Indochina: Women's Army Auxiliaries

[No one]

Dear Gentlemen,

 

The insignia of the Corps of Women's Army Auxiliaries (Corps des Auxiliaires Féminines de l’Armée de Terre - A.F.A.T.), homologué H 720 in 1949,  Drago-Paris-Nice 43, rue Olivier Metra Déposé:

 

(more precisely, Detachment of the Female Auxiliaries of the Army of the French Troops in North Indochina - Détachement des Auxiliaires Féminines de l'Armée de Terre des Troupes Françaises en Indochine Nord - not specifically Colonial Troops, but all arms.)

 

 

Auxiliaires féminines de l'Armée de terre — Wikipédia

 

Yours sincerely,

No one

Edited November 11 by No one

[Gordon Craig]

No one,

Interesting badge and subject.  I found this on-line, in French, and translated it for your thread.  I don't always trust WIKI posts and would appreciate more info from you re that badges and why you say it is ATAF badge is for North Indochina specifically.

Regards,

Gordon

Women's Auxiliaries of the Army

 

 

Recruitment poster for the AFAT, 1944.

The Corps of Women's Auxiliaries of the Army (AFAT), sometimes called the Women's Army , is a unit of the French Army created in 1944 ^and renamed in 1946 the Women's Personnel of the Army (PFAT).

The AFAT were created on April 26, 1944to bring together the women of the French Volunteer Corps (CVF, created in London on November 7, 1940² ), the Free French Forces and the French Forces of the Interior ^3. They were under the command of their creator, Commander Hélène Terré ^4. At the end of the war, there were between 13,000 and 14,000 of them ^5. This corps was replaced on February 1 ^, 1946 by the Women's Army Personnel (PFAT) 

[No one]

Dear Gordon Craig,

 

The map of Indochina, including Annam, Cochinchina, Cambodia, and Laos, is white with no borders except for the northern part, Tonkin, which has its borders and is red.

 

But, I may be mistaken.

 

ImagesDéfense - Indochine : les pionnières de l’armée française

 

Yours sincerely,

No one

Edited November 13 by No one

[Gordon Craig]

No one,

I think that the map shown on the pin is Indochina but the AFAT text on the badge is a bit confusing.  However, in the link you attached both AFAT AND PFAT terms are used to refer to these women so I am not much further ahead here.  It is an interesting badge and though I have done a lot of research on the French Indochina war, or as it is now becoming common to call it the First Viet Nam war, I was not aware of the AFAT until you posted the picture of your pin.  More research ahaead!

 

Indochina: the pioneers of the French army

 

