OH+Research

Oral History Topic Summary Topic - The Vietnam War Interview Subject - Robert Loudin (Our Great Uncle/God Father)

Vietnam was a colony of France since the late 1800s until WWII. While France grew rich on rice and rubber, the Vietnamese peasants lost their land and grew poor. The Vietnamese people, who had no love of French rule, often staged revolts and created parties to try and gain their independence. The Indochinese Communist Party was one such group. They staged protests, and as a result many suspected Communist leaders were arrested, and some were executed. The main leader, Ho Chi Minh, was sentenced to death without even being there. During WWII, the U.S. aided Ho Chi Minh in their fight against Japan upon the idea "the enemy of my enemy is my friend".

But after WWII, communism spread in Vietnam and Asia. France was struggling to regain control of their colony, and they asked U.S. for help. For fear of the spread of communism, the U.S. agreed to aid France in fighting the Viet Minh.

The Vietnam War was mainly fought in the rugged Mountains between Cambodia and the sea. These are known as Vietnam's central highlands. Throughout the war the Viet Cong relied on guerrilla warfare to rival the far superior weapons of the U.S. and French forces. U.S. soldiers seemed to have been fighting the very land around them. Booby traps and land mines littered the jungle, and the U.S. quickly learned anyone could be the enemy. U.S. forces responded by waging total war in various ways, all of which were controversial.

But, even with the help, France's control was crumpling, and Vietnam was split in two - North being Communist controlled by Ho Chi Minh, and South non-communist, controlled by Dien Bien Phu. The two sides agreed to have an election in 1956 for a single government that would reunify the nation, but it never happened, for it was clear Communism would've won.

As the U.S. continued to send troops to aid South Vietnam, it became clear that the Diem Government was corrupt. American officials warned Dien that he had to make political, economic, and military reforms, but he refused. Kennedy and his administration lost faith in Diem, and with U.S. support, a military coup overthrew Diem and against Kennedy's wishes, killed Diem. The date was November 1, 1963, three weeks before President Kennedy was killed.

In the end, the U.S. withdrew from the war. American morale was at an all-time low. Most strongly disagreed with the U.S.'s involvement in the war, the methods used in the war and the heavy costs of the war. On March 29, 1973 the last U.S. troops left Vietnam, and the war was over for the U.S.

//Creating America A History of the United States//. McDougal Littell Inc., 2002. Print.

//VIETNAM: And Now, Reconstruction// Monday, Feb. 26, 1973: n. pag. Web. 15 May 2010. .