The Vietnam War

The Vietnam WarSWBAT:

HOMEWORK: FINISH THE ORGANIZER.

DO NOW: BEGIN READING ABOUT THE GULF OF TONKIN INCIDENT.

Lets Review France has controlled Indochina since 1887. In the mid-20th century, the Vietnamese want to be independent.

Ho Chi Minh led communist troops. The US backed the French, while the Chinese and Russians backed communist Vietnamese.

When it became clear the French were not in a position to win, the Geneva Conference was held.

What happened?

1954 Geneva Agreement


1) Cease-fire


1) Cease-fire 2) French troops to withdraw.


1) Cease-fire 2) French troops to withdraw. 3) Vietnam divided into North and South Vietnam at the 17th Parallel (demilitarised zone between the two).

The North was Communist (led by Ho Chi Minh); the South democratic (led by Ngo Dinh

Diem).


1) Cease-fire 2) French troops to withdraw. 3) Vietnam divided into North and South Vietnam at the 17th Parallel (demilitarised zone between the two).


1) Cease-fire 2) French troops to withdraw. 3) Vietnam divided into North and South Vietnam at the 17th Parallel (demilitarised zone between the two). 4) Laos and Cambodia = independent states.



5) National elections to be held in two years (by July 1956) throughout Indochina

This never happened. On 16th July 1956, Diem made the announcement not to call the

election.



5) National elections to be held in two years (by July 1956) throughout Indochina 6) No foreign bases

President Eisenhower did not respect this as

he sent American troops in to replace

the French.



5) National elections to be held in two years (by July 1956) throughout Indochina 6) No foreign bases 7) Freedom of movement between the North and South Vietnam for 300 days.

Resulted in fluxes of refugees moving

north and (mostly) south.

Ho Chi Minh Ngô Dình Diệm

What this meansNorth Vietnam South Vietnam

Problems with Ngô Dình Diệm Canceled the election.

◦ The US supported this since the Communist leader Minh more than likely would have won.

Headed a corrupt government.◦ Suppressed any kind of opposition.

Was a devout Catholic when most of the country was Buddhist.

The Vietcong Was supported by Ho Chi Minh. Supplied troops via the Ho Chi Minh Trail.

◦ Meant using Laos and Cambodia.

Used mostly guerilla tactics. By 1957, they began attacking South Vietnam government officials.◦ Assassinated thousands of government

employees.

Dinh did nothing to stop the attacks and South Vietnam grew more unstable.

Diem makes things worse In response to Vietcong attacks, Diem decides the best way to protect the South Vietnamese would be to move all the villagers to protected areas.

The villagers were not pleased.◦ Meant moving from a place they lived for generations

and where their ancestors were buried.

Also intensified his attack on Buddhism. ◦ Destroyed temples and imprisoned or killed Buddhists

priests.

Led to protests that horrified the American public.

Diem jeopardizes the stability of Vietnam

The US realizes that in order for South Vietnam’s own sake, Diem had to go.

The US backed coup overthrew Diem and against Kennedy’s wishes, Diem was assassinated.◦ Kennedy himself would be assassinated a few weeks

later.◦ The fate of Vietnam was now in the hands of Lyndon

Johnson.

Diem’s assassination led to more instability as a series of military leaders tried and failed to control the country.

Tactic What was it? Impact?

Operation Rolling Thunder

Search and Destroy

Agent Orange

Napalm

American tactics


Operation Rolling Thunder

Search and Destroy

Agent Orange

Napalm

American tactics

Complete the chart given to you. Your

textbook does not give detail about the impact of the tactics so write

what you think would be the consequences of using such tactics.

OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER The Americans attempted

to force the Vietnamese to surrender through

Operation Rolling Thunder. These were

bombing raids on Vietnamese towns, intended to destroy

morale.

SEARCH & DESTROY In the attempt to find the Viet Cong fighters, the US launched an operation called Search and Destroy : they searched Vietnamese villages for Viet Cong fighters and, if they suspected there were any there, destroyed the village.

