Independence Of India From The British example essay topic

Describe the different approaches used by M.K. Gandhi and Ho Chi Minh to rid their respective countries from the political control of Western nations. Explain how and why each was motivated to follow very different paths to the same goal. Mohandas Gandhi, born in 1869, was a man who saw himself as a moral teacher in the quest for religiosity and truth. He led the independence of India from the British.

The British had controlled India politically and economically for nearly 200 years. Gandhi was a very religious man. Many of his political views came from his strong religious beliefs. He also believed strongly in non-violent protest. He not only wanted India to become independent, but he wanted them to achieve spiritual maturity through the use of the Satyagraha. Satyagraha, or the "truth-force", involved selective non-violent law breaking by a large group of people.

He did not think that breaking the law was wrong because he viewed it as taking a stand on clear moral issues. After Britain refused to restore civil liberties to the Indian people, Gandhi had the Indians engage in a kind of economic sit-down strike or hartal. The campaign was a success but Gandhi was forced to call it off in 1919 due to some violent outbreaks. After the Amritsar massacre, that killed 379 unarmed Indian civilians, Gandhi proclaimed a policy of "non-cooperation" with the British government. In this campaign he urged people to boycott all British goods and services.

In 1929, he organized the Great Salt March where he walked 241 miles in 24 days and collected praise from the crowds. He went to the beach and defied the British by picking up a handful of salt, Britain's monopoly, while one of his followers cried "Hail Deliverer". This resulted in Gandhi going to jail were he stayed off and on for several years. In the end, Gandhi used religion in India to help gain independence for his people. The last British troops left India in 1947. Ho Chi Minh, born in 1890, was a communist president of Vietnam.

He wanted to achieve independence, but the only way for this in his eyes was through the Communist Party. He was committed to use whatever means necessary to free his country from colonial rule. Unlike Gandhi, Ho Chi Minh accepted war time help from Russia and China. This help sustained the French and American invasions. He tried to force foreign rule of out Vietnam with force which led to a very large battle.

When the French wouldn't leave after WWI, Ho Chi Minh sent in guerrilla forces that took control in the North and proclaimed Vietnamese independence. The French refused to end their rule which led to an eight-year struggle. It ended when a major French fortress was captured by communists. After their problems ended with the French, Vietnam had to battle the Americans in their war against communism. But in 1973, after widespread protests and a substantial death toll in a guerrilla war, the American government withdrew its troops.

Vietnam is now a truly independent country. In the end, both of these great men were national leaders and key figures in their country's fight for independence from foreign rule. Whether non-violence or force was used, they were successful in obtaining independence..