Franco-Thai War

Franco-Thai War
Part of the aftermath of the Japanese invasion of French Indochina and World War II

Map of the French Indochina prior to World War I
DateOctober 1940 – January 28, 1941[a]
Location
Result

Indecisive[1]

  • Japanese-mediated armistice[2]
Territorial
changes
On Japanese decision, disputed territories in French Indochina ceded by France to Thailand[3]: 22 [4]: 78 
Belligerents

 Vichy France

Thailand
Commanders and leaders
Jean Decoux Plaek Phibunsongkhram
Strength
50,000 men
(38,000 colonials)
20 light tanks
100 aircraft
1 light cruiser
4 avisos
60,000 men
134 tanks
140 aircraft[5]
3 coastal defense ships
12 torpedo boats
4 submarines
Casualties and losses
Land:
321 killed or wounded
178 missing
222 captured
22 aircraft destroyed
Sea:
None[6][7]
Total: 721+ casualties
Land:
54 killed[8]
307 wounded
21 captured
8–13 aircraft destroyed
Sea:
36–300+ killed[6][7]
3 torpedo boats sunk[6]
1 coastal defense ship grounded
Total:
418–700+[6][7] casualties
  1. ^ Fighting ended with a ceasefire on January 28 and the war formally ended with a peace treaty on May 9

The Franco-Thai War (October 1940 – January 28, 1941, Thai: กรณีพิพาทอินโดจีน, romanizedKrṇī phiphāth xindocīn; French: Guerre franco-thaïlandaise) was fought between Thailand and Vichy France over certain areas of French Indochina.

Negotiations shortly before World War II had shown that the French government was willing to alter the boundaries between Thailand and French Indochina, but only slightly. Following the Fall of France in 1940, Major-General Plaek Pibulsonggram (popularly known as "Phibun"), the prime minister of Thailand, decided that France's defeat strengthened the Thais' negotiating position to regain the vassal state territories that were ceded to France during King Chulalongkorn's reign.

The German and Italian military occupation of Metropolitan France rendered France's hold on French Indochina and its other overseas territories tenuous. The colonial administration was cut off from outside help and supplies. After the invasion of French Indochina in September 1940, Japan forced the French to allow them to set up military bases. The French's seemingly subservient behavior lulled the Phibun regime into believing that France would not seriously resist a military confrontation by Thailand.

  1. ^ Tucker, World War II: The Definitive Encyclopedia and Document Collection p. 649
  2. ^ Fall, p. 22. "On the seas, one old French cruiser sank one-third of the whole Thai fleet ... Japan, seeing that the war was turning against its pupil and ally, imposed its 'mediation' between the two parties."
  3. ^ Fall, Bernard B. (1994). Street Without Joy: The French Debacle in Indochina. Stackpole Books. ISBN 0-8117-1700-3.
  4. ^ Windrow, Martin (2004). The Last Valley. Weidenfeld and Nicolson. ISBN 0-306-81386-6.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Royal Thai Air Force 1976 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ a b c d Journoud, Pierre (2012). Face à la France, une victoire de Thaïs (8 ed.). fr:Guerres & Histoire. p. 72.
  7. ^ a b c "The Battle of Koh Chang (January 1941)" netmarine.net
  8. ^ Sorasanya Phaengspha (2002) The Indochina War: Thailand Fights France. Sarakadee Press.

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