SEARCH & DESTROY This often led to deaths of innocent civilians including women and children. The missions made ordinary people hate the Americans: as one marine said of a search and destroy mission – “If they weren’t Viet Cong before we got there, they sure as hell were by the time we left”. The Viet Cong often helped the villager’s re-build their homes and bury their dead.

AGENT ORANGE The thick forest was a real problem for the Americans, because this was how the Viet Cong hid. Determined to find the Viet Cong bases and supply routes, the Americans sprayed a chemical called Agent Orange onto the forests from aeroplanes. It killed the trees, so that the Americans could find their enemy.

AGENT ORANGE But the chemical caused much more

harm than this. It killed crops, causing people to go hungry. It also

caused birth defects in children born to

people who were exposed to the

chemical.

NAPALM When the Americans suspected that they had

found a Viet Cong base, they would drop Napalm on the site. Napalm was a very

flammable fluid, that would burn through almost anything.

NAPALM

It often hit civilians.

Viet Cong tactics


Booby Traps

Tunnel System

Ho Chi Minh Trail

Giap◦ Giap developed a strategy for

defeating superior opponents.

This was not to simply outmanoeuvre them in the

field but to undermine their resolve by inflicting

demoralizing political defeats through bold and

unexpected tactics.

He was always prepared to take a gamble, irrespective

of the cost in lives.

BOOBY TRAPS Booby traps are an example of a Viet Cong tactic. For example, the Viet Cong would place trip wires or dig holes filled with spikes, sometimes coated in human excrement, and then would cover the hole with leaves to deceive the enemy. Markers like broken sticks would be left on the path to warn fellow Viet Cong about the locations.

TUNNELS Tunnels were used by Viet Cong guerrillas as hiding spots during combat, as well as serving as communication and supply routes, hospitals, food and weapon caches and living quarters for numerous guerrilla fighters. This frustrated Americans who could not locate the tunnels.

THE HO CHI MINH TRAIL The Ho Chi Minh Trail was a network of paths that served as hidden route through the jungle for Viet Cong soldiers and Vietnamese Civilians. The Viet Cong used it to move troops, weapons and other supplies into and around the country without being detected by the Americans. The Americans constantly tried to find the trail, but it was too well hidden and frequently changed. It was essential in allowing the north Vietnamese to beat the Americans.

Other problems...

The main form of transportation for the Vietcong was either by foot or by bicycle. This made it impossible for the Americans to cut off supplies from Russia and China as the Vietcong could always find a way through regardless of how much the Ho Chi Minh trail was bombed.

Other problems... Helmet: very hot

Uniform: rots in heat

Backpack: 90lbs/41kg

Rifle: jams as soon as it contacts water

Other problems... “The Americans had created a vast military base from end to end of the country, with its own barbed-wire-encrusted towns and villages....wholly divorced from those of the Vietnamese people outside the perimeters.”

Max Hastings, British Journalist

Other problems... The average age of soldiers was 19. Many had been forced to join the war (or face a five-year prison sentence). Most did not understand why they were fighting the war and had no real desire to fight the Vietcong.

Other problems... Some soldiers even blew up their own officers when out on patrol. They would say that the officer had stepped on a booby trap. This was an excuse so they could return to base without having to fight.

Other problems...

VIETCONG OR FARMER OR BOTH???

Why did the Vietnam War become increasingly unpopular?

War in your living room

War in your living roomVietnam was the first televised

war. It was televised by TV networks who were allowed to

film what they wished.



film what they wished. For the American viewers, what they saw did not always

match up to what their government told

them.



film what they wished. For the American viewers, what they saw did not always

match up to what their government told

them.They started to question whether they really were “the good guys”.

What the people saw..

5 August 1965 A GI sets fire to a peasant's home while the villagers stood by and begged for mercy.

What the people saw...

What people saw...

What people were told...

At the beginning of 1968, the American people were told that the Viet Cong had been badly damaged by the aerial bombing and that they were on the brink of collapse…

What people were told...

