Service historique de la defense

From: Vsg [mailto:vsg-bounces@mailman11.u.washington.edu] On Behalf Of Shawn McHale

Sent: Tuesday, July 25, 2017 8:45 AM

To: David Del Testa <ddeltest@bucknell.edu>

Cc: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>

Subject: Re: [Vsg] help with Service historique de la défense

On the Service Historique de la Défense -- No need to camp out way ahead of time.  But you do need to check the annual closing time -- 

http://www.servicehistorique.sga.defense.gouv.fr/?q=content/salle-de-lecture-louis-xiv

this year it's three weeks -- most of August.

You just cross the moat to the Chateau de Vincennes. Perhaps the security people there will pay attention, perhaps they will wave you in. They can be lackadaisical at times, strict at others. 

When I was there in the summer of 2016, the office for getting a reader's card was off on  the right-hand side of the first  big courtyard. It's an easy process. 

The actual reading rooms are in the Salle de Lecture Louis XIV, off to the right of the second main courtyard of the chateau, première étage. 

In my experience, if you get there before 11 AM, you'll be fine. Aim for earlier.

I am not sure Mme. Bernard is still working there -- she is of Vietnamese origin, loves persons who are working on Vietnam, and will help them out.  She is the Présidente de la Salle some days. She has been planning to retire sometime in the near future. Last summer, she said she was thinking of moving to Laos, but wasn't sure. 

Important point --  but since you have worked in French archives -- some files require a "dérogation," which in my experience was generally approved, to look at files that were closed for 60 years. 

Other important point -- you can download the finding aid for the 10H series on Indochina. The first tome link is below, there are two tomes. 

hhttp://www.servicehistorique.sga.defense.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/SHDGR_INV_10H_T1.pdfere: 

This is the largest series on Indochina. but there are lots of other files as well -- for example, the Gendarmerie files on Indochina just opened up last year (as did , I think, all Vichy era files). 

Any questions? Feel free to ask. I have enjoyed working there a great deal, and have found the staff less ornery than in Aix. 

Shawn McHale