By:

Student E-9A

Compare and Contrast Essay Vietnam War and World War 1

Introduction:
No event in American history is more misunderstood than the Vietnam War. It was
misreported then, and it is misremembered now. Richard M. Nixon
This is a quote from Richard M.Nixon he served as the 37th president of the united states and
ended American involvement in the Vietnam war. This quote basically summarizes the Vietnam
war and what had happened. In this essay my main research question is: What were the causes
of the Vietnam War 1955 to 1975 and how did it relate to WW1? I will cover the militaristic,
nationalistic, imperialistic and the alliances of the Vietnam war and the first world war as well as
the parties which were involved. I will then compare and contrast the Vietnam war to first world
war. The similarities as well as the differences will be covered in depth. The Vietnam war was
undertaken in Vietnam and served from 1954 to the 30th of April 1975. The first world war was
from the 28th of July 1914 to the 11th of November 1918 and was undertaken in Europe.

Militarism:
Militarism is a strong military capability which is a belief by a country prepared to be used
aggressively to promote and defend national interests. The government or the people also
believe that the country should maintain a strong military to be prepared when they they have to
use it to promote or defend national interests.

Vietnam War:
Ground troops were equipped with M16A1 rifles, flak jackets, two way radios, ammunition
and helmets. The U.S. had helicopters which were used to disperse the troops into other areas
to engage the enemy. The helicopters helped clear away some of the dead bodies and
evacuated the wounded. Many soldiers abandoned their gear during the war due to the extreme
heat and humidity. The Vietnamese only had rifles and pistols to shoot but that wasnt too bad
because they would hide in their tunnels and when they would see someone then they would
secretly shoot them.

WW1:
Powers across Europe started expanding their armies in the late 19th century. People also
called this the arms race but when this was happening the navy of Britain started become stronger
than Germany and France combined. Militarism wasn't the only trigger of the war because
nationalism throughout Europe started becoming popular. Some countries were wanting to fight
other countries to regain their territories but it also made them more defensive all due to the rise of
nationalism in Europe. Alongside militarism all of this combined adding onto that the horrible
assassination of the Serbian Archduke Franz Ferdinand who acted as a trigger. Tens of thousands
died or became disabled due to poison gas, automatic rifles, flamethrowers and machine guns.
By: Student E-9A

Conclusion:
Both the Vietnam war as well as the World War 1 were some of the worst wars that ever
took place. Back then both imperialistic powers didnt want to have a political solution but
instead a military solution. This reason led to why they lost the Vietnam War. In each war there
were different types of weapons used, but some were the same. Even though there was a 40
year time period between both wars they did use some of the same weapons like: tanks,
machine guns and rifles. Although due to the fact that the Vietnam war was very different, the
United States used herbicides and bombs as for in the first world war they used torpedoes
which is a big difference in weapons. In conclusion only some same weapons were used but
because these two wars were so different from each other there were many other weapons
used in each war due to the circumstances. It doesn't matter about the time frame between the
wars, the technology might be a bit more advanced but the system which was undertaken is still
the same.

Alliances:
An alliance is made up of countries that have an agreement to help each other out when
they are in need. When there is a war and two countries would be in an alliance then both of
them will help each other out like giving them weapons, food or other important supplies.

Vietnam War:
The North and South of Vietnam were the main countries involved. A lot of anti-communist
countries such as the United States, the Philippines, South Korea, New Zealand, Australia,
Khmer Republic and Thailand were all backing up the South of Vietnam. While on the other
hand the communist allies like the Peoples Republic of China, the Soviet Union, Khmer Rouge,
Pathet Lao and North Korea were all helping out the North of Vietnam.

WW1:
In Europe the major countries split up into two alliances by 1914. The two alliances were
called the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance. A lot of historians are laying little emphasis on
the alliances which were dragging down other nations. The Triple Entente was made up of the
countries France, Russia and Britain while on the other hand the Triple Alliance was made up of
Italy, Germany and Austria-Hungary.

Conclusion:
The north of Vietnam and the south did not like each other back in the day due to the fact
that a lot of politically involved people had kind of like brainwashed them that the other side is
bad. But no nation wants to be separated because they want to live in harmony with each other.
The World War 1 was not about an ideology. The cause of the war was mainly because the
countries wanted to form new alliances. It actually wasnt that bad because no country was split
up in the making. There was a huge difference between the two wars when it comes to the
alliances due to the fact that there were different countries fighting in each war. The Vietnam
war was between the Viet Cong and America on the other hand the countries which were
involved in the first world war were mainly all from Europe. Vietnam only had an agreement with
France but they didnt help them out during the war.
By: Student E-9A

Imperialism:
Imperialism is from the Latin word imperium which means to rule over larger territories.
Imperialism is extending a countries power through colonization. This method has helped
spread technologies and ideas.

