The Vietnam War

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The Vietnam War
What was it all about? Link
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Longest war in US history. The first major
military defeat for the United States1954-1975
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55,000 American soldiers dead
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Millions of U.S. and Vietnamese veterans
injured or psychologically damaged
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1.3 million Vietnamese soldiers dead, and unknown
numbers of civilians
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10 million Vietnamese refugees
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Bombing
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A country permanently scarred by American
bombing, chemical weapons, and the brutality of a
civil war
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Where is Vietnam?
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Where is Vietnam?
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Vietnam during the War
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Vietnam Today
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Colonized by China from 200 BC to 938 AD
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Then by the French from the 1880s till WWII
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and the Japanese during WWII
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An Independent Vietnam was a dream
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The Geneva Accords

• French defeat at defeat at Dien Bien Phu in 1954
  after 8 years of battle
• Divide the country into North and South
• Promise to hold elections in 1956

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Ho Chi Minh, leader of communist forces in North
Vietnam
Letter to Truman
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American Foreign Policy and the Vietnam War
(1954-1975)
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American Foreign Policy and the Vietnam War
(1954-1975)
Continuing US fear of hostility to communist
Russia China
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Main Entry communism Pronunciation
'käm-y-"ni-zm, -yü-Function nounEtymology
French communisme, from commun common1 a a
theory advocating elimination of private property
b a system in which goods are owned in common
and are available to all as needed2 capitalized
a a doctrine based on revolutionary Marxian
socialism and Marxism-Leninism that was the
official ideology of the Union of Soviet
Socialist Republics b a totalitarian system of
government in which a single authoritarian party
controls state-owned means of production c a
final stage of society in Marxist theory in which
the state has withered away and economic goods
are distributed equitably d communist systems
collectively
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Practice skills, be always prepared, support
Vietnam, wipe out the American aggressor! (1966)
Chinese poster reflecting solidarity with
Vietnam, Landsberger Collection
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. . . Thus the Cold War and the Domino Theory

• Vietnam then became symbolic of the battle to
  prevent the spread of Communism a battle of
  power between the U.S. and the Soviet Union named
  the Cold War
• With China becoming communist and with a war in
  Korea, the U.S. feared the consequences of
  losing Vietnam
• This fear became known as the Domino Theory
  if one country came under communist rule, then
  adjacent countries would follow suit.

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Cold War Map
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Who was Fighting?

• North/Communists
• Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV or North
  Vietnam)
• South/Insurgents
• People's Liberation Armed Forces (PLAF)
• Vietcong (Charlie, VC)
• Vs
• South/Anti-communists
• Republic of Vietnam (RVN)
• Americans

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President Eisenhower with President Ngo Dinh Diem
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Caution!

• The next slide contains a very disturbing image
  you may choose not to see it!

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A Vietnamese Buddhist monk burns himself alive to
protest the actions of the Diem government
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. . . Involvement in Vietnam Grows

• U.S. involvement in Vietnam grew over time
• Following President Eisenhowers example,
  President Kennedy tripled aid to S. Vietnam (N.
  Vietnam was controlled by communists) and
  increased military presence to 16,700 troops
• After Kennedys assassination, President Johnson,
  faced w/ the potential allegation of losing
  Vietnam, committed himself and the country to
  deeper involvement in the Vietnam conflict

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President Johnson Escalates U.S. Involvement

• By 1965, Johnson had to choose between losing a
  war or making the Vietnam War a huge military
  commitment
• He did not choose either extreme, but still
  committed 300,000 troops which grew to 500, 000
  by 1968
• After the Tet Offensive, a surprise series of
  attacks on U.S. and S. Vietnamese Troops in 1968,
  Johnson slowly and painfully reduced U.S.
  involvement

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What event initiated large scale U.S.
involvement?
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Alleged Provocation, August 1964 Gulf of Tonkin

• A resolution was then developed allowing Johnson
  to use military force in Vietnam to take all
  necessary steps, including the use of armed
  forces to help the South East Asia Treaty
  Organization defend their freedom. Link

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The average soldier was 19 years old . . .
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Soldiers were drafted, while some volunteered.
Conditions in Vietnam were tough . . .
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The Draft
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The Viet Cong

• The Vietcong usually fought as guerillas, meaning
  they did not fight in the open but struck against
  their enemies and then resumed hiding in the
  jungle. They also were not distinguished by a
  uniform as the North Vietnamese Army would have
  been, so it was difficult to distinguish a member
  of the Viet Cong from a civilian
• They incorporated extensive methods to remain
  hidden, building tunnels where necessary
• As guerillas, they did not stage battles but
  instead murdered S. Vietnamese leaders and
  village heads to control the Southern country
  side
• Effective in their methods, the Viet Cong were
  supported by the North Vietnamese Army by 1960

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Key Event Tet Offensive
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The battles ranged throughout the country . . .
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A tragedy for U.S. supporters and the military
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We had to destroy the village to save it. A
quote attributed by reporter Peter Arnett to an
anonymous Army officer
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. . . So people protested.

• The first major demonstration was in NY City in
  1965, where 25, 000 people marched against the
  war most protestors were college-aged.
• The anti-war movement grew after 1968, following
  the My Lai Massacre and later in 1969, the Tet
  Offensive.
• The My Lai Massacre, in which a company of
  soldiers massacred 500 Vietnamese men, women,
  and children heightened public dissatisfaction
  with the war
• When the U.S. invaded Cambodia in 1970, a student
  demonstration at Kent State University in Ohio
  led to the deaths of 4 students, shot by the
  National Guard
• Other key protests occurred, including the
  bombing on the UW campus

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Fall of Saigon
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The war continued on throughout 1969-71, even
though peace talks began

• During that time period, the U.S. reduced troops
  in the region however, in an attempt to protect
  fragile S. Vietnam, President Nixon spread the
  war to Cambodia
• By 1972, 47,000 troops were in Vietnam and the
  U.S. concentrated on training S. Vietnamese to
  hold off the communists
• By 1973, the Paris Peace Accord was signed

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Although the ceasefire was reached, it failed to
save the south

• The Vietcong captured Saigon in the South in 1975
• The last hours of Saigon were full of chaos as
  U.S. military tried to save its supporters
• Many were left to the vices of the Vietcong . . .

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What were the results The Aftermath of the
Vietnam War
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The Failure to Protect Democracy . . . And Its
Costs

• . . . The only time in its history the U.S.
  failed to achieve its stated war aims . . .
• Even after the U.S. Treasury spent over 140
  billion . . .
• And 200,000 South Vietnamese, 1 million North
  Vietnamese, 500,000 civilians, and 56,555 U.S.
  Soldiers lives were spent.
• Destruction to land, too, was costly 50 of the
  countrys forest cover was destroyed as was 20
  of its agricultural land.
• Loss of trust in the U.S. Government

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