Product Description

Why did the US make a commitment to an independent South Vietnam? Could a major war have been averted? Fredrik Logevall provides a concise, comprehensive and accessible introduction to the origins of the Vietnam War from the end of the Indochina War in 1954 to the eruption of full-scale war in 1965, and places events against their full international background.  

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #53291 in Books
• Published on: 2001-09-07
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 168 pages

Synopsis
Why did the US make a commitment to an independent South Vietnam? Could a major war have been averted? Fredrik Logevall provides a concise, comprehensive and accessible introduction to the origins of the Vietnam War from the end of the Indochina War in 1954 to the eruption of full-scale war in 1965, and places events against their full international background.

From the Back Cover
The war in Vietnam was a seminal event in post-1945 world affairs. The conflict had a profound and lasting impact on the politics and society of Vietnam and the United States, but also shaped the larger international system in critical ways. This volume provides an authoritative and accessible introduction to the origins of the war. It situates the developments from the French colonial period to the eruption of major war in 1965 in their larger global setting - how Vietnamese affairs were shaped by - and in turn shaped - developments outside Vietnam. The Origins of theVietnam War looks at:

• Why France colonized Indochina in the late 19th century, and why that colonial venture ended in defeat at the hands of Ho Chi Minh's Vietminh in 1954.
• Why the 1954 Geneva Agreement failed to bring long-term peace to Indochina.
• Why the United States opted to make a commitment to the creation of an   independent, non-communist South Vietnam.
• Why a major war developed in 1965, with the US and South Vietnam on one side  and the National Liberation Front and North Vietnam, backed by China and the Soviet Union on the other.
• Whether the war could have been avoided.

 Containing a Guide to Characters, Chronology and detailed Bibliography, The Origins of the Vietnam War provides an indispensable introduction to one of the most important events in recent history.

Fredrik Logevall is Associate Professor of History, University of California, Santa Barbara.

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Customer Reviews

A good introduction
This book, while not comprehensive, does give a good outline of many events and themes of the Vietnam War. More useful as an introduction to particular topics than as a monograph, this text does have useful documents enclosed, which provide for interesting analysis. An excellent book to use for the chronology of events, and as a chance to find out facts and basic opinion to be taken away and looked up in other more comprehensive texts. All in all, a useful, if far too brief account of a tumultuous period.