Retreat From Lang Son - The Battle of Ky Lua, 28 March 1885

The Battle of Ky Lua, 28 March 1885

Following their victory at the Battle of Bang Bo (24 March 1885), the Chinese advanced slowly in pursuit of the retreating French, and on 28 March de Négrier fought a battle at Ky Lua in defence of Lang Son. Shortly before noon the Chinese launched a reckless frontal attack on the French positions, advancing in dense, ponderous columns. Rested, reinforced and fighting behind breastworks, the French fired canister and rifle volleys into the advancing masses, inflicting crippling casualties on the attackers. When the smoke cleared, the plain in front of Ky Lua was strewn with thousands of dead and wounded Chinese soldiers. De Négrier ordered Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Gustave Herbinger to counterattack the Chinese left wing with Diguet and Farret's battalions. The attack, supported by artillery, was completely successful, and by 4 p.m. Herbinger had driven the Guangxi Army's left wing from the hills to the northeast of Ky Lua. By 5 p.m. the Guangxi Army was in full retreat, leaving only a rearguard to discourage pursuit. French casualties at Ky Lua were 7 men killed and 38 wounded. The Chinese left 1,200 corpses on the battlefield, and a further 6,000 Chinese soldiers may have been wounded. The battle of Ky Lua gave a grim foretaste of the horrors of warfare on the Western Front thirty years later.

The French had won a stunning victory and had amply avenged the defeat at Bang Bo. If de Négrier had remained in command, the 2nd Brigade would probably have chased the Guangxi Army back across the Chinese border. But towards the end of the battle de Négrier was seriously wounded in the chest while scouting the Chinese positions. He was forced to hand over command to Herbinger, his senior regimental commander. Herbinger was a noted military theoretician who had won a respectable battlefield reputation during the Franco-Prussian War, but was quite out of his depth as a field commander in Tonkin. Several French officers had already commented scathingly on his performance during the Lang Son campaign and at Bang Bo, where he had badly bungled an attack on the Chinese positions. He was also suffering from malaria, and his physical debility may well have impaired his judgement.