Vietnam

Question 1

Aid to the French in Vietnam

Answer 1

• US sent large-scale aid to the French
• 1953- provides 33% of funds, 1954- grows to 78%
• Negative consequences- French lost war, US aid to colonial power hurt reputation

Question 2

Dien Bien Phu

Answer 2

• President Eisenhower went to Congress to get approval for bombing Vietnam
• Congress placed conditions on involvement
• Eisenhower decided to do nothing
• France work out Geneva Agreement with Vietnamese

Question 3

Geneva Agreement of 1954

Answer 3

An international conference was held in Geneva, Switzerland to discuss the problems of Indochina. On July 20 and 21, 1954, this conference produced a number of agreements that were supposed to settle the war. The Geneva Accords stated that Vietnam was to become an independent nation.

Question 4

Domino Effect

Answer 4

• Feeling that if one country in Southeast Asia feel to communism, all would fall
• Stated by pres. Eisenhower

Question 5

Geneva Accords

Answer 5

-Peach between France and Vietnam, French withdraw from Vietnam within 1 year, Temporary division of Vietnam, Elections scheduled for 1956

Question 6

US action against the Geneva Accord

Answer 6

• US supports South Vietnamese leader Ngo Dinh Diem

- South Vietnam made part of an alliance with the US (SEATO)

Question 7

Election of 1956

Answer 7

• supposed to unify Vietnam

- canceled by Ngo Dinh Diem

Question 8

Ngo Dinh Diem

Answer 8

Anti-communist South Vietnam president

• canceled elections that were supposed to unify Vietnam
• declared south Vietnam a separate country
• Vietcong rebelled against him
• Supported Catholic, wealthy minority over the Buddhist landless majority

Question 9

SEATO

Answer 9

(SouthEast Asia Treaty Organization)

-purpose was to prevent communism from gaining ground in the region)

Question 10

Vietcong

Answer 10

• Opposition group that rebelled against Ngo Dinh Diem

- Imprisoned in concentration camps without trial

Question 11

Diem’s overthrow

Answer 11

• By Vietnamese generals
• US does not intervene
• Instability in South Vietnamese govt
• Kennedy said he would reduce the commitment to South Vietnam

Question 12

Alleged attack by North Vietnam

Answer 12

• North Vietnamese patrol boat fires on the USS Maddox
• Takes place in the Gulf of Tonkin off North Vietnamese coast
• Maddox returns fire and damages patrol boat
• 2 days later, enemy torpedoes spotted in the water under poor weather conditions
• Maddox fire with no return fire seen or heard

Question 13

Tonkin Gulf Resolution

Answer 13

• Johnson used alleged attack to ask Congress for broad military power in Vietnam
• technically not a declaration of war
• Johnson uses the new powers to escalate the war

Question 14

Operation Rolling Thunder

Answer 14

• First sustained bombing of North Vietnam
• Form of retaliation for attacks on US bases
• US dropped three times as many bombs as in all of WW2
• Unsuccessful- NV had extensive air defense system
• NV had few good targets

Question 15

General Westmoreland

Answer 15

• Kept requesting for more troops
• Didn’t like the fighting ability of Army of the Republic of Vietnam
• Strategy became one of attrition

Question 16

Attrition

Answer 16

Gradual reduction of the enemies forces

Enemy dead body count became important

Question 17

The Draft

Answer 17

• Focused on men between the ages of 18 and 26
• People found ways around serving in the military
• 80% of those drafted were from poorer families

Question 18

Hearts and Minds

Answer 18

-trying to win support of South Vietnam’s rural population

Question 19

Credibility Gap

Answer 19

people started to believe that what president Johnson was reporting was wrong

Question 20

Tet Offensive

Answer 20

• Simultaneous attacks on numerous cities by Vietcong and North Vietnamese Army
• Stunned American public

Question 21

Election of 1968

Answer 21

• Democratic Primary in turmoil
• VP Hubert Humphry wins nomination
• Repubs select Nixon