Vietnam War:
Back in the day the French had colonized the nowadays Vietnam which they used to call
Indochina The people of what is now Vietnam were fighting against the French imperialists to
gain independence. Surprisingly they had won and the French began to withdraw. More
Information

WW1:
During the time of WW1 nations had started ruling countries which they then called
colonies. The other countries also started this and it then became a competition to who would
amass more colonies. Imperialism was known as gathering colonies. At first it was Britain and
France who started to have colonies abroad in Africa and Asia. It was then when Italy and
Germany realized that it isnt such a bad idea and they as well colonized. Countries became
richer with having colonies abroad because the countries which they had recolonize to had raw
materials and cheap labor. Wars were like freight trains because once the Ottoman Empire fell,
other powers like the Continental Powers raced to seize eastern blocks which were under
control of the empire.

Conclusion
The United States of America did not start a war with the intention to recolonize and steal
Vietnam from France. They simply did not want the Vietnamese to spread the belief of
communism to other countries which then would spread it even more. While on the other hand
during World War 1 the countries fought with the intention to recolonize. Some countries
achieved this and others fought without a chance. This is a huge difference in imperialism. But
France was also involved in the first World war to help Britain and Russia in their alliance called
The triple entente.

Nationalism:
Nationalism is a geographic and demographic region which is a shared group feeling. It
can be expressed as a political ideology or belief that becomes attached to one nation.
Nationalism involves nation identity which involves personal behaviors and social conditioning
which supports a states actions as well as their decisions.

Vietnam War:
Back in the day Vietnam was an independent country that was never involved in a war
before. After the Vietnam war a man named Ho Chi Minh who was an outspoken voice for the
independence of Vietnam joined a Communist Party and started travelling to the Soviet Union.
In 1930 Ho Chi Minh founded an Indochinese Communist Party as well as the League for the
Independence of Vietnam in 1941. When World War 2 ended some of his forces known as the
Viet Minh seized the northern City of Vietnam also known as Hanoi. They wanted to start a
Democratic State of Vietnam which is now known as North Vietnam and elect Ho Chi Minh as
By: Student E-9A

the president. He served the next 25 years as the president and became a well-known symbol
of Vietnam and its struggle for unification with the anti-Communists who were in South Vietnam
as well as their ally the United States.

WW1:
The first World War kicked off because a of a radical act by a Serbian nationalist. Later
then Germany, the United States, Great Britain as well as France were involved with the
situation of a regional conflict between nationalistic groups who were fighting against some
occupying forces of an imperialistic government. In order to be the greatest the nations would
have to be the best at both military and economically. Nationalism has been cited to be the
outbreak of WW1. The countries started to compete and wanted to have the best equipment as
well as economy.

Conclusion:
The Vietnam war kicked off because of an ideology that was mistreated and understood
by other countries and groups. However, the first world war was undertaken to seize more
countries and form more alliances. The Vietnam War escalated as a civil war and became and
international war, which had an effect on Cold War politics. It had a span of 29 years with three
different stages: The first Indochina War (1946-1954), the Second Indochina War (1959-1975)
and the original Vietnam War (1965-1973). The divide between capitalism and communism
prompted covert involvement of states.

Final Conclusion:
Wars usually always have a huge effect on other countries. Back then the Vietnam war
had a huge influence on everyone because during it protestors in America went on the streets to
protest and try to stop it. The troops themselves didnt know what was happening in the home
country because no one updated them on the situation so that they would stay focused and not
have emotional breakdowns as well as lack of motivation. The first world war was very different
than the Vietnam war. The Vietnam war started because of a belief that was mistreated by the
Americans. The Americans thought that the belief of communism was spread so they had to
simply eradicate the people who had this belief. The first world war however had started
because of the hatred between Austria-Hungary and Serbia due to the fact that Austria-
Hungary's archduke was assassinated by a Serbian killer. The Vietnam war and the first world
war were very different from each other with only some similarities which they shared that were
because of the same countries that were involved in the first world war and the Vietnam war.