Lindsey Graham (10:07)
It's May 1, 1954. In a valley in northwest Vietnam, nine years after Ho Chi Minh declared Vietnamese independence, Wandong Ving lies in the mud, trembling as he grips his rifle. A 20 year old soldier in the Viet Minh. This is his first battle and he's terrified. Ving's orders are clear, though. When the signal comes from his platoon leader, Ving is to storm the French positions ahead. If all goes well, this will be the Viet Minh's final decisive assault in a war that's dragged on for almost a decade. After Ho Chi Minh's declaration of independence in 1945, the French quickly returned to Vietnam to reclaim their colony, and initially there was hope that war could be avoided. Peace talks with the French led to an Agreement in March 1946, one that appeared to promise autonomy to the Vietnamese. But the French had no intention of letting their old colony go. By November of that same year, tensions exploded when French naval forces bombarded the northern port city of Haiphong, killing an estimated 6,000 Vietnamese civilians. This massacre convinced Ho Chi Minh that diplomacy was futile. By the end of that year, he had declared war against the French, marking the beginning of the First Indochina War. As French colonial forces advanced through the country, Ho Chi Minh and his forces fled into the mountains, where they began a relentless campaign of guerrilla warfare. The French were outnumbered, but they had more modern weapons and a powerful ally in the United States. With the Cold War deepening, American policymakers in Washington, D.C. were terrified that communism would spread across The Globe By 1950, US foreign policy had firmly embraced what was known as the Domino theory, the idea that the fall of one country to communism would lead to another and then another. America had once opposed French colonialism in Southeast Asia. But President Truman decided to send American weapons, money and military advisors to support French forces in Vietnam. But despite all their advantages in technology, money and manpower, the French have failed to defeat their enemy. By 1954, France has suffered more than 100,000 casualties and spent billions of dollars without success. Now it's on the verge of a humiliating defeat. As the signal is given and Wang Dong Ving raises his rifle and charges forward. Machine gunfire erupts from the French positions. Ving's platoon leader is shot in the mouth. Other men fall to the left and right, but Ving forces himself forward, firing into the chaos. Suddenly, two French soldiers emerge in front of him. Ving instinctively aims and fires, but nothing happens. He's out of ammunition. Ving attacks the first soldier with his bayonet. Seeing this, the other soldier turns and flees. This is the first time Ving has killed anyone. But there's no time to process that. He just keeps pushing forward. Not far away, in a reinforced bunker buried in the Earth, 51 year old French Colonel Christian de Castries studies maps by lamplight. When he arrived at this remote valley six months ago, he was confident he could achieve a decisive victory. The plan was to fortify a base in the valley and lure the Viet Minh into the open, where French artillery and air power could easily destroy them. But today it's the French, not the Vietnamese, who have become trapped. De Castries fortress has become a prison. Since the Viet Minh launched their attack in March, a string of outposts have fallen. And now just a few thousand French troops are trying to fight off a force of up to 50,000 Viet Minh. Their airstrip has been destroyed. Supplies dropped by parachute are falling into enemy hands. And the endless monsoon rains are turning defensive trenches into a quagmire of rot and filth. Then finally, on May 7, 1954, after relentless Viet Minh assaults on French positions, De Castry knows his men cannot resist the onslaught any longer. He radios his superiors in Hanoi to tell them that the end is near. Soon after, the Vietnamese break into his command bunker. The first soldier inside is not much older than a boy. De Castre pleads with him not to shoot, stuttering in French, that he surrenders. Eventually, the boy lowers his gun. De Castre will be spared, at least for now. As the boy marches him out of the bunker, De Castri catches His name from another Vietnamese soldier. It's Hoang Dung Ving. Days of hand to hand fighting have hardened this once callow boy into a fearsome fighter. The battle of Dien Bien Phu effectively ends French colonial rule in Indochina. At the Geneva peace conference that follows, the two sides agree to divide Vietnam at the 17th parallel. With Ho Chi Minh's forces retreating to the north and the French to the south. This partition is intended to be temporary, with a promise of nationwide elections in 1956 to reunify the country. But the United States is convinced that if there is an election, then Ho Chi Minh will win and communism will spread across Southeast Asia. So the Americans will scramble to establish a new anti communist government in South Vietnam. But just like the French before them, the United States will soon discover that even the mightiest militaries in the world can't win every war. It's early on, September 2, 1969, in Hanoi, Vietnam. Fifteen years after the end of war with France. Ho Chi Minh lies in his modest home, his breathing labored and weak. At 79 years old, his last battle is with diabetes and heart problems. But despite his body's growing frailty, his mind remains sharp and he's all too aware of the significance of the date. It's exactly 24 years since he stood up and declared his nation's independence. But the fight for a unified and free Vietnam goes on. The past four years have brought a level of destruction beyond anything Vietnam experienced under French rule. More than half a million US Troops are now in the country and they've dropped more bombs than fell on all of Europe during World War II. Towns, cities and countryside, no part of Vietnam has been left untouched. So as his heart struggles to beat, Ho Chi Minh tries to focus on his vision for a unified and independent Vietnam. Just weeks ago, he received a letter from US President Richard Nixon that proposed peace talks while threatening escalation if North Vietnam refused to negotiate. Ho Chi Minh welcomed the offer, but made no concessions in return. He knows Nixon's threats ring hollow. America's own people are turning against this war, taking to the streets in protest. So Ho Chi Minh's vision for independence feels within reach. If he can just fight through his illness, he is sure he will live to see the Americans leave, just as the French did before them. But each breath becomes more difficult, and at 9:47am his heart stops entirely. Ho Chi Minh's body may have finally surrendered, but his struggle continues without him. Over the next six years, American forces steadily withdraw while the North Vietnamese gather their strength to launch a massive invasion of the south. Finally, in 1975, Saigon Falls and the long civil war in Vietnam comes to an end. The country is unified and the former capital of the US backed South Vietnam is renamed Ho Chi Minh City in tribute to the man who first declared the modern country's independence on September 2, 1945. Next on History Daily September 3, 1260 an Egyptian army wins a pivotal battle, halting the westward expansion of the Mongol Empire. From Noiser and Airship this is History Daily Hosted, edited and executive produced by me, Lindsey Graham Audio editing by Mohammed Shazi Sound design by Gabriel Gould Supervising sound designer Matthew Filler Music by Thrum this episode is written and researched by Galen Foote Edited by William Simpson Managing producer Emily Burke Executive producers are William Simpson for Airship and Pascal Hughes for Noiser. Limu, Emu and Doug Limu and I always tell you to customize your car insurance and save hundreds with Liberty Mutual. But now we want you to feel it. Cue the emu music.
