Hidden Store In Vietnam

Vietnam 1945

1945: the most significant year in the modern history of Vietnam. One thousand years of dynastic politics and monarchist ideology came to an end. Eight decades of French rule lay shattered. Five years of Japanese military occupation ceased. Allied leaders determined that Chinese troops in the north of Indochina and British troops in the South would receive the Japanese surrender. Ho Chi Minh proclaimed the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, with himself as president. Drawing on extensive archival research, interviews, and an examination of published memoirs and documents, David G. Marr has written a richly detailed and descriptive analysis of this crucial moment in Vietnamese history. He shows how Vietnam became a vortex of intense international and domestic competition for power, and how actions in Washington and Paris, as well as Saigon, Hanoi, and Ho Chi Minh's mountain headquarters, interacted and clashed, often with surprising results. Marr's book probes the ways in which war and revolution sustain each other, tracing a process that will interest political scientists and sociologists as well as historians and Southeast Asia specialists. 1945: the most significant year in the modern history of Vietnam. One thousand years of dynastic politics and monarchist ideology came to an end. Eight decades of French rule lay shattered. Five years of Japanese military occupation ceased. Allied leaders

Why Vietnam

Explores the complex reasons behind the USA's involvement in Vietnam, analyzing political, social, and military factors. The reasons behind the USA's involvement in Vietnam remain a subject of extensive debate. Initially, America supported the French until their defeat at Dien Bien Phu, which then shifted to backing the South Vietnamese government due to fears of communism spreading throughout Southeast Asia. Why Vietnam delves into the myriad reasons for US involvement, examining theories that date back to 1918 when Woodrow Wilson ignored Ho Chi Minh's plea for independence at the Treaty of Versailles, through to Johnson's full commitment to the undeclared war, which restrained the military to a defensive role in protecting South Vietnam instead of an offensive one that would send troops across the DMZ into Laos and Cambodia. The questions of why the USA became involved, whether their involvement was justified, and if the war was ever winnable have been fiercely debated for over 50 years. This book seeks to address these 'whys' by providing a thorough examination of all contributing factors, from presidential actions to foreign policy, and the social and political climates of the war era.

Vietnam