Castries, christian-marie, 1902-1991

port.

Envelope 4/64 ; microfilm reel 055 ; Frames 532 - 536

2 newspaper clippings and 1 page of biographical information

biographical information in digital form

Christian Marie Ferdinand de la Croix de Castries was the French commander at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954. After an eight-week siege, the garrison was defeated. The French were overrun by the Viet Minh forces on 7 May 1954, effectively ending the First Indochina War and the French presence in Southeast Asia. During World War II he fought with the Allies, was captured by the Germans and put into a war prisoner camp, which he escaped of and went back fighting against the Germans -- (Wikipedia)