The Vietnam War was the longest war the Americans took part in. It had a complicated beginning. Vietnam had been under Chinese control for much of its history, but by the late 19th century France had obtained control of the area and made Vietnam a colony. During the Second World War, much of the area was taken over by Japan. Japan set up a puppet regime (under Japanese control), which was subsequently overthrown by the Vietnamese. After World War II, France fought to regain Vietnam from the Vietnamese.
The French were defeated on May 8th, 1954, at Dien Bien Phu, by the Communist general Vo Nguyen Giap. The French troops (who were poorly organized and had little determination in the first place) withdrew, leaving a buffer zone between North and South Vietnam. Elections were set up to form a government in the South, while the communist regime in the north set up its headquarters in Hanoi (North Vietnamese capital).
Through 1955 to 1960 the North Vietnamese with the help of the southern communist army Vietcong (also known as The People's Liberation Armed Forces) tried to take over the government South Vietnam. Through these years both the Soviets and Chinese offered financial and military aid to North Vietnam, a communist nation. In November of 1963 South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem was overthrown and executed by his generals in a coup.
The United States was wary of the progress Ho Chi Minh and the Vietcong were making. Communism had become a hated enemy of the United States, and lately the expansion of communism (and Soviet influence in the world), became important goals for the Americans. The United States did not at first attack North Vietnam for fear that it would worsen tensions with China and the Soviet Union, probably leading to a large conflict. The US sent began sending their first troops (firstly in an advisory role) in 1950, but that gradually escalated to full scale commitment of US troops to combat in the war. This commitment continued to be held back by various political concerns.
In order to try to win the war, the United States, under President Lyndon Johnson, significantly increased the resources and troops committed to the Vietnam War. However, the war became increasingly unpopular at home in the US, and there was increasingly vocal protest and resistance against it. Richard Nixon, the next president of the US realized that the war could not be won in these circumstances, and initiated the gradual withdrawal of the American involvement in Vietnam.
With the Americans out of Vietnam, the way was open for the North Vietnamese to gain control of South Vietnam, and form a single communist state.
The Vietnam War was the longest war the Americans took part in. It had a complicated beginning. Vietnam had been under Chinese control for much of its history, but by the late 19th century France had obtained control of the area and made Vietnam a colony. During the Second World War, much of the area was taken over by Japan. Japan set up a puppet regime (under Japanese control), which was subsequently overthrown by the Vietnamese. After World War II, France fought to regain Vietnam from the Vietnamese.
In order to try to win the war, the United States, under President Lyndon Johnson, significantly increased the resources and troops committed to the Vietnam War. However, the war became increasingly unpopular at home in the US, and there was increasingly vocal protest and resistance against it. Richard Nixon, the next president of the US realized that the war could not be won in these circumstances, and initiated the gradual withdrawal of the American involvement in Vietnam.