Unit 4: The Indochina Wars Test

Question 1

who is Ho Chi Minh?

Answer 1

Nationalist and communist leader of North Vietnam.
Traveled the world learning several languages and returned to Vietnam to lead his people in the struggle against colonial oppression.
Led North Vietnam to war against the South and the US before his death in 1969.

Question 2

Ho Chi Minh and the United States

Answer 2

Ho Chi Minh collaborated with the US Army in the fight against the Japanese, and he and his military commander, General Giap, both admired the strength of the US as well as their ambitions to secure the freedom and sovereignty of the world’s many nations.
After World War II, Ho declared Vietnamese independence and the formation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, citing the American Declaration of Independence in his speech.

Question 3

Ho Chi Minh and Chinese Nationalists

Answer 3

Ho Chi Minh also feared occupation from the Chinese, and he looked to nations such as the USSR and the US for aid against threats from the French and the Republic of China to colonize his land.
The people of Vietnam had fought the Chinese using guerrilla tactics since the 19th century, and they had formed a strong nationalism against outside forces seeking their land.
Ho Chi Minh was a nationalist before he was a communist, and more than anything, he wished to free Vietnam from colonialism and give his people a better life.

Question 4

Indochinese Communist Party (ICP)

Answer 4

Formed by Ho Chi Minh in Hong Kong in 1930, it was later responsible for forming the Vietminh and the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
Aimed to overthrow French colonial rule and establish a communist regime in Vietnam.
Organized political and military resistance against the French and later Japanese occupiers.

Question 5

Vietnam’s past with China

Answer 5

Historically, Vietnam was under Chinese domination for over a millennium until the 10th century.
This history of resistance against a powerful neighbor shaped Vietnamese nationalism and anti-colonial efforts.

Question 6

French colonization of Vietnam

Answer 6

France began colonizing Vietnam in the mid-19th century, fully controlling it by the late 19th century.
Exploited Vietnam’s resources and imposed harsh colonial rule.
Resistance movements emerged, culminating in the formation of the ICP and the Vietminh.

Question 7

Emperor Bao Dai

Answer 7

Ho Chi Minh, also known as Uncle Ho, had tremendous support in Vietnam as the people shared his desire for a free and sovereign Vietnam.
The French supported the rule of their puppet emperor, Bao Dai, who was a very unpopular figure among the Vietnamese people.
The Vietminh began clashing with French soldiers after World War II as calls for independence escalated, and Ho Chi Minh was resolved to overthrow Bao Dai and oust the French.

Question 8

War against Japan during World War II

Answer 8

Ho Chi Minh collaborated with the US Army in the fight against the Japanese, and he and his military commander, General Giap, both admired the strength of the US as well as their ambitions to secure the freedom and sovereignty of the world’s many nations.

Question 9

Vietnam Independence League (Vietminh)

Answer 9

His was resolved to see the Vietnamese people free of their Japanese and French overlords, and create an egalitarian society that benefitted all the free people of Vietnam.
He created the Vietnam Independence League, also known as the Vietminh, to achieve this goal.
Initially formed in response to occupation by the Japanese and the French. Its mission was to free Vietnam from colonial rule.

Question 10

Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRVN)

Answer 10

After World War II, Ho declared Vietnamese independence and the formation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, citing the American Declaration of Independence in his speech.
In 1945, Ho Chi Minh declared Vietnamese independence with the formation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, a communist and nationalist country free of colonial occupation.
This would later also be known as North Vietnam when North was split from the south after the Geneva Accords and the elections of South Vietnam in 1955.

Question 11

General Giap

Answer 11

Military leader of Vietnam who fought against the Japanese during World War II, the French during the First Vietnam War, and the Americans during the Second Vietnam War.
A close associate of Ho Chi Minh and the military leader of the Vietminh.
Architect of key victories against the French, including the decisive Battle of Dien Bien Phu.

Question 12

First Indochina War against France

Answer 12

The First Indochina War began in 1946 when Ho Chi Minh declared war on the French occupying his country.
By 1952, General Giap commanded a massive army, and he used guerilla tactics to harass and exhaust the French forces in Vietnam.
Giap’s army was being helped by Mao and the PRC, and they received enough arms and support to sustain the fight against the French.

