Embers of War: The Fall of an Empire and the Making of America's Vietnam

by Fredrik Logevall

To remind all and sundry of the sacrifices being made by the French Union for the defense of Vietnam, de Lattre ordered a series of commemorative services be held for his fallen son, at various points around the country. On July 5, for example, there was a solemn mass in St. Joseph’s Cathedral in Hanoi. Reluctant Vietnamese ministers were compelled to fly to Tonkin—how could one decline such an invitation?—as were equally reluctant members of the diplomatic community, most of whom weren’t informed of the event until eight o’clock the night before. Hasty arrangements were made, and the aircraft left Saigon at four-thirty A.M. in order to make it in time for the service. After everyone else in the cathedral had been seated, and following an imposing silence, the general made a dramatic entrance and took his place next to the bishop. A Trappist monk delivered an eloquent address built on the theme of Bernard as a symbol of France’s contribution to the preservation of liberty.