Decolonisation of Vietnam Flashcards
WHY was the French defeated in the first indochina war
( Leadership issues)
- weak and unpopular leadership in vietnam existed with BAO DAI as head of state
- Bao Dai lived an extravagant lifestyle
- had reputation of collaborating with the French and was part of the puppet govt set up by jap during JO
- his government was associated with corruption and other crimes
A;
1. unable to win hearts and minds of locals who supported HCM
2. France lost because the south vietnamese did not support them even though they were militarily superior while HCM faced less resistance from people
WHY was the French defeated in the First indochina war
( Poor military strategies)
- Battle of Dien Bien Phu1954
Henri Navarre thought the steep wooded mountains overlooking the valley would be an impenetrable barrier from viet minh artillery strikes , did not defend against possible strikes there - vietcong general Giap gathered 250k viet locals to build roads and construct bridges to move supplies to the hills overlooking dien bien phu
-dozens of artillery pieces and thousands of shells transported into position in hills and trenches
-march 1954 assault was launched and french troops were defenseless from heavy fire , surrounded and forced to surrender
A ;
- could not block VN supply line and let them receive supplies to sustain war
- losses in surrendered forces lowered French morale
- locals widely support VM and helped them to supply army and keep the war effort going
WHY was the French defeated in the first Indochina war
( French not committed to fighting )
– french did not send any conscripts to fight in VN
-The forces sent were a mixture of local forces , troops from french colonies , soldiers from foreign legions and a small group of french regulars
A:
failed to weaken Viet Minh will to fight thus French found themselves fighting a lost cause against Viet Minh’s cause of reunification and independence
Why did Viet Minh win the first indochina war
( credible leadership)
- HCM founded VM in 1941 to fight the Jap and against the French to seeki independence
- many VN locals suffered under french colonial rule and where angry at the French for collaborating with Jap
- pushed for independence and resisted french attempts at reoccupation through the FOUNTAINEBLUE tals in july 1946
- had sound policies and fair leadership as he redistributed land from landlords to villagers
- held education campaigns
A:
-VM were strong willed as they fought for their homelands independence and reunification
- able to win hearts and minds of the locals because they shared the same ideals and hence they lent their support to achieve their aim through war with french
WHY did the Viet Minh win the first indochina war
( support from commie buddies and locals )
- USSR supplied diff kinds of arms and weapons + various anti-aircraft guns
- USSR + PRC sent 2k military advisors to provide training to guerillas to turn into conventional army
- PRC provided substantial military aid and equipment to Viet minh like machine guns , ammunition and comms equipment
- PRC advised VN to mobilise support frm all VN ppl to contribute by providing transport , supplies and intel
A : able to win hearts and minds of locals
- VM very efficient and cause casualties that lowered french morale
WHY was USA involved in VN
( CONTAINMENT AND DOMINO THEORY)
- practiced containment and feared the domino theory put forth by Eisenhower where if VN fell , the rest of southeast asia will be vulnerable to communist influence and fall too
-it had happened before in europe after 1945 and was starting to become a worry because china turned communist after the communist party overthrew the govt in 1949
-communists were already present in north vietnam
A: intervened by sending money , supplies and advisors to help south VN govt to prevent spread of communism and to be seen as arsenal of democracy
WHY was USA involved in VN
( GULF OF TONKIN )
- Aug 1964 american destroyer USS MADDOX was attacked in the gulf of tonkin by nothern VN torpedo baots
- america used this as an excuse to directly intervene and escalate the war
-US congress gave US president Lyndon B Johnson permission to wage war on north VN - US marines first arrived in 1965 and LBJ ordered attacks on North VN
-by 1968 over half a million US troops are in VN and the war costed US 77Billion / year
WHY did USA fail to win war in VN
( Poor military strategies )
-search and destroy operations led to Mylai massare in 1968
- mass killings of unarmed civilians carried out as they received word that guerillas used mylai as subdivision , army commander advised soldiers that people found in the area can be considered VC or active VC sympathisers
and ordered them to destroy the village
- damaged US reputation and made the US + SV govt more unpopular
- this massacre was made public knowledge in nov 1969 and sparked global outrage
-Usage of agent Orange and napalm
- US used chemical weapons like agent orange and napalm to flush out VC from the jungles
- these substances caused great harm as agent orange destroyed forests and crops , possibly causing cancer and birth defects when humans are exposed to them
- napalm contained petrol and chemicals that burned the skin to the bone
A ; media exposed american atrocities and war became unpopular in the Us as people rioted and they were forced to rethink involvement and work towards withdrawal
WHY did USA fail to win VN war
( role of media )
- media broadcatsed incidents of torture and killings of civillians in VN which shocked american public due to the brutality of american forces
-US citizens opposed the US support of Diem’s oppressive regime which were discriminatory against the Buddhists and conscription of young US men to fight a war that was deemed of no use - no use because LBJ told the public they were winning the war but in reality when the TET offensive was broadcasted by media that showed america was losing the war and many soldiers were killed just like that it seemed like sending conscripts was a suicide mission
A :
war was unpopular and the public forced the govt to rethink its approach in VN as they were not supportive of the govt decision to continue fighting in VN hence they were forced to think of peace agreements and pulling out of Vietnam
WHY did the Vietcong win VN war
( Good leadership in north Vietnam )
- HCM had credibility as he won the first indochina war , also implemented fair policies that earned him the respect of the people as he redistributed land to the poor peasants
-VC treated the peasants with respect and sometimes helped them wit their workloads in the field as they needed the peasants to provide them with food,shelter and hiding places - HCM organized all anti-diem and pro-unification armed groups in south VN into the NLF which represented the interests of various religious , political and ethnic groups
-HCM had the Vietcong as well who were his military arm
A : had amassed support from those who shared common ideals with him like the anti-diem and pro-unification ppl who supported him in the war effort through the NLF including those south VN that were anti-diem due to his oppressive rule
WHY did the Vietcong win the VN war
( Great military strategies)
- Tet offensive 1968 , VC used the cover of the buddhist new year celebrations to launch a massive attack on US-held regions in south VN including the US embassy in saigon
-captured 75% of main towns in south VN for a few hours including the embassy
-showed the world and americans through the media that despite the 0.5 mil troops , geneva convention violations and money spent , they were not making progress against the VC
Usage of HCM trail
- Guerillas were kept well supplied by a constant stream of weapons from the north
- weapons were carried by foot , bicycle or mule through the trail which wound through the neighbouring countries of cambodia , laos
-although bombed by the US army it was never fully distrupted
A :
- While america was failing to destroy VC stronghold in the HCM trail and letting them receive supplies easily , the VC was able to lower the US morale by inflicting significant damages amplified by the negative potrayal of the US war effort by the media
Why did US attitude on French reoccupation shift midway ?
Changing US presidents meant a difference in their attitudes towards colonies . President Franklin Delano Roosevelt opposed the reoccupation of Vietnam by France as he preferred a trusteeship and eventually self-determination
Harry Truman who succeeded him wanted to ensure Europe can recover economically after the war and wanted good relations with Britain and France by letting France reoccupy vietnam to boost their economy thus did not recognise HCM Democratic Republic of Vietnam