At the beginning of 1968, the American people were told that the Viet Cong had been badly damaged by the aerial bombing and that they were on the brink of collapse…

…then

TET OFFENSIVE

September 1967: the end is near!

Sep 1967: NLF launched attacks on American garrisons.

By the end of 1967, the NLF had lost 90,000 men.

Westmoreland told President Johnson that the end of the war was near: there would be no way that the Viet Cong could replace such numbers.




Westmoreland told President Johnson that the end of the war was near.

Why would he be so

confident?




Westmoreland told President Johnson that the end of the war was near.

There would be no way that the Viet Cong

could replace such numbers.

31st January 1968 Unknown to the Americans, the NLF celebrated the TET New Year festival two days early.

31st Jan 1968: 70,000 members of the NLF launched a surprise attack on over 100 cities and towns.

It was now clear the previous attack on American garrisons was to draw out troops from the cities.

31st January 1968 Unknown to the Americans, the NLF celebrated the TET New Year festival two days early.

31st Jan 1968: 70,000 members of the NLF launched a surprise attack on over 100 cities and towns.

It was now clear the previous attack on American garrisons was to draw out troops from the cities.

Why would this be such a shock to

the American forces?

What an embarrassment!

Success?? In military terms, the Tet Offensive was a success for the Americans:

Killed:

37,000 Viet Cong

2,500 American

HOWEVER....

Success?? In military terms, the Tet Offensive was a success for the Americans:

Killed:

37,000 Viet Cong

2,500 American

HOWEVER....

How could it be argued that it was not a success for the

Americans?

Success?? The Tet showed:

The Viet Cong had a huge supply of men and women.

They were more willing to sacrifice themselves for their cause than the American soldiers.

“We can't win” March, 1968: The Secretary of Defence tells President Johnson that America can't win the war and he should start thinking about an exit strategy.

My Lai In 1969, it became known that US troops had massacred 109 civilians. The victims were not of military age so it could not be justified as a “mistake”.

CONTROVERSY CONSCRIPTION Excluded students to keep the middle and upper classes happy.

Muhammad Ali refused to join the war and was sentenced 5 years in prison and fined 10,000 dollars.

CONTROVERSY RISING COSTS In 1968, the war was costing 66 million dollars a day.

Johnson raised income taxes and cut back on his program to tackle poverty.

CIVIL RIGHTS In many southern states black people were denied the right to vote yet they were expected to risk their lives in the Vietnam War!

In essence, they were expected to help the Vietnamese gain the democratic rights that they themselves did not have.

CONTROVERSY LOSS OF LIVES Over 50,000 American soldiers were to lose their lives.

By 1968, 300 were killed each week.

Most people knew someone in the war.

“Vietnam? Where?” Many people hadn't even heard of Vietnam before the war. It seemed so far away and not worth losing so many lives over.

Anti-war demonstrations

The first march to Washington against the war took place in December, 1964. Only 25,000 people took part but it was still the largest anti-war demonstration in American history.

Numbers

‘Casualties were high. Over 50,000 troops

were to lose their lives. By 1968, 300 were

dying each week. Most Americans knew a

relative or friend who had died.’

‘By 1968 the war was costing $30,000

million each year. This

meant cutbacks at

home on spending on

social reform.’

Bowing out Johnson admitted he had failed in Vietnam.

He declared he won't be seeking re-election.

He reduced the number of bombing in the North.

North Vietnam agreed to negotiate and peace talks began in Paris 1968.

The talks were not successful.

VIETNAMISATION June 1969: Nixon announces the gradual withdrawal of troops and the passing of responsibility to the government of South Vietnam.

It was feared that the Vietnam War would be lost because the South Vietnamese army would not be strong enough.

It's decided they must reach a peace agreement with North Vietnam to achieve “peace with honour”.

PARIS PEACE TALKS: MADMAN THEORY

PHOENIX PROGRAM Vietnamese were trained by the CIA to infiltrate peasant communities and discover the names of NLF sympathisers. Death Squads were sent in to execute them.

1968 – 1971: an estimated 40,974 members of of the NLF were killed in this way.

