The French and Den Bien Phu (May 7, 1954)
After several years of jungle warfare with little gain against the Viet Minh, the French retreated to Dien Bien Phu, which was a mountain outpost on the Vietnamese border near Laos. Surrounded and cut off, the French forces depended on air travel for supplies. The small base was out in the open and exposed to bombardment. Hoping that this would force the Viet Minh into a open fight where the French could use their superior firepower to when the fight. Viet Minh General Vo Nguyen Giap entrenched his artillery in the surrounding mountains and massed his soldiers around the French. The following battle was the largest any in the war between the French and the Viet Minh opening up with a massive artillery barrage and infantry assault. Despite a huge sets of airstrikes the tide of the battle quickly turned against the French. The United States considered aiding the French, including even using tactical nukes, however President Eisenhower decided that the war was lost for the French and no action was taking. After 57 days of siege, 1,600 French troops were killed, 4,800 was wounded, and 1,600 were missing. When the Viet Minh marched the captured 8,000 French to prison camps, more than half died. Viet Minh causalities were estimated at approximately 7,900 killed and 15,000 wounded. After the shock of this major defeat, the French government were willing to agree to the independence of Vietnam at the Geneva Conference in 1954.