Amédée Courbet
The Far East squadron was formally constituted on 27 June 1884, in response to the news of the Bắc Lệ ambush, by the amalgamation of the Tonkin Coasts naval division and the Far East naval division. The Tonkin Coasts naval division, under the command of Admiral Amédée Courbet since July 1883, consisted of the ironclads "Bayard" (the flagship) and "Atalante", the cruiser "Châteaurenault", the light frigates "Hamelin" and "Parseval", the gunboats "Lynx", "Vipère" and "Aspic", the troopships "Drac" and "Saône" and Torpedo Boats Nos. 45 and 46. The Far East naval division, under the command of Admiral Sébastien Lespès since March 1884, consisted of the ironclads "La Galissonnière" (the flagship) and "Triomphante", the cruisers "d'Estaing", "Duguay-Trouin" and "Volta", and the gunboat "Lutin". The new squadron was placed under Courbet's command, with Lespès second in command.