Question 13

People’s Army of Vietnam (PAVN)

Answer 13

The army of Ho Chi Minh and General Giap. They fought under the Vietminh against the French during the First Vietnam War and then fought for the Democratic Republic of Vietnam against the US and South Vietnam during the Second Vietnam War.

Question 14

Mao Zedong and the People’s Republic of China

Answer 14

In 1949, Mao Zedong emerged victorious from the Chinese Civil War and established the People’s Republic of China as the government of the nation.
Truman was criticized by Republicans for losing China, and therefore was resolved to appear tougher on the spread of communism in Asia.
Out of his need to support the French, his suspicions of Ho Chi Minh, and his need to contain the spread of communism, Truman denounced Ho and supported France’s claim to Vietnam.

Question 15

Harry Truman and support of France and Chinese Nationalists

Answer 15

During Truman’s presidency, the US got more involved in Vietnam by sending financial aid and arms to the French who were trying to reclaim possession of their old colony of Indochina.
They accomplished this by using the Military Assistance Advisory Group.
Truman and his advisers feared that Ho Chi Minh was a puppet of Moscow and therefore did not approve of his nationalistic movement in Vietnam.
Truman also believed it necessary to support the French as they were important allies against the spread of communism in Europe and Asia.

Question 16

Eisenhower escalates support

Answer 16

Eisenhower shared many of the same fears of Truman; he was resolved to support the French in Vietnam in order to stop China’s influence in the region, to secure France as an ally and to appear tough on Communism.
Under Eisenhower, the US increased financial aid to France during the First Vietnam War, and he got much more politically involved in securing democratic freedom for South Vietnam in the wake of Ho Chi Minh’s communist revolution by sending military advisers to Vietnam.

Question 17

Battle of Dienbienphu

Answer 17

Ho’s army was strengthening, and the French army was dwindling; they had no response for the Guerrilla tactics of General Giap.
In 1954, the French decided to concentrate their efforts on Dienbienphu, a stronghold that the French could use to cut off the Vietnminh supply lines and draw them into a face to face battle.
General Giap, however, used his tactical enginuity to emplace artillery in the hills surrounding Dienbienphu and bombard the French into submission.

Question 18

The Geneva Conference and the Geneva Accords

Answer 18

After the victory of the Vietminh over the French at Dienbienphu, an international conference was held to decide the fate of Indochina.
The US and the French sought a truce, but did not wish to relinquish control of their influence in the country, while Ho wanted all of Vietnam under communist control, but sought a truce in order to reorganize his forces.
China wished for a truce to negate the possibility of the US entering Vietnam, and the USSR wished to divide all parties involved so that their position would not be threatened by either an alliance between the US and France or between Mao and Ho.
Negotiations at the Geneva Conference did not go well; regardless, the Geneva Accords were the result.
They outlined that that the Vietnminh would rule the north and relinquish any occupation of the south, and Bao Dai would rule the south and pull out of the north.
The 17th parallel would serve as a border between the two areas until a democratic election, held in 1956, would decide the ruler of a unified Vietnam.
This was a tentative agreement, and no documents were ever signed.

Question 19

Two Vietnams

Answer 19

Vietnam was split into two: Ho and the communists ruled the north from Hanoi and Bao Dai and his Prime Minister, Ngo Dinh Diem, ruled the south from Saigon.
Since the Geneva Accords only applied to North Vietnam and France, the US did not recognize the accord and continued their support of Bao Dai and Diem in the south.
North Vietnam (DRVN) under Ho Chi Minh.
South Vietnam (RVN) under Ngo Dinh Diem, supported by the US.

Question 20

Rise of Ngo Dinh Diem

Answer 20

In October 1955, Diem held an election in South Vietnam in order to secure power over the southern state.
He intimidated voters using force and suppressed all supporters of Bao Dai in order to secure the election, sometimes holding them down and pouring pepper sauce down their nostrils.

