Ch. 23 The War in VietnamSection 1: Background to Conflict

Section 2: US Involvement & Escalation

Fighting photo: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/Bruce_Crandall%27s_UH-1D.jpg/300px-Bruce_Crandall%27s_UH-1D.jpgMap photo: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/HoCMT.png/220px-HoCMT.png

Info from American Nation textvook: Boyer, Paul S., Sterling Stuckey, and Rinehart Holt. "Vietnam War." The American nation: Civil War to present. Annotated teacher's ed. Austin, Tex.: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2001. Ch23. Print.

Causes of the War

Vietnam's desire for freedom : After WWII, France reclaimed Vietnam as a colony. The Communist Vietminh fought against the French.

The Domino Theory : The U.S. believed if the Communists took over Vietnam, communism would spread throughout Southeast Asia.

South Vietnam fails to comply with Geneva Accords : After French rule ended in 1954, elections to unify Vietnam under one rule were set for 1956. However, the leader of South Vietnam refused to hold them.

North Vietnam attempts to unite country under Communist rule : In 1959, North Vietnam began sending weapons to Vietminh in the south in hopes of uniting the country under Communist rule.

U.S. supports anti-communist South Vietnam : The United States began to send South Vietnam military advisers and troops.

French Rule in Vietnam

Vietnam had been a French colony for almost a 100 years.

During WWII Japan invaded Vietnam and took it over.

After WWII the French attempted to regain control over Vietnam but was met with resistance from Ho Chi Minh, a communist leader of the Vietminh, also called the Vietnamese Nationalists.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/Ho_Chi_Minh_1946_cropped.jpg

French vs. Vietminh The Vietminh were based in the north and

fought against the French who were based in the south.

The U.S. backed the French with money and supplies because Eisenhower feared domino theory.

The French were ousted out of Vietnam in May 1954 when they were overran at Dien Bien Phu.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ae/Domino_theory.svg/586px-Domino_theory.svg.png

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/24/Dien_Bien_Phu002.jpg/800px-Dien_Bien_Phu002.jpg

Geneva Accords

The Vietminh and Vietnamese nationalists (non-communists) negotiated the Geneva Accords: temporarily split Vietnam at the 17th parallel planned a national election in 1956 to determine

the government of Vietnam The Vietminh (communist) were based in the

north while the Nationalists (non-communist) were based in the south.

Ngo Dinh Diem, the president of South Vietnam, canceled the elections; the US, afraid of the communists gaining control of all of Vietnam, backed Diem.

Ho Chi Minh Trail

Due to Diem’s harsh government a communist rebel group formed in South Vietnam (Vietcong) to oppose Diem.

Ho Chi Minh supported the Vietcong by sending them supplies along the Ho Chi Minh Trail.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/HoCMT.png/365px-HoCMT.png

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/38/Th%C3%ADch_Qu%E1%BA%A3ng_%C4%90%E1%BB%A9c_self-immolation.jpg

Photo of a Buddhist monk setting himself on fire in public to protest Diem’s government.

Even though Diem grew more and more unpopular in South Vietnam the US continued to back him; until Nov. 1, 1963 a US backed military coup executed him.

Vietnamese Leaders

Ho Chi Minh Communist North Vietnam Totalitarian Popular because he

gave land to peasants

Supported Viet Cong in South Vietnam.

Ngo Dinh Diem Anti-communist South Vietnam Unpopular because

seen as corrupt, brutal and favored wealthy.

Refused to partake in 1956 nationwide election.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/Ngo_Dinh_Diem_-_Thumbnail_-_ARC_542189.gif

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/Ho_Chi_Minh_1946_cropped.jpg

Gulf of Tonkin Incident

In 1964 the U.S.S Destroyer Maddox was operating in waters off the coast of North Vietnam and reported being under attack.

President Johnson took this opportunity to ask Congress to give him the power to escalate the war in Vietnam.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/94/MaddoxTonkin1.svg/608px-MaddoxTonkin1.svg.pnghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/USS_Maddox_%28DD-731%29.jpg

Gulf of Tonkin Incident

Britannica Encylopndia, ‘Gulf of Tonkin Resolution’, from youtube.com on May 10, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2s_gxMn9ELY

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

Congress passed the Tonkin Gulf Resolution on August 7, 1964; which gave Johnson broad military powers in Vietnam.

With the advice of his advisors Robert McNamara and Dean Rusk president Johnson decided to escalate the war and began sending large numbers of American troops to Vietnam.

