How did “cunt” come to be such a derogatory term in American English?

I’m not sure if this is not a question more for language experts, but I assume that there is a historical context behind it.

In English the word “cunt” is considered a vulgar insult, but in Britain or Australia it’s more of a “typical” insult. However when it comes to American English and the attitude I’ve seen in media and popculture it’s more like an… N-word style insult. I’ve even seen it referred to as the “C-word”.

How come that there is such a huge difference between the usage and reception of the word? From what I understand, Australians sometimes use the word “playfully” while in America a person could be “cancelled” for referring to a woman by that term. (Which was portrayed in House of Cards, so that might just be popculture hyperbolising)

Just to clarify, English is not my first language, so I might be missing some cultural context that I would have as a native speaker, and I would appreciate that context in such case 🙂