Dien Bien Phu: The Epic Battle America Forgot. This item is unavailable.Dien Bien Phu: The Epic Battle America Forgot

Dien Bien Phu is recognized as one of history's great battles. It began in November 1953, when French paratroopers seized a small airstrip in Northwestern Vietnam. It ended in May 1954 with tens of thousands of Vietminh troops overrunning the beseiged garrison. A third of the 15,000 French defenders died in combat, fewer than a hundred escaped into the jungle. Thousands more died in captivity. The fall of Dien Bien Phu led to the American commitment to Vietnam. Ironically, the US military repeated many of the French mistakes. Howard Simpson was at Dien Bien Phu as a combat reporter. His account is a personal one - that of a man who shared meals and wine and danger with the doomed soldiers. He is uniquely qualified to tell the story of this famous last stand.

A military classic. --"Publishers Weekly No American is better qualified to tell the tale of Dien Bien Phu. --"Stanley Karnow, author of Vietnam: A History Captivating . . . Highly recommended. --"Library Journal Exceptionally well-written, accurate, and readable. --"Infantry [Simpson] has written another classic. --"Army As gripping as any CNN close-up. --Foreign Service Journal

"[The battle of Dien Bien Phu] ranks with Agincourt, Waterloo, and Gettysburg as one of the great military engagements of history . . . . No American is better qualified to tell the tale of Dien Bien Phu and its significance than Howard Simpson."--Stanley Karnow, Pulitzer-Prize-winning author of Vietnam: A History
--Stanley Karnow (06/02/2017)