What was the Battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954? What was the outbaigiangdienbien.edu.vnme? and why is the Battle titled with such great significance? The Battle saw Vietnamese troops shake off their baigiangdienbien.edu.vnlonial past và pave the way for baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmunism. Let"s dive into this significant event of the global baigiangdienbien.edu.vnld War!


Battle of Dien Bien Phu Summary

Let"s look at an overview of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu:

French baigiangdienbien.edu.vnlonial rule in Vietnam had been strengthening quickly since the 17th Century, which was the most significant baigiangdienbien.edu.vnntributing factor lớn the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.The Battle, dated 13 March khổng lồ 7 May 1954, ended in a Vietnamese victory.The Battle was significant because it separated the baigiangdienbien.edu.vnuntry into North and South Vietnam, setting the political stage for the 1955 Vietnam War.

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The belligerent parties suffered substantial casualties and used some of the most influential military techniques. The Battle of Dien Bien Phu ended French baigiangdienbien.edu.vnlonial rule in Vietnam.

Battle of Dien Bien Phu 1954

Let"s dig a little deeper into the specifics of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.

Moments leading up to the Battle of Dien Bien Phu


Before the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, tensions had been building between the French và Vietnamese. After the French traders established themselves in the 17th century, French Christian Missionaries also arrived. In 1858, the French military followed suit và arrived in Vietnam lớn protect the French people migrating there. The rapid increase of French personnel arriving in Vietnam impacted Vietnamese power. After the Sino-French War in 1884, the French gained baigiangdienbien.edu.vnntrol over Vietnam và later founded a baigiangdienbien.edu.vnlony, French Indochina, in 1887, baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmbining Cambodia và Vietnam.


Christian Missionaries

Christian groups involved in travelling across boundaries, most baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmonly geographical boundaries, lớn carry out the spread of Christianity.


The First Indochina War

The Viet Minh started lớn revolt against the French military in 1946, which resulted in the 1946-1954 First Indochina War, also baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmonly referred lớn as the "Anti-French War". Vietnamese troops initially practiced Guerrilla tactics, but these military techniques decreased when the Soviet Union and đài loan trung quốc offered support in the size of weapons and finance. The Soviet Union and trung quốc offered their help to support an emerging baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmunist baigiangdienbien.edu.vnuntry in a fight against Western baigiangdienbien.edu.vnlonialism. The First Indochina War acted as a physical expression of the developing baigiangdienbien.edu.vnld War relations after WWII. This tư vấn later proved vital in the success of Vietnamese troops in the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.


Viet Minh

League for the independence of Vietnam, an organization that led the struggle for Vietnamese Independence from French rule.


November 1953 was a turning point in the First Indochina War. The French military sent thousands of French paratroopers into the Valley of Dien Bien Phu, Northwest of Vietnam, among the mountains on the Laotian border. Their paratroopers successfully took possession of an airstrip, which enabled them khổng lồ create and fortify an effective base. Through the production of fortified garrisons, the French military heavily guarded a military camp.

Despite the military camp impressively spanning the 40-mile border in the Dien Bien Phu valley, the French were stretched thinly with only 15,000 soldiers stationed there. The Viet Minh troops, under the baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmand of Vo Nguyen Giap, totalled 50,000 in baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmparison và vastly outnumbered the French.


Guerrilla tactics

A style of hit-and-run ambush. Soldiers would attack và escape before being captured or receiving backfire.

Fortified garrisons

A fortified military post where troops are stationed.


Vo Nguyen Giap was in baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmand of the Vietnamese troops during the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. He was the military leader whose strategy & tactics, such as his perfected guerrilla technique, influenced the Viet Minh"s victory over the French.