Question 21

Republic of Vietnam (RVN)

Answer 21

After Diem’s takeover, he refused to recognize the Geneva Accords and formed the Republic of Vietnam in the South from his capital of Saigon.
The Republic of Vietnam was established by Diem in 1955 after he refused to take part in countrywide elections against Ho Chi Minh.
Diem forced Bao Dai out of the country, then known as the State of Vietnam, and held rigged elections in order to form the RVN.
During the Second Vietnam War, it was popularly referred to as South Vietnam.

Question 22

American support of Diem

Answer 22

After Diem’s takeover, he refused to recognize the Geneva Accords and formed the Republic of Vietnam in the South from his capital of Saigon.
The Americans had their doubts about Diem as he did not have full support of the people, and as Senator Nixon said, he was unable to wage a war or govern the South by himself.
Regardless, the US recognized and supported Diem out of their need to resist the spread of communism in Vietnam, and there was no one else to truly support.

Question 23

Chinese and USSR support of Ho Chi Minh

Answer 23

By 1961, Eisenhower had invested over 7 billion dollars in aid to Diem and the South as support for his regime increased.
This dwarfed support from both the USSR and China for Ho Chi Minh as both powers were uninterested in expending resources in Vietnam.
During the time period, what was once seen globally as a fruitful relationship between the USSR and China had turned sour, and China continued to distance itself from Moscow.
This meant that while Ho Chi Minh would receive some support from the two communist giants, they would need to fight American interference in Vietnam, for the most part, alone.
Diem was unliked in the south, but he brutally oppressed the opposition in order to consolidate his power.
Ho, on the other hand, was well liked and supported in the north.
Diem saw Ho and his supporters as nothing more than violent rebels; he could not conceive of the fact that Ho’s ideals regarding communism and vietnamese equality resonated with the majority of the nation’s peasants.
However, Ho himself also used brutal tactics to secure power, such as having his People’s Army of Vietnam kill or deport those who opposed him.

Question 24

National Liberation Front/People’s Liberation Armed Forces (Vietcong)

Answer 24

Many in the south were also quietly loyal to Ho Chi Minh, but prior to 1959, he encouraged them to remain underground in order to abide by the Geneva accords.
This gave Diem the chance to hunt down Ho’s supporters in Saigon and imprison or execute them by the thousands.
From 1960, Ho’s supporters in the south called themselves the National Liberation Front, but Diem called them the Vietcong.
The NLF organized itself into the People’s Liberation Armed Forces, and the second Vietnam War had begun.
Established by Ho Chi Minh’s supporters in South Vietnam. They organized themselves into the People’s Liberation Armed Forces in order to oppose Diem and American occupation of South Vietnam.
The official name of the armed forces loyal to Ho Chi Minh in South Vietnam; however, they were commonly referred to as the Vietcong.

Question 25

Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN)

Answer 25

The army of Ngo Dinh Diem during the Second Vietnam War. They routinely cooperated with American advisers and military forces throughout the war against North Vietnam.

The military forces of South Vietnam.
Heavily reliant on US support and plagued by issues of corruption and low morale.

Question 26

John F. Kennedy’s views on Vietnam

Answer 26

Kennedy believed that democracy could thrive in Vietnam; ironically, he did not want nationwide elections to take place because he knew that Ho Chi Minh would win.
Kennedy often reiterated the domino theory, and the belief that should the US not get involved and allow Vietnam to fall to communism, the entire region of South-East Asia would be overrun by communism.
Kennedy had harshly criticized Truman for ‘lo0 sing’ China to communist Mao in 1949, and he would commit himself to ensure that the same did not happen in Vietnam or elsewhere.

Question 27

Kennedy’s advisers (McNamara, Rusk, Taylor, etc.)

Answer 27

Kennedy was also surrounded by men who wanted to take a very aggressive stance in Vietnam.
His National Security Council comprised of, among others, Secretary of State Dean Rusk and Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara.
Both Rusk and McNamara were notoriously pro-intervention in Vietnam and advised the President to take more and more action regarding the containment of North Vietnamese communism and the strengthening of South Vietnamese democracy.

