The Vietnam War

1954 - 1975

About Vietnam

Located in southeast Asia in a peninsula known as Indochina

Partly surrounded by the South China Sea

About twice the size of Arizona

Only about 30 miles wide

South of China, East of Laos and Cambodia

About Vietnam

Surrounded by mountains to the west known as Annam Corillera

Has two long rivers: Mekong and Red that flow into the South China Sea

Country that has a large industry in rice, tobacco, coffee, tea, and sea food

Main religion: Buddhism

Main Language: Vietnamese

History of Vietnam

Founded by Hung Vuong in 2879 B.C.

First occupied by China from 111 B.C. to the A.D. 939

Was known as “Nam Viet”

A revolt organized by Ngo Quyen drove the Chinese out

Large native dynasties ruled afterwards and the country was renamed “Dai Viet”

As time went on, the nation expanded their territory south

History of Vietnam

By the mid-1500s, Dai Viet was divided into two rival kingdoms: Trinh in the north and Nguyen in the south

By 1802, 300 years later, the Trinh kingdom was defeated by Nguyen lords lead by Nguyen Anh aka Gia Long and the French

The Nguyen Dynasty was established and the country was reunited and renamed “Vietnam”

History of Vietnam

Around 1858, Napoleon III was sending Frenchmen to the Indochina region to establish military bases

For nearly 100 years, France would then have a strong influence in Vietnam

French missionaries occupied prime areas such as Saigon and Mekong

Vietnam was slowly becoming more Westernized: French language, French buildings, Roman Catholicism, railroads, schools, hospitals (Church in Saigon [left])

Many of these new structures called for heavy taxes on the Vietnamese people which led to poor economic and living conditions

History of Vietnam

By 1930, Vietnamese natives had enough and wanted self-rule

Ho Chi Minh organized the Communist party and planned for independence

Japanese Occupation

From 1940 - 1945, during WWII, Japan seized Vietnam from France

Ho Chi Minh became the leader

France tried to regain Vietnam during the French-Indochina War which lasted 8 years

France was defeated by the Viet Minh in the Battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954 and Vietnam officially claimed independence

The Geneva Conference

Geneva Accords – May 8, 1954: United States, Britain, China, Soviet Union, France, Viet Nam (Viet Minh representatives), Cambodia and Laos meet to discuss a solution for Southeast Asia.

An agreement is reached dividing the North and South of Vietnam along the 17th parallel, or at 17 degrees latitude.

The Accords also provide for elections to be held in all of Vietnam within two years to reunify the country.

The United States opposes the unifying elections, fearing a likely victory by Ho Chih Minh, leader of the Indochinese Communist Party and causing a domino effect theory

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QP9QDRDLw6c

Review Questions

What country colonized Vietnam before WWII?

Who was the leader of the communist government of North Vietnam?

What defined the border between North Vietnam and South Vietnam?

What country had control of Vietnam during WWII?

What is the “Domino Effect” theory?