Contesting Indochina: French Remembrance between Decolonization and Cold War (Volume 8) (From Indochina to Vietnam: Revolution and War in a Global Perspective)

How does a nation come to terms with losing a war—especially an overseas war whose purpose is fervently contested? In the years after the war, how does such a nation construct and reconstruct its identity and values? For the French in Indochina, the stunning defeat at Dien Bien Phu ushered in the violent process of decolonization and a fraught reckoning with a colonial past. Contesting Indochina is the first in-depth study of the competing and intertwined narratives of the Indochina War. It analyzes the layers of French remembrance, focusing on state-sponsored commemoration, veterans’ associations, special-interest groups, intellectuals, films, and heated public disputes. These narratives constitute the ideological battleground for contesting the legacies of colonialism, decolonization, the Cold War, and France’s changing global status. "How does a nation come to terms with losing a war--especially an overseas war the purpose of which is fervently contested? In the ensuing years, how does such a nation construct and reconstruct its identity and values? For the French in Indochina, the stunning defeat at Dien Bien Phu ushered in the violent process of decolonization and a fraught reckoning with a colonial past. Contesting Indochina is the first in-depth study of the competing and intertwined narratives of the Indochina War. It analyzes the layers of French remembrance, focusing on state-sponsored commemoration, veterans' associations, special-interest groups, intellectuals, films, and heated public disputes. These narratives make up the ideological battleground for contesting the legacies of colonialism, decolonization, the Cold War, and France's changing global status"--Provided by publisher. Cover -- Contesting Indochina -- Title -- Copyright -- Dedication -- CONTENTS -- List of Illustrations -- Institutional Acronyms -- Acknowledgments -- Map of France -- Introduction -- 1 French Indochina from Conquest to Commemoration -- 2 Remembrance and Rehabilitation: The ANAI and the Anticommunist Narrative -- 3 From Activism to Remembrance: The Anticolonial Narrative -- 4 Morts pour la France? Official Commemoration of the Indochina War -- 5 "The Forgotten of Vietnam-sur-Lot": Repatriate Camps as Sites of Colonial Memory 6 "La sale affaire": Collaboration, Resistance, and the Georges Boudarel Affair -- 7 Missing in Action: The Indochina War and French Film -- Conclusion -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index