Robert McNamara (Secretary of Defense) and Dean Rusk (Secretary of State) were key advisers.
General Maxwell Taylor provided military counsel.
Advocated for increased US involvement in Vietnam.

Question 28

National Security Council (NSC)

Answer 28

Rusk and McNamara gave Kennedy daily status updates on Vietnam; therefore, they were JFK’s sources for everything that was going on in the war-torn country.
It is theorized that, as things escalated and worsened in Vietnam, Rusk and McNamara continued to paint Kennedy a picture of success in order to justify their early enthusiasm.
Kennedy did not always get an accurate picture of what was happening in Vietnam, and much of that has to do with the agenda of the NSC.

Advised Kennedy on national security and foreign policy issues.
Played a significant role in shaping Vietnam policy.

Question 29

Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS)

Answer 29

A council of advisers consisting of the President and his most important advisers including the Vice President, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, and the Secretary of the Treasury.
Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS)

The highest-ranking military officers from each branch of the US armed forces.
Supported the escalation of US military involvement in Vietnam.

Question 30

Increased support of South Vietnam in the form of ‘advisers’

Answer 30

US support had helped Diem create an army of over 250 000 soldiers; however, this massive army failed to seek out and destroy just 12 000 Vietcong operating in South Vietnam.
Kennedy continued to send more money, more weapons, and more ‘advisers’ to South Vietnam in order to help the Army of the Republic of Vietnam rid themselves of the Vietcong threat.
Kennedy created the Military Assistance Command in Vietnam in order to coordinated increasing US involvement, and by 1962, the amount of ‘advisers’ in Vietnam had increased from 3000 to 12 000.

Question 31

Hawks and Doves

Answer 31

As had been the case for many years, the US press heavily influenced public opinion, and there was always the fear of losing public support as President.
There were ‘hawks’ and ‘doves’ both in the US government as well as in the press, and it was important to please both, or at least appear to.
The ‘hawks’ wanted the President to be tough on communism, and to be more aggressive in its containment around the world, whereas the ‘doves’ thought being aggressive against communism was a waste of money and resources better spent elsewhere.
The trick for Kennedy was to get involved, but still take a limited approach.

Hawks supported a strong military response to communism in Vietnam.
Doves advocated for diplomatic solutions and questioned the necessity of US involvement.

Question 32

Situation in Laos

Answer 32

Cuba and Laos were both also responsible for Kennedy’s commitment to Vietnam.
Losing Cuba to Castro confirmed Kennedy’s fears that communism, if not vehemently opposed, will become impossible to eradicate once it has taken hold.
Kennedy was also already involved in supporting a non-communist government in Laos out of fear that it too would fall after Mao’s declaration in 1949. Kennedy knew that, should Vietnam fall to communism, Laos and Cambodia would swiftly fall as well.

Question 33

Failures of Diem

Answer 33

Diem was unliked by the Vietnamese people, he was incapable of effectively mobilizing the ARVN against the Vietcong, he was a catholic in a predominantly buddhist region, and he was completely unwilling to enact social reform that would benefit the common people of Vietnam.
Kennedy and his advisers tried several times to convince Diem to enact social reform, but he always refused, and any time it was brought up, he would hijack the conversation and begin ‘monologuing’, talking for several hours, uninterrupted.
Kennedy began to lose faith in Diem, and he did not believe that Diem was capable of maintaining democracy and independence without the US.

Question 34

Ngo Dinh Nhu and Madame Nhu

Answer 34

Diem’s brother, Ngo Dinh Nhu, and his wife Madame Nhu were notoriously unpopular in Vietnam.
Nhu served as Diem’s Prime Minister and was responsible for overseeing the social structure of South Vietnam as well as military operations of the ARVN; however, he was completely out of touch with the common people and disinterested in reforms that would potentially benefit them.
Nhu implemented the Strategic Hamlet Program in order to fortify South Vietnamese villages and protect them from communist influence.
Nhu and his wife were also notoriously cruel towards Buddhists; as Catholics, they banned many worship practices of the Buddhists and also attempted to ban certain activities popular among the common people such as boxing matches and nightclubs.

