CH. 1611.9.3

Origins of Vietnam

vocabulary

Ho Chi MinhDomino theoryDien Bien PhuSEATOVietcongGulf of Tonkin

Resolution

William Westmoreland

NapalmHawks and dovesSDSTet OffensiveEugene McCarthyRobert Kennedy

More vocabulary

VietnamizationKent StateMy LaiPentagon PapersParis Peace AccordsWar Powers Act

The Vietnam War

Longest war in American history 1959-1975Over 58,000 Americans died in the Vietnam WarNever a “declared” war; technically a “conflict”First televised warThe Vietnam War escalates during the

decade known as the “turbulent” 1960sVietnam soldiers are the sons & daughters

of the WWII generationThe Vietnam War bitterly divided the countryMany Americans took out their frustrations over

American involvement in Vietnam on the U.S. soldiers themselves

The Vietnam War

1. Background 2. U.S. Military Involvement 3.3. PresidentsPresidents4.4. End of the WarEnd of the War5. The American Soldier’s Experience in

Vietnam6. American Women in Vietnam7. Aftermath of the Vietnam War8. The Vietnam Veteran’s

Memorial

I. background France in Indochina

Vietnam was=French Indochinacolonial periodFrance ruled Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam in

the 1800sColonists taxed the people , took over large

amount of land and controlled the mineral wealth

France and Vietnam

Oh the French – any story that begins with the French is bound to end badly

Occupied Indochina in 1800sFrench colonized VietnamRuled stringentlyHo Chi Minh – rebel fighter that wanted to

rid Vietnam from its foreign invadersUS will spend millions of dollars, thousands

of lives to prevent Vietnam from becoming communist…

Backlash

Some Vietnamese began to rebel in the 20th century

Ho Chi Minh was educated in Europe and lived abroad for 30 years

He returned to Vietnam and rallied for revolution

Minh became a staunch communist

WWII

Japan undermined French control in VietnamJapan came in and try to take overWWII strengthened nationalist movementsVietnam wanted all foreigners out!

Nationalism v. Communism

Same story; different countrySame story as in Turkey/Greece and ChinaTruman supported the nationalists1950-1954 $2.6 billion

U.S. Military helps Ho Chi Minh challenge Japanese occupation

During WWII, the U.S. Office of Strategic Services, precursor of the CIA, trained Ho Chi Minh’s forces in the jungles of North Vietnam

Lt. Col. Peter Dewey of the OSS, assigned to Saigon in 1945, was accidentally killed in a Vietminh ambush

Dewey - first American to die in Vietnam

American Foreign Policy During the Cold War

Cold War: intense rivalry between the U.S. and the Soviet Union that began after WWII; carried on by political and economic means instead of direct military action.

Containment: U.S. foreign policy developed toward the Soviet Union during the Cold War in which the U.S. committed itself to stopping the spread of communism

Truman Doctrine: announced by President Truman in 1947. Said the U.S. would support free peoples anywhere in the world who were resisting communism

Ho Chi Minh Appeals to the U.S.

Ho Chi Minh asked the U.S. for help against the French in 1945 at the end of WWII

U.S. refuses to support Vietnam’s independence from French control

Reasons: Vietnam not a priority. in 1945 U.S. alliance with France important to the security

of Western Europe Ho Chi Minh’s communist convictions

contradicted America’s new “Cold War” policies Foreign policy determined through lens of CW

goals

The Theory Behind Containment During the Cold War

Pres. Eisenhower continued Truman policiesDeveloped the idea of Domino TheoryIf one country falls to communism in

Southeast Asia, they all willtheory formed the basis of U.S. policy in

Vietnam

Leadership in Vietnam

SEATO goes to aid VietnamSame goal: containmentUS supported South Vietnam leader Ngo

Dinh DiemThe Vietcong joined the fightBut hated both Minh and Diem

Vietmihn

Ho Chi Minh’s Vietminh, challenged the French attempt to reassert authority in Vietnam

Vietminh received substantial aid from Soviet Union & communist China

The United States supported France by helping to finance French War costs, sending arms and military advisors

Who is who?

