This book is a study of the circumstances leading to British intervention in Vietnam in 1945, and the course and consequences of this intervention.

Introduction. Prologue 1. A Jewel in France's Crown 2. Japan, Britain and French Indochina 3. The Anglo-American Alliance and Indochina 4. The Japanese Coup of March 9 1945 and its Consequences 5. The August Revolution 6. The Coming of the British 7. The Death of an OSS Man 8. War with the Vietminh 9. The Last Phase 10. Gracey's Farewell 11. The Slide to Disaster 12. A Rubicon Crossed 13. Conclusion