Question 35

Battle of Ap Bac

Answer 35

The ARVN suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the Vietcong in January of 1963 at the Battle of Ap Bac.
2000 ARVN soldiers and over a hundred American ‘advisers’ fought against only 350 Vietcong guerrillas in Ap Bac.
The ARVN soldiers in come cases refused to fight, and for the most part, proved entirely ineffective in combat.
Five US helicopters were shot down and three pilots were killed during the attack.
The Battle of Ap Bac proved the ineffectiveness of the ARVN and the strength and preparedness of the Vietcong in comparison.

Question 36

Catholics vs Buddhists

Answer 36

In June of 1963, a 73-year-old Buddhist priest set himself on fire in protest of the Diem government’s treatment of Buddhists.
This, among many other protests that broke out in South Vietnam, shocked Americans who saw the event on their televisions at home.
Kennedy, claiming surprise, said he had no idea that a division between Catholics and Buddhists even existed in the country, proving that he and his administration were either too ignorant or too careless to truly understand matters within Vietnam.

Diem’s regime, being Catholic, discriminated against the Buddhist majority.
Led to significant protests, including self-immolation by Buddhist monks.

Question 37

Ambassador Henry Cabot Lodge II

Answer 37

Ambassador Henry Cabot Lodge II became the new ambassador to Vietnam in August of 1963.
In his report to the president, he outlined the failures of the Diem administration and the belief that major reforms or new leadership altogether was required in Vietnam in order for it to succeed in the face of pressures from the North and the Vietcong.
Kennedy and his advisers were not willing to commit American ground troops to South Vietnam, but nor were they willing to completely withdraw; therefore, a different type of solution was required.

US Ambassador to South Vietnam during Diem’s regime.
Supported the coup against Diem due to the regime’s failures.

Question 38

Coup against Diem

Answer 38

Kennedy was convinced that Diem had to go, and American intelligence discovered that there was already a plot amongst some of the ARVN officers to remove him.
Kennedy got word to the generals of the ARVN that the US would support their coup of Diem, and on 2 November 1963, Diem was chased out of the government.
Diem and his brother Nhu were both found dead the next day.
Kennedy had a look of ‘shock and dismay’ upon hearing about Diem and Nhu’s deaths; he said that he wished it could have been accomplished without bloodshed.
Kennedy claimed to have a ‘reverence for human life and respect for his adversaries’, directly contradicting the fact that he attempted to have Fidel Castro assassinated several times.
Ambassador Lodge said, upon hearing about Diem’s death, that “every Vietnamese has a grin on his face today.”

A US-backed military coup in 1963 overthrew and assassinated Diem and his brother Nhu.
Led to a period of political instability in South Vietnam.

Question 39

Assassination of JFK

Answer 39

2 days later kennedy was assainsatied
At the moment of Kennedy’s death in Vietnam, there were nearly 17 000 ‘advisers’ in the country.
Lyndon B. Johnson, Kennedy’s Vice President, would be inaugurated immediately and would assume control of the situation in Vietnam.
Under Johnson, the Vietnam War would escalate tremendously, and the US would commit several hundred thousand ground troops to fight the Vietcong and the North Vietnamese Army in a prolonged and deadly conflict.

Question 40

Johnson’s motivations

Answer 40

Johnson was very patriotic; he believed in freedom and democracy and he hated communism.
Johnson also could not conceive of the US losing a military conflict to a country the size of Vietnam, and was convinced that enough military pressure would cause the communists in Vietnam to give up.
Johnson also felt as though he needed to continue Kennedy’s legacy, and to not pursue American intervention in Vietnam would be to let his fallen partner down.
Johnson kept all of Kennedy’s key advisers in order to maintain power and popularity ahead of the 1964 election.

Committed to preventing the spread of communism.
Sought to uphold US credibility and honor previous commitments made by Kennedy.

