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Vietnam War Introduction

Ms. Marquardt
Pd. 3 - Honors
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Bell Ringer: Tues. 12/ 20/ 2011
Infer & Predict:

1) What kind of war would

Dear Mom and
make a soldier feel this
Dad,
way?
Today we went on
2) What country do you a mission, and I am
think this soldier was not very proud of
from? myself, my friends,
or my country.
3) What do you think he
was fighting for?
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The Vietnam War ____ - 1975
 ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS:
 Why did we get involved in another war
overseas?
 What were our primary motives?
 What was the outcome?
 Was it a just / fair war?
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The Vietnam War (in short)
 Nearly a decade long

 Began with a revolutionary movement in Vietnam

(a tiny, peasant country) to fight for independence

 Itwas a war of modern military technology (U.S.)

vs. organized human beings (Vietnam)

 The human beings won

 The Vietnamwar created the biggest anti-war

movement the U.S. had ever seen
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Vietnam Basics
 Location:
 In Southeast Asia, near Laos,
Cambodia, Thailand, and
parts of China

 Population
 83 Million People
 Mostly Buddhist
 Strong minority of Catholics

 Resources
 Very fertile, hot and wet
climate, many resources
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Vietnam History (Key Points)

Before WWII, France controlled Vietnam

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WWI & Vietnam
 At the end of WWI, American
President Woodrow Wilson
promises to end colonialism.

 A young Ho Chi Minh

(Communist leader) attends
Versaillies Conference hoping
to gain Vietnamese
Independence from France.

 Ho Chi Minh led a revolutionary

movement for independence
from foreign control

 Viet Minh – founded by Ho Chi

Minh.
 Communist/Nationalist group
that opposed the French and
later Japanese.
 Nationalism – pride in your
country, desire for
independent homeland for
your people.
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Bell Ringer: Wed. 12/21/2011

 Choose one of
the people you
see in this
picture. Write
what you think
they were
seeing /
feeling.

A critically wounded marine is aided by other marines from "B" Company,

September 16th, 1966, two miles South of the de-militarized zone.
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WWII & Vietnam
 At the beginning of the War,
French still control Vietnam.
Vietnamese resistance grows.

 Ho Chi Minh
 Leader of the Viet Minh
 Wants an independent
Vietnam
 Opposes French,
Japanese, and AMERICAN
 Millions rejoice that their
country is free of foreign
control at last!
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Declaring Independence

 WW2 Ends and September 2, 1945, Ho Chi Minh declares

Vietnam independent !!
 Ho Chi Minh reads from US Declaration of Independence

 Some see Ho Chi Minh’s Declaration of Independence as

evidence of being a nationalist rather than being a
communist. They refer to this example has him expressing
his interest in having a relationship with the United States.

 BUT, the French want Indochina back, and they do not

recognize Vietnamese independence. Reclaim colony.

 What should the US do? Support Vietnamese or help France

regain its colonial empire?
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Divided American State
Department
PRO - WAR ANTI - WAR

 European Experts in American  Asia Experts in American

Government support backing Government support backing
France. Ho Chi Minh

 STOP spread of Communism  Feel he is a Nationalist

in Asia !!

SO?
US Backs France. Truman Adminstration then Eisenhower
Administration back France. Due to the following factors:
-Korean War, Loss of China to communists, Idea of stopping
communism, Cold War, Strong France helps stop communism in
Western Europe, Containment, and belief that Ho Chi Minh was more
of a communist than nationalist!!
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Other interests / benefits for the
US…??
 A secret US govt. memo from 1952 talked about SE Asia’s
valuable resources:

 Rubber

 Tin

 Oil

were important to the US … if the Vietnam govt. won against

France and took over they might be hostile towards the US
and not trade with us (Oh NO!)
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First Indo-China War

 1945-1954
 France vs. Viet Minh
 French try to keep Vietnam, Viet Minh fight for
Independence
 70% of French costs are paid by US

 DienBien Phu
 1954
 Final defeat of French by Vietnamese, French
Surrender
 1954Geneva Conference
 End Hostilities between French and Vietnamese
 Temporarily divide Vietnam at 17th parallel until
French leave.
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If Vietnam turns Communist…

