Great for research purposes, but not a terribly compelling read. The account of Dien Bien Phu is a masterpiece of meticulous historical narrative' -- Max Hastings 'Success in battle, according to one military maxim, may not, on its own assure the achievement of national security goals, but defeat will guarantee failure. Sorry, there was a problem saving your cookie preferences. But then again, when was the last time that thousands died for a real cause? Fantastic read. Is it? Apart from the significant events pre-dating the actual battle, the book clearly explains the politics involved which makes the slaughter of so many thousands all the more terrible. The siege in the jungle wore on as defeat loomed for the French. In December 1953 the French army challenged its elusive Vietnamese enemies to a stand-up battle. The hunters became the hunted. A comprehensive and thorough account of events and a staggering amount of detail, which make it slower going at times. The use of eye witness reports, radio communications, official statements, and previous books on the subject are used to explore the failed French policy on Vietnam. The author has packed it with amazing details of how France, recovering from WWII, failed to provided the necessary manpower and logistic support requested by Generals on the scene. There's a problem loading this menu right now. What followed became a Stalingrad in the jungle: the French were worn down and destroyed.
At the end, it is as if the reader has already conducted his own death march. "The climax of this failure was perceived as being Dien Bien Phu, where soldiers had been asked to sacrifice themselves to buy time for a government that was already planning to negotiate away everything they thought they were dying for." The Last Valley: Dien Bien Phu and the French Defeat in Vietnam (Cassell Military Paperbacks) Paperback – 10 Feb. 2005 by Martin Windrow (Author) 4.6 out of 5 … HISTORY TODAY '...Dien Bien Phu, as Martin Windrow's moving and judicious account of the battle and of the two armies that fought it shows, was not at all a straightforward clash between the French and Vietnamese... Windrow tells it with great lucidity and humanity, with vivid portraits of the leading French officers, and... a very fair assessment of the internal dramas of Dien Bien Phu... he also offers asides on weaponry, battlefield medicine, morale... which are among the best elements of this good book.' Enter your mobile number or email address below and we'll send you a link to download the free Kindle App. THE WEEK
There is further interesting material here on the Korea-style contest between human wave attacks and close air/artillery support to counter them, or as American military leadership said later, "Why send a man when you can send a bullet?" Windrow points out France’s series of blunders in Vietnam that he argues led to the eventual Vietnam War – which may very well have been avoided. Ten thousand French paras and légionnaires, with artillery and tanks, were flown to the remote valley of Dien Bien Phu to build a fortress upon which Giap could smash his inexperienced regiments. This volume will probably replace Bernard Fall’s classic, "Bonjour, ya cheese-eating surrender monkeys! This book is a good read. Get in-depth analysis delivered right to your inbox, From the It is the best of the three, (my apologies to Bernard Fall for whom I have only the greatest of admiration), probably because Windrow had access to more sources. The hunters-the French army-had become. Windrow tells the story of the utter defeat of the French and their mountain stronghold in fascinating detail, recounting the idiocy, bravery and fatal human tragedy of the end of French colonial power. Please choose whether or not you want other users to be able to see on your profile that this library is a favorite of yours. Then his description of the battle are great and he really takes you into the valley along with the French troops. Ten thousand French paras and légionnaires, with artillery and tanks, were flown to the remote valley of Dien Bien Phu to build a fortress upon which Giap could smash his inexperienced regiments. There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Rating: (not yet rated) 0 with reviews - Be the first. To see what your friends thought of this book, The Last Valley: Dien Bien Phu and the French Defeat in Vietnam. This is a war that has received far less attention than the US war in Vietnam and even then a lot of 'common knowledge' about the US war isn't true. Dien Bien Phu is a true landmark battle. The name field is required. My recommendation is to supplement this book by reading Harvard University Press's book "The First Vietnam War. It also analyses reviews to verify trustworthiness. Martin Windrow has written a tedious, one-sided battle history of Dien Bien Phu, the engagement that marked the defeat of France in the First Indochina War. I cannot imagine a better book on Dien Bien Phu. It briskly, thoroughly, and brilliantly lays out the run up to, and hour by hour battle of, Dien Bien Phu and its political and military aftermath. Superb, superb, superb. Nigerians Cry Out Against Police Brutality. Martin Windrow, A thorough, well-written, and well-researched history of the battle of Dien Bien Phu.
The first book I've read that focuses completely on the French in Vietnam, The Last Valley did not disappoint me, and was a brilliantly readable work of military history that focused on something I had read bits and snatches about, but not enough to give me the whole picture. Please enter the message. Incredible though not surprising was the failure of the Americans to learn anything from the French experience, no doubt in my mind based on that arrogance for which they are so infamous; the French were after all French and they the invincible Americans with moral right and absolute might on their side.
When French paratroopers landed in …
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The paperback is about 6 inches thick. Born in 1944 and educated at Wellington College, Martin Windrow is an Associate of the Royal Historical Society and a member of the Foreign Legion Association of Great Britain. Valley of Decision combines the research of Prados with the recollections of Stubbe, the marine chaplain through the siege. No information are given by the author is useless and it all contributes to the story. Your Web browser is not enabled for JavaScript. Unexpectedly, my personal "book of the year", Reviewed in the United States on September 16, 2014. publishers of In some cases Windrow used accounts from French POWs on what was going on behind Viet Minh lines that were not supplemented by Vietnamese sources.
Drawing on a multitude of sources this could well be the ultimate account of the battle. 0 with reviews - Be the first. There was much to be learned here, the whole episode and the engagement of France in Indo China from 45. Windrow writes with terse clarity, with an occasional "plain English" aside to explain what it felt like to be in a tank, or under an artillery barrage. Born in 1944 and educated at Wellington College, Martin Windrow is an Associate of the Royal Historical Society and a member of the Foreign Legion Association of Great Britain. Coming in at 600 pages, the first 300 are dedicated to the story of the Vietnamese people, the landscape and climate, early battles and political situation. Create lists, bibliographies and reviews: Your request to send this item has been completed. As defeat loomed, the French appealed to the USA where Vice-President Nixon and Air Force General Le May planned to drop atomic bombs on the Vietnamese supply dumps. Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free. You may send this item to up to five recipients. I think these books (to include “The Last Valley,” all complement each other nicely for any military historian or national security scholar striving to get the best picture possible of this watershed event. Somehow, without dwelling on the gruesome, he conveys some of the fulness of brutality that battle saw. I've read a number of books that describe battles and the soldiers and what they, I am surprised at how much I "enjoyed" this book which is to say I found it interesting and written in a style and format that made working through it's 650+ pages not difficult (but certainly not easy). Please try again. The E-mail Address(es) field is required. You sort of get the idea that, yes, the French did a little better than the popular view of history presents. In December 1953 the French army occupying Vietnam challenged the elusive Vietnamese army to engage in a decisive battle. It would probably be best read in sections over a period of time. Many works address Dien Bien Phu's history-altering significance in the Indochina conflict, but for learning about what actually happened there, Windrow's will be difficult to surpass. As they withdrew, the country was ominously divided at U.S. insistence, creating the short-lived Republic of South Vietnam for which 55,000 Americans would die in the next twenty years. France's willingness to continue its colonial war in Indochina ended with this shocking defeat. The Last Valley: Dien Bien Phu and the French Defeat in Vietnam.
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