Vietnam. Moving Toward Conflict French rule in Vietnam –France ruled most of Indo China –1940- Japanese took control of Vietnam –Indo Chinese Party led.

Vietnam

Moving Toward Conflict• French rule in Vietnam

– France ruled most of Indo China– 1940- Japanese took control of

Vietnam– Indo Chinese Party led by Ho Chi

Minh came back to Vietnam• Formed Vietminh• Goal: free Vietnam from foreign rule• Run off the French- U.S. supports

France to stop the threat of Communism

• Vietminh drive the French out- 1954

1. What is the name of the Vietminh leader whose goal it was to free Vietnam from foreign rule

Geneva Accords

• France, Great Britain, Soviet Union, US, China, Laos

• Result: Divided Vietnam at 17th Parallel– North Vietnam- Communist– South Vietnam- Anti-Communist– Must hold national election in 1956

2. What were the provisions of the Geneva Accords?

The United States Steps In

• Ngo Dinh Diem (South) cancels the 1956 national election- afraid Ho Chi Minh (North) might win

• Diem allowed corrupt government– Restricted Buddhist practices

3. Why did Ngo Dinh Diem cancel the 1956 election?

VIETCONG• 1957- Communist groups form in the

South- Vietcong• Ho Chi Minh sent supplies to the Vietcong

through the Ho Chi Minh Trail• By 1963- 16,000 U.S. troops were in

South Vietnam• Nov. 1, 1963- U.S. supported military

coup toppled Diem’s regime- assassinated

4. What was the name of the communist group that formed in the South?

5. What happened to Ngo Dinh Diem?

President Johnson Expands the Conflict

• Each regime in South Vietnam was more unstable than the next– Became pure chaos – The Vietcong’s strength grew

6. Why did the Vietcong’s strength grow?

Gulf of Tonkin-Aug. 2,1964

• North Viet. Patrol boat torpedoed a US destroyer in the Gulf and the U.S. fired back

Tonkin Gulf Resolution

• President Johnson wanted power to “take all necessary measures to repel any attack against the United States

• Congress grants Johnson broad military powers in Vietnam

7. How was Johnson able to send troops to Vietnam without declaring war?

US Involvement and Escalation

• Troop buildup accelerates– End of 1965- 180,000 US Troops in Vietnam– Gen. Westmoreland requested additional

troops– By 1967- 500,000 US troops

8. Who was in charge of troops in Vietnam?

Fighting Tactics• Jungle Warfare

– Vietcong used “hit and run” ambush attacks due to lack of high powered weaponry

– US attacks in cities and country sides– Difficult to discern friend from foe– Vietcong developed an elaborate tunnel

system– Terrain laced with booby traps– 1967- over 3 million Vietnamese

refugees in South Vietnam

9. What kind of attacks were the Vietcong known for?

Sinking Morale• Many soldiers required by law to fight but didn’t

support the war• Turned to alcohol, marijuana, and drugs• A few murdered their superior officers• Instability of South Vietnam government- civil war

within a civil war• U.S. confused and angry

10. What caused soldier morale to decrease?

The Living Room War

• TV images shown on the news contradicted the government’s optimistic war scenario

• Johnson was losing credibility

11. How was the Vietnam War different than any other war?

Activism• SDS-Students for a Democratic

Society

• FSM-Free Speech Movement

• Spoke out across the country with protests, marched, & rallies (“Hell no, we wont go”)

Protestor

Draft Rally

1968 Tet Offensive • It was their new year-Jan. 30th and

there was a truce for no attacks• They were having funerals for their

losses but the coffins were full of weapons.

• They attacked 100 towns and12 U.S. air bases

• It lasted a month-US minds are changed

12. What was the Tet Offensive?

Saigon during the Tet Offensive

1968-Elections• Robert Kennedy & Eugene

McCarthy-Democratic• June 5-Kennedy is assassinated

while giving a victory speech in LA by Sirhan Sirhan from Palestine

• So then Hubert Humphrey is Democratic nominee

13. What happened to Robert Kennedy?

• War protestors wanted to make the Democrats Look bad, so they started riots in Chicago and showed disorder and chaos

• It worked & Nixon becomes President

• 1st thing he does is announce troops will withdraw from Vietnam

14. What did Nixon announce when he became president?

• Nixon turns to Henry Kissinger for advice & he suggests Vietmanization-slow withdraw

• Over the next 3 years 500,000 became less than 25,000 there

• Wanted ‘peace with honor’

15. What is Vietnamization?

• My Lai Massacre-US troops killed over 200 innocent civilians

• 1970-invaded Cambodia to stop supply line

• Protests begin-1.5 million across 1,200 campuses

Carrying the Wounded

• Final Push• U.S. dropped 100,000 bombs on North Vietnam

in 11 days stopping on Christmas Day• Both sides were ready to sign a peace

agreement• January 27, 1973 signed peace agreement• March 29, 1973-last troops came home• North Vietnamese break treaty and invade

South Vietnam, U.S. refuses to help• All of Vietnam becomes communist• Communists imprison 400,000 South

vietnamese• 1.5 Million people flee Vietnam.

Disagreement• Meaning of the war?-morally

wrong or moral cause

• Why was the US there-not our war or job to police the world

• Domino theory disproved b/c communism didn’t spread

Memorial-1982

• Wall in Washington with the names of the 58,000 dead carved on its surface

• 303,000 injured not on the wall• 15% had post-traumatic stress

syndrome

Changes• Stopped the draft

• War Powers Act-had to give 48 hours notice before sending troops & cant stay more than 90 days w/out approval