Refine your search

The results of your search are listed below alongside the search terms you entered on the previous page. You can refine your search by amending any of the parameters in the form and resubmitting it.

Select all Deselect all Add selection to lightbox
Large Small
Thumbnails per page
The First Indochina War (also known as the French Indochina War, Anti-French War, Franco-Vietnamese War, Franco-Vietminh War, Indochina War, Dirty War in France, and Anti-French Resistance War in contemporary Vietnam) was fought in French Indochina from December 19, 1946, until August 1, 1954. The war took place between the French Union's French Far East Expeditionary Corps, led by France and supported by Emperor Bảo Đại's Vietnamese National Army against the Việt Minh, led by Hồ Chí Minh and Võ Nguyên Giáp. Most of the fighting took place in Tonkin in Northern Vietnam, although the conflict engulfed the entire country and also extended into the neighboring French Indochina protectorates of Laos and Cambodia. The war ended in French defeat at Dien Bien Phu in 1954.
Doumer was born in Aurillac, in the Cantal département, in France on 22 March 1857. He was Governor-General of French Indochina from 1897 to 1902. After returning from French Indochina, Doumer served as President of the Chamber of Deputies from 1902 to 1905.<br/><br/> He was elected President of the French Republic on 13 May 1931, defeating the better known Aristide Briand, and replacing Gaston Doumergue. On 6 May 1932, he was shot in Paris at the opening of a book fair by Paul Gorguloff, a mentally unstable Russian émigré. He died at 04:37 a.m. on 7 May.<br/><br/> The Long Bien Bridge in Hanoi was built during his term as Governor-General and was named for him. It became a well-known landmark and target for US pilots during the Second Indochina War.
The Presidential Palace was originally constructed in 1901 for Paul Doumer, then Governor of French Indochina. Painted in the dark mustard yellow stonework with the green windows and louvered shutters so favoured in Vietnam, it is now chiefly employed to receive visiting dignitaries and heads of state.<br/><br/> Vietnamese national hero, Ho Chi Minh, who became President of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam in 1954, declined to live here. According to his biographer Duiker: ‘he refused an offer by his colleagues to live in the Governor-General’s Palace, which he considered to be too pretentious for his tastes, and decided to take up residence in a small gardener’s house on the palace grounds’.
The French established an opium franchise to put their new colony on a paying basis only six months after they annexed Saigon in 1862. Opium was imported from India, taxed at 10 percent of value, and sold by licensed Chinese merchants to all comers.<br/><br/> Opium became an extremely lucrative source of income, and this successful experiment was repeated as the French acquired other areas in Indochina. Shortly after the French established a protectorate over Cambodia (1863) and central Vietnam (1883), and annexed Tonkin (northern Vietnam, 1884) and Laos (1893), they founded autonomous opium monopolies to finance the heavy initial expenses of colonial rule.
The Presidential Palace was originally constructed in 1901 for Paul Doumer, then Governor of French Indochina. Painted in the dark mustard yellow stonework with the green windows and louvered shutters so favoured in Vietnam, it is now chiefly employed to receive visiting dignitaries and heads of state.<br/><br/> Vietnamese national hero, Ho Chi Minh, who became President of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam in 1954, declined to live here. According to his biographer Duiker: ‘he refused an offer by his colleagues to live in the Governor-General’s Palace, which he considered to be too pretentious for his tastes, and decided to take up residence in a small gardener’s house on the palace grounds’.
The Presidential Palace was originally constructed in 1901 for Paul Doumer, then Governor of French Indochina. Painted in the dark mustard yellow stonework with the green windows and louvered shutters so favoured in Vietnam, it is now chiefly employed to receive visiting dignitaries and heads of state.<br/><br/> Vietnamese national hero, Ho Chi Minh, who became President of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam in 1954, declined to live here. According to his biographer Duiker: ‘he refused an offer by his colleagues to live in the Governor-General’s Palace, which he considered to be too pretentious for his tastes, and decided to take up residence in a small gardener’s house on the palace grounds’.
Doumer was born in Aurillac, in the Cantal département, in France on 22 March 1857. He was Governor-General of French Indochina from 1897 to 1902. After returning from French Indochina, Doumer served as President of the Chamber of Deputies from 1902 to 1905.<br/><br/> He was elected President of the French Republic on 13 May 1931, defeating the better known Aristide Briand, and replacing Gaston Doumergue. On 6 May 1932, he was shot in Paris at the opening of a book fair by Paul Gorguloff, a mentally unstable Russian émigré. He died at 04:37 a.m. on 7 May.<br/><br/> The Long Bien Bridge in Hanoi was built during his term as Governor-General and was named for him. It became a well-known landmark and target for US pilots during the Second Indochina War.