The NLF was able to replace its losses by recruiting from the local population and by arranging for volunteers to be sent from North Vietnam.

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USAcia.htm

"Why are so many soldiers entering our village?"

"Perhaps they are conducting a military operation against the Communists in hiding."

This is part of a comic book prepared and disseminated by U.S. forces in South Vietnam as part of the Phoenix Program.

"Phoenix was a totally illegal program that violated the rules of war. It cost millions of dollars.

According to the CIA, 25,000 people were assassinated. The

Vietnamese say 40,000 were killed. My sources say the death toll was

close to 250,000."

DID VIETNAMISATION WORK?

South Vietnam were defeated by the Communists.

Communists won control of Cambodia in 1975.

Communists won control in Laos in 1975.

Were the outcomes of the Vietnam war positive or negative?

POSITIVE NEGATIVE

Using the information in your textbook to complete

the chart.

POSITIVE NEGATIVEA cease-fire agreement was signed in 1973 enabling US troops to withdraw.

Encouraged a period of detente.

Improved American relations with the USSR and China.

Arms control negotations: SALT 1

Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles: 1972

Improved trade relations between the superpowers.

Improved relations between the two German states.

South Vietnam lost the war.

Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia became communist.

55,000 American soldiers died.

Billions of dollars spent.

Americans lost their confidence as the leading nation.

Tonkin Gulf Resolution In response, President Johnson asked Congress for powers to take “all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against the forced of the US and to prevent further aggression”.

Congress passed the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, granting Johnson military powers in Vietnam.

Limited War employ only that force necessary to achieve the political aim

The objective of limited war was not to destroy an opponent but to persuade him to break off the conflict short of achieving his goals and without resorting to nuclear war

The limited war theory was more an academic than a military concept and its application resulted in tensions, frustrations, and misunderstanding between the military and civilian leadership Secretary of Defense Robert

McNamara is sharply criticized for his technocratic and

statistical approach to the Vietnam War

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:RobertMcNamara55.jpg

Johnson’s Approach The Johnson Administration was deeply influenced by limited war theory◦ Desirous not to let the conflict expand into

a third world war◦ Imposed precise geographical limitations

◦ Cambodia, etc

◦ Kept military commanders in close check

“General, I have a lot riding on you. I hope you don’t pull a MacArthur on me.” (Johnson to Westmoreland, Feb 1966)

Strategy of Attrition Traditionally, the “American way of war” had been a strategy of annihilation◦ Seeks the immediate destruction of the combat

power of the enemy’s armed forces

In Vietnam, the US would instead follow a strategy of attrition◦ The reduction of the effectiveness of a force caused

by loss of personnel and materiel

This proved to be a poor strategy against the North Vietnamese who used a strategy of exhaustion◦ The gradual erosion of a nation’s will or means to

resistAnti-war protests such as this one at the 1968 Democratic National Convention showed domestic support for the war was waning

Problems with the Strategy of Attrition

Led the US to fight according to the theory of gradual escalation◦ A steady increase in the level of military pressure

(rather than employing overwhelming force all at once) would coerce the enemy into compliance

◦ US never had enough forces to control the countryside

◦ US soldiers served one year tours in Vietnam◦ North Vietnamese soldiers were there till the end

and recognized “Victory will come to us, not suddenly, but in a complicated and tortuous way.”

US soldiers regularly conducted clearing operations but the Viet Cong would reoccuppy the area after the US units moved on

US Troop Levels in Vietnam

1959 760

1960 900

1961 3,205

1962 11,300

1963 16,300

1964 23,300

1965 184,300

1966 385,300

1967 485,600

1968 536,100

1969 475,200

1970 334,600

1971 156,800

1972 24,200

1973 50

Problems with the Strategy of Attrition

Led to a “body count” mentality◦ Many reports were exaggerated or falsified◦ North Vietnamese were always able to replace their losses

while Americans became disillusioned with the mounting death toll

Nightly news broadcasts reported US deaths versus North Vietnamese deaths◦ If ours were less, we were winning!

