Ch. 23 The War in Vietnam Section 1: Background to Conflict Section 2: US Involvement & Escalation Fighting photo: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/Bruce_Crandal l%27s_UH-1D.jpg/300px-Bruce_Crandall%27s_UH-1D.jpg Map photo: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/HoCMT.png/ 220px-HoCMT.png Info from American Nation textvook: Boyer, Paul S., Sterling Stuckey, and Rinehart Holt. "Vietnam War." The American nation: Civil War to present. Annotated teacher's ed. Austin, Tex.: Holt, Rinehart and Winston,
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Ch. 23 The War in VietnamSection 1: Background to Conflict
Info from American Nation textvook: Boyer, Paul S., Sterling Stuckey, and Rinehart Holt. "Vietnam War." The American nation: Civil War to present. Annotated teacher's ed. Austin, Tex.: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2001. Ch23. Print.
Causes of the War
Vietnam's desire for freedom : After WWII, France reclaimed Vietnam as a colony. The Communist Vietminh fought against the French.
The Domino Theory : The U.S. believed if the Communists took over Vietnam, communism would spread throughout Southeast Asia.
South Vietnam fails to comply with Geneva Accords : After French rule ended in 1954, elections to unify Vietnam under one rule were set for 1956. However, the leader of South Vietnam refused to hold them.
North Vietnam attempts to unite country under Communist rule : In 1959, North Vietnam began sending weapons to Vietminh in the south in hopes of uniting the country under Communist rule.
U.S. supports anti-communist South Vietnam : The United States began to send South Vietnam military advisers and troops.
French Rule in Vietnam
Vietnam had been a French colony for almost a 100 years.
During WWII Japan invaded Vietnam and took it over.
After WWII the French attempted to regain control over Vietnam but was met with resistance from Ho Chi Minh, a communist leader of the Vietminh, also called the Vietnamese Nationalists.
The Vietminh and Vietnamese nationalists (non-communists) negotiated the Geneva Accords: temporarily split Vietnam at the 17th parallel planned a national election in 1956 to determine
the government of Vietnam The Vietminh (communist) were based in the
north while the Nationalists (non-communist) were based in the south.
Ngo Dinh Diem, the president of South Vietnam, canceled the elections; the US, afraid of the communists gaining control of all of Vietnam, backed Diem.
Ho Chi Minh Trail
Due to Diem’s harsh government a communist rebel group formed in South Vietnam (Vietcong) to oppose Diem.
Ho Chi Minh supported the Vietcong by sending them supplies along the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
Photo of a Buddhist monk setting himself on fire in public to protest Diem’s government.
Even though Diem grew more and more unpopular in South Vietnam the US continued to back him; until Nov. 1, 1963 a US backed military coup executed him.
Vietnamese Leaders
Ho Chi Minh Communist North Vietnam Totalitarian Popular because he
gave land to peasants
Supported Viet Cong in South Vietnam.
Ngo Dinh Diem Anti-communist South Vietnam Unpopular because
Britannica Encylopndia, ‘Gulf of Tonkin Resolution’, from youtube.com on May 10, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2s_gxMn9ELY
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
Congress passed the Tonkin Gulf Resolution on August 7, 1964; which gave Johnson broad military powers in Vietnam.
With the advice of his advisors Robert McNamara and Dean Rusk president Johnson decided to escalate the war and began sending large numbers of American troops to Vietnam.
Robert McNamarahttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/Robert_McNamara_official_portrait.jpg/480px-Robert_McNamara_official_portrait.jpg
The 3 men togetherhttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a5/Dean_Rusk%2C_Lyndon_B._Johnson_and_Robert_McNamara_in_Cabinet_Room_meeting_February_1968.jpg/250px-Dean_Rusk%2C_Lyndon_B._Johnson_and_Robert_McNamara_in_Cabinet_Room_meeting_February_1968.jpg
The war escalates…
In 1965, over 61% of Americans favored escalation of the war and by the end of 1965 180,000 US soldiers were in Vietnam
General William Westmoreland, leader of American forces in Vietnam, was unimpressed by the South Vietnamese allies and continually asked for more troops.
By 1967 there were over 500,000 US soldiers in Vietnam.
• Increased the number of military advisors and army special forces, or Green Berets
• Advisors were not to take part in combat, but many did
Eisenhower
• Domino Theory; aided French forces at regaining control after WWII.
• Began sending money and weapons to South Vietnam
• Military advisors sent to train South Vietnamese army
Kennedy
• Believed an expanded U.S. effort was the only way to prevent a Communist victory in Vietnam
• Asked Congress to pass the Tonkin Gulf Resolution
• Escalated war by sending more troops
Johnson
U.S. Involvement in Vietnam:
War in the Jungle
The US believed its superior weaponry would lead to victory in Vietnam but the jungle terrain and guerrilla tactics used by the enemy turned the war into a frustrating stalemate.
They used booby traps, land mines and even American weapons against them.
The Vietcong used hit-and-run tactics and were interspersed amongst the civilian population making it hard for American’s to determine friend from foe.
The Vietcong added to their elusiveness by constructing elaborate tunnels that they could use to launch surprise attacks and then quickly disappear. They could eat, sleep, store weapons, and treat their wounded in the tunnels.
wwww.Militaryvideo.com, ‘’Tunnel Rats in Vietnam War’’, from youtube.com on May 10, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6ZbPqvfvBI
U.S. weaponry and techniques Westmoreland believed that the superior
weapons and manpower the US possessed would make the communists crumble. The communists continued to suffer and resist and were willing to fight to the last to obtain their freedom.
Americans also tried to win the “hearts and minds” of the rural population but their tactics to combat the Vietcong included the use of napalm and Agent Orange which left the countryside in ruins.
US soldiers also conducted Search-and-Destroy missions which destroyed villages suspected of ties to the Vietcong.
The high cost of the war led to a decline in the economy and the lack of funds to continue the Great Society programs President Johnson had initiated.
Johnson and military personnel continually told the American public that the war was going well. A credibility gap developed between what Johnson said about the war and what the public began to believe based on the gruesome images of US soldiers in body bags that they saw on the nightly news.
Ch 22 Sec 1&2 Assignment
Take out a sheet of paper and answer the following:
1. Evaluate why you believe soldier morale dropped steadily as the Vietnam War dragged on. Use 3 specific examples from Ch 22 Sec 1&2 to back up your argument.
2. Assess the United States military tactics in fighting the Vietnam War. What could they have done differently?