The Angel of Dien Bien Phu: The Sole French Woman at the Decisive Battle in Vietnam

by De Galard, Genevieve

• ISBN13: 9781591142065
• ISBN10: 1591142067
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2010-10-15
• Publisher: Naval Inst Pr

Summary

As the only French woman among some 11,000 defenders at Dien Bien Phu, Genevive de Galard had a unique perspective of the siege and fall of the French fortress. This memoir about her years as a flight nurse for the French air force offers previously unknown details about their defeat. De Galard was on the flights that evacuated casualties from the battle, often landing in the midst of Vietminh artillery barrages. After a French air force C-47 with de Galard on board was seriously damaged, she tended to the wounded and dying in a field hospital. Her efforts won her the Knight's Cross and the Croix de Guerre, and from the American press the name "Angel of Dien Bien Phu." Following a tickertape parade in New York, President Eisenhower awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1954. Now, Americans can learn the full story.

Table of Contents

Author's Note	p. ix
Foreword	p. xi
Preface	p. xiii
Introduction Toward Dien Bien Phu: The Historical Context	p. 1
Roots	p. 13
Dreams of Indochina	p. 24
Into the Maelstrom	p. 38
The Trap Close	p. 51
Among the Wounded	p. 60
Toward the Fall	p. 71
A Hospital under Parachutes	p. 85
Further than Hell	p. 96
Hanoi-Saigon-Paris	p. 109
Triumph on Broadway	p. 115
Always a Flight Nurse	p. 126
Remaining Faithful	p. 130
To Them	p. 142
Some Testimonies	p. 145
Order of Battle, French Union Forces, Dien Bien Phu	p. 149
Casualties of French Forces at Dien Bien Phu	p. 153
Order of Battle, Vietminh Forces, Dien Bien Phu	p. 155
French Indochina War, 1945-1956	p. 157
Battle of Dien Bien Phu, November 12, 1953-May 7, 1954	p. 167
Suggested Reading	p. 175
Index	p. 177
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