Xuan Phuong, the Vietminh, and the Battle of Dien Bien Phu

The Battle of Dien Bien Phu offered the Vietnamese the exhilarating hope of independence from the French. Each evening, Finance Ministry workers excitedly assembled around a large map that depicted combat areas with red pins and French casualty numbers on labels. "The atmosphere was electric," Phuong later wrote of this time. "The slogan heard and repeated everywhere was "We work one and all for Dien Bien Phu."