North Vietnamese showed a remarkable capability to cope, rebuild, and repair◦ The enemy will was never broken

Nightly news anchors such as Walter Cronkite regularly reported the Vietnam “body count”

Problems with the Strategy of Attrition Low-tech nature of the enemy prevented the US from bringing to bear the full effects of its combat power◦ North Vietnamese infiltration routes

were hard to bomb◦ North Vietnamese ground troops used

the tactic of “clinging to the G.I.’s belts” to minimize American ability to use artillery and close air support

◦ The nature of guerrilla war allowed the North Vietnamese to avoid contact when it was not to their advantage to fight

A long line of communist porters carry supplies along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. (AP photo by Trong Thanh)

Other Manifestations of Limited War Theory

“Gradual escalation”◦ President never fully acceded to the troop or bombing requests

of his commanders, but the process resulted in the failure of one level of force justifying the increase to the next level

Restrictive rules of engagement Bombing pauses and negotiations Failure to significantly mobilize the National Guard

Total War vs Limited War The relationship between the belligerents is asymmetric. The insurgents can pose no direct threat to the survival of the external power because . . . they lack an invasion capability. On the other hand, the metropolitan power poses not simply the threat of invasion, but the reality of occupation. This fact is so obvious that its implications have been ignored. It means, crudely speaking, that for the insurgents the war is “total,” while for the external power it is necessarily “limited.” Full mobilization of the total military resources of the external power is simply not politically possible. . . . Not only is full mobilization impossible politically, it is not thought to be in the least necessary. The asymmetry in conventional military capability is so great and the confidence that military might will prevail is so pervasive that expectation of victory is one of the hallmarks of the initial endeavor.◦ Jeffrey Record, “Why the Strong Lose”

Total War vs Limited War Superior strength of commitment thus compensates for military inferiority. Because the outcome of the war can never be as important to the outside power as it is to those who have staked their very existence on victory, the weaker side fights harder, displaying a willingness to incur blood losses that would be unacceptable to the stronger side. The signers of the Declaration of Independence risked their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor in what became a contest with an imperial giant for which North America was (after 1778) a secondary theater of operations in a much larger war. For the American rebel leadership, defeat meant the hangman's noose. For British commanders in North America, it meant a return to the comforts and pleasures of London society and perhaps eventual reassignment. ◦ Jeffrey Record, “Why the Strong Lose”

Total War vs Limited War The tables were reversed in Vietnam. There, the United States attempted to suppress a revolution against foreign domination mounted by an enemy waging a total war against a stronger power, a power for which the outcome of that war could never be remotely as important as it was to the insurgents. The United States could and did wreak enormous destruction in Vietnam, but nothing that happened in Vietnam could or did threaten core overseas US security interests, much less the survival of the United States. Thus, whereas the Vietnamese communists invested all their energy and available resources in waging war, US annual defense spending during the war averaged only 7.5 percent of the nation’s gross national product.◦ Jeffrey Record, “Why the Strong Lose”

Total War vs Limited War “The ability of the Vietcong continuously to rebuild their units and make good their losses is one of the mysteries of this guerrilla war. We still find no plausible explanation for the continued strength of the Vietcong. . . . [They] have the recuperative power of the phoenix [and] an amazing ability to maintain morale.” (Maxwell Taylor)

“I never thought [the war] would go like this. I didn’t think these people had the capacity to fight this way. If I had thought they could take this punishment and fight this well, could enjoy fighting like this, I would have thought differently at the start.” (Robert McNamara)

“Hanoi’s persistence was incredible. I don’t understand it, even to this day.” (Dean Rusk)

The US leadership “underestimated the toughness of the Vietnamese.” (William Westmoreland)

◦ Jeffrey Record, “Why the Strong Lose”

Flexible Response President Kennedy moved away from the Eisenhower Administration’s reliance on nuclear weapons and developed a strategy of “Flexible Response” which was designed to permit different types of military options at different levels◦ Very interested in counterinsurgency and initiated the Special

Forces

Between 1961 and 1963 Kennedy launched a full-scale counterinsurgency program in Vietnam

