1945
Japan formally accepts unconditional surrender. Japanese
forces in Indochina remain in control in the interim.
At a spontaneous non-communist meeting in Hanoi, Ho Chi
Minh and the Viet Minh assumed a leading role in the movement to wrest
power from the French. With the Japanese still in control of Indochina,
Bao Dai goes along because he thought that the Viet Minh were still working
with the American OSS and could guarantee independence for Vietnam..
Vietnam's puppet emperor, Bao Dai, abdicates.
Ho Chi Minh's guerrillas occupy Hanoi and proclaim a provisional
government.
On the deck of the U.S.S. Missouri in Tokyo Bay, Japanese
representatives sign the Instrument of Surrender proclaiming their unconditional
surrender, formally ending World War II.
Ho Chi Minh issues his Declaration of Independence, drawing
heavily upon the American Declaration of Independence from a copy provided
by the OSS as well as Sun Yatsen's "Three-people Doctrine".
Ho declares himself president of the Democratic Republic
of Vietnam and pursues American recognition but is repeatedly ignored
by President Harry Truman.
British forces arrive in Saigon, South Vietnam to disarm the Japanese in South Vietnam..
150,000 Chinese Nationalist soldiers, mainly poor peasants,
arrive in Hanoi to disarm the Japanese. After looting Vietnamese villages
during their entire march down from China, they then proceed to loot Hanoi.
In South Vietnam, 1400 French soldiers released by the
British from former Japanese internment camps enter Saigon and go on a
deadly rampage, attacking Viet Minh and killing innocent civilians including
children, aided by French civilians who joined the rampage. An estimated
20,000 French civilians live in Saigon.
Viet Minh successfully organize a general strike shutting
down all commerce along with electricity and water supplies. In a suburb
of Saigon, members of Binh Xuyen, a Vietnamese criminal organization,
massacre 150 French and Eurasian civilians, including children.
The first American death in Vietnam occurs, during the unrest in Saigon, as OSS officer Lt. Col. A. Peter Dewey is killed by Viet Minh guerrillas who mistook him for a French officer. Before his death, Dewey had filed a report on the deepening crisis in Vietnam, stating his opinion that the U.S. "ought to clear out of Southeast Asia."
35,000 French soldiers under the command of World War
II General Jacques Philippe Leclerc arrive in South Vietnam to restore
French rule. Viet Minh immediately begin a guerrilla campaign to harass
them. The French then succeed in expelling the Viet Minh from Saigon.
An OSS report quotes Ho Chi Minh saying,"although he formerly
favored Communist ideals, he now realized that such ideals were impracticable
for his country, and that his policy now was one of republican nationalism".
It would be some 10,000 days later before the American public would learn
of this.
Ho attempts a compromise with the French by dissolving
the Indochinese Communist Party.
France provoke war with the Democratic Republic of Vietnam
and re-install Bao Dai over a central government.
In a separate agreement with France, Chiang Kai-shek agrees
to withdraw Chinese troops from Vietnam and allow the French to return
in exchange for French concessions in Shanghai and other Chinese ports.
Ho Chi Minh signs the Primary Agreement with France which
allowed French forces back into Vietnam to replace Nationalist Chinese
forces, in exchange for French recognition of his Democratic Republic
of Vietnam as a free state within the Indochinese Federation and French
Union. Ho and the Viet Minh welcome the French, saying "I love France
and French soldiers. You are welcome. You are heroes."
Nationalist Chinese troops depart Hanoi and Vietnam..
Armed and backed up by the French, the Viet Minh systematically
set about executing leaders and members of nationalist Vietnamese groups,
as Ho's lieutenant Le Duan said, "(to) wipe out the reactionaries."
Known as the "Great Purge", the goal was to eliminate everyone
thought dangerous to the Vietnamese Communist Party, and tens of thousands
of nationalists, Catholics and others were massacred from 1946-1948.
