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Dien Bien Phu

 
Dictionary: Dien Bien Phu   (dyĕn' byĕn'') pronunciation

A town of northwest Vietnam near the Laos border. The French military base here fell to Vietminh troops on May 7, 1954, after a 56-day siege, leading to the end of France's involvement in Indochina.

 

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US Military Dictionary: Dien Bien Phu
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The site of a French-fortified base in Vietnam that fell to communist Vietminh forces in 1954. This prompted the French to agree to talks (the Geneva Agreement on Indochina) that ended the war and led to the partition of Vietnam. The talks also provided for elections that could have led to reunification, but these were never held.

See the Introduction, Abbreviations and Pronunciation for further details.

French Literature Companion: Dien Bien Phu
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The dramatic French defeat here in 1954 marked the end of the French colonial presence in Indo-China.

 
Columbia Encyclopedia: Dienbienphu
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Dienbienphu or Dien Bien Phu (dyĕn'byĕn''), former French military base, N Vietnam, near the Laos border. It was the scene in 1954 of the last great battle between the French and the Viet Minh forces of Ho Chi Minh in Indochina. The French occupied the base by parachute drop in Nov., 1953; this move prevented a Viet Minh thrust into Laos and provided support for indigenous forces opposing the Viet Minh in that area. Although the base could be supplied only by air, the French military felt its position was tenable. Weary of inconclusive guerrilla warfare, they were willing to invite an open Viet Minh attack in an area where their superior weaponry could be used to full advantage. The Viet Minh army, under the command of Gen. Vo Nguyen Giap, chose to engage the French, and by Mar., 1954, some 49,500 Viet Minh troops had encircled Dienbienphu, where some 13,000 soldiers, under the leadership of Col. (later Gen.) Christian de Castries, were firmly entrenched in strong positions. The first Viet Minh assault came on Mar. 13, and by the end of April, despite massive French air bombardment, the French defense area had been reduced to 2 sq mi (5 sq km). Desperate pleas for U.S. intervention were unsuccessful, and on May 7, after a 56-day siege, the French positions fell. This defeat signaled the end of French power in Indochina.


History Dictionary: Dienbienphu
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(dyen-byen-fooh)

A place in Indochina, now Vietnam, where Vietnamese communists decisively defeated French forces in 1954. The defeat led to the French withdrawal from Indochina. (See Vietnam War.)

Wikipedia: Dien Bien Phu
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For the 1992 film, see Dien Bien Phu (film). For the 1954 battle, see Battle of Dien Bien Phu.
Điện Biên Phủ
Điện Biên Phủ is located in Vietnam
Điện Biên Phủ
Location of Điện Biên Phủ in Vietnam
Coordinates: 21°23′N 103°1′E / 21.383°N 103.017°E / 21.383; 103.017
Country  Vietnam
Province Dien Bien Province

Dien Bien Phu (Điện Biên Phủ Dien Bien Phu.ogg pronunciation ) is a town in northwestern Vietnam. It is the capital of Dien Bien province, and is known for the events there during the First Indochina War, the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, during which the region was a breadbasket for the Viet Minh.

Contents

Population

Statistics on Dien Bien Phu's population vary depending on definitions — figures are generally between 70,000 and 125,000. The town is growing quickly, and is projected to have a population of 150,000 by 2020.[1] The majority of the population is not ethnically Vietnamese - rather, Thai ethnic groups form the largest segment. Ethnic Vietnamese make up around a third of the population, with the remainder being Hmong, Si La, or others.

Geography

Điện Biên Phủ lies in Muong Thanh valley, a 20-km-long and 6-km-wide basin sometimes described as "heart-shaped". It is on the western edge of Dien Bien province, of which it is the capital, and is only a short distance from the border with Laos. Until the creation of the province in 2004, it was part of Lai Chau province.

The Vietnamese government elevated Dien Bien Phu to town status in 1992, and to city status in 2003.

Past military conflict

Operation Castor (1953)

In the 1950s, the town was known not only for its famous opium traffic, generating 500,000,000 French Francs per year, but more so for a fierce battle that would result in a major realignment of world geopolitics. It was also an extensive source of rice for the Viet Minh[2].

The region was fortified in November 1953 by the French Union force in the biggest airborne operation of the 1946-1954 First Indochina War, Operation Castor, to block Viet Minh transport routes and to set the stage to draw out Việt Minh forces.

Siege of Dien Bien Phu (1954)

The following year, the important Battle of Dien Bien Phu was fought between the Việt Minh (led by Vo Nguyen Giap), and the United States-backed French Union (led by General Navarre, successor to General Raoul Salan). The siege of the French garrison lasted fifty-seven days, from 5:30PM on March 13 to 5:30PM on May 7, 1954. The southern outpost or fire base of the camp, Isabelle, did not follow the cease-fire order and fought until the next day at 01:00AM; a few hours before the long-scheduled Geneva Meeting's Indochina conference involving the United States, the United Kingdom, the French Union and the Soviet Union.

The battle was significant beyond the valleys of Dien Bien Phu. Vo Nguyen Giap's victory ended major French involvement in Indochina and led to the accords which partitioned Vietnam into North and South. Eventually, these conditions inspired American involvement in the Vietnam War. The battle of Điện Biên Phủ is described by historians as "the first time that a non-European colonial independence movement had evolved through all the stages from guerrilla bands to a conventionally organized and equipped army able to defeat a modern Western occupier in pitched battle."[3]

The Western fear of a Communist extension in Southeast Asia, named the Domino Theory by Dwight D. Eisenhower during the Dien Bien Phu siege and the departure of the French from Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, was a factor leading to the direct American intervention in South Vietnam.

Notes

  1. ^ Dien Bien Phu: Development and Conservation in a Vietnamese Cultural Landscape, William Logan, 2005
  2. ^ The Last Valley, Martin Windrow, 2004
  3. ^ Quotation from Martin Windrow. Kenney, Michael. "British Historian Takes a Brilliant Look at French Fall in Vietnam". Boston Globe, January 4, 2005.

See also

External links

Media links

Coordinates: 21°23′N 103°01′E / 21.383°N 103.017°E / 21.383; 103.017


 
 
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Indochina (former French colonial empire in southeast Asia)
Great Battles of War (History TV Series)
North Vietnam (former country of southeast Asia)

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Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
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