Léonard Charner

Léonard Victor Joseph Charner
Léonard Victor Joseph Charner.
Born	1797
Died	1869
Allegiance	France
Service/branch	French Navy
Rank	Amiral
Battles/wars	Second Opium War Siege of Saigon Colonization of Cochinchina

Léonard Victor Joseph Charner (1797, Saint-Brieuc, Côtes-d'Armor – 1869) was an Admiral of the French Navy.

Far East

In 1843, Captain Charner was part of the fleet sent to the Pacific Ocean by the French Foreign Minister François Guizot under Admiral Jean-Baptiste Cécille and together with the diplomat Lagrene.^[1] The move responded to the successes of the British in China in 1842, and France hoped to counterbalance these successes by accessing China from the south.

In 1860, Charner was commander of the French naval forces in the Far East.^[2] He was involved in the Second Opium War in China until its end in 1861.

War in Vietnam

As soon as the war ended, Charner left for Vietnam in January 1861 with his naval squadron and a force of 3,000 troops to support French troops encircled in Saigon.^[3] In 1861, he relieved the Siege of Saigon, thereby continuing the endeavour of Admiral Rigault de Genouilly, and permitting the establishment of the first French territories in Vietnam.^[4] The French Navy Minister Chasseloup-Laubat wrote to Charner: "We wish to draw commerce to Saigon (...) What we want is a sort of suzerainty or sovereignty with free trade accessible to all".^[5]

After three weeks of combat, ending with the Battle of Kỳ Hòa, Charner managed to relieve the Saigon garrison.^[6][7] These efforts allowed the French to capture three provinces of Cochinchina.^[2]

Charner was replaced by Admiral Bonard in November 1861, who managed to obtain the recognition of the French conquests by Emperor Tự Đức in 1862,^[2] with the June 1862 Treaty of Saigon.

Several French Navy ships have been named after him, such as the French cruiser Amiral Charner (1893) or the Bougainville-class colonial sloop ("aviso colonial") Amiral Charner (1933) which fought at the Battle of Koh Chang in the 1941 Franco-Thai War.

Later career

Charner made an Admiral of France on November 15, 1864.

Notes

1. ^ The Last Emperors of Vietnam by Oscar Chapuis p.5
2. ^ ^{a b c} Superpowers Defeated by Douglas A. Borer p.23
3. ^ A history of South-east Asia - Page 560 by Daniel George Edward Hall: "The China war ended in January 1861, and at once Admiral Charner, with a strong naval squadron and 3000 troops, left for Saigon"
4. ^ Vietnam; a Political History - Page 86 by Joseph Buttinger
5. ^ Imperialism in Southeast Asia by Nicholas Tarling p.220
6. ^ The Making of Modern South-East Asia: economic and social change - Page 448 by D. J. M. Tate "Charner relieved the Saigon garrison after a three-week struggle which culminated in the battle of Chi Hoa."
7. ^ Randier, p.380

References

• Randier, J., La Royale (Editions Babouji, 2006) ISBN 2352610222

Persondata
Name	Charner, Leonard
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1797
Place of birth
Date of death	1869
Place of death