1946–1954Reputable sourceWell documented
The First Indochina War
On the timeline · around 1946–1954 ·
What happened
When negotiations with France collapsed in late 1946, Ho Chi Minh's Viet Minh launched a guerrilla war against French colonial forces. As the Cold War hardened, the United States bankrolled France's war while China and the USSR backed the Viet Minh.
Why it matters
A colonial war became a Cold War proxy fight, drawing the United States into Vietnam a decade before it sent combat troops.
Sources
- Encyclopaedia Britannica. Indochina wars · Reputable source