Dien bien phu is a wargame covering the decisive battle of the first indochina war in which elite french expeditionary force units defended an airland base against the communist viet minh. The battle translated to victory for the viet minh and brought an end to the french occupation of indochina. The french outpost at dien bien phu fell in 1954, 10 years before. This major confrontation occurred at dien bien phu, a large heartshaped valley located in northwestern part of vietnam, near the border with laos. After the geneva peace conference, vietnam was left divided between ho chi minhs communist.
Wellordered data, maps, photos, french and foreign legion units. The french war memorial in dien bien phu is the only one built to commemorate the loss of french lives in the historic battle of dien bien phu. The french lost the battle of dien bien phu because the vietminh had the advantages in topography and terrain, logistics, artillery and antiaircraft capabilities, and political will. Jul 17, 2017 fourth and final episode of my video series on wargames about dien bien phu covers kim kangers dien bien phu. Managing a battle site, metaphoric and actual william s. Chinese military advisors in vietnam in the early 1950s.
First, the battle of dien bien phu was fought between one polity. The epic battle america forgot geography dienbienphu, is a small crossroads village in the northwestern corner of what is today vietnam. Thus, your challenge is to develop a battle plan that will turn the tables on the french and give the viet minh, not france, a decisive victory at dien bien phu. The final gamble, published in 2014 by legion wargames. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. The valley of dien bien phu may have been the militarily significant route between tonkin and. Chinese military advisors claimed that they successfully applied what they got from the battle experience in korean war into dien bien phu. The battle of dienbienphu kindle edition by jules roy, ralph wetterhahn. Aug 19, 2019 the end of french occupation dien bien phu was the battle that finally ended the french occupation of vietnam. Battle of dien bien phu french foreign legion information. Foreword ten years have elapsed since the memorable dien bien phu victory and the repercussions of this battle still make themselves felt, as witness the passionate discussions still going on about it. The battle of dien bien phu was a climactic confrontation of the first indochina war that took place between march and 7 may 1954. This led the french to give up in the first indochina war, securing the independence of the democratic republic of vietnam for the time.
French operational errors that helped ensure their. Dien bien phu, 1954, was the final battle of the first indochina war. The battle of dien bien phu began in midmarch and ended in early may 1954. The battle of dien bien phu timeline timetoast timelines. Media in category battle of dien bien phu the following 50 files are in this category, out of 50 total.
Forty years ago, frances war with the anticolonial communistled vietminh insurgency climaxed in the bloody battle for the valley of dienbienphu. We recommend booking dien bien phu museum tours ahead of time to secure your spot. Lasting 55 days, the battle had french troops attempt to hold an armed camp against the viet minh, who greatly out. The french air force which was critical to the conduct of the battle faced a very hostile vietminh aaa. How dien bien phu led to americas war in vietnam in the trenches in 1953, a hard fought battle between french and vietnamese forces finished off france as a colonial power and eerily presaged. John foster dulles on the fall of dien bien phu 1954 guerre dindochine duration. The battle of dien bien phu timeline created by briow. Victory in this battle, they reckoned, would merely assist in the favorable progression of the war.
Dien bien phu is the definitive account of the great, climactic battle in french indochina that led to the american commitment to vietnam. The viet minh victory in this battle effectively ended the eightyearold war. Dien bien phu, battle of 1954, victory by 50, 000 vietminh over 15, 000 french which all but ended the indochina war. Bien phu victory and the repercussions of this battle still make themselves felt, as witness the passionate. Causes and consequences of the battle of dien bien phu. Dien bien phu was effectively at the bottom of a valley and giaps men controlled all the surrounding area. Some of them are shown in situ, from the heart of the battle, at dien bien phu, while others are reported by civilians at hanoi city or by paratroopers at hanois civilian airport the hanoi action is mostly focused on britishborn american writerreporter howard simpson donald pleasence. Mar 27, 2015 the french defeat at dien bien phu in 1954 signalled the end of french influence in indochina.
