Hello and welcome to today's history lesson.

My name is Mr. Merrett and I'll be guiding you through today's lesson.

So, let's get started.

In today's lesson, we're gonna be starting a new units looking at the USA, and specifically why was the US involved in Vietnam.

Today's first lesson, we're looking at French Indochina.

And by the end of this lesson, we're gonna be able to explain the reasons for the end of French rule in Vietnam.

In order to do that, we need to use some key words.

Our first key term is colony, and a colony is an area controlled by an empire.

Our second key term is communist, and a communist is somebody who believes all property should be shared equally.

Our third key term is nationalist, and a nationalist is someone who identifies with their own country and supports its interests.

Our fourth key term is Viet Minh.

And the Viet Minh were a communist nationalist group who fought for Vietnamese independence.

So, now we've got that in order, let's get started on the main content.

Today's lesson is gonna be split into four separate learning cycles, and our first learning cycle is looking at what was French Indochina.

So, the 19th century saw many European powers raced to create large empires that span the globe.

In the late 19th century, France gradually absorbed connected lands in Southeast Asia.

And if you look at that first map on the left there, looking at Asia Pacific, the area in the purple box is the area that we're talking about there.

And all of these became one large colony, which became known as French Indochina.

And by 1884, this colony consisted of the countries that today we could know as Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos.

And just on the right-hand side there on the screen, you can see the map there with French Indochina, but a very rough idea of where Cambodia, Vietnam, and Laos are today.

If you can see the dotted lines, they make up the areas that are the present day countries.

So, just to make sure we fully understand that, let's do a quick check for knowledge.

So, which three countries made up the French Indochina colony? Was it, A, Cambodia, China, or Siam, nowadays called Burma? Was it, B, Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam? Was it, C, China, Siam or Burma, and Thailand? Or was it, D, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam? So, make your choice now.

All right, if you chose B, then congratulations.

French Indochina is indeed or was indeed made up of Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam.

So, our first main task for today, it's a nice quick one.

I'd like you to explain what French Indochina was in 10 words or fewer.

The purpose of this task is to try and get you thinking hard, so that rather than waffling and talking about the things which aren't necessary, you just think about the absolutely necessary aspects of this task.

So, 10 words or fewer, explain what French Indochina is.

Pause the lesson now and I'll see you when you're finished.

Okay, welcome back.

So, hopefully you got on fine with that task.

Hopefully your answer is somewhat similar to mine there.

So, I've got French Indochina was a French colony encompassing Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos.

I would like and Lao, but that would taken me to 11 words and that would be cheating.

Let's move on then to our second learning cycle for today.

And here, we're gonna be looking at why was there fighting in French Indochina? So, in 1940 during World War II, France was defeated by Nazi Germany.

And as a result, France was forced to effectively abandon pretty much all of its colonies, including French Indochina.

All of the troops that were in French Indochina had to be rushed back to France to try and put of some sort of resistance, which unfortunately was ultimately futile.

Although there was still a French colonial government in charge there, the government in France did not support it.

Half of France was taken over by Nazi Germany.

The other half became effectively a puppet government.

So, it was a French government, which was controlled by Nazi Germany, known as Vichy France, and they really didn't have a lot of contact with the colony of French Indochina.

Later that same year though, Japan invaded French Indochina, but they left the French colonial government in charge as a puppet government.

So, once again, we have another puppet government.

This time in French Indochina.

It was clear that Japan was really in charge however.

Under this dual rule, the French Indochinese people suffered greatly.

As an example, the Japanese exported rice out of Vietnam, which led to a famine in 1945 that resulted in 2 million Vietnamese people starving to death.

Once the war was over though later that year in 1945, France wanted to reclaim its former collonies and continue ruling as it had done previously.

Effectively, France thought the war is over.

Let's get back to business as usual.

I think understandably, the people of French Indochina weren't particularly happy with that arrangement.

They felt abandoned by the French initially.

Well, they initially didn't really want the French in the first place, but once they were there, they felt abandoned by them.

