Home > Vietnam War > Ngo Dinh Diem Biography

Born January 3, 1901
Quang Binh Province, Vietnam
Died November 1, 1963
Saigon, Vietnam

President of South Vietnam, 1954–1963

Ngo Dinh Diem served as the president of South Vietnam during the early years of the Vietnam War. He came to power in 1954, immediately after the Geneva Accords divided the newly independent Vietnam into two sections—Communist-led North Vietnam and U.S.-supported South Vietnam. Diem gained the support of the United States because of his strong opposition to communism. But his corrupt, ineffective, and sometimes brutal government became highly unpopular with the South Vietnamese people over the next few years. The U.S. government finally withdrew its support in 1963, after Diem crushed a Buddhist uprising. A few months later, Diem was killed during the overthrow of his government by a group of military generals.