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April
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12th
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Viet Minh forces invade Laos. Laotian Government requests formal condemnation of
Viet Minh aggression
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May
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5th
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President Eisenhower tell the U.S. Congress:
"We are proposing to make substantial additional resources available to assist the
French and the Associated States in their military efforts to defeat the Communist
Viet Minh aggression."
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9th
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French Government announces the appointment of General Henri-Eugene Navarre as Commander
in Chief of the French Union Forces (FUF) in Indochina. Navarre had previously served
as Chief of Staff to Marshal Alphonse Juin, Commander of Allied Land Forces in Central
Europe.
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10th
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France announce the devaluation of the Indochinese Piastre
from 17 francs to 10 francs
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19th
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General Navarre arrives in Saigon
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June
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20th
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Military survey mission, headed by U.S. Army Pacific Commander Lt. General
John W. O'Daniel, arrives in Saigon to pursue discussions with Gen. Navarre
on the manner in which U.S. aid to the French and Associated States armed forces
in Indochina may best contribute to the defeat of Communist forces
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28th
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Joseph Laniel becomes Prime Minister of France
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30th
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Lt. General John W. O’Daniel sends details of the Navarre
plan ("Principles of the Conduct of the War in Indochina") to the Commander-in-Chief,
Pacific (CINCPAC)
Read the Navarre Plan
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July
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3rd
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French government issues a declaration of its intention to complete the independence
and sovereignty of the three Associated States (Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam)
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17th
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French Union forces launch a heavily supported airborne assault against Viet Minh
depots at Lang Son northeast of Hanoi, seizing 1,000 Skoda automatic rifles
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27th
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The Commanders-in-Chief of the United Nations Command and the Korean Peoples Army
sign an armistice agreement that ends the Korean War
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28th
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French forces launch operation Camargue; a coordinated air, land and sea assault
on the coastal villages used by Viet Minh Regiment 95 to mount attacks on Road 1
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October
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22nd
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Franco-Laotian Treaty of Friendship signed completing the independence of Laos
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28th
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Laos signs a mutual defense treaty with France
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November
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9th
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France grants independence to Cambodia
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20th
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Three French battalions parachute into Dien Bien Phu to defend Lai Chau against
Viet Minh forces and to establish a base in the T’ai country:
- To act as a northern defensive anchor for Laos (the southern anchor
being Plain des Jarres)
- To send out parties in all directions to seek out and engage the
enemy
- To foster development of T’ai guerrilla and partisan forces in
order to supplement those already formed and based at Lai Chau
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21st
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Two more French battalions parachute into Dien Bien Phu
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29th
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Swedish newspaper Expressen publishes a Q&A with
Ho Chi Minh in which he indicates willingness to negotiate an armistice
with the French
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December
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7th
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The evacuation of civilians from Lai Chau is completed
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10th
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Maurice DeJean, French Commissioner General in Indochina, states that the French
High Command is hopeful that a major engagement can be forced in the vicinity of
Dien Bien Phu in the near future
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17th
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Nguyen Van Tam resigns as Prime Minister of Viet Nam
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