Vietminh- communists that supported Ho Chi Minh

Vietcong- National Liberation Front; fought against the Vietminh and wanted a united Vietnam

South Vietnamese: lead by Diem; we support this side

Democratic side - Diem

Diem bad leaderHe Catholic, but passed anti-Buddhist

legislationMade him unpopular in South VietnamOnly the US kept Diem in power (until he was

assassinated)

U.S. Support of French Occupation of Vietnam

1950 – 1954 August 3, 1950: U.S. Military Assistance

Advisory Group (MAAG) of 35 men arrived in Vietnam

August 10, 1950: First shipload of U.S. arms aid arrives in Vietnam

By 1954 French position in Vietnam is in serious jeopardy

Geneva Accords

Est. a temp. division of Vietnam along the 17th parallel

North of the 17th parallel governed by Ho Chi Minh & his followers

South of the 17th parallel governed by an anti-communist regime tied to the West

Democratic elections were planned for 1956 to determine terms for uniting Vietnam

U.S. rejects the Geneva Accords

French withdrew from Vietnam, America increases its own involvement

President Eisenhower prefers a partition of Vietnam over a reunification under a communist government

Fearing the Vietminh would win any election in Vietnam, the U.S. does not sign the Geneva Accords

U.S. Supports South Vietnam

1955 – 1960 is known as the “Early Advisory Period”

February 12, 1955: President Eisenhower sends first U.S. advisors to train S. Vietnamese Army

October 21, 1957: Capt. Harry Cramer, Jr. dies in a munitions handling accident in Vietnam

October 22, 1957: U.S. military personnel suffer first casualties of the “Vietnam War”

13 Americans are wounded in Saigon

The Republic of Vietnam

U.S. helps establish a pro-American government in South Vietnam headed by Ngo Dinh Diem; capitol is Saigon

With U.S. support, Diem refuses to permit promised elections and begins trying to consolidate his power

The North Vietnamese government of Ho Chi Minh refuses to accept the division of Vietnam

The Final Events that lead to the “Vietnam War”

By 1958, supporters of Ho Chi Minh organized and began a new civil war in South Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh, based in Hanoi, North Vietnam, encouraged the civil war and sent supplies

In 1960 the National Front for the Liberation of Vietnam (NFL) was organized

The NFL was known by its opponents as the “Viet Cong” (Vietnamese communists)

As the Viet Cong increased its challenge to the Diem regime, South Vietnam appealed to the U.S. for more help

#2. U.S. MILITARY INVOLVEMENT: OVERVIEW

• During WWII (1941–1945): U.S. trained Ho Chi Minh’s forces in the jungles of North Vietnam• After WWII (1945 – 1954): U.S. supported

French occupation of Vietnam with finances, weapons and military advisors• After French occupation (1955 – 1960) :

“Early Advisory Period” U.S. supports new government of South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) with weapons and military advisors

U.S. Military Involvement: The Vietnam War Era begins

In 1959, President Eisenhower responds to Diem’s request by sending weapons and about 650 military advisors

1959 – 1965: U.S. military personnel are considered “advisors.”

Purpose is to train and support South Vietnam’s war against the communists

President Kennedy 1961 - 1963

The situation in South Vietnam grew steadily worse in the early 1960s.

The South Vietnamese gov’t had little success fighting the Viet Cong, nor could it secure its leadership over the unstable and factionalized country

President Kennedy increases military advisors in South Vietnam to more than 15,000 by 1963

Kennedy and Vietnam

JFK got more aggressiveIn 1961 sent in special forces to “advise” the

South Vietnamese army1963 15.000 troops in Vietnam

President Johnson “Inherits” the Vietnam Conflict

Nov. 1, 1963: South Vietnamese President Diem and his brother assassinated.

