Army, three based in Algeria and one in Tunisia. During their period as mounted cavalry the Spahis comprised for the most part Arab and Berber troopers commanded by French officers. This division was not absolute however and there were always a certain number of French volunteers in the ranks (for example, the later well known lyricist Raymond Asso was a Spahi between 1916 and 1919). About 20% of the rank and file were French and the remainder Arab or Berber. In addition, a fixed number of commissioned positions up to the level of captain were reserved for Muslim officers. NCOs were both French and Muslim. In contrast to the North African tirailleur (infantry) units the mounted spahis were drawn from "the big tents": i.e. the higher social classes of the Arab and Berber communities. This dated back to the establishment of the corps when required that each recruit provide his own horse. As Spahi units were mechanized during World War II, the proportion of Frenchmen in the ranks increased. World War I Spahis were sent to France at the outbreak of war in August 1914. They saw service during the opening period of mobile warfare but inevitably their role diminished with the advent of trench warfare. During World War I the number of units increased with the creation of Moroccan Spahi regiments and the expansion of the Algerian arm. By 1918 there were seven Spahi regiments then in existence, all having seen service on the Western Front. In addition a detached squadron accompanied two squadrons of Chasseurs d'Afrique and served as part of the 5th Light Horse Brigade during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign against the Ottoman Empire. This composite force of French cavalry was known as the 1er Régiment Mixte de Marche de Cavalerie de Levant. In 1918 a "marching regiment" of Moroccan spahis (Régiment de Marche des Spahis Marocains) saw active service in the Balkans, winning the collective distinction of the Médaille militaire. Between the World Wars By 1921 the Spahi regiments had been increased to twelve (from four in 1914) and this became the permanent establishment. During the 1920s mounted Spahi regiments saw extensive active service in the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon, as well as in Morocco. They continued to perform policing and garrison duties in Algeria and Tunisia. Although mechanisation began in the 1930s of the Chasseurs d'Afrique and Foreign Legion cavalry, the