1890
Born in Vietnam, son of a senior official (mandarin).

1912
Ho Chi Minh leaves Vietnam.

1918
Russian Revolution brings the Communist Party to power.

1930
Indo-China Communist Party set up.

1939-45
World War II.

1940
France defeated.

1941
Ho founds Viet Minh to fight France and Japan in Indo-China.

1945
Japan is defeated and leaves Indo-China.

1946
Communists' war against the French.

1954
Defeat of the French at Dien Bien Phu ends the war.

1954
Vietnam partitioned. The Communist Republic in the North is led by Ho Chi Minh.

1959
North Vietnam starts infiltrating South Vietnam, via the Ho Chi Minh trail.

1964
US President Johnson orders Congress to allow American soldiers to go to Vietnam.

1969
Death of Ho Chi Minh.

1973
Vietnam Peace finalised.

1975
Communists take over Saigon, which becomes Ho Chi Minh City, capital of a united, communist Vietnam.

The French Empire in south-east Asia in the early 20^th century.

Caste or class of bureaucrats and administrators who dominated government in countries influenced by Chinese culture, such as Vietnam.

Anti-French guerrilla force created by Ho Chi Minh after partition of Vietnam.

Final battle of the war between the Communists and French colonial forces in 1956, which ended French colonial rule.

Political scenario of the Cold War, whereby if one country 'fell' to Communism, other neighbouring countries would also. Used to justify US military involvement in Vietnam.

The route - often physically underground - used by North Vietnamese soldiers to infiltrate South Vietnam after partition.

Vietnamese sympathisers and infiltrators fighting the guerrilla war in South Vietnam during the Vietnam war of the 1960s.

Much of South-East Asia was carved up during the colonial expansion period of the later 19^th century. The carving was mainly done by the European powers, particularly Britain and France. However, by the early 20^th century Japan and the USA were heavily involved in South-East Asia as well. The area known as Indo-China became a French colony. Like most colonial powers, the French wanted a return on the investment of troops and officials they were putting into it. The result was that most of Indo-China’s wealth in the form of rubber went out of the country and benefited French companies rather than the people of Indo-China.

The Second World War changed the situation in the region. France was defeated in 1940 by the Germans. Vietnam had been occupied by the Japanese during the Second World War and had given birth to a Communist resistance movement under the inspired leadership of Ho Chi Minh. Ho was a former civil servant who felt that his country needed to get rid of foreign powers for the greater good of its own people. There is some debate about whether Ho was a Nationalist or a Communist. In practice he was both. He was deeply influenced by Communist ideas and he was trained in the USSR as a Communist agent. In fact he was the principal Communist agent in South-East Asia. His organisational skills helped to keep the USSR informed about developments in the region. Ho led the Vietnamese resistance to the Japanese invaders, using highly successful guerrilla tactics against a more powerful opponent.

In 1945 Ho announced the independence of the new Vietnam to huge applause and emotional scenes. However, after the war France wanted to regain control of Vietnam. The Vietnamese people had not fought the Japanese to be ruled by France. Using the same tactics which had been so successful against Japan, the Vietminh fought the French and defeated them at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. The French had received massive support from the Americans, who feared that Indo-China might be another domino in their Domino Theory of states falling to Communism like dominoes. The Vietminh received vital supplies and equipment from China.

America then watched developments in Indo-China with concern. Indo-China split into Communist North Vietnam and non-Communist South Vietnam. The plan was to hold national elections but this was prevented by the Americans who feared a Communist victory. The problem was that the rulers of South Vietnam were corrupt and hated by the Vietnamese peasants. The ruling classes were Christian landowners who had little respect for the Buddhist peasants they ruled.

Ho Chi Minh sent help to the Vietcong guerrilla forces who had rebelled against the South's president Ngo. US President Kennedy began sending money, equipment and advisers to help the government of the South. In a frighteningly short time, the USA had become entangled in a vicious and complex war. By 1962 there were 16,500 US troops in Vietnam and by 1968 there were over half a million.

It soon became an American nightmare. The Vietcong could melt into the jungle or disappear amongst the local peasants. They were expert and ruthless guerrilla fighters. Above all, the Vietcong had the support of the majority of the people of both North and South Vietnam. The Americans had no real answer to this type of warfare. They were not used to being seen as invaders. Tactics on both sides became more desperate. As American losses piled up, huge US air raids devastated North Vietnam and Vietcong bases in Cambodia. Chemical weapons were used and many civilians died agonising deaths alongside the fighters. The situation remained unchanged, however. The people of Vietnam continued to support Ho. They were prepared to absorb more punishment than the Americans could dish out. Added to this strength of purpose was remarkable ingenuity. The Vietcong built entire underground villages to protect themselves and their resources from US air power.

Vietnam has been called the first television war: it was just as much the photographers’ war. Graphic pictures showing American dead and atrocities carried out by both sides changed the minds of the American people. By the late 1960s there were large demonstrations against the war. The cost in money but above all lives was not acceptable to the American public.

In order to try to get the USA out of Vietnam, a new President, Richard Nixon, came up with a new policy in 1969. The policy involved building up South Vietnamese forces and providing money, training and equipment while US troops were withdrawn. At the same time, Nixon tried to start peace talks. The new policy could not halt the Vietcong but Nixon did reach an agreement with Ho Chi Minh in 1973. The Americans pulled out and in less than two years Saigon (capital of South Vietnam) had fallen to the Communists. It was the fulfilment of Ho’s aims for his country and his people.