One coup after another follows, weakening South Vietnam’s war effort

Nov. 22, 1963: President John F. Kennedy is assassinated, Vice President Lyndon Johnson sworn in as President

July 1964: U.S. Military presence in Vietnam increases to more than 21,000

1964-1968

The Escalation of the Vietnam War

The Gulf of Tonkin Incident

A U.S. destroyer on patrol in international waters in the Gulf of Tonkin was attacked by north Vietnamese torpedo boats.

Many critics “doubted” if the attack ever even happened.

Regardless, the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution was passed giving the Prez authority to take any action necessary to protect American forces and prevent future aggression.

The U.S. assumed the major responsibility for fighting the war

President Johnson ordered the bombing of Vietcong supply lines: this lasted 7 years

Johnson officially stated that American troops would “openly engage the enemy”

In 1965 there were 180,000 American troops in Vietnam, by 1967 there were over 500,000

December 31, 1968: Peak number of U.S. annual combat deaths: 14,592

The Vietnam War became a stalemate: U.S. was preventing the communists from winning, but was not defeating them

Effects of Vietnam at home

Economy: the spending began to wear on the economy

LBJ was fighting a war at home and abroadHis war on poverty was expensiveHe had to cut on the Great Society spending

to afford the war

The Tet Offensive

Took place on the Vietnamese holiday celebrating their New Year called Tet

Tet Offensive Jan 30 – Feb 26, 1968: the war’s largest enemy offensive, 88,000 communist troops attack 105 South Vietnamese cities

Was the largest Vietcong attack in South Vietnam since the war began The U.S. staged a successful defense

Even though the U.S. won the battle it signaled to the American people that the war was far from over

Consequences: alarmed American people because it indicated the war was far from over; mobilized anti-war demonstrations

March 31, 1968: President Johnson announces he will not run for reelection

Johnson’ s career

Over more objections of the war LBJ DOES NOT RUN FOR A SECOND TERM!

The election of 1968 was about one issue: VIETNAM

Robert Kennedy, DemocratEugene McCarthy anti war Democrat

Anti War movement

By 1965 most troops in Vietnam were drafted1.5 million men were drafted for VietnamAll 18 year old boys must register with

Selective Service and can be drafted to meet military needs

There was increased attention to the number of black men serving in the war

The war in Congress

By 1967 more Congressmen were questioning the war.

Two sides emerged: hawks and dovesHawks: supported the warDoves: did not agree with LBJ’s policy on

VietnamMore criticism over the war started to

emerge.

More Protests

Other Americans began to protest this endless war

Journalists covering this war told a story that was different from the Johnson Administration

This lead to a “credibility gap”

MLK and Vietnam

Black men out numbered white men in Vietnam

They suffered 20% of the total combat deathsTwice that of white menLess likely to be officers and more likely to

serve in combat regimentsMLK called attention to the inequity.

To leaders slain within two months

Election of 1968

Open election for both Republicans and democrats

Robert Kennedy was shot June 5, 1968 while campaigning in California

This followed MLK’s assassination two months before

And this was four years after JFK’s assassination

Split Party

Chicago: DNCProtestors out sidePeace in sideShowed disconnect of broken democratic

partyRichard Nixon wins the election easily

Republican Nixon wins Presidential election in 1968

Nixon’s plan: Peace with Honor

How can we still go out like champs? Peace with Honor The gradual pull of American troops and

handing over the responsibility to the South Vietnamese called VIETNAMIZATION

To stop the Ho Chi Minh trail: more bombing in Cambodia

President Richard Nixon

Number of U.S. soldiers in Vietnam peaks in April 1969 = 543, 482

1969: President Nixon announces Vietnamization: withdrawing U.S. troops from Vietnam while increasing training & equipping of South Vietnamese to take over U.S. combat role

Nixon begins to withdraw U.S. forces from Vietnam

Tough North Vietnamese resistance created a stalemate

American bombing increased, especially in the north

Operation Rolling Thunder attempted to cut supply lines from the north

But the continued bombing only served to strengthen the Vietcong’s will to resist American “aggression and imperialism”

1970: war just widened

Now with more bombing in Cambodia the war enlarged and not ended.