The battle of dien bien phu board game boardgamegeek. It is highly probable the united states would have been faced with much the same situation as the french after the fall of dien bien phu if the north vietnamese had been successful at khe sanh. French operational errors that helped ensure their defeat at dien bien phu. Pdf new perspectives on dien bien phu pierre asselin. Though a momentous event in recent history, the battle of dien bien phu remains misunderstood in the west as most pertinent accounts are speculative and. Ho chi minh elected president ho chi minh became president of the drv the democrativ republic of vietnam. The defeat of the french at dien bien phu marked the end of french influence in the region. Logan descendinginto dien bien phu, a 4ominute flight lrom the vietnamese capital, hanoi, is likc, i imagine, coming across the mythical shangrila. The battle of dien bien phu would mark the end of french domination in vietnam and inadvertently, the beginning of a more involved effort by the united states. The 15 best things to do in dien bien phu 2020 with. At dien bien phu, even as french air force attacked the vietminh forces, they launched direct assaults on the french positions. One player assumes the role of the french, the other the role of the vietminh. It was fought between the french far east expeditionary corps and the viet minh forces, commanded by vo nguyen giap, from march to may 7, 1954.
The memorial was built on the 30th anniversary of the brutal 1954 battle and commemorated 3000 martyrs of the french troops. The french defeat at dien bien phu, and the accompanying destruction of the best elements of the french union forces, marked an end of french colonial rule in indochina. In the end, of the 16,000 french troops, fewer than 100 broke through the siege at dien bien phu, with the rest killed, wounded, or captured. The battle of dien bien phu is seen as the decisive battle of the first indochina war between french troops and the viet minh league for the independence of vietnam, a nationalist, prosoviet union movement of ho chi minh. Simpson, 9781574888409, download free ebooks, download free pdf epub ebook. History and images of the wellknown battle with the viet minh in then french indochina. From the acclaimed scholar and reporter, a thorough and revealing account of the historic turning point in vietnams long strugglethe 1954 battle for dien bien phu like gettysburg, stalingrad, midway, and tet, the battle at dien bien phua strategic attack launched by france against the vietnamese in 1954 after eight long years of warmarked a historic turning point. It lies approximately 300 kilometers due west from hanoi and roughly 160 kilometers east from the present day border of laos. Both the french and viet minh order of battle at dien bien phu are appendices, and a brief bibliography complete the work. The 1954 battle at dien bien phu was waged by an army. The on flow of the viet minh victory over the french was the second indochina war better known as the vietnam war 1 nov 1955 30 apr 1975.
The movie follows the chronological events of the battle. The game covers the critical period of viet minh assaults and french counterattacks of march to may, 1954. The war contains the vietminh from the north of vietnam and of the french union. Citadel is a twoplayer game of the battle of dien bien phu, marchmay 1954. If you book with tripadvisor, you can cancel up to 24 hours before your tour starts for a full refund. The dien bien phu museum located in dien bien is an attempt to commemorate the historic battle of 1954 fought between the french and the viet minh soldiers. After dien bien phu the americans decided that they would need to up their involvement in vietnam if they were to stop the spread of communism. As the fighting began between the vietcong and south vietnamese army, president eisenhower tried to help south vietnam by. When the battle at dien bien phu began, the french artillery commander committed suicide as a. Causes and consequences of the battle of dien bien phu examine the causes and consequences and consequences of the battle of dien bien phu, 1954, which affected the lives of the vietnamese until the 1960s. This is a superb chronicle of a sad and avoidable conflict that led to an even more destructive one. The battle of dien bien phu was the decisive engagement in the first indochina war 194654. Battle of dien bien phu, the decisive engagement in the first indochina war 194654. In another asiatic long march reminiscent of the bataan death march, many weakened fighting men died and even more died once they got to their prison camps.