Doumer was born in Aurillac, in the Cantal département, in France on 22 March 1857. He was Governor-General of French Indochina from 1897 to 1902. After returning from French Indochina, Doumer served as President of the Chamber of Deputies from 1902 to 1905.<br/><br/> He was elected President of the French Republic on 13 May 1931, defeating the better known Aristide Briand, and replacing Gaston Doumergue. On 6 May 1932, he was shot in Paris at the opening of a book fair by Paul Gorguloff, a mentally unstable Russian émigré. He died at 04:37 a.m. on 7 May.<br/><br/> The Long Bien Bridge in Hanoi was built during his term as Governor-General and was named for him. It became a well-known landmark and target for US pilots during the Second Indochina War.
The French established an opium franchise to put their new colony on a paying basis only six months after they annexed Saigon in 1862. Opium was imported from India, taxed at 10 percent of value, and sold by licensed Chinese merchants to all comers. Opium became an extremely lucrative source of income, and this successful experiment was repeated as the French acquired other areas in Indochina.<br/><br/> Shortly after the French established a protectorate over Cambodia (1863) and central Vietnam (1883), and annexed Tonkin (northern Vietnam, 1884) and Laos (1893), they founded autonomous opium monopolies to finance the heavy initial expenses of colonial rule. While the opium franchise had succeeded in putting southern Vietnam on a paying basis within several years, the rapid expansion of French holdings in the 1880s and 1890s created a huge fiscal deficit for Indochina as a whole.<br/><br/> Governor-General Paul Doumer reorganized the opium business in 1899, expanding sales and sharply reducing expenses. After consolidating the five autonomous opium agencies into the single Opium Monopoly, Doumer constructed a modern, efficient opium refinery in Saigon to process raw Indian resin into prepared smoker's opium. The new factory devised a special mixture of prepared opium that burned quickly, thus encouraging the smoker to consume more opium than he might ordinarily.<br/><br/> Under Doumer's direction, the Opium Monopoly made its first purchases of cheap opium from China's Yunnan Province so that government dens and retail shops could expand their clientele to include the poorer workers who could not afford the high-priced Indian brands. More dens and shops were opened to meet expanded consumer demand (in 1918 there were 1,512 dens and 3,098 retail shops).
The French established an opium franchise to put their new colony on a paying basis only six months after they annexed Saigon in 1862. Opium was imported from India, taxed at 10 percent of value, and sold by licensed Chinese merchants to all comers.<br/><br/> Opium became an extremely lucrative source of income, and this successful experiment was repeated as the French acquired other areas in Indochina. Shortly after the French established a protectorate over Cambodia (1863) and central Vietnam (1883), and annexed Tonkin (northern Vietnam, 1884) and Laos (1893), they founded autonomous opium monopolies to finance the heavy initial expenses of colonial rule.
The French established an opium franchise to put their new colony on a paying basis only six months after they annexed Saigon in 1862. Opium was imported from India, taxed at 10 percent of value, and sold by licensed Chinese merchants to all comers. Opium became an extremely lucrative source of income, and this successful experiment was repeated as the French acquired other areas in Indochina.<br/><br/> Shortly after the French established a protectorate over Cambodia (1863) and central Vietnam (1883), and annexed Tonkin (northern Vietnam, 1884) and Laos (1893), they founded autonomous opium monopolies to finance the heavy initial expenses of colonial rule. While the opium franchise had succeeded in putting southern Vietnam on a paying basis within several years, the rapid expansion of French holdings in the 1880s and 1890s created a huge fiscal deficit for Indochina as a whole.<br/><br/> Governor-General Paul Doumer reorganized the opium business in 1899, expanding sales and sharply reducing expenses. After consolidating the five autonomous opium agencies into the single Opium Monopoly, Doumer constructed a modern, efficient opium refinery in Saigon to process raw Indian resin into prepared smoker's opium. The new factory devised a special mixture of prepared opium that burned quickly, thus encouraging the smoker to consume more opium than be might ordinarily.<br/><br/> Under his direction, the Opium Monopoly made its first purchases of cheap opium from China's Yunnan Province so that government dens and retail shops could expand their clientele to include the poorer workers who could not afford the high-priced Indian brands. More dens and shops were opened to meet expanded consumer demand (in 1918 there were 1,512 dens and 3,098 retail shops).
