Background To The Vietnam War Flashcards
What happened in 1884?
France obtained control over northern Vietnam following its victory over China in the Sino-French War.
What happened in 1887?
French Indochina was formed in Annan, Tonkin, Cochinchina (which together form modern Vietnam) and the kingdom of Cambodia.
What happened in 1893?
Laos was added after the Franco-Siamese War
What happened in the 1920s?
Ho Chi Minh moved o the USSR where he studied communism and techniques of guerilla warfare.
What happened in the 1930?
Ho Chi Minh formed the the Indochinese Communist Party which fought for independent Vietnam, free from French control.
What happened in 1940?
The Japanese invaded Indochina and removed the French. They ruled the area brutally. Soon the anti Japanese resistance movement led by Ho Chi Minh emerged. It was called the Viet Minh.
What happened in 1945?
The Japanese were defeated and Ho Chi Minh took control of North Vietnam and declared Vietnam independent under the name of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
The French had other ideas and wanted to take back control of their colony, now that the Japanese had been defeated. War began between the French and Viet Minh in 1946.
What happened from 1945 - 49
The USA didn’t like European countries having colonies so secretly supplied the Viet Minh with resources to fight the French. They didn’t realise it was communist.
What happened in 1949?
China becomes communist and Ho Chi Minh gains support from the Chinese. The USA now decide to support the French with $500 million per year.
