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 Home●Northwest Regions●Lai Chau Province●Dien
Bien Phu |
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How
the French lost the battle - and ViętNam |
General Navarre, the French commander in Viętnam, realised that time was running
out and that he needed to obtain a quick victory over the Vięt Minh.
He was convinced that if he could manoeuvre General Vo Nguyen Giap into engaging
in a large scale battle, France was bound to win.
In 1953 DEC General Navarre setup a defensive complex at Dien Bien Phu,
which would block the route of the Vięt Minh forces trying to return to camps in
neighbouring Laos.
Navarre surmised that in an attempt to reestablish the route
to Laos, General Giap would be forced to organise a mass-attack on the French
forces at Dien Bien Phu.
Navarre's plan worked and General Giap took up the French challenge. However,
instead of making a massive frontal assault, Giap choose to surround Dien Bien
Phu and ordered his men to dig a trench that encircled the French troops.
From the outer trench, other trenches and tunnels were dug inwards towards the
centre. The Vięt Minh were now able to move in close on the French troops
defending Dien Bien Phu.
While these preparations were going on, Giap brought up members of the Vięt Minh
from all over Viętnam.
By the time the battle was ready to start, Giap had 70,000 soldiers surrounding
Dien Bien Phu, five times the number of French troops enclosed within.
Employing recently obtained anti-aircraft guns and howitzers from China, Giap
was able to restrict severely the ability of the French to supply their forces
in Dien Bien Phu.
When Navarre realised that he was trapped, he appealed for help. The United
States was approached and some advisers suggested the use of tactical nuclear
weapons against the Vięt Minh. Another suggestion was that conventional air-raids
would be enough to scatter Giap's troops.
The United States President, Dwight Eisenhower, however, refused to intervene
unless he could persuade Britain and his other western allies to participate.
Winston Churchill, the British Prime Minister, declined claiming that he wanted
to wait for the outcome of the peace negotiations taking place in Geneva before
becoming involved in escalating the war.
On 1954 MAR 13 Vo Nguyen Giap launched his offensive. For fifty-six days the
Vięt Minh pushed the French forces back until they only occupied a small area of
Dien Bien Phu.
Colonel Piroth, the artillery commander, blamed himself for the tactics that had
been employed and after telling his fellow officers that he had been 'completely dishonoured' committed suicide by pulling the safety pin out of a grenade.
The French surrendered on 1954 MAY 07 French casualties totalled over 7,000 and a
further 11,000 soldiers were taken prisoner. The following day the French
government announced that it intended to withdraw from ViętNam. |
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