Ho Chi Minh spends four months in France attempting to
negotiate full independence and unity for Vietnam, but fails to obtain
any guarantee from the French.
French High Commissioner for Indochina, Admiral d'Argenlieu,
proclaims Cochinchina China an autonomous republic, in fact, a French
puppet state.
In a major affront to Ho Chi Minh, the French high commissioner
for Indochina proclaims a separatist French-controlled government for
South Vietnam (Republic of Chochin China).
Viet Minh and French meet in Paris for negotiations.
Talks break down..
With French armored personnel carriers cordoning off the
areas, the Viet Minh storm the headquarters of remaining nationalist groups,
arresting most remaining opposition leaders who were later executed.
French President De Gaulle declares, "France is a great
power. Without the overseas territories which she would be in danger of
no longer being one". French policy was now clear.
French forces attempt to reassert their authority in Haiphong
and to prevent military supplies from reaching the Viet Minh.
Fighting breaks out between French and Viet Minh at Haiphong.
French bombard Hiaphong and occupy it, killing 6,000 Vietnamese
civilians. Ho appeals to the US for the last time .."to support independence".
After a series of violent clashes with Viet Minh, French
forces bombard Haiphong harbor and occupy Hanoi, forcing Viet Minh forces
to retreat into the jungle.
FIRST INDOCHINA WAR 1946-1954
30,000 Viet Minh under Giap initiate the eight-year Indochina
War with an attack on French troops at Haiphong. The attack fails under
superior French firepower but it takes the French a week to clear Haiphong
of the Communist forces. By seizing control of several cities, the French
Expeditionary Army force the Viet Minh to conduct guerrilla warfare. "If
these [people] want a fight, they'll get it," French military commander
Gen. Etrienne Valluy states.
The Voice of Vietnam radio proclaims Ho's call for the
" National Resistance War". Ho leads the Viet Minh to the mountains at
Tan Trao to begin "the struggle".
General Giap's Viet Minh forces join Ho at Tan Trao. From
the northern border jungles of Lang Son and westward to Truong Son (later
to be known as the Ho Chi Minh Trail) the Viet Minh charter bases and
hideouts. 15,000 French troops hunt Ho Chi Minh and the Viet Minh leaders
with no success . French begin punitive raids on villages supporting the
Viet Minh. General Giap adopts a policy of avoiding all-out confrontation
and conforms with Mao Tse-tung's key principal on warfare, "always maintain
the nitiative".
French opinion poll shows 36% favored force, 42% favored
negotiations, 8% thought France should leave Indo-China altogether. 14%
had no opinion.
22 Dec 47
French Operation Lea, a series of attacks on Viet Minh
guerrilla positions in North Vietnam near the Chinese border, results
in over 9,000 Viet Minh causalities, although most of the 40,000 strong
Viet Minh force slips away through gaps in the French lines.
French induce former leader Emperor Bao Dai to come to
Indochina to form and head a Vietnamese government.
France recognizes an "independent" state of Vietnam. Bao
Dai becomes its leader in June.The State of Vietnam is installed after
an agreement between France and a few nationalist leaders. Its government
had limited powers, largely being a puppet of France..
The French establish the (South) Vietnamese National Army.
Laos is recognized as an independent state with ties to France.
Mao Zedong's Communist forces defeat Chiang Kai-shek's
Nationalist Army in the Chinese civil war. Mao's victory ignites American
anti-Communist sentiment regarding Southeast Asia and will result in a
White House foreign policy goal of "containment" of Communist
expansion in the region.
Cambodia is recognized as an independent state with ties
to France.
The People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union recognize
Ho Chi Minh's Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
China begins sending military advisors and modern hardware to the Viet Minh includingmany American-made automatic weapons, mortars, howitzers, and trucks captured from the Chinese Nationalists. With supplies assured, General Giap declares that the guerrilla phase is now over and the counter-offensive had begun. General Giap transforms his guerrilla fighters into conventional army units including five light infantry divisions and one heavy division.
