French In Vietnam

A long time ago, countries from far away took over places where other people lived. This is called colonialism. In places like Vietnam and Java, these faraway countries wanted to make money and change how things were done.

In Vietnam, the French came and started schools, but only city kids could really go. They even built a big school called the University of Hanoi. But kids in the countryside, whose families farmed, didn't get to learn much. The French also changed cities a lot, even tearing down old buildings.

The French didn't have a big plan for Vietnam, they just wanted to make sure it made money for them. They picked many different bosses to be in charge, and these bosses made a lot of their own rules. This wasn't always good for the people living there.

The French also wanted to make a lot of money from Vietnam. They took over farms and made people work for them, not for themselves. People had to pay many taxes, like for working, for being an adult male, for papers, and even for selling farm goods.

In Java, the Dutch were in charge a long time ago. They wanted spices and made people work hard to grow them. Life was tough for these people because the Dutch were very strict and would punish them if they didn't do what was asked.

Some people in Java tried to fight back against the Dutch, but it took a long time for them to get some control. The Dutch made lots of money but also spent a lot trying to keep everyone in line. They built forts and roads, but eventually, they didn't have enough money and went bankrupt.

Later, the government of Holland took over and made things a bit better. They asked villages to grow certain crops for them or work some days for the government. This helped Holland make a lot of money from selling spices and other crops like sugar and coffee.

To help move things around and make life a little better, the Dutch built roads, railroads, and fixed up water systems. They also tried to make some schools and hospitals. These changes helped a bit, but life was still hard for many people living there.