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  Vaccination of children in Ha Hoi against cholera by a nurse from the Health Service.
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  General de Linarès decorates a female soldier, head of the PFAT-Tonkin detachment, during the PFAT (female personnel of the Army) parade at the Mangin stadium.
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  Tribute to those who died for France in Indochina during the taking up of arms of the female personnel of the Army at the Mangin stadium.
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  Section head of the Health Service during the PFAT (female personnel of the Army) taking up arms at the Mangin stadium.
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  Female Air Force personnel during the taking up of arms of female Army personnel at the Mangin stadium.
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  Three elements of the PFAT (female personnel of the Army) at the Mangin stadium.
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  General de Linarès and female personnel during the PFAT (female personnel of the Army) taking up arms at the Mangin stadium.
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  Detachment of paratroopers during the taking up of arms of the PFAT (female personnel of the Army) at the Mangin stadium.
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  General Gilles, commander of the airborne troops (TAP) in the Far East (center), speaks with guests at the reception organized for his departure.
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  Warrant Officer Bartier poses with French Red Cross (CRF) personnel after being decorated with the Legion of Honour and the TOE War Cross by General Dechaux at Lanessan Hospital.
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  A legionnaire from the 13 DBLE (half-brigade of the Foreign Legion), wounded in the battle of Dien Bien Phu, waits in the triage room of the Lanessan military hospital.
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  Wounded soldier, evacuated from Dien Bien Phu and hospitalized at Lanessan military hospital in Hanoi.
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  Geneviève de Galard in Luang Prabang, Laos.
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  Welcome to Geneviève de Galard in front of the surgical unit in Luang Prabang, Laos.
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  Geneviève de Galard in Luang Prabang, Laos.
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  On her arrival in Hanoi, Geneviève de Galard was greeted by General Cogny, commander-in-chief of the FTNV (North Vietnamese Land Forces).
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  Welcome to Geneviève de Galard in front of the surgical unit in Luang Prabang, Laos.
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  General Cogny, commander-in-chief of the FTNV (North Vietnam Land Forces), Geneviève de Galard and General Dechaux, commander of the air forces in North Vietnam.
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  Geneviève de Galard gives a press conference at the Hanoi press camp.
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  A woman wearing the uniform of the colonial troops in an apartment in the cantonment of the PFAT (female personnel of the Army).
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  Woman wearing the uniform of the colonial troops talking on the phone in an office of the PFAT (female personnel of the Army) cantonment.
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  Women in a garden at the PFAT (female army personnel) cantonment.
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  Nurses and Red Cross staff during the medical examination of senior officers, prisoners of war in Dien Bien Phu.
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  General Ely (center), Commissioner General of France and Commander-in-Chief in Indochina, and General Cogny, Commander-in-Chief of the FTNV (Land Forces of North Vietnam), salute the flag of the 2nd RTM (Moroccan Rifle Regiment).
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  General Ely, Commissioner General of France and Commander-in-Chief in Indochina, greets the civilian figures who came to greet him on his arrival in Hanoi.
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  Individual water skiing trials on the Great Lake of Hanoi.
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  Geneviève Grall, nurse of the GLAP (Light Airborne Group), stands at attention during a parade in Hanoi.
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  General Carpentier, commander-in-chief in Indochina, presents the military medal to Geneviève Grall, nurse of the GLAP (Light Airborne Group), during a parade in Hanoi.
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  Medical Captain Valérie André, helicopter pilot, decorated by Mr. Letourneau, Minister of Associated States.
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  Evacuation of an injured person by Hiller 360 helicopter piloted by medical captain Valérie André.
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  Vaccination of children in Ha Hoi against cholera by a nurse from the Health Service.
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  Vaccination of children in Ha Hoi against cholera by a nurse from the Health Service.
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  General de Linarès decorates a female soldier, head of the PFAT-Tonkin detachment, during the PFAT (female personnel of the Army) parade at the Mangin stadium.

 

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Relegated to administrative and health positions during the Second World War, women took up arms for the first time during the Indochina War. They had to fight on two fronts simultaneously: military, against the Vietminh troops who threatened the French colony, and ideological, to put an end to sexist prejudices.

 

From World War II to Indochina

 

 

In a mobile surgical formation at the front, a nurse at the bedside of a wounded man (Miss Momardin).

Relegated for centuries to the family sphere, Western women never had the opportunity, with a few exceptions, to serve their country militarily before the middle of the 20th century. In France, it was necessary to wait for the law of July 11, 1938 for them to be able to enlist. When war was declared in 1939, 6,600 French women joined the ranks of the army to protect the homeland. Not being authorized to fight, they were given positions in the administration, social and health services (as ambulance drivers or nurses) or even in communications. Society gave them no choice: they would serve France as they had served their home, as loving and corvéable mothers.

 

 

 

 

After Pétain announced the armistice, many women responded to General de Gaulle's call and enlisted for Free France, particularly in London. They joined the Free French Forces (FFL), the French Volunteer Corps (CVF) and the French Forces of the Interior (FFI). The women from these different units were brought together from 26 April 1944 within the corps of Women's Auxiliaries of the Army (AFAT). Some of its members even took part in the main campaigns for the liberation of France (Normandy, Paris, Alsace, Lorraine). This was the case for the ambulance drivers of the Rochambeau unit, attached to the 2nd Armoured Division commanded by General Leclerc.

 

At the end of the war, it was with little enthusiasm that the women who had enlisted prepared to return home. They had tasted freedom and danger, had fulfilled their duty as citizens, and had no desire to return to the kitchen. In October 1945, General Leclerc left for Indochina to re-establish French sovereignty, which had been undermined by the Vietminh takeover a few months earlier. Fifteen "Rochambelles" seized the opportunity and embarked on a new adventure that would shake up the organization of the French army.

 

An ambiguous military status

 

 

 

Between 1946 and 1954, 5,000 women joined the army, notably in the French Expeditionary Force in the Far East (CEFEO) and left to protect the French colonial empire in Indochina. Among the new recruits were wives who wanted to follow their husbands, mothers who needed money, and former deportees. All of them put their energy and audacity at the service of France and its empire.

 

Despite their full involvement, women did not always receive a warm welcome from the male soldiers they worked alongside. Always relegated to non-combat positions (nurse, ambulance driver, parachute packer, air escort), they were rarely taken seriously – at least until they had been able to prove themselves. They were called the “Merlinettes” in the signals service, the “Air Girls” in the air force and the “Marinettes” in the Navy, nicknames inherited from the Second World War which reflected a form of somewhat paternalistic sympathy towards women.

 

 

 

Army Corps General François Gonzalès de Linarès, commander of the North Vietnamese Land Forces (FTNV), decorates a lieutenant, detachment leader...

Women serving in Indochina were not given the same treatment as men. Many were assigned to a cantonment outside the security perimeter where the men were housed. When they were attacked by Vietminh fighters, the army gave them two rifles, two revolvers, ammunition and a box of grenades to defend themselves. A female operator from the Cinematographic Service was killed in one of these attacks, weapon in hand.

 

As capable as members of the male gender, women want to be able to fight and bear arms. The decree of October 15, 1951 grants them the right to pursue a military career, like men. This is a big step forward for them. But the absence of assimilation ranks and differentiated denominations still prevent women soldiers from being recognized as the equals of their brothers in arms.

 

Exceptional women

 

 

 

To be accepted and prove that they deserve their place in the army, women will redouble their efforts. They work tirelessly, day and night, sometimes under medication to keep going, so that operations take place in the best conditions. Whether they are driving aircraft, treating the wounded, preparing equipment or carrying out administrative tasks, women give 100%. Some of them have become legends thanks to their exemplary careers and unwavering commitment.

 

Military doctor, parachutist and helicopter pilot, Valérie André has a rather atypical profile. She enlisted in Indochina in early 1949 as a doctor and carried out a few paratrooper missions. Discovering the possibilities offered by the helicopter, she returned to France to obtain her pilot's diploma. Back in Indochina, she distinguished herself during 129 missions during which she evacuated more than 150 wounded. She would become the first female general in the French army and would become involved in gender equality in the military.

 

 

 

 

Nicknamed "the angel of Dien Bien Phu", Geneviève de Galard is the most famous female icon of the Indochina War. An air escort, she participated in the evacuation of the wounded from the basin where one of the fiercest battles of the Indochina War took place between March and May 1954. On March 28, 1954, the plane that dropped her off at the entrenched camp of Dien Bien Phu could no longer take off. Refusing to be evacuated, she decided to stay to treat the wounded at the field hospital.

 

Geneviève de Galard thus officially became the first woman present in the Dien Bien Phu camp. In reality, around twenty women were already living there: prostitutes from the military field brothel (BMC), who would lend her a hand in caring for the many wounded. When the fortified camp fell, Geneviève was taken prisoner by the Vietminh forces. When she was released, she was welcomed as a heroine. Her reputation was not limited to France: she was even invited by the American Congress and awarded the Medal of Freedom by President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

 

A timid and late recognition

 

 

Radio France-Asie journalist Yves Desjacques stands next to him with a microphone.

Most of the women who served in Indochina would not be entitled to the same recognition as Geneviève de Galard. Many men highlighted their courage, such as Lieutenant-Colonel Massu: "The Rochambelles carried stretchers under fire with such indifference to the risk that the men were deeply moved by it." But these testimonies rarely found an echo in official bodies, when they were not simply censored by the military authorities. This is the case of a passage from the memoirs of the medical commander Grauwin in which he paid a strong tribute to the prostitutes of Dien Bien Phu.

 

In the civilian population, too, the recognition of female soldiers is difficult. In a society that is still not very sensitive to questions of equality, the commitment of French women to the army often arouses incomprehension, sometimes even disapproval. Annoyed by the harsh judgment that some people have of women who enlist, nurse Hélène Carré Tornézy defends her sisters in arms in a letter addressed to her mother. "The AFAT are the daughters of adventure, just as the military are its sons. And here they share the lives of our soldiers […]. I demand common sense and justice for my comrades."

 

Relentlessly fighting the reluctance of some and the prejudices of others, the women engaged in Indochina won the right to be full-fledged soldiers, just like men. Some fifty of them paid with their own lives for this hard-won freedom. As the first women officially authorized to take up arms in the service of France, they will remain in History, alongside the women engaged during the Second World War, as the pioneers of the feminization of the French army.

 

To go further

To learn more about the role of women during the Indochina War, watch the documentary Indochina: When Women Go to War , co-produced by ECPAD.