Brief history of Vietnam before the Vietnam War

The country of Vietnam had been occupied by the French since the late 1800s until 1940. In 1940, France suffered a defeat by Nazi Germany, thus their foothold in Vietnam was weakened. As a result, Japanese forces took over Vietnam. During this period, an organization called the Viet Minh was formed by Ho Chi Minh with the purpose to liberate Vietnam from the Japanese. For the next few years, the Viet Minh continued to resist Japan's oppression until Japan's surrender at the end of World War II in 1945 due to their tragic defeat by the bombing of Hiroshima. Ho Chi Minh then proceeded to take control of Hanoi (capital of North Vietnam) and declared Vietnam to be an independent country, thus forming the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. France refused to acknowledge Ho's claim and decided to return to Vietnam in 1946 to re-colonize Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh once again led his Viet Minh to battle the French in what is known as the First Indochina War until 1954 when France was defeated at the battle of Dien Bien Phu.

Viet Minh troops planting their victory flag

over a captured French position