History of War Story of the Vietnam War

The morning of 8 March 1965 would change Vietnam forever, transforming a ruthless civil war into an international struggle the moment US troops raced ashore along the coast of Da Nang in the North. Neither country would ever be the same again. Spanning two decades, the Vietnam War grew from an internal battle for a nation’s destiny into a political and military catastrophe for the mightiest power on Earth. But what caused the war, who was waging it, and why did the US feel compelled to intervene in a conflict thousands of miles away in Southeast Asia when its allies refused to do so? From the birth of Vietnam and its fight for independence to the Tet Offensive, widespread protests against US involvement and the Fall of Saigon, Story of…

Vietnam’s peculiar geography has made it a convenient and dynamic focal point of trade, battle and the exchange of people, religions, ideas and world systems over its many centuries of existence. With its subtropical and monsoonal climate, home to rainforests, mountains and rivers, Vietnam is ideal for rice production. Rice has always been central to the Vietnamese identity and allowed the region to grow and flourish on the world stage as a major exporter. Its long coastline and excellent positioning in the South China Sea made it a crucial stopover point for ships along the Silk Route. In this way, medieval Vietnam was something of a melting pot, attracting sea-goers from all over: Khmer Cambodians, Malay, Javanese and Indian people to name but a few. This geography also made the…

In the 10th century, the Vietnamese finally obtained long-lasting independence from the Chinese following victory at the Battle of Bach Dang in 938 CE. Rebellions in 858 CE, aided by Chinese rebels from Yunnan, served to severely weaken the Tang Chinese, and from 905 CE onwards, they conceded by allowing local Vietnamese governors to rule autonomously. Resistance to the Chinese grew in confidence, and the Chinese sent a fleet in 938 to subdue the unrest. Led by Viet general Ngo Quyen, the Chinese were defeated and pushed back in a historic victory. Declaring himself king, Ngo established a new system of monarchical independence, striking a deal with the Chinese. It was agreed that Vietnam would become a vassal state of China, allowing for enough compromises to be made to appease…

French influence on Vietnam began well before soldiers stormed its shores. In the early 16th century, French missionaries travelled to the foreign land to spread word of Christianity, with mixed results. It wasn’t until the reign of Louis XVI that the French began to exert more power over the nation. It was with his help that for the first time in two centuries Vietnam became unified under Nguyen Anh, who reigned as emperor from 1802 to 1820. The step was small, but it was the first indication of how influential France would become over the fate of this nation. While unification had been groundbreaking, throughout the 1840s and 1850s Vietnam was ravaged not only by revolts and uprisings but also natural disasters. Floods and a smallpox epidemic tore through the…

The Vietnamese were not unfamiliar with conquerors, and they were not the kind of people to take domination of their lands lying down. Pockets of resistance rose up to defy the French colonial rule, most notably the Can Vuong movement. With the aim of expelling the French and creating an independent Vietnam, they intended to install Hàm Nghi, the boy emperor, as ruler. Taking place between 1885 and 1889, the Can Vuong movement began while the French were distracted by the Sino-French War. French General Henri Roussel de Courcy and an escort of French troops were attacked by thousands of insurgents during a visit to Hue. In retaliation the French looted the royal palace, forcing Hàm Nghi to flee for his life. Soon a rallying cry was sent by the…

DIEN BIEN PHU, FRENCH INDOCHINA 13 MARCH – 7 MAY 1954 “On 13 March, Giap let loose with his artillery from close range. Hundreds of French soldiers were killed in the barrage” Following the end of World War II, after the defeated Japanese had been withdrawn from Vietnam, France regained its colony, but it faced a strong and dedicated communist insurgency against its rule. Fundamentally, the French, as colonial masters, lacked the support of the Vietnamese people. Though there were some 190,000 French troops in the country, they could not defeat an insurgency with a strong nationalist appeal. By 1953, the price in blood had already been steep, with around 74,000 French troops having fallen. The Vietnamese communists, the Viet Minh, were determined to eject the French from the country.…