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6 unusual facts about Battle of Dien Bien Phu


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The title is a reference to May 7, 1954, which was the date of the Viet Minh's victory over France at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.

Background to the Vietnam War

After the Viet Minh defeated the French colonial army at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954, the French negotiated an end to their presence in Indochina.

Battle of Afabet

The victory over the Nadew Command is considered by the historian Basil Davidson to be the most significant victory for any liberation movement since the Vietnamese victory at Dien Bien Phu.

Catroux Commission

The Catroux Commission was an inquiry by the French government into the French defeat at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954.

Pierre Mendès France

When French forces were defeated by the Vietnamese Communists at Dien Bien Phu in June 1954, the government of Joseph Laniel resigned, and Mendès France formed a government.

Rats of Nam Yum

The Rats of Nam Yum were internal deserters from the French forces at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu during the First Indochina War.


Communist revolution

The First Indochina War that resulted in the defeat of the French at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, 1954, and brought the Communist Party of Vietnam under Ho Chi Minh to power in North Vietnam.

Điện Biên Phủ

The following year, the important Battle of Điện Biên Phủ was fought between the Việt Minh (led by General Võ Nguyên Giáp), and the French Union (led by General Henri Navarre, successor to General Raoul Salan).

Infiltration tactics

At the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, Major Marcel Bigeard, commander of the French 6th Colonial Parachute Battalion (6th BPC), used infiltration tactics in an attempt to defend the besieged garrison against the Viet Minh trench warfare tactics.


see also