Roger Charles André Henri Blaizot (17 May 1891 – 21 March 1981)[2] was a French military leader, who commanded French forces during World War II and the First Indochina War.[1] Blaizot served in Indochina through the last two years of the World War II,[3] having been sent to command the Far East French Expeditionary Forces (Forces Francaises Extrême Orient) by Charles de Gaulle.[4] Following the war, Blaizot led a fifty-member staff group to Indochina as part of a cooperation between British Special Operations Executive agents of Force 136 and the French government to ensure French retention of South East Asia,[5] this having been approved by Lord Philip Mountbatten in 1943.[6] Blaizot then went on to command the French forces in Indochina from 1948 until 1949,[7] succeeding Jean-Étienne Valluy and being succeeded himself by Marcel Carpentier.[8]
Roger Blaizot | |
|---|---|
 Arrival of General Blaizot in Saigon in 1948: from left to right, General de Perier, General Salan, General Blaizot and Admiral Battet. | |
| Born | 17 May 1891 Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis, France |
| Died | 21 March 1981 (aged 89) Lyon, France |
| Allegiance |  France |
| Service/ | French Army |
| Rank | Général de corps d'armée |
| Unit | French Liaison Officer to Supreme Allied Commander South-East Asia[1] |
| Commands held | 1st Motorized Colonial Division 9th Colonial Division Forces Francaises Extrême Orient[1] |
| Battles/wars | World War II First Indochina War |
See also edit
Notes edit
- ^ a b c Biography of: Blaizot, Roger-Charles-André-Henri, Lieutenant-General. (1895 – 1981) retrieved June 26, 2008
- ^ Tucker, Spencer C. (2011-05-20). The Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War: A Political, Social, and Military History, 2nd Edition [4 volumes]: A Political, Social, and Military History. Abc-Clio. ISBN 9781851099610.
- ^ Thomas, p. 943.
- ^ Chapuis, p. 138.
- ^ Lawrence and Logevall, p. 109.
- ^ Duiker, p. 12.
- ^ Currey, p. 401.
- ^ Tucker, p. 52.
References edit
Printed sources:
- Bodinier, Gilbert, La Guerre d'Indochine, 1945-1954: textes et documents, France Armée de terre, service historique, 1987.
- Chapuis, Oscar. The Last Emperors of Vietnam: From Tu Duc to Bao Dai, Greenwood Publishing Group, 2000. ISBN 0-313-31170-6
- Currey, Cecil B. Victory at Any Cost: The Genius of Viet Nam's Gen. Vo Nguyen Giap Potomac Books Inc. 2005. ISBN 1-57488-742-4
- Duiker, William J. U.S. Containment Policy and the Conflict in Indochina, Stanford University Press, 1994. ISBN 0-8047-2283-8
- Lawrence, Mark Atwood and Fredrik Logevall, The First Vietnam War: Colonial Conflict and Cold War Crisis, Harvard University Press, 2007. ISBN 0-674-02371-4
- Thomas, Martin, Silent Partners: SOE's French Indo-China Section, 1943-1945, Modern Asian Studies, p. 943–976, Cambridge University Press, 2000.
- Tucker, Spencer C. Vietnam, Routledge, 1999. ISBN 1-85728-922-6
Websites: