Him Lam - also known as Béatrice - is the "steel gate" of the French expeditionary force covering Route 41 from Tuan Giao to Dien Bien. With deep tunnels dug and solid fortifications established, the French believed that Him Lam was an impregnable fortress.
Protecting this cluster of bases is the 3rd Legion Battalion of the 13th Legion Brigade led by Battalion Commander Paul Pégot. This battalion is full of French legionnaires, famous for their fighting skills, stationed at 3 peaks of the hill.
Him Lam stronghold historical site. Photo: Government Electronic Newspaper.
Before the opening battle of the campaign in Him Lam (March 13, 3), the military intelligence team of the 1954th Army broke into the base and ambushed 312 prisoners who were taken out to exploit, including the young man. Captain Jackker. Although Jacker thoroughly explained the arrangement of French soldiers in Béatrice base, he did not forget to warn: "You should not touch Béatrice. It is an impregnable fortress."
The task of attacking Him Lam to open the Dien Bien Phu campaign was assigned to the 312th Army under the command of General Le Trong Tan and Political Commissar Tran Do. The preparation work is very thoughtful and careful. Regiment 312 decided to use 2 regiments to fight the opening battle: Regiment 141 took charge, under the command of Regiment Commander Nguyen Quang Tuyen and Political Commissar of Mac Ninh Regiment, in charge of resolving 2 bases No. 1 and 2. No. 3. As for base 209, the XNUMXth Regiment was assigned the task of supporting combat, under the command of Regiment Commander Hoang Cam and Regimental Commissar Tran Quan Lap, to capture it.
Colonel Mac Ninh (1921 - 1983) Political commissar of Regiment 141, the unit responsible for destroying the Him Lam stronghold. Photo: Family documents.
During the days of preparation, the Political Commissar of the 141st Regiment Mac Ninh and the political agency of the 141st Regiment went to check and arrange each central officer and command squad to attack and penetrate deeply. At 10 a.m. on March 13, hearing that the platoon commander who commanded the attack to open the door of Company 3 was killed by a plane, Political Commissar Mac Ninh was very worried and impatient. He immediately sent political envoy Do Truong Quan straight to the platoon to decide who would replace the platoon commander to "open the door".
The soldiers in the platoon unanimously elected deputy platoon leader Nguyen Minh Chau to command. The envoy reported to the political commissar. After hearing the report, Political Commissar Mac Ninh felt secure and together with Regiment Commander Nguyen Quang Tuyen and Regiment Chief of Staff Luong Thinh agreed to implement the outlined battle plan.
All preparations for the attack have been completed. The attack on Him Lam base was decided on the evening of March 13, 3.
Northern Division - Dien Bien Phu. Photo: Vietnam Military History Museum.
At 15:13 p.m. on March 3, Regiment 141 launched a sortie along the trenches toward Him Lam. Two battalions 11 and 428 crossed the bridge built by our engineers across Nam Rom. French artillery fired continuously from the Nam Rom bank back. Many of our soldiers were injured by enemy artillery.
At 17:17 p.m., we finished occupying the battlefield. At exactly 05:XNUMX p.m., guns opened. Fire teams mounted close to the fence and fired directly at enemy fire points. At the same time, our artillery began to fire at the base. The soldiers rushed forward. The explosives exploded continuously in all three directions at Him Lam.
Our artillery fired very accurately, right from the first round of bullets it hit the commander of Him Lam headquarters. Battalion commander Pégot and three other officers died on the spot. Him Lam lost contact with Muong Thanh right from the beginning of the battle.
In less than an hour, Regiment 209 finished attacking the first base. Mr. Tran Quan Lap - Political Commissar of Regiment 209 assessed: "Our side suffered 27 casualties, not many for such an opening battle."
Two daughters of the late Political Commissar Mac Ninh revisit the Him Lam relic (March 3). Photo: Family documents.
As for the 141st Regiment, fighting the other two points was more difficult, taking more than 2 hours to resolve point 2 and more than 4 hours later to resolve the last point. Examples of heroic and courageous fighting such as Tran Can and Phan Dinh Giot were quickly spread throughout the unit. At the end of the campaign, Tran Can and Phan Dinh Giot were both honored as Heroes.
Soldiers of Regiment 141 wave the victory flag at Him Lam base. Photo: Artist Trieu Dai.
At exactly 23:30 p.m. on March 13, 3, the 1954th Army Command reported to the Front Command: Complete the task of destroying the French army in Him Lam, collecting all weapons before the time specified by the Command. 312 minutes.
Knowing that Him Lam had been wiped out, Lieutenant Jacker exclaimed in surprise: "If you can defeat Him Lam, you can attack anywhere in Dien Bien Phu."
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