The United States and Britain recognize Bao Dai's French-controlled
South Vietnam government. France requests US military aid.
GIAP PREMATURELY BEGINS OFFENSIVE 1950-1952
Viet Minh begin an offensive against French outposts in
North Vietnam near the Chinese border.
In America, the era of 'McCarthyism' erupts as Senator Joseph R. McCarthy of Wisconsin gives a speech claiming the U.S. State Department harbors Communists. As a consequence of McCarthyism, no U.S. politician is willing to appear to be 'soft' on Communism.
US announces military and economic aid to the pro- French
regimes of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. US aid was to jump from an initial
$10 million to exceeding $1,000 million by 1954, 78% of the French war
bill, even though all concerned conceded that the war could not be won.
Communist North Korean army crosses the 38th Parallel.
President Harry S. Truman orders U.S. ground troops into Korea. In his
message to the American people, Truman describes the invasion as a Moscow-backed
attack by "monolithic world Communism."
United States military involvement in Vietnam begins as President Harry Truman authorizes $15 million in military aid to the French. American military advisors will accompany the flow of U.S. tanks, planes, artillery and other supplies to Vietnam. Over the next four years, the U.S. will spend $3 Billion on the French war and by 1954 will provide 80 percent of all war supplies used by the French.
General Giap begins his main attack against French outposts
near the Chinese border. As the outposts fall, the French lose 6,000 men
and large stores of military equipment to the Viet Minh.
The U.S. establishes a Military Assistance Advisory Group
(MAAG) in Saigon to aid the French Army.
General Giap launches his first major counter offensive against the French and overwhelms French forts in the far north. French losses in this period were 6,000 troops killed or captured. Equipment losses included more than 900 machine guns, 125 mortars, 13 heavy guns, 1,200 automatic rifles, 8,000 rifles and 450 trucks.
French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed
High commissioner and Commander in Chief of Indochina. The French forces
adopt an more offensive role with more use of air support.
Napalm is used for the first time in Vietnam against Viet
Minh forces at Tien Yen.
The Lao Dong Part (Worker's Party) went public in the
north of Vietnam, elevating communism almost to a religion.
20,000 Viet Minh under Gen. Giap begin a series of attacks
on fortified French positions in the Red River Delta (extending from Hanoi
to the Gulf of Tonkin). The open areas of the Delta, in contrast to the
jungle, allow French troops under the new command of Gen. Jean de Lattre
to strike back with devastating results from the 'De Lattre Line' which
encircles the region. 6,000 Viet Minh die while assaulting the town of
Vinh Yen near Hanoi in the first attack, causing Giap to withdraw.
Two Viet Minh divisions attack a French force of 8,000
troops at Vinh Yen, 56 klms north west of Hanoi. Air support plays a major
role. The Viet Minh under Giap retreat suffering heavy losses (Est 6,000
to 9,000 killed, 7,000 to 8,000 wounded with 600 captured).
In the second attack, Giap targets the Mao Khe outpost
near Haiphong. But Giap withdraws after being pounded by French naval
gunfire and air strikes. 3,000 Viet Minh are killed.
Giap makes yet another attempt to break through the De
Lattre Line, this time in the Day River area southeast of Hanoi. French
reinforcements, combined with air strikes and armed boat attacks result
in another defeat for Giap with 10,000 killed and wounded. French forces
cut Giap's supply line and Giap overextends his force and leaves himself
without reserves. Giap's leadership is questioned by the Viet Minh leadership.
A scapegoat in the form of Nguyen Binh is found and Giap and Ho continue
to lead the Viet Minh. Giap restructures his command and tightens control
over various functionsAmong the French casualities is Bernard de Lattre,
the only son of General De Lattre.
Giap begins a general withdrawal of Viet Minh troops from
the Red River Delta.
