Admiral Jean-Baptiste Cécille | |
|---|---|
 Admiral Jean-Baptiste Cécille (1787–1873) | |
| Born | 1787 (1787) |
| Died | 1873 (aged 85–86) |
| Allegiance | France |
| Branch | French Navy |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Conflicts | Bombardment of Đà Nẵng |
Jean-Baptiste Thomas Médée Cécille (French pronunciation:[ʒɑ̃batisttɔmɑmedesesil]; 16 October 1787,Rouen – 9 November 1873) was a FrenchAdmiral and politician who played an important role in the French intervention of Vietnam. He also circumnavigated the globe.
In 1837–1839, Cécille circumnavigated the world as the commander of the corvetteHéroïne. He leftBrest on 1 July 1837 with the objective of protecting French whaling ships. He contributed to the survey ofNew Zealand.
In 1843, the French Foreign MinisterFrançois Guizot sent a fleet toVietnam under Admiral Cécille and CaptainCharner,[1] which started the French intervention in Vietnam. The move was partially in response to Britain's victory in theFirst Opium War, which France hoped to counterbalance by accessing China from the south. The pretext however was to support British initiatives in China, and to fight the persecution of French missionaries in Vietnam.[2] The fleet, accompanied by the diplomatThéodore de Lagrené, tried to seize the island ofBasilan in order to create a base similar toHong Kong, but projects had to be abandoned following the strong opposition ofSpain claiming the island was part of thePhilippines.[3]
In 1845 Guizot sent Cécille to Vietnam to obtain the release of a Catholic missionary, BishopDominique Lefèbvre.[1]
Two years later, in 1847, when Lefèbvre was recaptured, Cécille sent Captain Lapierre toDanang to obtain the release of the bishop yet again.[1] It is not established if Captain Lapierre knew that Bishop Lefebvre had already been freed and was on his way toSingapore before he started his attack by first dismantling the masts of some Vietnamese ships.[1] Subsequently, on 14 April 1847, the French continued their attack by sinking the remaining five bronze-plated ships in the bay of Danang.[1]
In June 1846, Cécille sailed toOkinawa to try to establish relations withJapan.[4] He then sailed toNagasaki but was denied landing.
In September 1846, Cécille sailed toKorea in order to obtain the release of an imprisoned Korean priest namedAndrew Kim Taegon, but Kim was soon executed.[5]
In 1847, Cécille sent two warships (Gloire andVictorieuse) toTourane in Vietnam to obtain the liberation of two imprisoned French missionaries, Bishop Dominique Lefèbvre (imprisoned for a second time as he had re-entered Vietnam secretly) and Duclos, and freedom of worship for Catholics in Vietnam.[6] As negotiations drew on without results, on 15 April 1847 a fight erupted between the French fleet and Vietnamese ships, three of them being sunk as a result in theBombardment of Đà Nẵng. The French fleet then sailed away.[6] The French would come back under AdmiralCharles Rigault de Genouilly to capture Tourane (Da Nang) on 1 September 1858, andSaigon on 17 February 1859.
After these events Cécille again sailed to Korea to try to infiltrate some missionaries, but his ship ran aground and he had to be rescued by a British ship.[5]
Back in France, Cécille took on a career in politics. He became a representative for the department ofSeine-Inférieure in the 1848 Assembly (Assemblée Constituante). He supportedLouis-Napoléon Bonaparte, and was nominated Ambassador to the British Court in London.
In 1852, he became aSenator.
TheŌsumi Islands Group in southern Japan, which was explored by Cécille in 1846, was named "Cécille archipelago" ("Archipel Cécille") on French charts.[7]
A peak on the Île de la Possession in theCrozet Islands, where he once landed, was named "Mont Cécille" (46°23'00" S, 51°41'00" E) after him in the 1960s.[8]
TheFrench cruiserAmiral Cécille (1888-scrapped 1919) was named in his honour.