The Long Bien Bridge was built in 1903 by the architects of Daydé & Pillé, a French company. Before North Vietnam's independence in 1954, it was called Doumer Bridge, named after Paul Doumer - The Governor-General of French Indochina and then French president. It was, at that time, one of the longest bridges in Asia with the length of 2,500 m. For the French colonial government, the construction was of strategic importance in securing control of northern Vietnam. From 1899 to 1902, more than 3,000 Vietnamese took part in the construction.<br/><br/> It was heavily bombarded during the Vietnam War due to its critical position (the only bridge at that time across the Red River and connecting Hanoi to the main port Haiphong). The first attack took place in 1967, and the center span of the bridge was felled in an attack by 20 USAF (United States Air Force) F-105 fighter-bombers. The defence of Long Bien Bridge continues to play a large role in Hanoi’s self-image and is often extolled in poetry and song. It was rendered unusable for a year when, in May 1972, it fell victim to one of the first co-ordinated attacks using laser-guided 'smart bombs'.<br/><br/> The bridge now stands like a patched-up war veteran. Some parts of the original structure remain intact, while large sections have clearly been built later to repair the damaged sections. In this way the bridge offers a strong visual expression of North Vietnam's determined resistance to USAF attack. A project with the support of the French government is in progress to restore the bridge to its original appearance.
The French established an opium franchise to put their new colony on a paying basis only six months after they annexed Saigon in 1862. Opium was imported from India, taxed at 10 percent of value, and sold by licensed Chinese merchants to all comers. Opium became an extremely lucrative source of income, and this successful experiment was repeated as the French acquired other areas in Indochina.<br/><br/> Shortly after the French established a protectorate over Cambodia (1863) and central Vietnam (1883), and annexed Tonkin (northern Vietnam, 1884) and Laos (1893), they founded autonomous opium monopolies to finance the heavy initial expenses of colonial rule. While the opium franchise had succeeded in putting southern Vietnam on a paying basis within several years, the rapid expansion of French holdings in the 1880s and 1890s created a huge fiscal deficit for Indochina as a whole. Governor-General Paul Doumer reorganized the opium business in 1899, expanding sales and sharply reducing expenses.<br/><br/> After consolidating the five autonomous opium agencies into the single Opium Monopoly, Doumer constructed a modern, efficient opium refinery in Saigon to process raw Indian resin into prepared smoker's opium. The new factory devised a special mixture of prepared opium that burned quickly, thus encouraging the smoker to consume more opium than they might ordinarily. Under his direction, the Opium Monopoly made its first purchases of cheap opium from China's Yunnan Province so that government dens and retail shops could expand their clientele to include the poorer workers who could not afford the high-priced Indian brands.<br/><br/> More dens and shops were opened to meet expanded consumer demand (in 1918 there were 1,512 dens and 3,098 retail shops).
The Long Bien Bridge was erected by the French colonialists between 1899 and 1902 and named the Paul Doumer Bridge in honour of the then Governor of French Indochina (1897–1902).<br/><br/> It was designed and built by Dayde and Pille of Paris (the original plaques are still in place) and is 1,682 metres (5,518 ft) long, comprising 18 spans, with an additional lengthened central span of 106 metres (347 ft). It carries the only railway line between Hanoi and Haiphong, as well as two vital rail links with China; until the construction of the new Chuong Duong Bridge in 1985, it also carried the only road traffic across the Red River at Hanoi.<br/><br/> The Long Bien Bridge became a major target – perhaps the major target – of the United States Air Force during the Second Indochina War. At the height of the US bombing offensive it was defended by more than 150 Soviet-supplied SAM missiles, as well as massed batteries of anti-aircraft guns.<br/><br/> Although hit on numerous occasions, Vietnamese sapper teams working 24 hours a day generally managed to repair the bridge and restore communications within a remarkably short period of time.
The French established an opium franchise to put their new colony on a paying basis only six months after they annexed Saigon in 1862. Opium was imported from India, taxed at 10 percent of value, and sold by licensed Chinese merchants to all comers. Opium became an extremely lucrative source of income, and this successful experiment was repeated as the French acquired other areas in Indochina.<br/><br/> Shortly after the French established a protectorate over Cambodia (1863) and central Vietnam (1883), and annexed Tonkin (northern Vietnam, 1884) and Laos (1893), they founded autonomous opium monopolies to finance the heavy initial expenses of colonial rule. While the opium franchise had succeeded in putting southern Vietnam on a paying basis within several years, the rapid expansion of French holdings in the 1880s and 1890s created a huge fiscal deficit for Indochina as a whole. Governor-General Paul Doumer reorganized the opium business in 1899, expanding sales and sharply reducing expenses.<br/><br/> After consolidating the five autonomous opium agencies into the single Opium Monopoly, Doumer constructed a modern, efficient opium refinery in Saigon to process raw Indian resin into prepared smoker's opium. The new factory devised a special mixture of prepared opium that burned quickly, thus encouraging the smoker to consume more opium than they might ordinarily. Under his direction, the Opium Monopoly made its first purchases of cheap opium from China's Yunnan Province so that government dens and retail shops could expand their clientele to include the poorer workers who could not afford the high-priced Indian brands.<br/><br/> More dens and shops were opened to meet expanded consumer demand (in 1918 there were 1,512 dens and 3,098 retail shops).