Gen. De Lattre travels to Washington seeking more aid
from the Pentagon.
Giap orders his 312th Division against the French position
at Nghia Lo. French paratroopers reinforce the fort and Giap's forces
retreat and scatter.
Dang Lao Dong Viet Nam is founded, succeeding the Indochinese
Communist Party.
US Senator John Fitzgerald. Kennedy visits Vietnam and
declares, "in Indo-China we have allied ourselves to the desperate effort
of the French regime to hang on to the remnants of an empire".
French forces link up at Hoa Binh, a Viet Minh staging
area 80 kms west of Hanoi. Gen. De Lattre attempts to seize the momentum
and lure Giap into a major battle but overextends his forces by setting
up additional posts. Giap takes advantage and inflicts heavy casualties.
Giap then withdraws and allows the French to retake their positions.
Stricken by cancer, ailing Gen. De Lattre is replaced
by Gen. Raoul Salan. De Lattre returns home and dies in Paris two months
later, just after being raised to the rank of Marshal.
Giap begins a careful counter-offensive by attacking the
French outpost at Tu Vu on the Black River. Giap now avoids conventional
warfare and instead wages hit and run attacks followed by a retreat into
the dense jungles. His goal is to cut French supply lines.
By year end 1951, French casualities in Vietnam surpass 90,000.
French supply lines to Hoa Binh along the Black River
are cut. The road along Route Coloniale 6 is also cut.
General de Lattre de Tassigny dies of cancer and is succeeded
by General Raoul Salan. Salan orders the withdrawal of French forces from
posts along the Black River between Hoa Binh and Viet Tri and finally
Viet Binh.
The French withdraw from Hoa Binh back to the De Lattre
Line aided by a 30,000 round artillery barrage. Giap's forces continually
ambush French forces during the retreat and destroy many elements of the
French rearguard. Casualties for each side surpassed 5,000 during the
Black River skirmishes.
Summer 1952
GIAP GOES ON THE OFFENSIVE 1952-1954
Giap's take the offensive and orders his troops to the
delta area between the Black and Red Rivers, withdraws, then attacks Nghia
Lo.
Giap now attempts to draw the French out from the De Lattre
Line by attacking along the Fan Si Pan mountain range between the Red
and Black Rivers.
Giap's forces attack Nghia Lo several times and overrun
the French position, followed by nearby posts. The Viet Minh then advance
westward for a month and are forced to halt after over-extending their
supply line.
The French counter Giap's move by launching Operation
Lorraine targeting major Viet Minh supply bases around Nghia Lo in the
Viet Bac region. The operation involves nearly 30,000 troops and aims
at drawing the Viet Minh into a full scale battle. Giap outsmarts the
French by ignoring their maneuvers and stays in position along the Black
River.
The French cancel Operation Loraine and withdraw back
toward the De Lattre Line but must first fight off a Viet Minh ambush
at Chan Muong.
Dwight D. Eisenhower, formerly Allied commander in Europe
during World War II, is inaugurated as the 34th U.S. President.
Eisenhower will greatly increase U.S. military aid to
the French in Vietnam to prevent a Communist victory. U.S. military advisors
will continue to accompany American supplies sent to Vietnam. To justify
America's financial commitment, Eisenhower will cite a 'Domino Theory'
in which a Communist victory in Vietnam would result in surrounding countries
falling one after another like a "falling row of dominoes."
The Domino Theory will be used by a succession of Presidents and their
advisors to justify ever-deepening U.S. involvement in Vietnam.
Soviet leader Josef Stalin dies and is succeeded by Nikita
Khrushchev.
Communist forces mass to invade Laos. Giap deploys his
divisions with little encounter. Giap realizing that he cannot sustain
his primitive supply line withdraws but the Viet Minh now have freedom
of movement through a large part of northern Laos and could dominate the
territory west of the Black River. Giap keeps the French forces tied down.