Robert McNamarahttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/Robert_McNamara_official_portrait.jpg/480px-Robert_McNamara_official_portrait.jpg

The 3 men togetherhttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a5/Dean_Rusk%2C_Lyndon_B._Johnson_and_Robert_McNamara_in_Cabinet_Room_meeting_February_1968.jpg/250px-Dean_Rusk%2C_Lyndon_B._Johnson_and_Robert_McNamara_in_Cabinet_Room_meeting_February_1968.jpg

The war escalates…

In 1965, over 61% of Americans favored escalation of the war and by the end of 1965 180,000 US soldiers were in Vietnam

General William Westmoreland, leader of American forces in Vietnam, was unimpressed by the South Vietnamese allies and continually asked for more troops.

By 1967 there were over 500,000 US soldiers in Vietnam.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/94/Gen_William_C_Westmoreland.jpg/480px-Gen_William_C_Westmoreland.jpg

• Believed in the Domino Theory

• Increased the number of military advisors and army special forces, or Green Berets

• Advisors were not to take part in combat, but many did

Eisenhower

• Domino Theory; aided French forces at regaining control after WWII.

• Began sending money and weapons to South Vietnam

• Military advisors sent to train South Vietnamese army

Kennedy

• Believed an expanded U.S. effort was the only way to prevent a Communist victory in Vietnam

• Asked Congress to pass the Tonkin Gulf Resolution

• Escalated war by sending more troops

Johnson

U.S. Involvement in Vietnam:

War in the Jungle

The US believed its superior weaponry would lead to victory in Vietnam but the jungle terrain and guerrilla tactics used by the enemy turned the war into a frustrating stalemate.

They used booby traps, land mines and even American weapons against them.

The Vietcong used hit-and-run tactics and were interspersed amongst the civilian population making it hard for American’s to determine friend from foe.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/110612-M-EV637-065.jpg/800px-110612-M-EV637-065.jpg

The Vietcong added to their elusiveness by constructing elaborate tunnels that they could use to launch surprise attacks and then quickly disappear. They could eat, sleep, store weapons, and treat their wounded in the tunnels.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/VietnamCuChiTunnelstrapopen.jpg

Tunnels

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ad/Tunnel_rats.jpg/476px-Tunnel_rats.jpg

Tunnel Rats and VC tunnels

wwww.Militaryvideo.com, ‘’Tunnel Rats in Vietnam War’’, from youtube.com on May 10, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6ZbPqvfvBI

U.S. weaponry and techniques Westmoreland believed that the superior

weapons and manpower the US possessed would make the communists crumble. The communists continued to suffer and resist and were willing to fight to the last to obtain their freedom.

Americans also tried to win the “hearts and minds” of the rural population but their tactics to combat the Vietcong included the use of napalm and Agent Orange which left the countryside in ruins.

US soldiers also conducted Search-and-Destroy missions which destroyed villages suspected of ties to the Vietcong.

Napalm

A gasoline based bomb that set fire to the jungle

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/French_indochina_napalm_1953-12_1.pnghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/d/d4/TrangBang.jpg/220px-TrangBang.jpg

Agent Orange

a chemical defoliant used by the US.

It was later found to be toxic and to cause many deaths and birth defects.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1f/US-Huey-helicopter-spraying-Agent-Orange-in-Vietnam.jpg/800px-US-Huey-helicopter-spraying-Agent-Orange-in-Vietnam.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/60/Agent-Orange-dioxin-skin-damage-Vietnam.jpg

Search & Destroy Mission

Click the Link Below to watch a movie on Search and Destroy missions in Vietnam:

http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/videos#search-and-destroy

“Search and Destroy.” 2012. The History Channel website. May 10 2012, 6:44 http://www.history.com/videos/search-and-destroy.

As the war continues soldiers became disillusioned with the war effort and morale declined a lot.

Many soldiers turned to alcohol, marijuana, or other drugs

Some soldiers even resorted to “fragging” their superior officers. killing them in the heat of the battle with a

fragmentation grenade.

The Soldiers

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/02/Checking_house_during_patrol.jpg

The Early War at Home

The high cost of the war led to a decline in the economy and the lack of funds to continue the Great Society programs President Johnson had initiated.

Johnson and military personnel continually told the American public that the war was going well. A credibility gap developed between what Johnson said about the war and what the public began to believe based on the gruesome images of US soldiers in body bags that they saw on the nightly news.

Ch 22 Sec 1&2 Assignment

Take out a sheet of paper and answer the following:

1. Evaluate why you believe soldier morale dropped steadily as the Vietnam War dragged on. Use 3 specific examples from Ch 22 Sec 1&2 to back up your argument.

2. Assess the United States military tactics in fighting the Vietnam War. What could they have done differently?