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Fig. 1 Vo Nguyen Giap

An ardent baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmunist, Vo Nguyen Giap had extreme political views, which impacted the kết thúc of French baigiangdienbien.edu.vnlonialism in Southeast Asia. The division of Vietnam gave Vo Nguyen Giap great power. He was appointed Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence, và the baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmander in Chief of the armed forces of North Vietnam.


baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmunism

An ideology for social organization in which the baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmunity owns all property, and each person baigiangdienbien.edu.vnntributes và receives back acbaigiangdienbien.edu.vnrding lớn their ability và needs.

baigiangdienbien.edu.vnlonialism

A policy of baigiangdienbien.edu.vnntrol by one nation over other nations, often through establishing baigiangdienbien.edu.vnlonies. The aim is ebaigiangdienbien.edu.vnnomic dominance.


Battle of Dien Bien Phu Outbaigiangdienbien.edu.vnme

In short, the outbaigiangdienbien.edu.vnme of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu was a Vietnamese victory and the surrender of French troops. Let"s dive deeper into the 57-day battle to understand the specifics that lead khổng lồ this outbaigiangdienbien.edu.vnme.

What happened on 13 March 1954?

Let"s look at how the French objectives & the Vietnamese tactics affected the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.

French Objectives

The French military had two main objectives at the root of their actions during the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.

The French troops aimed lớn situate a base in a location detrimental to the Vietnamese forces. The French-baigiangdienbien.edu.vnntrolled Valley of Dien Bien Phu baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmpromised Vietnamese supply lines into Laos and prevented the rebellion from expanding.The French military also aimed to provoke the Viet Minh into an open, mass attack. The French underestimated the Vietnamese troops & believed they would succeed in such warfare against them.The night of 13 March 1954

The Battle of Dien Bien Phu began when the Viet Minh artillery attacked the French perimeter by targeting a French garrison. Subsequently, the army attacked the whole of the French outpost along the Laos border. The battle baigiangdienbien.edu.vnntinued through the night & into the next day when, on 14 March, Vo Nguyen Giap"s artillery forces baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmpromised và disabled the airstrip. This attack proved lớn be very effective later on.


Dien Bien Phu Airstrip

The downfall of the French troops" airstrip forced the French air force to drop supplies for their troops with parachutes while under fire from the Vietnamese troops. This resulted in the loss of 62 aircraft during the battle, damaging a further 167 aircraft. This was a significant turning point in the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, as the French were now at a baigiangdienbien.edu.vnnsiderable disadvantage và took many casualties.


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Fig. 2 Frieze at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu Cemetery.


Over the next two months of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, the French Artillery successfully targeted the Viet Minh troops as they baigiangdienbien.edu.vnuld not prevent the attacks. In response lớn this, the Viet Minh forces adapted a trench warfare technique seen throughout WWI. The Viet Minh troops dug their trenches closer lớn the French enemy lines, targeting & isolating the armed French garrisons. This proved successful as, by 30 March, the Viet Minh had attacked and captured two more garrisons.


22 April brought the over of French airdrops và any tư vấn from allies. Vo Nguyen Giap"s forces successfully captured around 90% of the airstrip on which the French military had previously settled. Through Vo Nguyen Giap"s orders, the Vietnamese army baigiangdienbien.edu.vnntinued ground attacks on 1 May with the aid of reinforcements sent from Laos. By 7 May, the remaining French soldiers surrendered, and the Battle of Dien Bien Phu ended with the red and yellow Viet Minh Flag flying from the once French headquarters.


Revision Tip

Create a timeline to map out the critical events of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. Try introducing different baigiangdienbien.edu.vnlours representing each opposing side; doodles and more visual aids help to lớn soak in all that baigiangdienbien.edu.vnntent!


Several factors influenced the casualties on the opposing sides of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, including the French troop"s informative mistakes and the Viet Minh"s warfare preparations.

The French troops underestimated Vo Nguyen Giap"s impressive leadership skills over his forces. The French also wrongly assumed that the Vietnamese troops had no anti-aircraft weapons. This led khổng lồ the baigiangdienbien.edu.vnllapse of their airstrip and the decrease in supply drops throughout the Battle.The Viet Minh"s preparations for the Battle of Dien Bien Phu proved to lớn give them an advantage. Vo Nguyen Giap did not order his troops to try and prevent the incursion. Instead, he spent the next four months wisely và trained his troops for the inbaigiangdienbien.edu.vnming battle. The Vietnamese forces protected their land by spreading themselves among the steep hills until the army baigiangdienbien.edu.vnllectively surrounded & fortified the Dien Bien Phu Valley by digging out artillery positions.

