The building of this memorial is the work of a single man, Ralf RODEL member of ANAPI and DIEN BIEN PHU veteran.

Colonel (ER) Jack BONFILS, co-founder and national vice-president of ANAPI tells us about this extraordinary story:
“In mid-November 1994, I was in a physiotherapy centre after my 28th operation; On November 19th Rolf RODEL, former commander of the 10th company, 3rd battalion of the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment -which I had had the honour of commanding in 1949 and 1950 on RC4-, paid me a long visit. He brought a big file which contained more than 300 pictures, and told me about what he had built in 1994 on the exact location of the DIEN BIEN PHU battle. He left very late after having answered all of my questions. Our meeting lasted six hours, and he told me about everything that he had done, sparing no details but not saying a word about the cost. I just had to ask him that question.

I decided to appeal to ANAPI branches, their members and friends as well as to all active units of the Foreign Legion and the former legionaries’ associations.

In May 1995, during the AUBAGNE congress, ANAPI was able to refund Rolf RODEL for the money he had spent on buying the land and the memorial.

Early January 1995, RODEL told me that he was leaving for VIETNAM at the request of François LEOTARD, our defence minister. Leotard had summoned him to ask him to extend the surface of the memorial to 1,800 square meters. The minister added that expenses would be covered by the ministry. RODEL left very soon. After months spent working in Vietnam he came back to France to find that the minister had changed and that he was left to foot an enormous bill.

ANAPI could not afford such an amount.
So in September 1995, President Jacques CHIRAC told Colonel Henri D’ELLOY, the president of the veteran association of the 11th regiment of African Chasseurs, that he would meet with the four oldest soldiers of the regiment in November. I was the oldest. Jacques CHIRAC himself had fought in this regiment in 1959 in Algeria.

The meeting took place on November 17th 1995 in the Elysée (French presidential palace). It was attended by the President, his personal chief of staff, his principal private secretary, his executive board secretary and Brigadier-General Henri BENTEGEAT – who is currently head of army staff.

This meeting was scheduled to last one hour and a half. The President asked each one of us to give an account of our careers in the army and in civilian life and said he was ready to answer all our questions. When it was my turn to speak, I managed to bring up two issues.

RODEL had not been decorated with the Medaille Militaire. I had to explain why; he had taken part in the 1961 putsch. He immediately asked Brigadier-General Henri BENTEGEAT to make provisions for granting the medal to RODEL, who was decorated with this major distinction on April 30th in AUBAGNE.
President Chirac decided to refund Rolf RODEL’s expenses. A few months later RODEL was presented with the money by ANAPI.

In fact ANAPI – with the help of other associations and generous donors - paid for everything Rolf RODEL spent on the building of the DIEN BIEN PHU war memorial.
In November 1997, French President Jacques CHIRAC was to head the French-speaking world conference in HANOI. RODEL was in DIEN BIEN PHU at the time too. He was received by the embassy and invited by President CHIRAC in the Presidential airplane to fly from DIEN BIEN PHU to HANOI so as to attend the ceremony.

Rolf RODEL passed away on January 5th 1999, while ANAPI was planning a trip to VIETNAM for the inauguration of the memorial. RODEL had built the DIEN BIEN PHU memorial on his own to honour the memory of his companions in arms who had died in combat during the INDOCHINA war.

This memorial is now a French Republic monument.

Sergeant Rolf RODEL, regimental number 73 116, joined the Foreign Legion on April 17th 1950 and left on April 25th 1957. After having served in SIDI-BEL-ABBÈS then in MASCARA, he left to join the 3rd company, 4th battalion, 2nd REI in INDOCHINA . He returned to Africa to the 15th company, 4th battalion, 4th REI. He volunteered for a second mission in INDOCHINA. He was head of commando, 10th company, 3rd battalion, 3rd REI in DIEN BIEN PHU.