 Containment
theory fails (NOO!)
 Domino Theory,
fear of monolithic
(solid block)
communist alliance
of China, Vietnam,
and USSR
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South Vietnam

 Insteadof supporting Geneva Agreement

and allowing unification elections and a
Communist victory, US supports creation of
a non-Communist, South Vietnam.
 American war in Vietnam is fought to
keep South Vietnam Non-Communist!
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JFK & Vietnam

 Views Vietnam as important to

Cold War like Truman and
Eisenhower

 Begins Escalation of Troops

 Overall picture unsure due to

assassination

 JFK believed the best way to

stop communists in Vietnam
was to build South Vietnam
into a nation.
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Ngo Dinh Diem

 First leader of South Vietnam

 Nationalist but strongly anti-Communist

 Catholic

 Receives strong support from

Eisenhower & Kennedy
 Massive military and financial aid
from US
 Brutal to communists

 Upsets Buddhist Majority

 Brother & Sister-in-Law are unpopular

 Adminstration is very corrupt

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Assassination of Diem

 November 1963

 Kennedy either knew of the plot and ignored it or supported

it.

 South Vietnamese government would never be stable.

 Increased American involvement in South Vietnam’s Internal

Affairs.
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Check in # 1

 When Eisenhower left office, less than 1,000 US soldiers were

in Vietnam

 At the time of Kennedy’s assassination (1963), over 16,000

solders were in Vietnam.

 By 1969, Vietnam had 543,000 US soliders

 Many of the solders under JFK were Special Forces and under
Johnson, regular ground troops were introduced.
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Golf of Tonkin Resolution
 President Lyndon B. Johnson took over after Kennedy
assassinated.

 North Vietnamese “attack” on two US ships in the Gulf of

Tonkin is Johnson’s excuse to get congressional approval for
major escalation in Vietnam.

 TERMS:
 Hanoi – refers to North Vietnamese government
 NVA – North Vietnamese Army
 VC/Charlie- Viet Cong: Communist rebels in South Vietnam
 ARVN – South Vietnamese Army
 POW – Prisoner of War
 MIA – Missing in Action
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Who did America Fight in
Vietnam?
 Viet Cong

 North Vietnamese Army

 Both groups were heavily

supplied from USSR via China
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Johnson & Limited War

 Johnson was afraid of conflict spreading to involve USSR & China.

 Strict rules of engagement – limited targets for US Troops and

Air Strikes

 Areas of North Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos

 North Vietnamese Communists can attack, move supplies from and
retreat
 AMERICAN TROOPS CANNOT GO

 North Vietnam
 Wants a unified, Communist Vietnam
 Wants Americans Out
 Wants One Vietnam
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Early American Support
for War in Vietnam
 Americans initially supported
the war
 Hit Song “The Green Berets”
 Public is told troops will be
home soon, and the war is
almost over.

 Vietnam is the first war that is

heavily covered by television
networks.
 American public sees daily
images of casualties
 Public begins to turn against
the war.
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Escalation

 Johnson attempts to limit the

war while at the same time
constantly increasing the
number of soldiers in Vietnam

 Over 500,000 soldiers by 1969

 LBJ would attempt negotiations

at the same time he would
scale back offensive
operations in Vietnam
 North Vietnamese take
advantage of this.
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Tet Offensive

 Tet – most important holiday in

Vietnam, Vietnamese New Year.
It is the most popular festival in
Vietnam.

 1968 Cease Fire

 1968
 Viet Cong attack every major
US base in South Vietnam
 North Vietnamese Army takes
city of Hue and kills many
inhabitants.
 US Embassy in Saigon is
attacked.
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Effects of Tet

 Major Military victory for the US

 Viet Cong is devasted

 American media turns against the war.

 American public turns against the war.

 Political and psychological victory for North Vietnam.

