The hollow independence the French gave the Vietnamese would see the relationship between the two quickly break down, resulting in ten years of bitter fighting. The newly communist People’s Republic of China would immediately support the Viet Minh with bases and heavy weaponry, which allowed them to take control of large swaths of rural Vietnam.
The Soviet Union would soon join China in supporting the cause, also providing military aid, and would publicly declare that Ho Chi Minh was the rightful leader of Vietnam.
The Americans had been supporting the French as early as 1949, providing them with military aid, but to no avail. By 1954, following their defeat at the Battle of Điện Biên Phủ, the French decided enough was enough and began negotiations to leave Vietnam.
In that same year, peace accords worked out at the Geneva Conference where the country would eventually be divided the country into North and South Vietnam. As many as 800,000 people were killed in the conflict, but it wouldn’t be the last time this nation would experience bloodshed.
