The Troupes de Marine (French pronunciation: [tʁup də maʁin], lit. 'Marine Troops') or TDM, sometimes simply referred to as "French Marines" in English, are one of the major components of the French Army and comprise several specialties: infantry, airborne, armoured cavalry, artillery, engineering, and transmissions (signals). Characterized by their fundamental vocation for service beyond the seas, including in French overseas territories and, formerly, in French colonies, the Marines have taken part in all French military campaigns since the corps' foundation, both on home soil and in theaters of operations around the world. They are stationed in Metropolitan France, in many French overseas departments and territories, as well as in Africa.

Historically amphibious warfare specialists, the French Marines were pioneers of professionalization since the late 1960s and are well suited for military campaigns abroad. From Gabon in 1964 to Afghanistan in 2002, and from the First Gulf War in 1990 to Mali in 2013, their units took part in more than sixty military operations over six decades. As they represent a core asset of French expeditionary capabilities, they are highly trained soldiers and noted for their professionalism and strong esprit de corps. With a strength of over 17,000 men as of 2022, the Troupes de Marine consist of 26 regiments and amount to around 15% of the French Army.

The Troupes de marine were formerly known as the Troupes coloniales, with origins dating back to the French Navy's Troupes de la marine. The French colonies were under the control of the Ministère de la Marine (the equivalent of the British Admiralty), accordingly, Marines defended the colonies.

Renamed Troupes d'Outre-Mer then Troupes de Marine during the dismantling of the French Union (1958), their origin can actually be found in the Compagnies Ordinaires de la Mer (French: Compagnies Ordinaires de la Mer) (Ordinary Sea Companies), created in 1622 by Cardinal Richelieu. These companies were used to embark on royal naval ships to serve the naval artillery and participate in the boarding of enemy ships. These companies were also in charge of guarding the various sea ports. Despite the fact that the artillery of the marines was limited in numbers compared to those of the infantry marines (fusiliers and grenadiers), the ship's marine artillerymen were the determining factor for the Troupes de la marine, being in charge of displacing and mounting the naval guns under the orders of the respective marine artillery officer in charge. In the 18th century, they constituted the Compagnies Franches de la Marine who essentially spread to Nouvelle France (in particular: these marines were recruited in Europe, with marine officers recruiting them on the spot due to an excellent knowledge of the local environment). Since then the anchor has been with the Troupes as their official symbol because of the former links to the French Royal Navy.

Following France's defeat in the Seven Years' War, these troops, along with the rest of the Marines, were transferred to the French Army under the Choiseul ministries, and after their emancipation at the end of 1760, they retained a large number of officers issued from the Ministère de la Guerre, which would reproduce and compensate for the losses endured assisting the colonies during the American Revolutionary War. An evolution in the mentality of the troops and an increasingly pronounced separation between the marines and their officers followed. A tentative close-up merger was attempted by two naval ship corps and their troops in 1786 with the companies of naval gunners assigned to ships of the Navy; however, the experiment came to little conclusion.

The separate companies of the Régiment Royal–La Marine and the Régiment de l'Amiral de France founded by Colbert were based in Dunkerque, Le Havre, Brest, Rochefort and Toulon. They wore an off-white/grey uniform with blue facings .

The 1670s saw significant changes in the organisation of the new corps, administered by Ministers Colbert and François-Michel le Tellier, Marquis de Louvois, respectively Naval State Secretary and the Secretary of State of War. The four regiments of the la marine were transferred from the secretariat of La Marine to that of the secretariat of La Guerre. The regiments were no longer directly part of the French Navy although the designation Troupes de marine was retained. During the Revolution, the La Marine, Royal-Marine, Royal-Vaisseux, and the Régiment de l'Amiral ( re-baptized Régiment de Vermandois) regiments were integrated definitively into the French Army, becoming respectively, the 11^e, 60^e, 43^e and 61^e regiments of de Ligne in 1791.

The Marine Royale was a substantial force in 1671, consisting of 196 naval vessels. Colbert decided to create 100 companies of "guardian-soldiers" intended to form part of the crews of the larger naval vessels (French: Vaisseau). However, these men were redirected towards the French Army by Louvois in 1673. Starting from this date, senior naval and marine officers were obliged to separately recruit crews and marines for each ship. Using a system of «levées» (selective conscription) in the various sea ports, similar to the « marine press », the naval and marine officers were able to man their ships. However, the system reached its limitations quickly. The recruits often lacked discipline and experience, and were discharged or deserted following their first voyage, wasting months of training. Until 1682 there was a serious shortage of experienced sailors and soldiers in the French Navy.