Introduction Which is right? NARRATOR: It was a war that blurred the line between friend and enemy. NGO THI HIEN: Wherever the Americans went, they burned and destroyed and killed. I didn't see any guerrillas being killed, only villagers. SGT. THOMAS MURPHY: An eight-year-old or nine-year-old can kill you just as quick as a 25- or a 26-year-old man. Back here in the States, the kids were playing cowboys and indians. Over there they had been playing it for real. What's the majority of Americans? CROWD: Peace now, peace now... NARRATOR: It was the first war Americans opposed in huge numbers, openly and passionately. CROWD (singing): All we are saying is give peace a chance. MAN: Are you listening, Nixon? Are you listening, Agnew? ROOTS OF WAR China was traditional enemy. Truong Sisters celebrated, failed rebellion, still revered 1860 French seized area Saigon Vietnamese too week to stop Europeans - 1885 lost indep Map Cambodia, Laos, Cochinchina, Annam, Tonkin French colonialism brutal suppression of resistance/pirates (severed heads) No major uprisings French educated Nguyen Ai Quoc - the patriot First Vietnamese Communist Founder French Comm Party French propaganda film (up to 1940) Japan WWII Japan's arrival impressed Vietnamese Asians being White Vietminh Anti French and Anti Japan Founded by Ho Chi Minh (he who enlightens) "Everyone knew Nguyen Ai Quoc" speaker photo HOANG QUOC VIET: After the conference to establish the Vietminh, Uncle Ho sent out a letter calling for the support of the population. And it was this that rallied the entire country around the movement. And when people realized that Ho Chi Minh was actually Nguyen Ai Quoc, their trust in the movement was further established. This was because the name Nguyen Ai Quoc had been widely known in the country. People knew that he was a great patriot. 1945 famine French and Japanese blamed exported to Japan 2 of 8 million in North died Cruel Japanese Vietminh - peasant revolt and support (which never ended) raid rice stocks US sided with VietMinh Deer Mission Nationalist before Communist ABBOT LOW MOFFAT: We knew he was a Communist, but we also felt, as they did, and the way anybody who has known, met Ho Chi Minh, who I've ever talked with, had the same feeling: he was first a nationalist, and second a Communist. That is, he was interested in getting the independence of his people and then he thought probably the best thing for them was the Communist type of government. But he was a nationalist first and foremost. Ho Chi Minh's declaration based on USA Dec of Indep. "All men are created equal. They are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights..." Crowd cheered for American Plane fly over Desperate to expel the Chinese, Ho Chi Minh negotiated with the French. In March 1946, they reached an agreement. The French colonial authorities displayed their power as Ho Chi Minh, President of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, came to confirm the agreement permitting French troops back for a limited period. In return, France recognized the new Vietnamese state, and the Chinese army left. Ho Chi Minh was gambling that the French would not try to seize power, and that a long-range agreement could eventually be negotiated. French adminstration in Saigon violated the agreement, declaring the South separate from the North French and VietMinh begin fighting - 1st Vietnamese War begins French modern weapons vs Giaps rag tag peasant army check names in Appy book DUONG VAN KHANH: male NGUYEN THI DINH: female French chose Bao Dai as leader of South 1950 Mao Zedong winds in Red China Red China recognized Ho's Vietnam... so did Russia USA recognized Bao Dai's Vietnam Cold War U.S. commitment deepened after Korea invaded in 1950 Vietminh war capacity grew greatly with help from China Financial then military aid Colonial conflict was actually an international conflict By 1953 US paid 80% of war ($1B/year) French and Dien Bien Phu March 13 Giap begins attach Human Waves of Vietminh initial success Strategy changed to siege Can you believe what you see? NARRATOR: Though Vietminh combat cameramen were present at Dienbienphu, scenes of the 55-day battle were restaged by a Soviet director after the French defeat. Some of the film sequences are authentic, some re-enacted. At Geneva The United States delegation was ordered to watch and not to talk. Bao Dai was also uncompromising 2 issues At the conference there were two issues under discussion: One was the temporary demarcation line between the two regions. And the other was the date of the general elections for the reunification of Vietnam on the last day, the Soviets and the Chinese forced them to compromise. The Vietminh, who controlled most of the country, would get less than half. The elections to reunify Vietnam would take place; not soon, when the Vietminh would surely win, but in two years. They had been undercut by their own allies. The Soviets and Chinese had several motives, among them, fear; if Mendes-France failed, France might keep fighting and America might intervene.