Yamazaki chose the academy primarily because he did not want to face fellow Japanese in battle. By late 1945, the British-led coalition had pushed the Viet Minh into the remote countryside, effectively crushing the Resistance. Wrapping up the British campaign at the end of January 1946, General Gracey handed over the southern part of the country to the French general Jacques-Philippe Leclerc. Weeks later, the northern part of the country was traded to the French by Chinese generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, who had earlier vehemently opposed the recolonization of Vietnam.
