Battle of Zhennan Pass
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The Battle of Zhennan Pass was a significant battle of the Sino-French War which occurred on March 23, 1885 and was referred to at the time, in Western media, as the Battle of Bang Bo.
Isolated at the citadel of Lang Son in northern Tonkin, a French brigade attempted to relieve pressure on it by Chinese forces under the command of Feng Zicai by attacking Bang Bo, a fortified camp across the border in Guangxi province. The French faced approximately 5,000 Chinese soldiers from the "Army of the Two Guangs" with around two thousand rifles. Despite this numerical discrepancy, it is important to note that most of the Chinese soldiery were hastly drafted from the local peseantry and many retired imperial troops.
After a two-day battle, the French effort failed in the face of logistical shortages, miscommunications, and numerical handicaps. realizing the French's superior firepower, Feng Zicai also extensively engaged French troops in melee combat which reduced the advantage of the French guns. The brigade retreated back in Tonkin, leading to a Chinese counterattack at Ky Lua (which was defeated) and the controversial retreat from Lang Son. The battle has been upheld in contemporary Chinese media as a high point in China's resistance to imperialism.
