dien bien phu

     

A long siege at this military base in 1954 marked the end of French power in Indochina

Trivia about dien bien phu

  • On May 7, 1954 the French were defeated in this Vietnamese battle & soon withdrew their troops from the country
  • French forces resisted a Vietminh attack here for 56 days but surrendered in May 1954
  • On March 13, 1954 Communist Vietnamese forces began their successful siege of this French-held village
  • In 1954 the French were defeated in the battle of this Vietnamese village; it was the decisive battle in the Indochina War
  • With their base overwhelmed on May 7, 1954, French forces surrendered to the Viet Minh at this village
  • Most of the "French" troops besieged in this doomed Asian city in spring 1954 were foreign Legionnaires
  • In March 1954 it was 50,000 Viet Minh vs. 13,000 French soldiers at the base built around this 3-word village
  • Bernard Fall wrote "Hell in a Very Small Place: The Siege of" this place lost by the French to the Viet Minh
  • General Henri Navarre's failure to recognize a fully mobilized Viet Minh led to the fall of this hamlet in May 1954