Counterinsurgency Provided equipment and advisors to South Vietnamese

Special Forces conducted civic action programs

US helicopter pilots transported South Vietnamese soldiers

Advisors accompanied South Vietnamese units down to the battalion level

Special Forces were active in training montagnards in the Central Highlands

Counterinsurgency Overall the counterinsurgency program failed

The US military refused to embrace counterinsurgency and instead stuck to traditional warfighting

Insisted on using technology and tactics that were inappropriate for the environment and the nature of the war

North Vietnamese became very adept at countering US conventional tactics

B-52 bomber over Vietnam

The Big War Bombing

◦ Rolling Thunder

Airmobility◦ Ia Drang

Search and destroy◦ Junction City

• Tet– Phase III

• Defeat– Domestic issues– Vietnamization– Withdrawal

• Legacy– Vietnam

Syndrome

Bombing: Rolling Thunder Sustained bombing campaign designed to

◦ Reduce North Vietnamese/Viet Cong activities by affecting their will

◦ Improve South Vietnamese morale ◦ Provide US and South Vietnam with a bargaining tool ◦ Reduce infiltration of men and material ◦ Demonstrate US resolve to support allies

Gradually expanded from 63,000 tons of bombs in 1965 to 226,000 in 1967◦ Bomb tonnage surpassed what had been dropped on Germany,

Italy, and Japan in World War II

Bombing: Rolling Thunder Heavy reliance on air power overestimated the capabilities of strategic bombing and underestimated North Vietnamese will

North Vietnamese were able to rebuild damage, seemingly strengthen their will, and actually increase infiltration in spite of the bombing F-4Cs on a

mission over Vietnam

Bombing: Rolling Thunder Problems

◦ Micromanaged targeting and target restrictions frustrated military planners

◦ Difficulty in finding targets reduced effectiveness

◦ Gradual escalation and frequent interruptions allowed North Vietnamese to recover

Bombing: Rolling Thunder Restrictions

◦ White House picked targets, strike force size, weapons, and timing of attacks

◦ Most strategic targets were off limits: ◦ 30-mile radius around Hanoi ◦ 10-mile radius around Haiphong ◦ Wide buffer zone along Chinese border

◦ North Vietnamese airfields were off limits

◦ Could not attack SAM sites unless fired upon

Bombing Rolling Thunder Results

◦ Ineffective◦ Showed a large disconnect

between political considerations and military objectives

◦ “Rolling Thunder had not been built to succeed, and it didn’t.”◦ John Correll

Johnson supposedly said, “I won’t let those Air Force generals bomb the smallest outhouse without checking with me.”

Airmobility: Ia Drang In 1962 Secretary McNamara tasked the “Howze Board” to study the emerging helicopter technology and develop “a plan for implementing fresh and perhaps unorthodox concepts which will give us a significant increase in mobility.”

In Jan 1963 the Army began forming and testing the 11th Air Assault Division which would ultimately result in the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) being activated in July 1965

In Aug the division began arriving in Vietnam

Airmobility: Ia Drang The airmobility concept was tested in combat when the 1st Cav was ordered to the Ia Drang valley in Oct 1965

On Nov 14 a US battalion (about 450 men) engaged some 2000 North Vietnamese regulars at LZ X-Ray

Lieutenant Colonel Hal Moore on LZ X-Ray

http://www.army.mil/CMH/books/Vietnam/7-ff/p040.jpg

Airmobility: Ia Drang US relied heavily on airmobility and firepower◦ Helicopters provided

transportation, surprise, firepower, logistical support, evacuation

◦ Artillery, bombers, close air support

Airmobility: Ia Drang Numerically a huge US victory◦ 3,000 North Vietnamese killed

compared to 300 Americans◦ Confirmed Westmoreland’s

“search and destroy” strategy

North Vietnamese returned to guerrilla warfare and made tactical adjustments to deal with US firepower

http://www.army.mil/CMH/books/Vietnam/7-ff/p010.jpg

Next The Big War (continued) and the Vietnam Syndrome

The Vietnam War

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