Strengths
and weaknesses of the French Military Forces and the Vietminh Military Forces
Between 1946 and 1954
During
the time of the first French Indochina War between the years of 1946 and 1954
the conflicting forces (the French and the Vietminh) displayed both strengths
and weaknesses. In this essay I will discuss some of those strengths and
weaknesses and how they eventually led to the Wars conclusion.
The
French had control over Vietnam for almost seventy years before conflicts
started in the early 1940’s. After the Japanese surrendered in WWII they were
forced to leave Indochina and France once again saw an opportunity to take back
what they thought was rightfully theirs. After peace talks fell through
multiple times because France would settle for no less than total control over
the area, the first French Indochina war began. In the early months of the war
on November 23rd 1946 the French gave Vietnamese citizens only two
hours to evacuate the area of Haiphong before they leveled the city. In the
aftermath of the attack 6,000 citizens were dead and over 25,000 were wounded.1
France would stop at nothing to reclaim this territory for their own.
Unfortunately, this ambition was one of their greatest weaknesses. The French
dream of taking back Vietnam cost 89,000 French lives; and for what? In the end
they lost not only Vietnam but the rest of their French colonies would begin to
fall like dominoes. At the beginning of the war before Vietnam acquired
powerful allies, France was superior in numbers and equipment. The Vietminh
could field about 150,000 troops when the war began; the numbers consisted of a
few trained military men but was mostly filled out by peasants and youth. At the
same time, France could field over 150,000 trained soldiers.2 The
Vietminh didn’t fight out in the open with direct attacks against the French,
they used guerrilla warfare tactics. This meant that all of the French army
equipped with the best weapons they could get was of little consequence to the
“duck and roll” tactics employed by the Vietminh.
The
Vietminh were the underdogs for a large portion of the war until the early
1950’s when China and the Soviet Union came to their aid. The important
strengths to note about the Vietminh were their determination, patience, and
resourcefulness. Without these three qualities, they wouldn’t have lasted long
enough for aid to get to them in the 1950’s. Their use of guerrilla warfare
tactics provided a hit and run war where the French couldn’t really get a good
look at their enemy. Once China and the Soviet Union had provided military
assistance, in my opinion, the war was already over. The victory for the
Vietnam at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu was considered the decisive battle of
the war.3 This time the tables were turned; the Vietminh had over
250,000 troops, workers, technicians, mechanics, advisers, etc. against a
French force of 12,000 men.4 Another important thing to note about
the Vietminh forces is that they were willing to sacrifice as many men as they
needed too. An estimated 500,000 Vietminh were killed as opposed to an
estimated 89,000 French Union Forces.5 The country had nothing to
lose and everything to gain from this war. Their independence was the goal, and
through the three qualities I mentioned before, plus a little help from
neighboring countries they were able to obtain that goal.
Both
countries displayed both strengths and weaknesses during the first French
Indochina War. Unfortunately for France, their impossible goal never seems
quite in reach. The determination to achieve independence was the Vietminh’s
most important strength as it carried them through the early years of the war.
Overall, the Vietminh wanted victory more than the French were willing to fight
for theirs.