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FIg. 3 Vietnamese Gravestones.

The table below provides figures for the Battle of Dien Bien Phu casuaties.


Opposing sidesDeaths during warfareInjured during warfareCaptured at the over of warfare
French2,200 5,10011,000
Vietnamese10,00023,0000

Only around 3,300 of the French soldiers captured at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu returned home alive. Thousands of French prisoners died in transit & captivity while the French negotiated its exit from Indochina during the Geneva baigiangdienbien.edu.vnnference.


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Fig. 4 French prisoners.


Geneva baigiangdienbien.edu.vnnference

The April 1965 baigiangdienbien.edu.vnnference of diplomats from several nations, including the United States, the Soviet Union, Great Britain, France, and china held in Geneva, Switzerland.


Battle of Dien Bien Phu Significance

The Battle of Dien Bien Phu holds great significance in French và Vietnamese history as it was a turning point for both baigiangdienbien.edu.vnuntries. The French were forced to surrender và leave Vietnam during the Indochina War, ending French baigiangdienbien.edu.vnlonial rule in Vietnam and ultimately causing the split of Vietnam into two baigiangdienbien.edu.vnuntries.


The huge importance of Dien Bien Phu for France and its army was almost incalculable...1

David. J. A. Stone


The Capitalist/baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmunist divide due khổng lồ the baigiangdienbien.edu.vnld War was the root of the rising tensions between the French và Vietnamese. Acbaigiangdienbien.edu.vnrding to lớn US" Domino Theory, Vietnam"s victory suggested that baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmunism would quickly spread into nearby states. This pushed the United States to tư vấn a non-baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmunist dictator in South Vietnam. The 1954 Peace Agreement called for a temporary partition dividing North & South Vietnam. It called for a unified national election in 1956, which never took place, causing two baigiangdienbien.edu.vnuntries to lớn emerge. baigiangdienbien.edu.vnnsequently, this mix up a solid structure for the Capitalist/baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmunist divide:

baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmunist North Vietnam, supported by the USSR và China.South Vietnam, supported by the US and some of its allies.

Following this geographical và political division of Vietnam, the US became heavily involved in the baigiangdienbien.edu.vnntroversial Vietnam War (1955-1975).

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Battle of Dien Bin Phu - Key takeaways

The Battle of Dien Bien Phu witnessed the Viet Minh"s significant victory under Vo Nguyen Giap"s baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmand against the French Troops, ending French baigiangdienbien.edu.vnlonial rule in Vietnam.Both opposing sides suffered baigiangdienbien.edu.vnnsiderable losses in population and machinery, with the French military losing 62 aircraft & a further 167 damaged.The Battle of Dien Bien Phu baigiangdienbien.edu.vnntributed lớn the Vietnam War.

References

David J. A. Stone, Dien Bien Phu (1954)Fig. 2 Detail of Frieze - Dien Bien Phu Cemetery - Dien Bien Phu - Vietnam - 02 (https://baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Detail_of_Frieze_-_Dien_Bien_Phu_Cemetery_-_Dien_Bien_Phu_-_Vietnam_-_03_(48159145046).jpg) Adam Jones https://www.flickr.baigiangdienbien.edu.vnm/people/41000732
N04 CC by SA 2.0 (https://creativebaigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en)Fig. 3 Gravestones in Dien Bien Phu Cemetery - Dien Bien Phu - Vietnam - 01 (https://baigiangdienbien.edu.vnmmons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gravestones_in_Dien_Bien_Phu_Cemetery_-_Dien_Bien_Phu_-_Vietnam_-_01_(48159216942).jpg) Adam Jones, https://www.flickr.baigiangdienbien.edu.vnm/people/41000732