When Japan came along, they were then angry that the French had assisted the Japanese in mistreating them as well.

And a group led by Ho Chi Minh, which is this man on the screen here, argued that the French should give up their colonies and let these countries rule themselves as independent nations.

Now, Ho Chi Minh was a Vietnamese communist who had lived in France, so knew the country very well.

He'd actually helped to create the French Communist Party as well, which I'm not necessarily sure the French government were over pleased about.

But it did mean that he had international links with communism.

In 1941, he returned to Vietnam and created the Viet Minh who were a nationalist group.

They were primarily a nationalist group who were aimed at fighting the Japanese occupation.

And then, once the Japanese left, the Viet Minh effectively just continued the fight, but this time, directed their anger towards the French.

Okay, so a very quick check for knowledge now then.

So, true or false, Ho Chi Minh wanted to take over Vietnam to become the next emperor.

Is that true or false? Choose now.

Okay, if you chose false, then congratulations.

It is indeed false.

But let's actually justify the answer.

Why is it false? Is it false because Ho Chi Minh wants to make Vietnam part of the Soviet Union? Or is it false, because Ho Chi Minh wanted a free Vietnam from foreign occupation? So, make your choice now.

All right, if you chose B, then that is correct.

Very, very well done.

Ho Chi Minh did not want any foreigners ruling within Vietnam.

He wanted Vietnam to be run by the Vietnamese.

Let's think about our next task for today then.

So, what I'd like you to do is organise the events into chronological orders.

There are five events there with boxes next to them.

All you need to do is just place a number into the box in the order in which the events happened.

So, number one, for the event that happened first, down to number five with the event that happened last.

Pause the video now and I'll see you once you've finished that.

Okay, welcome back.

Let's go through and let's hopefully see that you've got the same answers as myself.

So, the first event was that Vietnam became part of colony called French Indochina.

The second one was that in the Second World War, Japan took control of Vietnam.

Our third event was that Japanese actions caused a terrible famine in Vietnam.

Our fourth event is at the French returned after the war.

And therefore our final event is that Ho Chi Minh led the Viet Minh against the French.

So, hopefully you got all of those correct as well.

Let's move on now then to our third learning cycle for today.

And in this one, we're gonna be looking at why did French rule end in Vietnam? Okay, so in terms of who supported each side in this particular conflict between the French and the Viet Minh, the French had the support of the USA, and we'll talk more about why that was the case in just a moment.

But I wanna talk first of all about the support for the Viet Minh.

So, the Viet Minh had the support of the local population.

And the reason for that is 'cause they were fighting on their behalf.

They were fighting for the Vietnamese people.

They were Vietnamese people fighting for the Vietnamese people.

So, in that respect, it kinda makes a little bit more sense as to why they had so much local support.

But as a result of this, new recruits and suppliers continued to enable the Viet Minh to grow.

And they were assisted by the communist countries of China and the USSR who supplied them with equipment and training.

So, the USSR in particular was very, very keen to expand communism across the world.

They'd expanding successfully into China.

In 1949, China became a communist country.

And then, from that point onwards, China was in a position to help other communist countries to grow as well.

The Viet Minh were also familiar with the terrain that they were fighting in, and they used this to support the gorilla warfare tactics.

Just very, very briefly, gorilla warfare means that there are small units sometimes of only three or four people within each cell and they're dressed in civilian clothing ordinarily, and they use hit and run tactics.

So, the whole point is that you haven't got these huge armies, thousands and thousands strong marching across the battlefield.

You've just got a very, very small cabal of people going in, doing what they need to do to disrupt the enemy, and then blending back into the environment or blending back into the regular population.

We will talk more about this in future lessons if you're not too sure about it in any case.

In any case, the Viet Minh also refused to fight large-scale battles against the better trained and equipped French forces.

Now, in terms of the French, as I said, the French had the support of the USA and the reason being is that the USA, they didn't like communism and it genuinely is that simple.

