Though led by communists, it attracts many nationalists. 1941-5 Vietminh lead the fight against the Japanese, supported by the US, which supplies them with weapons. When France is liberated, the Japanese imprison French troops. In 1945, when the Japanese surrender after Hiroshima, the Vietminh, who are based in the north, take over Hanoi and declare the independence of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh hopes for US support against the French.
British troops arrive in Saigon from Burma.
They aim to restore French colonial rule. They rearm Japanese troops and use them to drive the Vietminh out of Saigon and the south. The French re-establish colonial rule in the south. The French fight the Vietminh for control of the north. They drive the Vietminh out of Hanoi.