French sabotaging weapons during war in Vietnam?

[Nothing Human Is Alien]

I've heard from various sources (the most well known of which would be the film Apocalypse Now) that during the war in Indochina (1946-54), French soldiers pulled the pins of grenades only to have notes fall out that indicated they had been sabotaged by people back in France.

Does anyone here know of any genuine sources that back up these stories?

[The Douche]

Nothing falls out of a grenade when you pull the pin, the metal spoon on the side falls off, but it wouldn't be possible to the grenade to fall apart from pulling the pin.

[Blackscare]

I've heard from various sources (the most well known of which would be the film Apocalypse Now) that during the war in Indochina (1946-54), French soldiers pulled the pins of grenades only to have notes fall out that indicated they had been sabotaged by people back in France.

Does anyone here know of any genuine sources that back up these stories?


I don't know about the grenades, but when they pulled the triggers on their guns I hear this happened sometimes.

http://eil.com/Gallery/454786b.jpg

[Nothing Human Is Alien]

According to the reports I've heard, when the pin came out there were small notes attached. I guess they could have been under the striker lever. And it probably wouldn't be difficult to pry open the filling hole and empty out the explosive material or replace it with sand or something similar.

Anyway I'm not concerned whether this is exactly the way it happened. I'm trying to find out if weapons were sabotaged by people back in France.

[Red Commissar]

Can't come up with much beyond looking at what wikipedia says. I apologize before hand.


A strong anti-war movement came into existence in France driven mostly by the then powerful French Communist Party (outpowering the socialists) and its young militant associations, major trade unions like the General Confederation of Labour as well as notable leftist intellectuals. The first occurrence was probably at the National Assembly on March 21, 1947 when the communist deputees refused to back the military credits for Indochina. The following year a pacifist event was organized, the "1st Worldwide Congress of Peace Partisans" (1er Congrès Mondial des Partisans de la Paix, the World Peace Council's predecessor) which took place from March 25 to March 28, 1948 in Paris, with the French communist Nobel laureate atomic physicist Frédéric Joliot-Curie as president. Later in April 28, 1950, Joliot-Curie would be dismissed from the military and civilian Atomic Energy Commission for political reasons. Young communist militants (UJRF) were also accused of sabotage actions like the famous Henri Martin Affair and the case of Raymonde Dien who was jailed one year for having blocked an ammunition train, with the help of other militants, in order to prevent the supply of French forces in Indochina in February 1950. Similar actions against trains occurred in Roanne, Charleville, Marseille, and Paris. Even ammunition sabotage by PCF agents have been reported, such as grenades exploding in the hands of legionaries. These actions became such a cause for concern by 1950 that the French Assembly voted a law against sabotage from March 2 to 8th. At this session tension was so high between politicians that fighting ensued in the assembly following communist deputees speeches against the Indochinese policy. This month saw the French navy mariner and communist militant Henri Martin arrested by military police and jailed for five years for sabotage and propaganda operations in Toulon's arsenal. On May 5 communist Ministers were dismissed from the government, marking the end of Tripartism. A few months later on November 11, 1950, the French Communist Party leader Maurice Thorez went to Moscow.

Some military officers involved in the Revers Report scandal (Rapport Revers) like General Salan were very pessimistic about the way the war was being conducted, with multiple political-military scandals all happening during the war, starting with the Generals' Affair (Affaire des Généraux) from September 1949 to November 1950.

As a result, General Revers was dismissed in December 1949 and socialist Defense Ministry Jules Moch (SFIO) was brought on court by the National Assembly in November 28, 1950. Emerging media played their role, and this scandal started the commercial success of the first French news magazine L'Express created in 1953.

The third scandal was a financial-political scandal, concerning military corruption, money and arms trading involving both the French Union army and the Viet Minh, known as the Piastres Affair.

From that, it appears there was sabotage from some French citizens in the home front.

[Rjevan]

I don't know about the grenades, but when they pulled the triggers on their guns I hear this happened sometimes.
Greyscare, please don't post unrelated joke/spam pictures outside of Chit Chat. This is a verbal warning.

[Magón]

There was a book I borrowed from the library once, that was on the French war in Indochina, and it holds up to what the Wiki says. Not sure if it says they had notes in them, but things like the trains being held up, ammunition being sabotaged (mostly faults like dents that would jam the gun or, messed up primers.) They also had it, and the wiki failed to mention it, but some grenades a French soldier would pull the pin and nothing would happen. At first they thought there were just duds, but found out later it was sabotage!

[this is an invasion]

Greyscare, please don't post unrelated joke/spam pictures outside of Chit Chat. This is a verbal warning.

That was entirely related.

[Nothing Human Is Alien]

There was a book I borrowed from the library once, that was on the French war in Indochina, and it holds up to what the Wiki says. Not sure if it says they had notes in them, but things like the trains being held up, ammunition being sabotaged (mostly faults like dents that would jam the gun or, messed up primers.) They also had it, and the wiki failed to mention it, but some grenades a French soldier would pull the pin and nothing would happen. At first they thought there were just duds, but found out later it was sabotage!

Do you remember the name of the book?

[Magón]

Do you remember the name of the book?

Afraid not, it was way back in the mid-90s that I read the book. I just rummaged through my mind for what you asked. I'll try and see if I can remember it though and get back to you. :)

[Plymouth Pilgrim]

I recall a particularly nasty form of sabotage used by British forces against Malayan guerillas involving hand grenades. It took the form of British special forces finding guerilla arms dumps and, rather than blowing them up, they would doctor the guerillas' grenades by fitting a few with instantaneous fuses. The doctored grenades would be fine even after the pin had been pulled, but once the safety arm was discarded (which would normally start a time fuse of, say, seven seconds, depending on the type of grenade) the grenade would simply explode instantly in the hand of the guerilla instead.

[RED DAVE]

Orwell mentions a similar rumor concerning fascist forces in Spain. I suspect that this is an urban legend.

RED DAVE