture,
Dave

Dave
There is at least a dozen White Scout cars there..The sun is overhead and slightly behind the vehicles and the Ro;llers on the front throw a distinct shadow that is easy to spot..
There are some 15cwt Cmps,and some cabover engine GMs (I think)..
Throw in a few Mapleleaf or MCP GMs,a few jeeps and some trailers ....
Hanno..Not a Ford in sight...
They are all in the big shed getting fixed....

[Dave Page]

Hi Alex,
on closer inspection, there are two Daimler S/Cs (2nd is bottom right partially obscured). If these are police vehicles they must have had some really bad locals.
Dave

[nuyt]

Hi Oliver, thanks for that!

The Landrovers must be Belgian produced Minerva's and there ARE Fords in the picture: top left are some vans as well as some other light trucks on the right (late 40's model).

Then there also 37mm armed Staghounds. The Belgian Rijkswacht/Gendarmerie/Armed Men were ready for anything.

Somewhat later they were to be equipped with Belgian produced FN Armoured cars with a 90mm Cockerill gun. God knows where they needed that for...

Nuyt

[Bill Murray]

I just love these vehicle park pics.

In the right hand group from top to bottom:
3d row Ford F2 GS
5th row black tanker? cannot yet identify.
6th row Ford F2 Panel of some sort.
Going now from the top on the right hand group:
3d row from top looks like another F2 but seems a bit different than the others.

Left hand group going from top to bottom:
2nd row looks like a Benz ambulance (pass car based)
Then a Ford F5 as ambulance.
3d row are 2 Ford F2s and an F5 cargo.
6th row shows a black/red Ford F5
7th row contains two Magirus Deutz anti riot trucks.
8th row appears to be a Ford COE but I need to do more research.

The Fords would be from 1948 to 1952 and the pic is not clear enough to tell exactly which year. Someone will be able to check with the Gendarmerie historical buffs to see when they were purchased as they were not castoffs but were purchased in the normal manner.
Bill

[nuyt]

Bill, the top left 8th row van might just be a Ford Rhein minibus?
Otherwise a French vehicle?

Nuyt

[Bill Murray]

Nuyt:

I misguessed the first time and now feel it is a US style forward control sort of delivery van (in it's original state). May have been delivered/manufactured as a chassis/cowl and a purpose built body added. Probably F2 chassis of the same time period as the other Fords. I cannot find my Ford reference book that has all this stuff for the moment but when I do I will try to post a pic.
Again, a great pic!!
Bill

[Bill Murray]

Nuyt:

Left hand 8th row I now believe is a 1951 Ford F3 parcel van at least in it's original specification My source for this is W&T No.21 page 41 which shows an almost identical vehicle as an ambulance albeit 4X4. 4X4/4X2, I cannot tell from that rather large photo but I think I have at least the basic vehicle properly identified.
Bill

[Hanno Spoelstra]

See Foto Storiche Reparto Mobile for loads of pictures of ex-MV's in use with the Italian state police.

[servicepub (RIP)]

After the Korean war the Canadian Army sought permission to buy US equipment and to organise its army along US lines. This was based on the need to guarantee supplies in the event of a war with the Communist horde. The Canadian government agreed to the plan on the following condition; For every Divison's worth of British style equipment which the army could 'place' (at no charge) with a NATO ally the Canadian government would fund the acquisition of a Division's worth of US equipment. The deal had one small wrinkle - Cda would include small arms in its gift but would not accept US small arms in its purchase.
This scheme may explain many of the vehicles found in Belgium and in the Netherlands as both if these countries accepted Canada's offer. Of course, many were also WWII left-behinds.

[chritoum]

Here is a picture of the Chevrolet C15A restaured with the colors of the Belgian Gendarmerie (Paramilitary Police force disbanded in 2001). This vehicle is the property of the Belgian Police Historical Service (Brussels).

Numerous vehicles of this type were used by the Belgian gendarmerie from 1944 until 1966-1967.

I also attached a picture from the archives of Life Magazine that shows numerous CMP's on the Grand'Place in Brussels.

We also have a Scout Car White :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oq8oQr7iFew

[chritoum]

Out of the archives of the magazine "Life", few pictures showing CMP's of the Belgian Gendarmerie during the Belgian crisis of 1950.

The Belgian Gendarmerie used Chevrolet CMP's from the winter of 1944 until 1966. These vehicles were the workhorses of the paramilitary police forces during more than 20 years.

A replica is owned by the Belgian Police Historical Service

[chritoum]

Two other great pictures of CMP's of the Belgian Gendarmerie