Vietnam

America’s Longest WarAmerica’s Longest War

Timeline for Vietnam

• 1946

Independence for Vietnam in 1946?

1. Read the handout.

2. Set your goal.

3. Decide what you will do with regard to Vietnam and France

-Be prepared to share your answers with the class.

Truman’s Decision on Vietnam

• U.S. supported Vietnamese and Ho Chi Minh (their leader) during World War II– They look for independence following the

war– U.S. supported independence for colonies

following the war

• U.S. needs France to help containment policy

France and Vietnam• France claimed it needed Vietnam as a colony

to recover from World War II– Linked American support to recolonize France’s

willingness to help America stop the spread of communism

• Truman stayed neutral– France reclaimed Vietnam as a colony

• Unintended Consequences– Divided France internally– Pushed Ho Chi Minh away from U.S. to China and

U.S.S.R.

Aid to the French

• U.S. sent large-scale aid to the French– 1953- U.S. provides 33% of funds for war– 1954- grows to 78%– Result of fall of China, Korean War and

Red Scare

• Negative Consequences– French lost war– U.S. aid to colonial power hurt reputation

Dien Bien Phu 1954

• President Eisenhower went to Congress to get approval for bombing Vietnam.– Congress placed conditions on

involvement• Made it impossible for U.S. to get involved

– Eisenhower decided to do nothing• Probably avoided a huge mistake

Domino Effect• Feeling that if one country in Southeast Asia fell to

communism, all would fall– Stated by President Eisenhower

• Led to U.S. undermining the Geneva Accords– Peace between France and Vietnam– French withdraw from Vietnam within 1 year– Temporary division of Vietnam– Elections scheduled for 1956

U.S. Actions Against the Geneva Accord

• U.S. supports South Vietnamese leader Ngo Dinh Diem– Lived in New Jersey before taking over– Viewed as a puppet of U.S. government– Only given limited support by Eisenhower– Diem felt U.S. needed him and didn’t respond to

U.S. requests for reform

• South Vietnam made part of an alliance with the U.S.– SEATO

Diem’s Actions Unpopular• He declared South Vietnam a separate country

– Cancelled the election of 1956

• An opposition group called the Vietcong rebelled against him.– They were imprisoned in concentration camps

without trials

• He supported the Catholic, wealthy minority over the Buddhist landless majority

• As time goes by, Diem is becoming more repressive

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/fd/Thich_Quang_Duc_-_Self_Immolation.jpg

Diem Overthrown• By Vietnamese generals

– The U.S. does not intervene

• Unintended consequences– Instability in South Vietnamese government

• Numerous other coups took place

– Kennedy said he would reduce the commitment to South Vietnam

• U.S. troop withdrawal after 1964 election• If done before he would lose election

Johnson Expands the Conflict• Diem’s death brings more chaos to Vietnam• Incident in the North

– North Vietnamese patrol boat fires on the USS Maddox

– Takes place in the Gulf of Tonkin off North Vietnamese coast

– Maddox returns fire and damages patrol boat– Two days later, enemy torpedoes spotted in the

water under poor weather conditions– Maddox fire with no return fire seen or heard

Tonkin Gulf Resolution

• Johnson used alleged attack to ask Congress for broad military power in Vietnam– Technically not a declaration of war– Johnson used questionable information to

achieve his goals

• Johnson uses the new powers to escalate the war

Comic Book Industry

• Shapes and reflects the public mood of the nation

• Industry started in the 1930s and peaked during World War II– Expressed patriotic themes during the war

Comic Book Industry

• During the Korean War some comics were accused of subversion.

• 1954 Comic Code created to regulate the industry– This and television led to the demise of the

comic industry

Comic Book Industry

• In the 1960s – Comic book readers were adolescent males who

would soon serve in Vietnam– Comics patriotic against stereotypical red villains

• 1975– younger writers replace older ones

• push for more creative freedom

– Comic book code revised to allow writers to deal with issues like race relations, women’s issues and antiwar sentiment

Operation Rolling Thunder• First sustained bombing of North Vietnam• Form of retaliation for Feb. 1965 attacks on

U.S. bases• U.S. dropped three times as many bombs as

in all of World War II– 2/3 bombs dropped on South Vietnam– Left the landscape looking like the surface of the

moon– Malaria spread as a result of stagnant water in the

craters

Failure of Operation Rolling Thunder• Was unsuccessful

– North Vietnamese had extensive air defense system.

– North Vietnam had few good targets.

– 1967 report-U.S. bombing cost ten times as much as the property they destroyed.

– It did little real damage to North Vietnamese effort.

Troops• 1965- 100,000 Americans in Vietnam• General Westmoreland continues to

request more troops– Doesn’t like the fighting ability of Army of

the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN)

• 1967- 500,000 Americans in Vietnam• Westmoreland’s strategy becomes

one of attrition– Gradual reduction of the enemy’s forces– Enemy dead body count becomes

important

The Draft• Known officially as the Selective Service

Act• Focused on men between the ages of 18

and 26• People found ways around serving in the

military• 80% of those drafted were from poorer

families

Hearts and Minds• Trying to win support of South

Vietnam’s rural population• America’s tactics don’t help

– Dropped napalm-gasoline bombs that set the jungle on fire

– Sprayed Agent Orange- a toxic chemical that kills leaves (and allegedly causes cancer)

– Search and destroy missions that uproot villagers with suspected ties to Vietcong

• Burning villages• Killing livestock

Interpret this political cartoon.

Interpret this political cartoon.

Battles in

South-east Asia

Troops in Vietnam 1961-

1972

Battle Deaths in Vietnam 1961-

1972

Vietcong Tunnels

A Nation Divided • Credibility gap- People started to believe that

what President Johnson was reporting was wrong

• Opposition grows on the New Left and college campuses

• By 1967 war divides the nation into two sides– Hawks- America should unleash more of its

military to win the war– Doves- The U.S. should withdraw from Vietnam

Saigon Police Chief Executing Suspected Vietcong

Tet Offensive

• Simultaneous attacks on numerous cities by Vietcong and North Vietnamese Army– Defeat for the communist guerillas

• Stunned the American public• Pushes more Americans to criticize the war

– Before Tet- 56% hawks; 28% doves– After Tet- 40% hawks; 40% doves

Johnson’s Approval Ratings

Results 1968 Election

Election of 1968• Democratic Primary in turmoil– Violence erupts outside

convention in Chicago– V.P. Hubert Humphrey

wins nomination

• Republican select Richard Nixon– He wins promising a

return to law and order

Vietnamization• Gradual withdraw of U.S. forces

• South Vietnam takes a bigger role in fighting

• Started in 1969

• Calls for “Peace with Honor”– Preserve U.S. dignity during withdraw– Keep America’s power at negotiation table

Troubles in Vietnam• My Lai Massacre

– U.S. soldiers massacre over 200 Vietnamese civilians

• Invasion of Cambodia– U.S. forces attempt to clear

out North Vietnamese and Cambodian supply centers

– Causes protests on college campuses

Nixon’s Troubles at Home• Kent State Massacre

– National Guard fire live ammo into a crowd of protestors, killing 4 and wounding nine

• Pentagon Papers– Government documents

that reveal the government was not honest about its intentions

End the War in Vietnam

• Combat troops return home– Last one leaves Vietnam

March 29,1973

• Fall of Saigon– April 30, 1975 North

Vietnamese capture Saigon

– Causes South Vietnam to surrender to the North