The 2nd Brigade 'King Alfonso XIII' of the Legion

 The creation of the 2^nd Brigade “King Alfonso XIII” of the Spanish Legion (known by its Spanish acronym “BRILEG”) was the result of a process with many milestones. As a first step, on May 31^st, 1995, the decision was made to change the geographical location of the Legion Command from Málaga to Almería, keeping the name Legion Command (MALEG). 

Shortly thereafter, on August 11^th, 1995, the Legion Command (MALEG), now in Almería, was renamed Headquarters of the Legion Brigade (BRILEG).

This was the origin of the BRILEG, which would be joined—after several organizational adjustments—by the rest of the units from which it was initially comprised.The BRILEG was organized on the basis of the 3^rd and 4^th Spanish Legion Tercios “Don Juan de Austria” and “Alejandro Farnesio”, which were joined by the Support Units of the disbanded 13^th Brigade: Artillery Group, Logistics Group and Sappers Unit. All the units were stationed in the Álvarez de Sotomayor Base, located in the municipality of Viator, Almería, except for the 4^th Tercio, which remained in the “Montejaque” Barracks in the city of Ronda, Málaga. Years later, the Spanish Legion’s 2^nd Light Armored Cavalry Group “Reyes Católicos” was reactivated in the same Ronda barracks, picking up the baton from the Saharan Cavalry Group. 

On September 20^th, 1996, in a ceremony presided over by Their Majesties the King and Queen of Spain and coinciding with the celebration of the 75^th anniversary of the founding of the BRILEG, the moniker “Rey Alfonso XIII” (King Alphonse XIII) was added to its official name. The Spanish Legion’s 2^nd Brigade “Rey Alfonso XIII” is the Army’s youngest brigade and the largest unit in the Spanish Legion, with more than two thousand legionnaires. 

It is commanded by a Brigadier General, who—as Inspector of the Spanish Legion—is also responsible for ensuring the preservation and improvement of the spirit, virtues and traditions of all of the Legion’s units, thus ensuring the uniformity, spirit and traditions of the 1^st and 2^nd Spanish Legion Tercios “Gran Capitán” and “Duque de Alba” and the 19^th Special Operations Battalion “C. L. Maderal Oleaga”, which report to the General Commanders of Melilla, Ceuta and the Special Operations Command of Alicante, respectively.