Anger at Diem, help from the North and aid from the superpowers turned a local revolt into a long Cold War conflict.
In 1949, Mao Zedong's communists won China's civil war and set up the People's Republic of China. Vietnam's communists now had a neighbouring government that could offer recognition, supplies and help. It also made the USA more afraid of communism spreading in Asia, and strengthened containment, the policy of stopping communism from spreading further. China and North Vietnam still had their own goals; China did not control every Vietnamese decision.
An insurgency is an organised armed revolt against a government. In the South, communist organisers used local networks and anger at Diem. From 1959, Hanoi, the North's capital and a shorthand for its government, backed armed struggle more and more. The National Liberation Front (NLF), formed in 1960, was a communist-led group opposing the southern government.
Its fighters were often called the Viet Cong. They were linked to, but separate from, North Vietnam's regular army. They used guerrilla tactics: small attacks followed by a quick retreat, rather than big open battles against stronger forces.
Supplies and fighters moved south along the Ho Chi Minh Trail, a network of routes through Laos and Cambodia, not a single road. This let fighters keep going and replace losses. The USA backed a non-communist South, fearing the domino theory: if one country fell to communism, its neighbours would follow.
China and the Soviet Union (USSR) both aided the North, despite being rivals. Each wanted influence and wanted to stop an American victory. A proxy war is when outside powers compete by backing other forces. That describes part of the Vietnam War. But Vietnamese aims, local conflict and direct American fighting also mattered.
- NLF, 1960
- Communist-led front in the South; fighters called the Viet Cong.
- Ho Chi Minh Trail
- Supply routes through Laos and Cambodia.
- Domino theory
- US fear that communism would spread country by country.
Worked example: Local anger plus outside help
Why did anger at Diem become a lasting armed challenge?
- Local grievances give the NLF supporters in the South.
- The North sends fighters and supplies down the Trail.
- China and the USSR help the North, so the revolt can keep going.
Watch out for this
The Viet Cong, the North Vietnamese army and the Chinese army were one force.
The Viet Cong were southern fighters linked to the North. The North had its own army. China sent aid but was a separate country.
Check your understanding
What was the Ho Chi Minh Trail?
- A single road from Hanoi to Saigon.
- A network of routes through Laos and Cambodia that carried supplies south.
- A US supply line to the South's army.