Question 41

Worsening situation in Vietnam

Answer 41

Hanoi sent increasing numbers of PAVN soldiers south in order to bolster the Vietcong.
General Minh, Diem’s successor, did nothing to improve the situation in South Vietnam and was soon deposed, his successor somehow being even less impressive.
The Vietcong and PAVN became more adept at countering US air power using USSR and Chinese weaponry such as Rocket Propelled Grenades (RPG).
In 1964, Maxwell Taylor and Robert McNamara both described the situation to the president as “very disturbing”.

Increasing strength and activities of the Vietcong and North Vietnamese forces.
Political instability and corruption in South Vietnam.

Question 42

General Duong Van Minh

Answer 42

Led the coup against Diem in 1963.
Became a leader in South Vietnam but was unable to stabilize the government.

Question 43

Gulf of Tonkin Incident

Answer 43

For a decade, the CIA had been secretly sending South Vietnamese sabotage teams to North Vietnam and had been raiding the North Vietnamese coast using South Vietnamese gunboats.
American vessels such as the Maddox even took part in these espionage raids in the North’s coastal waters.
In July and August of 1964, Johnson claimed that two American ships, the Maddox and the Turner Joy, had been attacked by North Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin.
He used this incident as a ploy to gain support from Congress to send more American troops to Vietnam.

Question 44

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

Answer 44

Johnson and his administration created the Gulf of Tonkin resolution which outlined his plan to increase American military presence in Vietnam in order to secure the success of Saigon and protect US troops already in the country.
Congress, convinced of the need for further intervention due to the Gulf of Tonkin Incident, pledged their support.
The resolution passed through the senate almost uncontested, giving Johnson the official power to take whatever steps necessary in order to achieve the goals of the resolution.

Question 45

Election of 1964

Answer 45

Johnson needed to appease both the Hawks and the Doves in the US in order to get elected over Republican candidate Barry Goldwater in the election of 1964.
He reassured the left by saying that he did not wish to get into an all out war, stating that “We are not going to send American boys away from home to do what Asian boys ought to be doing for themselves.”
However, he assured the right by stating that “American keeps her word” and appearing tough on the Gulf of Tonkin Incident.
He managed to avoid full commitment to Vietnam prior to election, but upon winning the election, he was free to intervene as he saw fit.

Question 46

The Working Group

Answer 46

Johnson formed the Working Group after his election which was a combination of staff from the Defence Department, State Department, the CIA and the JCS.
Their role was to study the situation in Vietnam and give Johnson, their Commander-in-Chief, updates to inform his decisions regarding the conflict.
They mostly repeated what had been stated since the conflict began: South Vietnam should not fall to the communists, the fall of Vietnam would create a domino effect in South-East Asia, US prestige, credibility and honour were at stake, and that US intervention was the only thing stopping the South from being overrun.
There was, however, a growing advocation for the bombing of North Vietnam in order to force the PAVN and the Vietcong into submission.

Question 47

Rolling Thunder

Answer 47

In early 1965, in response to American being killed in a string of Vietcong attacks in South Vietnam, Johnson took his first big escalatory step by ordering increasing bombing raids on North Vietnamese targets, including the capital Hanoi.
It became known as Rolling Thunder, and it would only increase in frequency and intensity throughout the war.
They wished to bomb the North into submission, but also bomb the trails being used by the North Vietnamese troops to reach the south in order to aid their southern regime.
Rolling Thunder was, however, still a limited response as Johnson wished to avoid bringing the US’ full might to bear out of fear he would bring China into the war.
“I’m going up her leg an inch at a time” ~ Lyndon B. Johnson

Johnson Approved Rolling Thunder, which was a massive bombing campaign against North Vietnam designed to force them into submission.
Billions of dollars worth of explosives were dropped on Hanoi and other regions in North Vietnam leading to mass death and destruction that failed to force the North to surrender.

A sustained bombing campaign against North Vietnam from 1965 to 1968.
Intended to weaken North Vietnamese resolve and military capabilities.