The USA were very anti-communist, because the Viet Minh were a nationalist communist group.

That is enough for the USA to throw their weight behind the French.

The French also underestimated the Viet Minh.

They're regularly pushed deep into enemy territory to try and force a battle, only to have their supply lines cut and men picked off during the retreats.

If you're not too aware, the geography of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, what makes up or more made up French and China is very mountainous.

It's very rugged and there is a huge amount of jungle there, which makes it really, really hard to move anywhere particularly quickly, especially if there are thousands of thousands of people moving altogether in the same location and in the same direction.

So, it's really, really difficult terrain and it doesn't lend itself well to large-scale battles.

It does lend itself well to very, very well to gorilla tactics.

French outposts, when they set them up, were isolated and could only be severely supplied by air, which was difficult and it was costly.

It was difficult to lay out air fields in the jungles.

You had to do a lot of clearing.

You had to do a lot of levelling at the ground.

It's not easy task to do that.

And unfortunately, it's very, very easy, well, unfortunately from a French perspective, it's very, very easy to surround isolated outposts and pick off any defenders that are there.

What made it even more difficult for the French is that that there was actually little support for the war against the Viet Minh back home in France.

So, the French people themselves didn't really appreciate what the government was doing in French Indochina.

They actually referred to it quite disdainfully as the dirty war.

The French government also couldn't afford the growing cost of the conflicts, and that is why they turned to outside help.

And this is why they went to the USA.

And by 1954, about 80% of the French expenditure, the money they were spending to fight the Viet Minh was being supplied by the USA.

The USA supported them, because the French stress that the Viet Minh were a communist group rather than nationalist group.

Mm, I think arguably, there were more of a nationalist group than a communist group, but that wasn't the story that the French would tell in the USA, because that wouldn't have gained the USA supports.

So, a very, very quick check for knowledge then.

So, true or false, the Viet Minh were supported by China.

Is that true or false? Make your choice now.

Okay, if you chose true, then congratulations, that is correct.

But let's now justify our answer.

Is it true because China wanted to control Vietnam, so supported the Viet Mihnh, because they agreed to merge with China.

Historically, Northern Vietnam was part of China.

Or was it, B, because China was a communist nation and supported the Viet Minh, because they were a communist group? So, make your choice now.

All right, if you chose B, then congratulations.

That is indeed true.

So, let's think about then why French rule ended in Vietnam.

So, in March, 1954, the Viet Minh attacked the isolated French outposts of the Dien Bien Phu.

The French fatally underestimated the Viet Minh.

They plan to use the isolated base to lure the gorillas into open combat, at which point, their well-trained troops would defeat the poorly trained gorillas.

That was the plan.

It had worked in the past.

It's probably worth stressing that the French, this wasn't a new plan from the French.

They had done it before with a measure of success.

It wasn't always successful, but it had worked in the past and they hoped that it was gonna work again.

However, this time, the Viet Minh brought 50,000 troops into the region to surround the French camp, which is far outnumbering the 16,000 French that were there.

The Viet Minh used artillery provided by China to fire from the surrounding hills onto the exposed French camp, as well as prevent air supplies from reaching the base.

The French was shocked by the aggressive and organised assault.

After suffering more than 2,000 casualties, they surrendered after a 56-day siege.

There's a little bit of uncertainty about how many days, but 56 is a generally agreed average for that one.

This defeat was the final straw.

Shortly after this, France agreed to leave French Indochina.

So, even look at a summary now of the reasons for the end of French rule in Vietnam, there was a lack of support for the war at home in France.

There were poor tactics from the French army.

That is arguable, but certainly in the case of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, they were far outgunned, they were ridiculously isolated.

Dien Bien Phu is far, far removed from any other French forces that are in the area.

The French army underestimated the Viet Minh as well.

They underestimated the numbers they could carry.

They underestimated the sort of weaponry that they could use against them.

The underestimated just how powerful a force they were.

Viet Minh had the support of the local population.

