After 1871 the zouaves lost their status as an élite corps solely made up of long-service volunteers; they became a force mainly composed of conscripts from the French settlers in Algeria and Tunisia, undertaking their compulsory military service. Shortfalls in numbers were made up by detachments from the southern "régions militaires" of mainland France ("Métropole"). The Zouave regiments did however retain significant numbers of long-service volunteers ("engages volontiers et réengages") who contributed to the high morale and steadiness of these units.