Nixon wanted to help the Cambodians fight the brutal and deadly Khmer Rouge

Again fighting in Cambodia was linked to preserving peace in the world

Cambodia bombed

The Ho Chi Minh Trail

Was a jungle supply route the North Vietnamese used to travel south

Much of the trail went through neighboring Laos and Cambodia, which was an area the U.S. was reluctant to attack for some time

In any case, the North Vietnamese were able to move the trail just enough on short notice to confuse and frustrate the U.S.

1971-1973: turning points

Kent State 4 college students dead

My Lai MassacrePentagon Papers

Gov’t papers showed the government was not fully informing the American people and sometimes LIED to them!!!

Problems Among American Soldiers

Racial conflicts between black and white soldiers reflected the same racial tensions back home

The lack of progress in the war truly hurt the soldiers’ morale, spirits, and confidence

Many troops deserted their units.Many soldiers fragged their own officers

Nixon end the war

Peace talks begin The stall by Jan 1969Americans and South Vietnamese wanted

communists out of the South , all POWsNorth want all Americans to withdraw

War ends

Re-election around the cornerStill had not made good on first campaign

promise1973 Paris Peace AccordsBoth sides agreed to a cease fireNorth Vietnamese troops can stay in South

(bad sign)

War ends

Re-election around the cornerStill had not made good on first campaign

promiseBy the end of 1971, less than

200,000 U.S. troops in Vietnam1973 Paris Peace AccordsBoth sides agreed to a cease fireNorth Vietnamese troops can stay in South

(bad sign)

The End of the Vietnam War

March 29, 1973: Last U.S. troops leave South Vietnam

8,500 U.S. civilians and about 50 military personnel remain in Vietnam

April 29, 1975: Last American soldier killed in Vietnam; Official American presence ends when last Americans are evacuated by helicopter from the roof of the U.S. embassy in Saigon.

Paris Peace Accords

The National Liberation Front (Vietcong) would become a legit political party

South Vietnam would remain non communist1975Peace agreement fell apartSaigon fell to communists

The My Lai Massacre

A unit of U.S. troops who recently suffered severe casualties, entered My Lai

They received information that this village was a Vietcong stronghold

The troops found no evidence of enemy activity but they rounded up residents of the village, mostly women and children, and began shooting them - over 200 were killed

Geography also helped the Vietcong and North Vietnamese

Vietnam was covered in jungles and rice paddies making movement very difficult

There was natural cover making surprise attacks from the enemy very effective

The enemy, including a large amount of women and children, were very difficult to tell apart from the rest of Vietnams’ population

The U.S. attempted to make-up for their environmental disadvantage

using technology

Napalm-a highly flammable jellied gasoline was used to burn the thick jungle vegetation that helped the Vietcong hide

Agent Orange-a highly toxic spray that killed off any foliage (plants) it touched

Bulldozers and Flame-throwers too

U.S. soldiers found Vietnam a very frustrating experience

Many were very young and very scared with no previous military experience

These soldiers also had very diverse or different opinions about the war.

The culture, language, food, and environment were strange to them.

The Vietnamese people were suspicious and hostile - no place was safe for the soldiers

Very difficult to distinguish the enemy (NVA & Viet Cong) from the rest of the South Vietnamese population; enemy included women & sometimes the use of children

Viet Cong soldiers did not wear uniforms, traveled in small groups and used complex tunnel systems

The American Soldier’s Experience in Vietnam

Early in the war, most U.S. troops were trained professional soldiers, including many members of Special Forces

As the war went on, more of the soldiers were young draftees

American soldiers had different opinions about the war: Some believed in the cause for which they were fighting Some did not understand the cause for which they were

fighting Some were eager to fight regardless of the cause because

they believed it was their duty to answer their country’s call

Some were totally against the war Some disagreed with the way the war was being fought Some had mixed feelings

