Atlas of Battles

battle, nineteenth century

Battle of Palan

Battle of Palan was a battle fought in 1883 at Hanoi, in what is now Vietnam. Its exact site is not recorded; the atlas places it at Hanoi. It was part of the Tonkin Campaign, which ran from 1883 to 1886. The recorded result: French tactical victory, strategically inconclusive.

See it on the globe Read the article

French artillerymen bring up their guns during the Battle of Palan, 1 September 1883
French artillerymen bring up their guns during the Battle of Palan, 1 September 1883. Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought1883
WhereHanoi, Vietnam21.024N, 105.841E, placed at the location, approximate
OutcomeFrench tactical victory, strategically inconclusive
BelligerentsFrench Colonial Empireagainst23px Black Flag Army; Nguyễn dynasty
Part ofTonkin Campaign1883 to 1886

Where it sits in the Tonkin Campaign

Capture of Nam Định, 1883Battle of Cầu Giấy, 1883Battle of Palan, 1883Sơn Tây Campaign, 1883Bắc Ninh Campaign, 1884Capture of Hung Hoa, 1884Lạng Sơn Campaign, 1885Battle of Bang Bo, 188518831885Battle of Palan, 1883
8 placed engagements of the Tonkin Campaign in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date1883 (year precision)
PlaceHanoi, Vietnam
21.024N, 105.841E
KindBattle, nineteenth century
Strength900 French marine infantry and Cochinchinese riflemen; 450 Yellow Flag auxiliaries; 1 artillery battery; 6 gunboats1,200 Black Flag soldiers; 3,000 Vietnamese soldiers
Casualties and losses16 dead, 43 wounded60 Chinese dead (by body count), but most probably several hundred dead and wounded
Commanders
  • Alexandre-Eugène Bouët
Battle of PalanBattle of PalanSiege of Đông QuanBattle of HanoiSiege of SongpingBattle of Cầu GiấyBắc Ninh CampaignSiege of Đông QuanBattle of Cầu GiấyBắc Ninh CampaignHaiphongThái NguyênNam ĐịnhThanh HóaViệt TrìCẩm PhảNinh BìnhPingxiang100 km21.024N, 105.841E
Placed at Hanoi; the exact site is not recorded. with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

Nearest engagements

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1883

Battle of Palan is one of 3,694 engagements of the 19th century in the atlas and one of 269 in present-day Vietnam.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q519060, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Palan, revision 1370452653, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.