<P> The Vietnam War ( Vietnamese : Chiến tranh Việt Nam ) , also known as the Second Indochina War , and known in Vietnam as the Resistance War Against America ( Vietnamese : Kháng chiến chống Mỹ ) or simply the American War , was a war that occurred in Vietnam , Laos , and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975 . It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam and the government of South Vietnam . The North Vietnamese army was supported by the Soviet Union , China and other communist allies and the South Vietnamese army was supported by the United States , South Korea , Australia , Thailand and other anti-communist allies . The war is therefore considered a Cold War - era proxy war . </P>
<P> The Vietnam War ( Vietnamese : Chiến tranh Việt Nam ) , also known as the Second Indochina War , and known in Vietnam as the Resistance War Against America ( Vietnamese : Kháng chiến chống Mỹ ) or simply the American War , was a war that occurred in Vietnam , Laos , and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975 . It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam and the government of South Vietnam . The North Vietnamese army was supported by the Soviet Union , China and other communist allies and the South Vietnamese army was supported by the United States , South Korea , Australia , Thailand and other anti-communist allies . The war is therefore considered a Cold War - era proxy war . </P>
when did the vietnam conflict start and end
when did the vietnam conflict start and end
1 November 1955 30 April 1975
1 November 1955 30 April 1975