Operation Lorraine
Opération Lorraine was a French military operation during the Indochina War in late 1952. The operation targeted the Viet Minh logistical network in Tonkin and was intended to induce the Viet Minh to withdraw forces from their offensive north of Tonkin.
background
In 1952 the Viet Minh were able to take several French bases in the north of Tonkins. With the loss of Nghia Lo on October 17, 1952, the French fell more and more behind the Viet Minh, with around 700 losses on the French side in north Tonkins. In order to regain the initiative, the French commander- in -chief in Indochina Raoul Salan planned an operation against logistics networks of the Viet Minh along the Red River and the Clear River . In addition, Salan provided around 30,000 soldiers as well as armored forces and aircraft.
Course of operation
The operation began on October 29, 1952. The French troops were able to advance relatively unhindered and discovered large quantities of weapons and military material. However, they were unable to destroy the guerrilla structures. Giáp did not withdraw any of his regular troops because of the French operation, but let the regional Viet Minh forces carry out raids and ambushes against the motorized and thus road-bound French troops. Under this pressure Salan ordered the withdrawal on November 14, 1952. During the retreat, the Viet Minh inflicted heavy losses on the French troops by ambushing them. The French expeditionary force lost around 1,200 men during the operation.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Frederick Logevall: Embers of War - The Fall of an Empire and the Making of America's Vietnam , New York 2013, pp. 323-324
- ↑ Frederick Logevall: Embers of War - The Fall of an Empire and the Making of America's Vietnam , New York 2013, pp. 323-324
- ^ Jacques Dalloz: Dictionnaire de la Guerre d'Indochine , Paris, 2006, p. 144