Question 48

Ground troops land in Vietnam

Answer 48

In spring of 1965, Johnson took his second step by committing large numbers of ground troops to Vietnam.
Johnson claimed that Rolling Thunder and increased ground troops was done in order to protect Americans already in Vietnam.
The more Americans sent to Vietnam, the more that would be required in order to protect those already sent.
Johnson’s commitment to Vietnam was a snowball down a slope, growing in size with each passing moment and barrelling downwards towards an inevitable catastrophe.
Yet, he was supported by the majority of politicians, journalists and American citizens; the US, it would seem, was a land of hawks.

Question 49

Nguyen Van Thieu

Answer 49

Diem’s successors all made him appear as though he had been the last living hope of South Vietnam.
One after another, South Vietnamese generals and government officials attempted to take control of their government, but each failed even more spectacularly than the last.
General Nguyen Van Thieu became head of state in 1965, and while he was a decently adept military commander, he was incredibly corrupt, and he even took advice from his own personal astrologer.

Question 50

Nguyen Cao Ky

Answer 50

Thieu’s Prime Minister was Nguyen Cao Ky who drank, gambled, and womanized.
Ky said Vietnam needed men like Hitler, and he wore bright and colourful jumpsuits with fancy socks and shoes.
One American claimed “At least no one could confuse him with Uncle Ho.”

Question 51

Increasing American military presence in South Vietnam

Answer 51

A combination of a stubborn Johnson, advisers eager to prove that they had been right about Vietnam, and increasing public and political pressure to resolve the situation caused Johnson to continue to increase the amount of US ground troops stationed in Vietnam.
By the end of 1965, 200 000 American soldiers were fighting in South Vietnam. By the end of 1966, there were 385 000, and by year’s end in 1968, 535 000 American troops were in Vietnam.

Question 52

Ho Chi Minh Trail

Answer 52

The men and women serving General Giap’s PAVN used the Ho Chi Minh trail in order to bring soldiers and supplies from North to South Vietnam.
The trail went through Cambodia and Laos in order to avoid the detection of the US air forces in the region.
The North Vietnamese would carry dozens of pounds of food, weapons, and materials down the trail which was ever changing; they constantly took different routes along the trail in order to avoid detection.
The US, knowing that the trail was vital to the PAVN and Vietcong’s war efforts, consistently bombed the trail attempting to stop the train of supply; however, they were mostly unsuccessful.

Question 53

Battle of Ia Drang

Answer 53

As more American ground troops landed in Vietnam, North Vietnam became more and more directly involved in combating the US soldiers.
The first major engagement between US forces and the NVA was the Battle of Ia Drang in November of 1965.
The new US air cavalry dropped American soldiers off near reported NVA activity along the Ho Chi Minh Trail; the goal was to seek and destroy the NVA force before exfiltrating the area.
The battle consisted of two major engagements; the first saw the 1st Battalion of the 7th Cavalry Regiment overcome numerical inferiority before driving the NVA back, and the second saw the 2nd Battalion suffer close to 50% casualties before retreating from the battlefield.
Both sides claimed victory at the Battle of Ia Drang, but Joseph L. Galloway, co-writer of the novel We Were Soldiers Once… And Young, claimed that Ia Drang was the battle that convinced Ho Chi Minh that he could win.

Question 54

Operation Phoenix

Answer 54

Since American military operations in Vietnam yielded limited results, the US government began to rely heavily upon the CIA.
Operation Phoenix was developed in 1967 and designed to seek out and terminate top Vietcong agents through infiltration, capture, torture, and interrogation.
Operation Phoenix ran from 1967 to 1972, but no matter how many Vietcong were eliminated by the CIA, there were always more Vietnamese to take their place.

Question 55

State of American soldiers in Vietnam

Answer 55

As the war dragged on, the initial patriotic enthusiasm of the American soldiers gave way to desperation, frustration, and carelessness.
American units would destroy Vietnamese villages as they suspected them of aiding the Vietcong.
Aggressive training tactics on the part of the US military, combined with the tensions of the Vietnam War itself, led many American soldiers to commit war crimes.
While the majority of US military operations in Vietnam were successful, they had completely failed to do the one thing that could have led to success in South Vietnam: win over the people.
The reality is that the US and the South Vietnamese government did the exact opposite of winning over the people, and the NVA and the Vietcong only increased in strength throughout the conflict.