A lot of the local people helped to create the roads, which the Viet Minh used to get the artillery up onto the surrounding hillsides.

The Viet Minh also received support from other communist countries.

So, a lot of training and equipment came directly from China in particular and the USSR as well to some extent.

And also a clever use of gorilla tactics from the Viet Minhs.

So, the French outpost of Dien Bien Phu, there's a variety of different camps and the Viet Minh didn't storm all the camps at once.

They picked off individual camps one at a time or two at a time until the French was forced to effectively congregate into a smaller and smaller area.

Right.

Let's do a quick check for knowledge then.

So, true or false, the people of France fully supported the war against the Viet Minh.

Is that true or false? Make a choice now.

All right, if you chose false, then that is correct.

Very well done.

They were very much not in support of the war in Vietnam, but let's think about why that was the case.

Is it because, A, in France, the war was known as the dirty war and was very unpopular.

Or was because of B, most French people supported the war, but didn't like how much it costs.

So, choose A or B now.

All right, if you chose A, then congratulations, that is indeed true.

The French people were very, very unhappy to be involved in Vietnam.

So, soon after the end of the Second World War, the French actually couldn't really recruit soldiers from what's known as Metropolitan France, the mainland area of France.

Instead, a lot of their troops that fought in Vietnam had to come from other colonies as well, because the French people themselves, they just weren't interested in this war.

So, just to give you an idea here, here is the Battle of the Dien Bien Phu.

So, we've got French paratroopers landing at Dien Bien Phu.

So, there's little white spots there.

Those are the parachutes coming down.

Paratroopers are very, very well-trained soldiers obviously.

Not only are these soldiers, they need to know how to parachute into enemy territory.

Unfortunately, there weren't enough trained paratroopers who were willing to engage in Vietnam.

So, a lot of these paratroopers dropping down right now, they are normal soldiers, and this is sometimes in some cases, their first time ever using a parachute, ever jumping out of a plane and using a parachute, and they're jumping down into a war zone.

And understandably, a lot of them never made it to the ground in one piece.

So, it was just a ridiculous affair from beginning to end from the respect of the French.

Just give you another idea as well about just how isolated Dien Bien Phu was there.

So, we can see over the map there, right on the border with Laos is Dien Bien Phu, that little village that the French air base was close to.

And they affected, the French had two options in order to how to resupply this base where they're gonna march over.

And those green lines there showed you the roots that they would need to march.

So, they're bypassing mountains trying to get across there or they could airdrop and again, those black lines, the thin black lines, there were the plane, show you the route that they would take to airdrop.

But the Viet Minh artillery were particularly skilled at picking off French planes at this point in time as well.

So, it was, I don't wanna say it was doomed from the start, because the French had had some success in this kind of bait and lure tactic.

But in this particular case, I think it was just a stretch too far.

Dien Bien Phu was far too far from Hanoi, which was the main French outpost at this point in time.

Right.

Let's go through our next task now then.

So, I'd like you to put the following reasons for the end of French rule in Vietnam into an order of significance.

So, what that means is, in your opinion, what do you think are the main reasons why French rule ended in Vietnam? There effectively isn't a right or a wrong answer to this question.

They are all important reasons.

What I'm looking for here is your justification.

So, that's the key point here.

So, put 'em into an order, and then I want you to explain why you've chosen your top two.

So, in your opinion, why the top two reasons you've chosen more important than all the rest.

So, I'd like you now to pause the video and once you complete that task, I'll see you then.

Have fun.

Okay, so welcome back.

So, I've got an answer upon the screen here and hopefully yours looks somewhat similar.

In terms of the ordering, it can look completely different.

That's absolutely fine.

But for me, I chose for the purpose of this explanation, my first most significant reason was that the Viet Minh received support from other communist countries.

And I said that my second most significant reason was that the Viet Minh had the support of the local population.

And my justification for this is that I chose my top two as the equipment that China and the USSR provided the Viet Minh was vital in the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.

