It shall be noted that the outermost golden "border" is actually the fringe, which is not immediately visible from the Wikipedia image, as the corners are very slightly rounded, less then in usual representation of fringes. Tomislav Todorovic, 24 April 2016
The Vietnamese National Army or Viet Nam National Army (Vietnamese: Quân đội Quốc gia Việt Nam, "National Army of Vietnam;" French: Armée Nationale Vietnamienne) was the State of Viet Nam's military force created shortly after the country's recognition by France in 1949. It was commanded by Vietnamese General Hinh and was loyal to Bảo Đại. The VNA fought in joint operations with the French Union's French Far East Expeditionary Corps (Corps Expéditionnaire Français en Extrême-Orient, CEFEO) against the communist Viet Minh forces led by Hô Chi Minh. Different units within the VNA fought in a wide range of campaigns including but not limited to the Battle of Nà Sản (1952), Operation HAUTES ALPES (1953), Operation ATLAS (1953) and the Battle of Dien Bien Phu (1954).
With the departure of the French Far East Expeditionary Corps from Indochina in 1956, the VNA was reorganized under American tutelage as the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. Esteban Rivera, 23 April 2016 Source: Wikipedia article
In 1949, after becoming the Head-of-State, Bảo Đại made the most controversial decision concerning the armed forces of the new State of Vietnam: recognizing all non-communist military forces in the country as independent armies within the VNA. These forces included: Viet Binh Doan, Bao Chinh Doan, Bình Xuyên (approximately 40,000 strong), Hòa Hảo (30,000 men under different leaders), and Cao Đài (25,000 men). Doing so, Bảo Đại solved the problem of having to spread the army too thin in the war against the Vietminh. Furthermore, the independent forces did not need money from the central government since they either were self-financed through clandestine activities or they were armed and financed by Savani's 2e Bureau in Vietnam. The Bình Xuyên was an organized crime military force in Saigon that provided part of Bảo Đại's luxury life.
In 1955, with General Edward Lansdale's support, Prime Minister Ngô Đình Diệm ordered all forces to surrender their weapons and to be part of one army. Some groups joined willingly while others were attacked by the regular VNA. By late 1955, all these forces ceased to exist. Many of their ranks joined the NVA or the Vietminh, while others returned to a civilian life. Esteban Rivera, 23 April 2016 Source: Wikipedia article
Benefiting with French cadres assistance and United States material support the ANV/VNA quickly became a modern army modeled after the CEFEO Expeditionary Corps. Officers and non-commissioned officers (NCOs) were trained in local schools of cadres known in French as Ecoles des Cadres, or at the elite National Military Academy, Dalat (EETD). The Preparatory Military School (École Militaire Préparatoire, EMP). It was first establsihed as the the Dalat School of the Eurasian Children of Troops (Ecole des Enfants de Troupe Eurasiens de Dalat, EETED, in French). Once dissolved during the Japanese occupation in 1944, General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny reformed the EETED as the EETD, or Dalat School of the Children of Troops (Ecole des Enfants de Troupe de Dalat) in 1950." Esteban Rivera, 23 April 2016 Source: Wikipedia article
![[Vietnamese National Army flag]](../images/v/vn^nva.gif)
