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Indochina
Indochinamap

Indochina was a French colony east of Thailand and south of China with the South China Sea to the east, so named due its position halfway between India and China. In the mid 20th century, the colony birthed three countries: Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam.

Indochina in Days of Infamy[]

During World War II, Indochina was under the nominal rule of the Vichy government of France, which gave Japan permission to base troops in Indochina. Admittedly, if France had denied this to Japan, the Japanese would have gone into Indochina anyway. This way, France maintained a ghostly sort of sovereignty over the area.[1]

Indochina in In the Presence of Mine Enemies[]

Indochina remained part of Japan's empire after the Second World War.

Indochina in Joe Steele[]

After the fall of France in 1940, Japan occupied airfields and naval bases in northern Indochina to assist in their campaign in China. The following year, the Japanese pressured the Vichy regime to allow them to move into the whole region. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill tried to prevent this since it put too much pressure on Malaya and Singapore while US President Joe Steele also opposed it due to the threat to the Philippines. Neither succeeded and their territories were invaded by the Japanese.[2]

Indochina in "Last Flight of the Swan of the East"[]

French Indochina was restive in 1914, and the outbreak of the Great War exacerbated that restiveness. In September, 1914, Karl von Müller, captain of the German leviathan Emden, ordered a successful attack on French oil stores outside of Saigon. The attack hurt France's war machine, but Müller also wanted to further motivate the people of Indochina to rebel.[3]

Indochina in Southern Victory[]

Following France's defeat in the Great War, the Empire of Japan "persuaded" France to hand over the former French Indochina for a suitable amount of compensation which came as a respite for the battered French economy.[4]

Later, the Japanese persuaded the Netherlands to do the same with the Dutch East Indies.[5]

Indochina in The Two Georges[]

Indochina was the Holy Alliance's toe-hold in Southeast Asia.

Indochina included Siam as well as Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.[6]

Indochina in The War That Came Early[]

Indochina was an important colony for the French Empire in Asia.

When the Second World War began in October, 1938, French forces in the colony were left isolated as France itself came under attack from Germany, and almost lost Paris.

On 12 January 1941, the Empire of Japan attacked Indochina, and subsequently conquered it.

Indochina in Worldwar[]

Indochina was overrun by Japan during World War II. During the Race Invasion of Earth, it was largely spared from fighting. It was one of the few places on the planet that Fleetlord Atvar considered unsuitable for colonization, due to the humidity that induced scale rot in members of the the Race. The area was recognized as Japanese territory after the Peace of Cairo was signed in 1944, becoming Japan's only remaining possession on the Asian mainland.

References[]

  1. Days of Infamy, pg. 19, HC.
  2. Joe Steele, pg. 234, HC.
  3. Leviathans: Armored Skies, pgs. 324-328, loc. 4670-4731, ebook.
  4. The Center Cannot Hold, pg. 399, mmp.
  5. Ibid.
  6. Map The Two Georges, frontispiece.
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