And the Viet Minh were able to recruit more soldiers and helpers from the Vietnamese people, because they were a nationalist group trying to help their own people.

Now, if you've got a different answer, that's absolutely fine.

It genuinely doesn't matter.

What matters is that you thought about what's important from your perspective and you are able to justify it.

So, as long as you've got a good explanation, that's the key aspect of this particular task.

Right.

Let's move on now then to our final learning cycle for today, which is what happened after Dien Bien Phu? Before we get started, I'd like to take a little look at this image and I want you to see what can you infer from this image.

I'm not gonna tell you a great deal about it, only apart from the fact that the 17th parallel refers to a line of latitude.

So, one of the lines that goes horizontally around the globe.

So, pause the video now, have a little look at it, have a little think.

What can you infer from this image? Okay, welcome back.

So, talking through this image now then.

So, 1954, the French and representatives of the Vietnamese met at a conference in Geneva in Switzerland to negotiate the French withdrawal.

Switzerland is regularly picked as a venue for warring nations to come together, because Switzerland is generally speaking, a neutral country.

Switzerland's haven't been involved in wars for hundreds of years.

So, it's a safe place for different warring nations to come together and to be able to talk in relative safety.

So, it was agreed that Vietnam would temporarily be split in half along the 17th parallel.

So, along that horizontal line, which passes roughly through the centre of Vietnam.

And the communist, Viet Minh, would control the north and they'll be supported by China and the USSR.

And an American-backed non-communist government would control the south.

Elections were due to be held in 1956 to unite the country under one of these governments.

However, as the Viet Minh had gained the support of the Vietnamese people, the US and the South Vietnamese governments were very concerned that elections would not go the way they wanted.

So, let's do a quick check for knowledge now then.

So, which two of the following were decisions made about Vietnam in Geneva in 1954? Were they, A, the country was permanently divided into North Vietnam and South Vietnam? B, the country was temporarily divided into North Vietnam and South Vietnam.

C, there'll be a general election for all Vietnam in 1956.

Or, D, there'll be a general election in Vietnam in 1956, but only in the non-communist south.

So, choose two of those now and I'll see you once you've done that.

Okay, welcome back.

Let's see.

If you chose B and C, then congratulations.

Those were indeed the decisions that are made at Geneva in 1954.

Right.

Let's go then to our final task for today.

And what I'd like to do is read the following interpretation about the outcome of Dien Bien Phu.

And I want you to think about how far you agree with that interpretation.

And I'd like you to use evidence from this lesson to support your answer.

So, the interpretation on the screen says the main significance of Dien Bien Phu was that by 1954, the Vietnamese people had freed themselves from control by a foreign country.

So, to what extent do you agree with that statement? Pause the video now, have a little think about it, have a go answering that question, and I'll see you once you're finished.

Okay, welcome back.

So, hopefully you got on fine with that task and hopefully your answer looks somewhat similar to mine.

And again, just for the purpose of of giving you an idea, I've given you an answer here, which says that while I agree with the interpretation, the Viet Minh's victory over the French led to the end of French rule in Vietnam, I do not agree that Vietnam was fully independent by 1954.

The Geneva Conference divided the country in two, with the USA heavily involved in the south and the USSR and China supporting the north.

So, for the purpose of this question, from my perspective, I don't necessarily agree with that interpretation to a great extent, and that's my justification on the screen as to why I think that as well.

Hopefully you got on fine with that task as well.

So, just to summarise today's lesson, Vietnam had previously been part of a French colony known as French Indochina.

France fought a Vietnamese nationalist communist group known as the Viet Minh.

The French were defeated by the Viet Minh at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu and French rule in Indochina came to an end.

And Vietnam was subsequently divided into communist North Vietnam and non-communist South Vietnam along the 17th parallel.

So, thank you very much for being with me during this lesson.

Hopefully you enjoyed it.

Hope you learned a lot.

And hopefully I'll see you next time.

Bye-bye.