Vietnamese National Army

Vietnamese National Army
Quân đội Quốc gia Việt Nam (Vietnamese)
Flag of the Vietnamese National Army
Founded	1949
Disbanded	1955
Leadership
Chief of State	See list
Chief of the General Staff	See list
Personnel
Active personnel	As of July 1954: 167,700 men[1] 37,800 auxiliaries[1] Total: 205,500[1]
Related articles
History	First Indochina War (1949–1954) Battle of Saigon (1955)

The Vietnamese National Army (VNA; Vietnamese: Quân đội Quốc gia Việt Nam, lit. 'Military of the State (or Nation) of Vietnam', chữ Hán: 軍隊國家越南; French: Armée Nationale Vietnamienne, lit. 'Vietnamese National Army') was the State of Vietnam's military force created shortly after the Élysée Accords, where the State of Vietnam was recognized by France as an independent country ruled by Vietnamese Emperor Bảo Đại. 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 (CEFEO) against the communist Việt Minh forces led by Ho Chi Minh. Different units within the VNA fought in a wide range of campaigns including the Battle of Nà Sản (1952), Operation Hautes Alpes (1953), Operation Atlas (1953) and the Battle of Dien Bien Phu (1954).

It should not be confused with the opposing Communist-led military force which has once adopted the synonymous name National Army of Vietnam (also Quân đội Quốc gia Việt Nam) in about the same period but then soon renamed itself as the existing Vietnam People’s Army. With the departure of the French Far East Expeditionary Corps from Indochina in 1956, the VNA was reorganized as the Republic of Vietnam Military Forces.