US Vice President Nixon arrives in Hanoi and tells the
French, "It is impossible to lay down arms until victory is won".
French General Henri Navarre appointed as Commander in
Chief and is sent by Premier Rene Mayer with orders to return in a month
and report. He reports ".... that there was no possibility of winning
the war in Indo-China". Navarre returns to Vietnam with only ten battalions,
far less than he had hoped for. Support for the war in France has waned
and the French Communist Party foster anti-war sentiment. Navarre conducts
"search and destroy" missions with some success.
The Korean War ends as an armistice is signed dividing
the country at the 38th parallel into Communist North and Democratic South.
The armistice is seen by many in the international community as a potential
model for resolving the ongoing conflict in Vietnam.
The Lao Dong Party initiates a "Land Reform Campaign"
that lasts until 1956, during which an estimated 15,000 landlords and
opponents of communism will be sentenced to death by "people's courts".
The French under new commander Gen. Henri Navarre begin
Operation Castor, construction of a series of entrenched outposts protecting
a small air base in the isolated jungle valley at Dien Bien Phu in northwest
Vietnam. The French hope to draw the Viet Minh into a pitched battle.
800 French paratroopers parachute into Dien Bien Phu and begin preparations
for a fortified camp, building two airstrips to link the base with Hanoi.
Gen. Giap immediately begins massing Viet Minh troops
and artillery in the area, sensing the potential for a decisive blow against
the French. Giap's troops manually drag 200 heavy howitzers up rugged
mountain sides to target the French air base. The French, aware of Giap's
intentions, mass their own troops and artillery, preparing for a showdown,
but have grossly underestimated Giap's strength.
Operation "Atlante" begins. It is designed to clear the
coastal areas of Viet Minh, but ends in March without achieving the objective.
The Dien Bien Phu garrison now includes a dozen battalions,
two groups of 75mm guns, 28 105mm howitzers, four 155mm howitzers, mortars,
and 10 light tanks. Six Grunman fighters armed with napalm are on alert
on the airfield. Three main bastions form the defense of the larger airstrip,
while the main stronghold includes the village itself. Four smaller outposts
formed the outer defense.
50,000 Viet Minh under Gen. Giap begin their assault against the fortified hills protecting the Dien Bien Phu air base. They outnumber the French by nearly five-to-one.
Giap's artillery pounds the French and shuts down the
only runway, thus forcing the French to rely on risky parachute drops
for re-supply. Giap's troops then take out their shovels and begin construction
of a maze of tunnels and trenches, slowly inching their way toward the
main French position and surrounding it.
1 May 54
The siege at Dien Bien Phu occurs as nearly 10,000 French soldiers are trapped by 45,000 Viet Minh. French troops soon run out of fresh water and medical supplies.
The French urgently appeal to Washington for help. The
U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff now consider three possible military options:
sending American combat troops to the rescue; a massive conventional air
strike by B-29 bombers; the use of tactical atomic weapons. President
Eisenhower dismisses the conventional air raid and the nuclear option
after getting a strong negative response to such actions from America's
chief ally, Britain. Eisenhower also decides against sending U.S. ground
troops to rescue the French, citing the likelihood of high casualty rates
in the jungles around Dien Bien Phu. No action is taken.
Dien Bien Phu falls. At 5:30 p.m.,
10,000 French soldiers surrender at Dien Bien Phu, depriving France of
any bargaining power at Geneva. By now, an estimated 8,000 Viet Minh and
1,500 French have died.
late-July 1954
French survivors are marched for up to 60
days to prison camps 500 hundred miles away. Nearly half die during the
march or in captivity.
8 May 54
Dien Bien Phu Falls Before Human Avalanche
The U.S., Britain, China, Soviet Union, France, Vietnam
(Viet Minh and representatives of Bao Dai), Cambodia and Laos meet at
the Geneva Conference on Indochina to negotiate a solution for Southeast
Asia.