| Vietnam history |
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1925
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Ho Chi Minh founded The
Vietnam Revolutionary Youth League (Viet Nam Cach Menh Thanh Nien Dong Chi
Ho) in Canton, China. |
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| 1930
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Ho Chi Minh merges three
groups of revolutionaries into the Vietnamese Communist Party (Dang Cong
San Viet Nam), later renamed the Indochinese Communist Party (Dang Cong
San Dong Duong). |
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| 1930-1931
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Nghe Tinh Uprising. During
this uprising revolutionary committees took control of parts of Nghe Anh
and Ha Tinh provinces. After a brutal wave of terror the French reestablished
control in these provinces. |
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| 1940
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In Europe the Germans
defeated the French army and occupied France in 1940. In the south-east of
France a French pro-Nazi government was installed (The Vichy Regime), who
ruled this part of France and Indo China (i.e. Cambodia, Lao and
Vietnam). The Vichy regime appointed admiral Jean Decoux as leader of the
Indochinese government. Decoux accepted Japanese forces in Vietnam and
worked together with them. This way the Japanese could leave the French
administration in charge. |
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| 1941
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In 1941 Ho Chi Minh formed the League
for the Independence of Vietnam (Viet Nam Doc Lap Dong Minh Hoi), better
known as the Viet Minh. This organization resisted the Japanese occupation
of Vietnam. During the end of the Second World War it was supported by China and the
USA. |
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| April 1945
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The first USA-interference in
Vietnam-affairs took place. Major Archimedes Patti of the OSS (Office for
Strategic Services, a predecessor of
the CIA) had a secret meeting with Ho Chi Minh near the border of
China and Vietnam. They agreed to work together to fight the
Japanese. |
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| August 1945
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After the atomic bombing of
Japan, during the so called August revolution (Cach Mang Thang Tam) Ho Chi
Minh called for a general uprising and the Viet Minh assumed complete
control of north Vietnam. |
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| September
2 1945 |
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On
Badinh Square, President Ho Chi Minh pronounced The
Declaration of Independence, solemnly stating to the Vietnamese people and the entire
world that the Democratic Republic of Vietnam came into being.
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| November 1946
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After the Japanese had
surrendered, the French tried to take control again of Vietnam. In 1946
the French shelled Haiphong and the Viet Minh fled to the mountains in
north Vietnam to fight back against the French. The Franco- Viet Minh War
had begun. It lasted from 1946 to 1954. |
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| May 7, 1954
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After a 57 day siege, some
10,000 French troops surrendered to the Viet Minh in Dien Bien Phu. |
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| May 8, 1954
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Start of the Geneva
Conference. 2.5 Month later the Geneva Accords were signed. As a result
Vietnam was cut in two zones. The Ben Hai River in central Vietnam was the
border between the zones. Part of the agreement were nationwide elections to
be held on 20 July 1956. |
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| 1955
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South Vietnam was ruled by
Ngo Dinh Diem. Convinced that he would loose the nationwide elections to
Ho Chi Minh, he held a referendum on his continued rule in 1955. According
to Diem he won the elections with 98.2 % of the votes (In Saigon alone he
received a third more votes than there were registered voters). After the
referendum, Diem declared himself president of the Republic of Vietnam. |
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| 12 December 1955
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The USA closed their
consulate in Hanoi. It reopened in 1995. |
Socialist Republic of Vietnam