 American Anti-War Movement

 Strong anti-war movement in US
 War divides American population
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Richard Nixon

 Elected in 1968

 Claims to have a “secret plan”

to end war in Vietnam
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Cambodia

 Neutral

 Viet Cong & North Vietnamese

use Cambodia as a sanctuary

 US troops cannot enter

 Cambodian government is
powerless from preventing
Communists from entering

 Bad history between Vietnam

& Cambodia
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Nixon & Cambodia

 Nixon:  Public Opinion:

 Supports coup that puts strong
anti-Communist government
in charge
 Expands conflict
 Secretly bombs and invades
Cambodia
 War is illegal
 Public is outraged at
expansion of the conflict
 Massive protests

 Bombing & Invasion fails to

make any significance in war
 Cambodian communists go
deeper into Cambodia
 Vietnamese were using
Cambodia to attack
Americans
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Nixon & Ending Vietnam War

 Uses combination of increased bombing of North Vietnam and Secret

Negotations

 Diplomacy with China and USSR

 Vietnamization – Nixon’s Plan

 Turn the war over to the South Vietnamese

 Train & equip South Vietnamese to fight the North
 US Troops withdraw
 Last US troops leave by 1973

 South Vietnam Betrayed?

 South Vietnam is promised that the US would send troops, money, and supplies
if North Vietnamese launched a massive attack.
 Nixon resigns due to Watergate
 Congress and American people do not support further involvement
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1975 & Results of War

 North Vietnam takes over South Vietnam

 US doesn’t prevent the take over.
 Vietnam is unified under one communist state

 Results:
 60,000 Americans killed
 US reluctant to use military power
 American public is divided
 Americans don’t trust government
 Vietnam is Communist
 Cambodia falls to Communists
 Khmer Rouge/Cambodian Communist take power
 Pol Pot is leader
 Killing Fields – Genocide of 1/3 of the Cambodian population
 Vietnam invades and occupies Cambodia to defeat Khmer Rouge
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Vietnam & China

 1979 War between Vietnam & China

 China improved relations with US after Nixon’s visit

 Vietnam moved closer to USSR

 China supports Khmer Rouge and is upset that Vietnam

defeats it.

 China attempts to invade Vietnam to “teach lesson”

 Chinese leave after 1 month
 Vietnamese put up much stronger fight than Chinese expected
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Bell Ringer: Tues. 1/10/2012

 Martin Luther King, Jr. was one of the most outspoken

opponents of the Vietnam War. He said:

“There comes a time when silence

is betrayal.”
1) What do you think he meant? Put this quote in your own
words.

2) Think of a situation, personally meaningful to you, where this

quote would apply.
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TODAY WE WILL:
See & Respond
 SEE images of the Vietnam War / MLK Jr. & the protest
movement in the late 60s

 You will RESPOND: Choose a role to step into.

Examples: a protester, MLK Jr, the president, a Vietnamese

civilian

Write a poem or a short creative piece in the voice of this

person…

we will have to guess who you are.

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Bell Ringer: Wed. 1/11/2012
IMAGINE you are a teenager in the late
1960s…
Knowing what you know now about
the results of the Vietnam War, what
position would you have taken on the
war? FOR or AGAINST ?
What would you have done to make
your voice heard?
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WORK that is DUE / LATE :

Winter Break packet / Women’s DBQ

(30pts.)
Wrap-up questions on Vietnam War
(20 pts.)
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Final Exam Preview:
You will get study guides tomorrow…

 HOLOCAUST

 Anti-Communist efforts
 Berlin Airlift
 Korean War
 Cuban Missile Crisis

 Vietnam War

 Overarching THEMES ? Patterns in US Policy ?

 Prep review by watching KHAN Academy video & Take notes

(You write what he writes…)
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Until the Final Exam on Thurs. 1/19

 We will be reading about the aftermath of the Vietnam War

and how it connects to what is going on in the US / World
today

 We will watch a fascinating documentary about a few

counter-cultural rebels in the US “the Weather Underground”

 We’ll review for the final so bring any questions you may
have !!
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Closing Questions

 On a separate sheet of paper, answer the following:

 How was Tet a turning point in the Vietnam War?
 How did TV affect people’s view of the Vietnam War?
 What country did President Nixon expand the Vietnam War into?
 Which US President is associated with escalating the number of
US troops in Vietnam?
 What year did the last US troops leave Vietnam?