WHAT WAY did France take over Vietnam in 1857? – Section 1
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Andrew Dang
Historically, the Second French Empire (1852–1870)[1] did not take over Vietnam in 1857. In fact, the actual invasion took place on 31 August 1858 at Tourane (Today Đà Nẵng City in central Vietnam). It was a long story of nearly 30 years of war and conquest, from Đà Nẵng in 1858 to the Treaty of Huế in 1884[2], when Vietnam “officially” lost its own independence. There were a lot of mistakes which led to the loss of Vietnamese independence. With my answer today, I would strongly focused on the initial period of 1858–1862, when the Nguyễn Dynasty with its own wrongdoing policies subsequently turned all the hopes and victories of Vietnamese people into a national disaster! (Sadly, but it was happened)[3].
I. THE SIEGE OF TOURANE (1858–1860): A VIETNAMESE VICTORY
Initially, under the banner of “protecting the persecuted Vietnamese Catholics” under the rule of Nguyễn Dynasty, with 14 warships and 3,000 Franco-Spanish troops under the supreme command of Admiral Charles Rigault de Genouilly (1807–1873)[5], they started the artillery bombardments against all Vietnamese naval fortresses along the Bay of Đà Nẵng and Sơn Trà Mountain[6]. This event subsequently marked the beginning of the famous Siege of Tourane during the next two years (1858–1860), which finally turned out a Vietnamese victory.
The French expected a general uprising of Vietnamese Catholics against the Nguyễn Dynasty in its own capital of Huế City (located just 100 km from the occupied Franco-Spanish positions around Đà Nẵng City), but in fact they found no Vietnamese Catholics were willing to help them. The fighting were also fierce for both sides. After Vietnamese General Lê Đình Lý (黎廷理, 1790 – 1858) died in combat, Marshal Chu Phúc Minh was in charge of the front and later be replaced by Marshal Nguyễn Tri Phương (阮知方, 1806–1873)[7], who was famous for siege tactics.
To the French, at Đà Nẵng their troops were frequently harassed by and under siege by Vietnamese forces. Several hundred troops lost their lives due to war wounds and maladies, such as typhus. In 1859, the future French Admiral Théogène François Page (1807–1867), who replaced the position of Rigault de Genouilly, described the real situation in Đà Nẵng in his letter as follows:
“I became commander in chief on 1 November 1859. What legacies I received there! I certainly drew a famous thorn from Rigault’s foot, but only to push it under my own nails. We spent thirty-two million, and what is left of it? The treaty with China torn by cannon fire, in Canton a military occupation forced to become the city’s police, in Tourane [Da Nang], a real charnel house where a thousand of our men died of misery, without purpose, without result.”[8][9]
Moreover, the fierce Battle at Chân Sảng Fort (or Kien-Chan Fort) on 18 November 1859 even costed the life of Lieutenant-Colonel Dupré-Déroulède, a high-ranking French military engineer who was among the headquarter staffs and also who had planed the attack of Đà Nẵng, when a Vietnamese cannonball penetrated through his body. Finally, on 22 March 1860, the French decided to burnt down all of their military installations in Đà Nẵng and moved their forces to Saigon, one of the most important cities in Vietnam.
II. THE SIEGE OF SAIGON (1859–1861): THE CURIOUS VIETNAMESE’S “PHONY WAR”
At the same time with the Siege of Tourane, the French opened another front in Southern Vietnam since February 1859, with the Capture of Saigon Citadel on 17 February 1859. After a surprised but unsuccessful attempt to seize the whole Province of Gia Định on 21 April 1859, with the loss of 14 dead and 31 wounded, the French stopped their operation and came back to the occupied positions [13].
However, because of their limitations of manpower, the French could only hold the captured area around the today Port of Saigon and the Chinese town of Chợ Lớn. They had to sent more troops to the front of Tourane and especially the on-going Second Opium War in China[15]. In 1860, there were only 800 Franco-Spanish troops in Saigon area. Their forces were first put under the command of Captain Bernard Jauréguiberry (1815–1887)[16], later replaced by the French naval officer Jules d’Ariès (1813–1878).
Meanwhile, Vietnamese forces gathered and started another “siege” against the French and Spanish forces in Saigon for nearly two years, from February 1859 to February 1861. But it was in fact a curious “siege”, or some kind of a Vietnamese’s “phony war”: With more than 10,000 troops around Saigon, Vietnamese madarins of Nguyễn Dynasty only built defensive lines with numerous forts only, not thinking about how to started the offensive against the occupants while having superior forces in comparison with only 800 French and Spanish troops (including Tagals mercenaries)!
In comparison with the Siege of Tourane, the Siege of Saigon was totally different: In Tourane or Đà Nẵng, the French was only hold a small part of Sơn Trà Mountain thanks to the scorched-earth policy and appropriate siege tactics. However, in Saigon the French captured one of the biggest ports of Vietnam, so their supply routes were not disrupted. Moreover, they even controlled the rice shipments in Southern Vietnam as well! During the “siege” (1859–1861), the Port of Saigon under the French occupation was even more opened, with hundreds merchant ships from China, Cambodia and Singapore frequently traveled in and out. In 1860, the Port of Saigon received[18]:
“Sixty-six ships and 100 junks loaded 60,000 tons of rice in just four months and made plenty of money in Hong Kong and Singapore.”
During the siege, the Chinese communities in Chợ Lớn actively collaborated with the French’s “new authority” (“Tân trào”), instead of the “old regime” (“Cựu trào”) of Nguyễn Dynasty. The French war in Vietnam only made them became rich and richer.
It can be seen that with this kind of “siege”, a “golden chance” for wiping out the Franco-Spanish invasion forces was declined, and the Nguyễn Dynasty subsequently paid a heavy price for their wrongdoing strategy afterwards!
… CONTINUE …
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Second French Empire – Wikipedia
[2] Treaty of Huế (1884) – Wikipedia
[3] Nguyễn dynasty – Wikipedia
[5] Charles Rigault de Genouilly – Wikipedia
[6] Sơn Trà Mountain – Wikipedia
[7] Nguyễn Tri Phương – Wikipedia
[8] Théogène François Page – Wikipedia
[9] Théogène Francois Page et Louis de Gonzague Doudart de Lagrée marins polytechniciens en Indochine
[10] French frigate Némésis (1847) – Wikipedia
[11] The stern of the ship La Nemesis during the attack of November 18,…
[12] Tourane Bay Nowadays Na Dang Vietnam Stock Photo (Edit Now) 69414649
[13] Siege of Saigon – Wikipedia
[14] Siege of Saigon – Wikipedia
[15] Second Opium War – Wikipedia
[16] Bernard Jauréguiberry – Wikipedia
BAN TU THU
12 /2019
NOTE:
◊ Featured image – source: gallica.bnf.fr