Battle of Lạng Sơn (1940)

For the 1885 withdrawal, see Retreat from Lạng Sơn.

Battle of Lạng Sơn
Part of Japanese invasion of French Indochina
Japanese Imperial Army soldiers advance to Lạng Sơn.
Date 22–25 September 1940 (3 days) Location Lạng Sơn, French Indochina 21°50′52″N 106°45′28″E Result Japanese victory Territorial changes Capture of Lạng Sơn, withdraw of French forces to Thái Nguyên[1]
Belligerents
Japan VNPQĐMH	Vichy France  French Indochina
Commanders and leaders
Aketo Nakamura	Germain Mennerat
Units involved
Imperial Japanese 5th Division	5th Foreign Infantry Regiment French colonial troops
Strength
>5,000	~5,000[2]

The Battle of Lạng Sơn (1940) was a short military battle between Imperial Japan and Vichy France in French Indochina. This battle was one of the very few battles of the Japanese invasion of French Indochina, an invasion only lasting three days.

This battle took place in Lạng Sơn, and the areas surrounding it, which are located in modern-day northern Vietnam.The city was invaded by the Japanese army, after forcibly crossing the Chinese border into Vietnam.[3] The French forces were outnumbered by Japan's forces,[4] and they were forced to withdraw from the city on 25 September 1940, where they retreated to Thái Nguyên.[5]

References

1. "Talks to celebrate the 82nd anniversary of Bac Son uprising". baolangson.vn. 9 September 2022. Archived from the original on 21 December 2023. Retrieved 2023-12-21.
2. Stone, Bill (1998). "Vichy Indo-China vs Japan, 1940". stonebooks.com. Archived from the original on 19 April 2022. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
3. Namba, Chizuru (2019-09-01). "The French Colonization and Japanese Occupation of Indochina during the Second World War: Encounters of the French, Japanese, and Vietnamese". Cross-Currents: East Asian History and Culture Review. 1 (32).
4. HV, Kevin (2016-09-22). "Lang Son City". Hiking Vietnam. Retrieved 2023-12-19.
5. Hy V. Luong - Tradition, Revolution, and Market Economy in a North Vietnamese ... 2010- Page 37 "In March 1885, as Chinese troops from Kwangsi defeated a French force of 35,000 in Lạng-Sơn, Black Flag troops ..."