I chose the American Revolution, the Cold War, and the Vietnam War.

The American

Revolution, also known as the Revolutionary War, was between Great Britain and the 13 North

American colonies from 1765-1783. The Cold War was between the United States and the Soviet

Union from 1947-1989. The Vietnam War was between Communist North Vietnam and

Republican South Vietnam from 1955-1975. I believe the American Revolution was more

important than the Cold War and the Vietnam War because the American Revolution was what

shaped America. Without the other two wars, America would be America, just in peace.

The Cold War was between the United States and the Soviet Union. It was a 42-year war

that took place from 1947-1989. The war started during the period right after the end of World

War II, when Germany was split into four quadrants. Britain was assigned the northwest

quadrant, France the southwest, America the southeast, and the Soviet Union the northeast,

which included the capital, Berlin. Those four quadrants became two when the Western Allies

(United States, Great Britain, and France) merged their quadrants. This was known as West

Germany. East Germany was controlled by the Soviets. The Soviets didn’t like what the Western

Allies were doing, so they built a blockade around Berlin. Which was broken by the Berlin

Airlift in 1949. The Cold War also included the Space Race and Arms Race. The Space Race

took place from 1955-1975. The Space Race started after the Soviet Union launched the first

artificial satellite called Sputnik 1. Many Americans say the war ended after America sent a man

to the moon. They also say that America won the Space Race. The Arms Race took place from

1942-1991. It started when the Soviet Union tested an atomic bomb in 1949, which led to

America creating the first hydrogen bomb. The Arms Race ended when the Cold War ended.

And with it, the Soviet Union and the Berlin Wall fell. There wasn’t any direct fighting between
the two countries. The war happened through economic and political actions. Because of this,

there was no real winner in this war.

The Vietnam War was between Communist North Vietnam and Republican South

Vietnam from 1955-1975. America supported South Vietnam, afraid that the domino theory

might actually become real. During World War II, Japan invaded Vietnam. To force out both the

Japanese and the French, Ho Chi Minh, inspired by Chinese and Soviet communism, formed the

Viet Minh, also known as the League for the Independence of Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh was the

President of Vietnam from 1945-1969. After World War II, Japan withdrew from Vietnam

because of its defeat, leaving Emperor Bao Dai in control. Seeing this, the Viet Minh took action,

taking over Hanoi. With Ho Chi Minh as president, they declared a Democratic Republic of

Vietnam (DRV). France helped Emperor Bao Dai form the state of Vietnam in July 1949, with

Saigon as its capital. Both sides wanted a unified Vietnam but the North was inspired by

communist countries while the South wanted to have a good relationship with the Western

countries. The Vietnam War officially began sometime after the U.S. involvement in Vietnam. A

treaty was signed, and the 17th parallel divided South and North Vietnam. In 1955, Ngo Dinh

Diem became president of the Government of the Republic of Vietnam (GVN), which was what

South Vietnam was called during the time of the war. In 1955, the American military and CIA

found Vietnamese Communists, also called the Viet Cong, and arrested some 100,000 people.

Most of them were tortured and executed. President John F. Kennedy’s fear of the “domino

theory” only grew. The domino theory was a theory that if a Southeast Asian country became

communist, the countries around it would also become communist and it would just keep

growing. By 1961, there were 9,000 American troops in South Vietnam. In 1968, U.S. soldiers
slaughtered more than 400 unarmed civilians in the village of My Lai. This became known as the

My Lai Massacre. In 1971, the New York Times published a study on how President Richard M.

Nixon had only increased the conflict in Vietnam. The report was released by Daniel Ellsberg.

After more than 20 years of war, 2 million Vietnamese were killed, most of them civilians, 3

million were wounded, and 12 million became refugees.

The American Revolution, also known as the Revolutionary War, was between Great

Britain and the 13 North American colonies from 1775-1783. It started on April 19, 1775, with

the exchange of gunfire in the Battles of Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts. This was

known as the “shot heard round the world.” The Revolutionary War included many important

battles like Yorktown, Trenton, Battle of Bunker Hill, etc. The last battle was the American

victory in Yorktown. The war ended after the signing of the Treaty of Paris on September 3,

1783. I believe this war is more important than the other 2 because of how much it impacted

America. The Cold War impacted America by making it grow in the weapon area. The Vietnam

War impacted America by showing how much America would do against communism to keep

this world safe. But the American Revolution shaped America. That war was what made

America America. Without that war, who knows if America would even exist.

As you can see, I chose the American Revolution, the Cold War, and the Vietnam War.

All three of these impacted and helped America differently. But the American Revolution had the

biggest impact. And that is why I believe the American Revolution is more important than the

Cold War and Vietnam War.

Cold War History. HISTORY, https://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/cold-war-history.

Accessed 6 May. 2024.

How Germany Was Divided After World War II. A&E Television Networks,

https://www.history.com/news/germany-divided-world-war-ii. Accessed 6 May. 2024.

The Space Race. A&E Television Networks,

https://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/space-race. Accessed 6 May. 2024.

Arms Race. A&E Television Networks, https://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/arms-race.

Accessed 6 May. 2024.

Vietnam War. A&E Television Networks,

https://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/vietnam-war-history. Accessed 6 May. 2024.

Revolutionary War. A&E Television Networks,

https://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/american-revolution-history. Accessed 6

May. 2024.