The epic battle america forgot history of war simpson, howard r. The loss of dien bien phu struck a death knell for the french effort to retain control of their former colony of indochina. How to travel to dien bien for your best experience dien bien travel guide 2020 what to do, when to visit, and more about 500km from hanoi, dien bien is the mountainous northwestern province of vietnam, where the battle of century dien bien phu became famous worldwide when the viet minh defeated the colonial french army in 1954. It consisted of a struggle between french and viet minh vietnamese communist and nationalist forces for control of a small mountain outpost on the vietnamese border near laos. See all 1 dien bien phu museum tours on tripadvisor. In 1954, french forces in french indochina sought to cut the viet minhs supply lines to laos. After french forces occupied the dien bien phu valley in late 1953, viet minh commander vo nguyen. Dien bien phu, battle of, ien bien phu, vietnam, 1954. Describing the french colonial beginings of the country, and their defeat at dien bien phu in march 1954. It was the decisive battle in what began as an attempt by the french to re establish their empire in indochina after world. This was followed by the division of vietnam into north and south and then the second indochinese war. The battle of dien bien phu was the biggest and most ferocious battle that took place during the french indochina war. The french chose a battlefield that was too remote to be supplied effectively and had terrain that favored the vietminh instead of their forces.
The battle of dien bien phu was fought from march to may 7, 1954, and was the decisive engagement of the first indochina war 19461954, the precursor to the vietnam war. Th e situation of the enemy and our strategi c direction 77 v. Dien bien phu the final gamble legion wargames 2014. Indochina war begins the first indochina war begins. Dien bien phu 1954 battle changed vietnams history by bruce kennedy cnn interactive it is seen by many military scholars as one of the great battles of the 20th century and a defining moment in the history of southeast asia. A description and analysis of the sieges of dien bien phu. For instance, digging out into hillside to avoid aerial attack for cannons. Book your tickets online for the top things to do in dien bien phu, vietnam on tripadvisor.
From the acclaimed scholar and reporter, a thorough and revealing account of the historic turning point in vietnams long strugglethe 1954 battle for dien bien phu like gettysburg, stalingrad, midway, and tet, the battle at dien bien phu a strategic attack launched by france against the vietnamese in 1954 after eight long years of warmarked a historic turning point. And yet the battle of dien bien phu receives rarely more than a passing mention in most history texts. Dien bien phu march7 may 1954 was the last battle fought by the french army in the twentieth century. It was a battle between vietnamese and french forces, which vietnam won. It was also the last battle waged with forces drawn from other parts of the french empire which had been reorganized as the french union in 1946. Dien bien phu lies in the remote nam yum river valley 450 kilometers northwest of hanoi and 50 kilometers from the laotian border. Chief of cabinet, the navarre plan was to endow the french battle. French failure to craft a viable strategy for winning the war or this battle against their enemy, the vietnamese communists or viet minh. May 7th, 1954 the guns fell silent as the last organized resistance in the fortified camp of dien bien phu came to an end.
A brief history of the battle of dien bien phu section 117. The city is best known for the events which occurred there during the first indochina war, the battle of di. It was the decisive battle in what began as an attempt by the french to reestablish their empire in indochina after world. Paramount significance of the great dien bien phu victory and the winterspring victories 7 appendix 175.
The actual battle of dien bien phu is recounted in brutal detail as french forces bravely but futilely fought off advancing viet minh, led by wily general giap, who had deeply personal reasons to despise french imperialism. Dien bien phutranslated at no cost by al gaudet a qog membermeans at hand were set up progressively during december and january. This strategy research project is a casestudy examination of the battle of dien bien phu during the frenchindochina war of 1946 to 1954. General giap was the vietminh commander at dien bien phu and the north. The battle fought around dien bien phu was the last major campaign by a european state in the region. This is a list of units and commands that took part in the battle of dien bien phu during the first indochina war, with the major commands that took part in operations.
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