Black Flags In Vietnam: The Story of a Chinese Intervention - The Tonkin War of 1884-85

There can be no doubt that the interest and alarm with which the western world is following the war in Vietnam are due almost entirely to the fear that it may lead to a direct clash between China and the United States. It is all the stranger, therefore, that so little attention has been paid to a series of events a couple of lifetimes ago which resulted in a Chinese intervention of the very kind we dread today, especially since the outcome has profoundly influenced the attitude of the Peking government towards the present conflict. This book attempts to tell the story in a manner suitable for the ordinary reader. It is not a history of Vietnam, though it was obviously necessary in the early chapters to sketch the historical background. Nor is it a work for academic specialists: thus, for instance, Chinese names, which invariably give non-sinologues a headache, have been used as sparingly as possible. Reference-notes have been inserted only at those places in the text where otherwise the author might be suspected of exaggeration.French colonial expansion in the 1880s was by no means restricted to Tongking, yet to have introduced the affairs of Madagascar and Tunis would have added quite intolerable complexity to a tale which even as it is has more than enough ramifications. For the same reason, Sino-Japanese rivalry in Korea, which to some extent influenced Chinese policy towards Vietnam, has been given only the briefest mention. BLACK FLAGS IN VIETNAM Preface Contents The Birthpangs of Vietnam Martyrs and Mandarins ‘With opium in one hand .. The First French Offensive The French Explore The Black Flags Jean Dupuis Francis Gamier China—Divided Counsels Halliday Macartney and the Marquis Tseng China’s Suzerainty Challenged Henri Riviere— Tragedy Repeated Hue Capitulates The Rage of Liu Yung-fu Peace or War ? France : The Day of Glory Formosa and Tongking Catastrophe The Aftermath Principal Sources Notes Index