Original Items. One-of-a-Kind Group. This is a very scarce and historically significant 1953 State of Vietnam Gallantry Cross medal and award certificate group named to Lieutenant Deo-Van-Chung of the Mountain Transport Company, 301st Battalion, documenting an act of combat leadership during the First Indochina War. The original certificate retains the full citation describing Deo-Van-Chung's actions while serving as a deputy company commander during the retreat from Lai Chau toward Dien Bien Phu in December 1953. Surrounded at Muong Pon on December 13th, 1953, his detachment fought a much larger enemy force before withdrawing through difficult mountain terrain to rejoin its unit at NAM-MEN. The medal remains with the certificate and retains a star device on its ribbon.

The citation reads:

The outstanding deputy company commander led a detachment in a retreat from Lai Chau to Dien Bien Phu. During the retreat, they were surrounded by a large enemy force at Muong Pon on the 13th of December 1953. They fought and inflicted heavy losses on the enemy. After their position was lost due to enemy artillery fire, they gradually prepared to cross the mountains and valleys, day after day, to rejoin their unit at NAM-MEN.

This citation places Deo-Van-Chung's award within a particularly dramatic period immediately preceding the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. In December 1953, Viet Minh forces advanced into northwestern Vietnam and threatened the French and allied position at Lai Chau. Forces withdrawing from the area toward Dien Bien Phu were subjected to repeated attacks along the difficult mountain routes south. Fighting around Muong Pon took place during this retreat and the accompanying attempts to reach or assist withdrawing forces.

The certificate specifically identifies Deo-Van-Chung as a Lieutenant and an outstanding deputy company commander. No exact regiment, battalion, or company designation has been supplied, so his precise unit should remain open to further research. The date and wording of the citation, however, provide an unusually detailed account of the circumstances for which the decoration was awarded.

The certificate measures 8 x 10 ½” and is in great shape with the back having a printed list of seven locations or other information.

The medal has a great look with a star device on the ribbon, but there is no pin and this would’ve been attached by a stickpin of some sort.

What makes this group especially desirable is the combination of the medal with its original named and dated citation. Rather than an anonymous Gallantry Cross, this example preserves the identity of Lieutenant Deo-Van-Chung, his position as a deputy company commander, the date December 13th, 1953, and a detailed description of his detachment's fighting withdrawal from the Lai Chau region. The surviving star device, original certificate, full combat citation, and direct connection to the events immediately preceding Dien Bien Phu make this a particularly compelling group for a collection devoted to the First Indochina War, State of Vietnam forces, Vietnamese military decorations, or the development of the South Vietnamese armed forces.