Navarre

Blames Politicians in Paris

o Not provided with enough troops
and equipment
o Claimed that he had been stabbed
in the back by the opening of
negotiations before Dien Bien Phu

+ shared the militarys contempt for the
French 4
th
Republic
o 10 PMs from 1950-55
Viet Minh
The French didnt lose, we won.
They won because:
o Excellent planning (Maos strategy)
o Political education of local people
o Brotherhood with China and
Chairman Mao
o Inspired leadership by Ho Chi Minh
and Vo Nguyen Giap
Cogny (according to Navarre)
Guilty of changing his mind during DBP
o Initially supportive
o Then opposed it because of the
losses (serious accusation in the
military)
China
Chairman Mao
Chou-Enlai
Our support was vital

Victory for international communism
o Broader significance
o Influential/Inspiring

Helps to secure Southern borders i.e.
removal of a foreign power
Cogny
Blamed Navarre
o Underestimated the Viet Minh
o Splitting his forces by launching
Operation Atlante in Cochinchina at
the same time
America
Alarming
o Confirms Domino Theory
o Call to intervene in Asia
French Soldiers at Dien Bien Phu
Colonel de Castries
Colonel Bigeard
Colonel Langlais
(Foreign Legion, Parachute Regiment)

Blame Navarre & the Politicians
o Felt disconnected (he was an
armchair general + not very
charismatic)
USSR
Victory for international communism
o Broader significance
o Influential/Inspiring

Ordinary French People
A bit apathetic (got their own problems back
home)

Lower in prestige for losing a colony
o Fearful for their standing in the
world
o Might lose more colonies
Politicians in Paris
Antoine Pinay
Joseph Laniel
Blamed Navarre
o It was Navarres plan to fight at DBP
(Base Aero Terrestre Concept)
o He was well resourced
o The negotiations were not secret;
the result of DBP was always going to
be a crucial turning point

Bernard Fall
Sympathetic to the problems Navarre faced

He believes that France was simply too weak
to sustain its control of Indochina
o Weakened by WWII and internal
opposition or apathy
o Viet Minh strengthened by Chinas
support.
Pierre Asselin
French were overconfident and
underestimated the strength of the Viet
Minh as well as their resilience and
determination

French decision to agree to negotiations
before DBP was a strategic mistake (as it
made DBP a deciding factor)
George Stanley
Believed that DBP was a strategic blunder
an outrage
The French were rather arrogant
o Their army was exhausted
o Why did they force a result at DBP?
should have held out longer and
asked for more US aid
Best understood as part of the rise of Asian
Nationalism
o Historical Trend
(decolonisation/nationalism
succeeding)
Martin Windrow
Thought Navarre was
overloaded/overworked

French relied too heavily on supplies from
the air