Dien Bien Phu

Dien Bien Phu, military outpost in North Vietnam where in 1954 France was finally defeated in the Indochina War. During the 56-day siege the French army lost 15,000 men in its bid to resist the onslaught of Gen. Vo Nguyen Giap's Vietminh forces. France formally withdrew from Indochina at the Geneva Conference (1954).

See also: Vietnam.