1915, the Ministry of Defence set up a body dedicated to
producing and conserving photographic and film archives of the
armed forces. From then on this unique organisation was to be
the specialist archivist for French military history. Indeed,
with their presence on the ground, the teams of the
Etablissement de Communication et de Production Audiovisuelle de
la Défense (ECPAD – French communication and broadcasting
production institution) follow the involvement of French troops
at close quarters, wherever they may be in the world. pictures
are used by the army staff and made available to the media. The
accounts of those known as "soldiers of the image" then go to
enrich the audiovisual archives of the armed forces. This
extraordinary heritage (4 million photos and 16,500 films) is
conserved and restored at Fort d’Ivry (south-east of Paris). It
is open to the public. The website, http://www.ecpad.fr/, which
recently went on line, gives a glimpse of the wealth of its
collections through a selection of exception