The Cambridge History of the Vietnam War: Volume 1, Origins

This authoritative volume sheds light on when, how, and why the Vietnam War began.

Lien-Hang T. Nguyen (General editor), Edward Miller (Edited by)

9781107105089, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 28 November 2024

512 pages
23.6 x 16.2 x 3 cm, 0.93 kg

When, how, and why did the Vietnam War begin? Although its end is dated April 30, 1975, there is no agreement as to when it began. The Vietnam War was an enormously complex conflict and while any comprehensive reckoning must include the role of the US, it was not an 'American War'. This volume presents the scholarship that has flourished since the 1990s to situate the war and its origins within longer chronologies and larger interpretative perspectives. The Vietnam War was a war for national liberation and an episode of major importance in the global Cold War. Yet it was also a civil war, and civil warfare was a defining feature from the outset. Understanding the Vietnamese and Indochinese origins of the Vietnam War is a critical first step toward reckoning with the history of this violent, costly, and complex war.

Introduction. Points of departure: the global and local origins of the Vietnam War Edward Miller
Part I. Empires and Nations: 1. Memory, tradition, and the history of 'Vietnam' Liam Kelly
2. The origins of the Vietnamese revolution Hue-Tam Ho Tai
3. Hồ Chí Minh and the rise of the Vietnamese Communist Party Pierre Brocheux
4. Indochina during World War II Eric T. Jennings
5. The august revolution of 1945 Stein Tønneson
Part II. The First Indochina War: 6. The birth of the democratic republic of Vietnam David Marr
7. Empire and decolonization in France and Indochina Pierre Grosser
8. China, the Soviet Union, and the first Indochina War Chen Jian
9. The first Indochina War in the Central Highlands Oscar Salemink
10. The first Indochina War in Northern Vietnam and the red river delta Christopher E. Goscha
11. The battle of Điện Biện Phủ Christopher E. Goscha
Part III. The Two Vietnams: 12. The Geneva Conference of 1954 Martin Thomas
13. Eisenhower and Vietnam David Anderson
14. Ngô Đình Diệm and the birth of the Republic of Vietnam Phi Van Nguyen
15. Nation building in South Vietnam after Geneva Van Nguyen-Marshall
16. Building socialism in North Vietnam after Geneva Alec Holcombe
17. North Vietnam's road to war Tuong Vu
18. Laos between two wars Vatthana Pholsena
19. The origins of the insurgency in South Vietnam David Elliot
20. Kennedy and Vietnam Marc Selverstone
21. The crises of 1963 Edward Miller.

Subject Areas: Postwar 20th century history, from c 1945 to c 2000 [HBLW3]