The Lowdown: a short history of the origins of the Vietnam War Audiobook (Free)

A concise background of the origins of The Vietnam War for a new generation

On Sept 2, 1945, Vietnamese revolutionary Ho Chi Minh boldly proclaimed his country’s independence. Just as Americans had carried out almost two centuries earlier in defiance of the British, Ho announced that Vietnamese patriots were, after many years of French domination, affirming that ‘all the individuals on the planet earth are identical from birth’ and ‘possess a right to live and to be happy and free of charge.’

Among the cheering Vietnamese about The Lowdown: a short history of the origins of the Vietnam War assembled because of this auspicious announcement were American military officers, who had caused Ho and his Vietminh political front to defeat the Japanese imperial forces that had occupied Indochina and had changed French authority for the prior four years.

Envisioning this dramatic scene and not understanding the tragic saga that could follow, someone might suppose that Americans and Vietnamese had much in common which to create a harmonious international relationship.

The truth is, however, the two nations were destined to collide inside a war that would ultimately cost more than two million Vietnamese and a lot more than 58,000 American lives.

How could it have happened?

This fascinating story of how the Vietnamese people resisted external control and moved outward like pioneer settlers to occupy the country that became Vietnam, creating a unified and independent government, is in many ways just like the story of early America.

With this concise history of the origins from the Vietnam War, Dr David Anderson, Professor of History at California Condition University, Monterey Bay, examines the events that led to perhaps one of the most controversial wars the united states has ever known and succinctly clarifies, for a new generation, why this conflict still issues today.