Statistics

Percentage of Americans who thought it was a mistake to send troops to Vietnam: 1965- 24% 1967- 47% 1968- 53% 1970- 56% 1973- 60%

Estimated number of combat troops by end of 1965 200,000

Estimated number of combat troops by end of 1966 389,000

Approximately 58,000-60,000 American casualties

The age a serviceman was most likely to die during the war: 20

American Women in Vietnam

An est.15,000 American women served in Vietnam (approximately 7,500 military women & 7,500 civilians)

Women served bravely throughout Vietnam in hostile and dangerous conditions, as no “safe zones” existed in Vietnam

Military women in Vietnam were awarded the Purple Heart the Bronze Star Commendation Medals Unit Citations

8 military women and over 55 civilian women died in Vietnam;

4 civilian women were listed as MIA and 1 is still officially listed MIA

American Military Women in Vietnam

Army: Army Nurse Corps Army Medical Specialist

Corps Women’s Army Corps

(WACs)

Air Force: Air Forces Nurse Corps Biomedical Science

Corps (all were officers) WAF (an acronym no

longer used that stood for “Women in the Air Force” (included both officers & enlisted)

Navy: nurses in Vietnam & on

hospital ships 9 female Naval officers

other than nurses served in Vietnam

Marines: 28 enlisted women and 8

female officers between 1967 - 1973

American Civilian Women in VietnamAmerican Red CrossUSO Government Agencies

Army Special Services U.S State Department U.S. Department of

Defense C.I.A. U.S.A.I.D. U.S.

Information Services

Civilian Agencies International Voluntary

Services Catholic Relief Services Tom Dooley Medical

Foundation

Civilian ContractorsForeign

CorrespondentsFlight Attendants Entertainers

Military Nurses who died serving in Vietnam

2nd Lt. Carol Ann Elizabeth Drazba2nd Lt. Elizabeth Ann Jones

Capt. Eleanor Grace Alexander1st Lt. Hedwig Diane Orlowski

2nd Lt. Pamela Dorothy Donovan1st Lt. Sharon Ann Lane (KIA)

Lt. Col. Annie Ruth Graham Capt. Mary Therese Klinker

POW / MIA

Dr. Eleanor Ardel Vietti

Eleanor Vietti was a 30 year old civilian medical doctor who was attached to the Alliance of Christian Churches and Missions

She was taken prisoner on Memorial Day, 1962

She is still listed as POW / MIA but is presumed dead

Aftermath of the Vietnam War

Over 2.6 million American military personnel served in Vietnam;

over 58,000 died and approximately 2,000 are still listed as MIAAmerican troops taken as Prisoners of War

totaled 766 (114 died in captivity)Wounded: 303,704; severely disabled

75,000 (23,214 100% disabled)Post-Traumatic Stress DisorderCancer & genetic disorders from

exposure to Agent Orange

Aftermath of the Vietnam War

American troops who returned from Vietnam came home to a bitterly divided and ungrateful nation

Today our troops are overwhelmingly supported by our nation; Americans now separate their attitudes toward the politics of a conflict from the soldiers themselves

Today the U.S. Armed Forces maintains an “all volunteer” military

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial

Dedicated on Veteran’s Day, Nov 13, 1982Most visited memorial in Washington, D.C.

with more than 4.4 million visitors each year

Consists of “The Wall,” the Three Servicemen Statue (dedicated in 1984) and the Vietnam Women’s Memorial (dedicated in 1993)

The Vietnam Memorial has become a powerful symbol of reconciliation and healing for Vietnam veterans, their families, and our nation.

Long Term Effects

Southeast Asia in turmoilKhmer Rouge – genocideVeterans returned home with mixed reactions Some felt lied to by leaders; growing distrust

of governmentNation never fully thanked the Vietnam vets2.5 million men served with honor and

distinctionNo memorial until 1982!!