Describe the background events leading up to the war between North and South Vietnam.

In order to understand the events leading to the Vietnam War, we must look at the region of French Indochina prior to the start of World War II. France ruled this region prior to World War II. During the war, the Japanese took over Indochina. The people of Indochina, led by Ho Chi Minh, worked to remove Japan from the region. When World War II ended, the people in Indochina hoped to gain their independence....

In order to understand the events leading to the Vietnam War, we must look at the region of French Indochina prior to the start of World War II. France ruled this region prior to World War II. During the war, the Japanese took over Indochina. The people of Indochina, led by Ho Chi Minh, worked to remove Japan from the region. When World War II ended, the people in Indochina hoped to gain their independence. However, France returned to rule the region.

The people of Indochina now focused their efforts to remove France from the region. Since Ho Chi Minh supported communism, we helped France in their struggle against the Indochinese by giving France money and supplies. However, the people of Indochina were successful in the conflict against France, using primarily guerilla warfare methods. They surrounded the French troops at Dien Bien Phu, and France was forced to surrender.

The Geneva Accords were developed to determine the future of French Indochina. The region would be divided into four countries. These countries were Laos, Cambodia, North Vietnam, and South Vietnam. There would be elections held in both North Vietnam and in South Vietnam within two years to unite the two countries into one country.

However, in 1956, South Vietnam refused to hold the elections. The United States supported South Vietnam in this decision. Both South Vietnam and the United States were concerned there wouldn’t be free election in North Vietnam, and, as a result, North Vietnam would win the election and would make all of Vietnam communist. We believed in the domino theory that said if one country in a region would become communist, then others would follow. Thus, we supported South Vietnam’s decision to not hold the elections. We knew this would lead to war. In 1956, North Vietnam began fighting to take over South Vietnam. We supported South Vietnam in the beginning of the war by providing military aid and economic aid to South Vietnam. Eventually, we became fully involved in the conflict by sending in our soldiers after the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution was passed in 1964.