Vietnam keywords Flashcards
Battle of Dien Bien Phu
The Vietnamese forces were able to surround the French forces at Dien Bien Phu forcing the French to surrender and give up their colony
President elected in south Vietnam 1955
Ngo Dinh Diem
Vietcong set up
Set up by Ho Chi Minh to oppose the southern dictator Diem
Strategic hamlet project
Moving Vietnamese out of their villages and in to their camps to remove the Vietcongs influence but they had no choice if they moved and their villages had burial grounds on so it lead to anger at the US so lead to recruitments to the Vietcong
Diem overthrown
Diem’s generals led a military coup because he was creating opposition by discriminating against Buddhists which was the national religion and meant the south Vietnamese didn’t want him either
The gulf of Tonkin incident
when a north Vietnamese ship fired at the USS Maddox later it was claimed that there was a second attack but there was no evidence of this
Operation rolling thunder
American bombing campaign of north Vietnam from the 2nd of March 1965 to the 2nd of November 1968
Tet offensive
Large scale attack on the southern Vietnamese cities the Americans regained control and more Vietcong died then Americans but it showed the American public that the Vietcong were not on their last legs
My Lai massacre
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Vietnamisation
Nixons policy of vietnamisation
operation rolling thunder
the bombing campaign by America in north Vietnam from the 2nd of March 1965 to the 2nd of November 1968
Tet offensive
a large scale attack led by the north on South Vietnamese cities it led to high North Vietnamese casualties but it showed the American people that the Vietcong were not on the verge of defeat
my Lai massacre
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vietnamistion
Nixon’s policy of withdrawal from Vietnam he would also give more power to the south Vietnamese government
attacks on Cambodia and Laos
Nixon bombed Cambodia and Laos where the Ho Chi Minh trail was however done without Congress knowing
geneva agreement
that France would withdraw from Vietnam and the north and south would be divided along the 17th line elections would also be held
containment
was the policy used by the US to stop the spread of communism and to stop the growing sphere of influence of the soviet union and china
domino theory
that if one country such as Vietnam falls to communism that others around it like Cambodia and Laos will and will continue until the US is the the only capitalist country left
national liberation front (NLF)
in 1960 former members of the South Vietnamese army formed the NLF to oppose Diem’s regime formed from 12 different groups like Buddhists and communists and used guerilla warfare
Ngo Dinh Diem
the violent dictator of South Vietnam that oppressed Buddhists by giving land to Catholics for example land and jobs
ARVN
southern Vietnam army supported by the US with money and advisors
coup d’etat
when a leader is overthrown by military means
Ho Chi Minh
the communist leader of North Vietnam supported by the soviet union and China
ho chi Minh trail
the route in which north Vietnam gets supplies to the south and it goes through Cambodia and Laos
guerilla tactics
Vietcong attacked American soldiers in small groups causing paranoia this was to make it not worth their while trying to invade them and just leave
search and destroy
when Americans bombed villages suspected of harboring Vietcong
tunnel systems
used by the Vietcong to live and work and could be used to escape from Americans as they knew the caves and were smaller so could fit through smaller gaps
agent orange
a chemical weapon used by the US which destroys forests and could even kill people
napalm
a burning substance which sticks to skin and can’t be put out by water
madman theory
Nixon tried to convince North Vietnam he would use nuclear weapons so they would surrender but it didn’t work
silent majority
Nixon appeals to the “silent majority” the people that don’t make a noise but they still don’t want communism so voted for Nixon
operation linebacker 2
when the Americans bombed the republic of Vietnam from 18th December 1972 to the 29th of December 1972
hard hats
people in the builders union who supported Nixon and opposed the students when they demonstrated against the Vietnam war