Question 56

Guerrilla tactics of the communist forces

Answer 56

Vietcong used hit-and-run tactics, booby traps, and ambushes.
Made it difficult for US and ARVN forces to achieve decisive victories.

Question 57

My Lai Massacre

Answer 57

On March 16th, 1968, the infamous My Lai Massacre took place where an American unit killed over 500 villagers in the village of My Lai.
The incident, which was initially covered up, led to massive outrage in the US once it was finally reported.
Reports claim that the American soldiers raped and mutilated women before killing them, and that even children were killed during the massacre.
It is one of the most horrible examples of the brutality that emerged during the Vietnam War.

In 1968, US soldiers killed hundreds of unarmed Vietnamese civilians in My Lai.
Led to widespread outrage and increased anti-war sentiment in the US.

Question 58

Civilian casualties of the Vietnam War

Answer 58

US soldiers would kill villagers out of suspicion that they were aiding the enemy.
NVA and Vietcong soldiers would kill villagers should they ally themselves with the South rather than the North.
While the NVA, Vietcong, ARVN and US forces suffered tremendous losses during the war, the civilian toll was immense.
A US Senate sub-committee established in 1975 estimated that roughly 1.4 million Vietnamese citizens were wounded or killed between 1965 and 1975.

Question 59

Outrage and unrest in the US

Answer 59

Massive protests had begun in the US in response to what they perceived as an unjust war causing the deaths of Vietnamese and Americans alike.
Martin Luther King publicly criticized US involvement in the war creating even more opposition to the war.
While the Hawks still dominated the government and the press, the doves were growing in number, and the outrage boiled over into riots in some cases like the Chicago Riot of August 1968.

Question 60

The Tet Offensive

Answer 60

Tet, or the Lunar New Year Festival, is a very important festival in Vietnam, and the Americans stationed in Vietnam always knew to expect fireworks, celebration, and in some cases, violence.
The Tet festival in 1968 saw a massive offensive launched on Saigon by the NVA and the Vietcong that almost succeeded in capturing the entire capital.
The US Embassy was overrun, and almost 10 000 buildings throughout Saigon were completely destroyed.
Almost 4000 Americans, and nearly 5000 ARVN soldiers, were killed during the attack, and it seriously shook the confidence of the Americans.
During the offensive, a diversionary attack at Khe Sanh resulted in the bloodiest battle of the war and ended in 10 000 communists dead as well as 500 US soldiers.

Question 61

Battle of Khe Sanh

Answer 61

A major battle in early 1968 where US forces were besieged by PAVN troops.
Eventually lifted, but drew comparisons to Dien Bien Phu.

Question 62

Battle of Hue

Answer 62

One of the longest and bloodiest battles of the Tet Offensive.
The city was temporarily captured by communist forces before being retaken by US and ARVN troops.

Question 63

Johnson discusses peace and drops out of 1968 election

Answer 63

By spring 1968, Johnson had begun to lose faith in his decisions to escalate the conflict in Vietnam.
The US had made no progress to regain the south from the Vietcong, and the tet offensive of 1968 almost seemed to prove that they were losing, not winning.
His health was declining as well, as it would later be revealed, and he and his wife were anxious about it deteriorating further.
On March 31st, 1968, Johnson said in a speech that he would be willing to stop the bombing campaign against North Vietnam and begin peace talks.
In that speech, he also declared that he would not be running for reelection.

Question 64

Nixon is elected president

Answer 64

Lyndon B. Johnson’s exit from the elections of 1968 led to Republican senator Richard Nixon being elected.
Nixon campaigned on the need for the US to strategically exit the conflict in Vietnam, but without giving ground to the communist forces in the North.
He promised a swift and favourable resolution to the conflict.
In reality, Richard Nixon’s presidency would result in an extensive bombing campaign of Cambodia as well as even more resources expended in Vietnam, and the conflict would not come to an end for the US for another almost 5 years.