Vietnam War Flashcards
What was the domino theory, and what was it used for?
The domino theory proposed that if one country in South-East Asia fell to communists, the entire world would fall, or surrounding countries would inevitably follow. The US government used the domino theory to justify military intervention in Vietnam to prevent South-East Asia from falling to communism.
What was the significance of the Gulf of Tonkin conflict?
on the 2nd of August, the US Destroyer, a navy ship, was allegedly attacked by North Vietnamese torpedo boats. Another ship was also attacked, and historians thought this may be due to the US ships being in North Vietnamese waters, spying.
This was significant, as the US Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin resolution on the 7th of August, 5 days later, which authorised for the president (Johnson) to official armed intervention in Vietnam without declaring war. This led to the expansion of the Vietnam war, allowing for the US to participate and take any measures it saw necessary. Although there were worries over public outcry over going to war in Vietnam, public support for the doctrine and the war was increased in February 1965 when the VC attacked, killing 8 military advisors in South Vietnam.
What was SEATO, and why was it significant in the Vietnam War?
Established in 1954, the South-East Asia Treaty Organisation was formed to protect South-Eastern countries from communism, providing a formal framework for US involvement in the region. The US used SEATO as justification for military intervention in Vietnam, as communist Vietnam under Ho Chi Minh was seen as a threat to non-communist countries within the region.
Although Vietnam was not a member-state of SEATO, it was considered a ‘protocol state’ meaning that it fell within the scope of SEATO’s collective defence doctrine. Therefore, the US was able to use SEATO to justify its involvement in Vietnam.
Why had there been opposition to the war in the US?
The Vietnam war was a televised war, meaning that the public was able to see, almost first-hand and immediately the atrocities of war. Therefore, any actions that were taken against the Vietnamese people, some who had appeared as civilians but had truly been soldiers, was met with public outcry This was seen during the famous photo, called the Saigon Execution, taken in February 1968. It depicted a man who looked like a civilian being executed at gunpoint on the street. Unknowing the context behind the image, the anti-war movement in the US had grown, where people had believed that innocent civilians had been dying due to US involvement. This was furthered when the public had uncovered the events in the My Lai Massacre on 16 March 1968, where 300-500 civilians and elderly people had died as a consequence of a US search and destroy mission. With the objective of locating and diminishing VC forces, C COY of the US forces in South Vietnam raided a village that was thought to be a VC stronghold, but later no evidence was found of this. Therefore, the government covered up the massacre for 18 months, before it was exposed to the media. Due to Gurrelia tactics employed by the North Vietnam forces, including the VC, it was difficult to distinguish between civilian, peasant and farmer to the enemy soldiers. Thus, the media had believed that innocent people were dying haphazardly and carelessly, and thus opposition to the war grew.
Another factor of opposition to the war was the way in which the US fought upon Vietnamese soil. Napalm, a highly flammable, jelly-like substance, was dropped from planes and ignited, sprayed from flamethrowers and used to burn large sections of jungle. This often stuck to civilians, and caused inhuman pain and suffering. Napalm was, at times, used as a psychological weapon, and was banned by the UN after its use in both the Korean and Vietnam wars after its mass destruction, pain and suffering. This, and agent orange, caused biological and psychological issues not just during the Vietnam war, but also generations after, with children being born with birth defects, or veterans highly scarred from the horrors of war. Henceforth, the anti-war movement grew to combat the US’ use of such inhuman weapons and tactics in Vietnam.
Why was the Tet Offensive significant?
On the 32 Jan 1968, the US embassy was captured by Viet Cong forces during the Tet Festival, celebrating the beginning of the Chinese Lunar New Year. This was significant, as opposition to the war grew in the US, showing that the once-promised easily won war was going to be long and difficult, leading to the death of more and more soldiers. The US was viewed to have failed its goals, and the VC had shown that they were not going to relent until they gained control of South Vietnam.
Why did the media play such a big role in the anti-war movement in the US?
Because the Vietnam war was known as the ‘television war’, where reporters had taken pictures and videos of the atrocities of war, many people realised just what it meant to be at war, and the human cost of it. In the beginning, the media portrayed the war as a a just cause, fighting against the spread of communism, adopting the US policy of containment during the cold war. Yet, when the number of reporters grew from a dozen in 1965 to 600 in 1968, the messages from the media changed to portraying the inhumane nature of war and how it must stop. The anti-war movement peaked in 1969.
After a journalist covered the My Lai Massacre, which was concealed for 18 months by US officials, 2 million Americans joined together for a National Day of Protest. At the time, this was the largest protest in US history, where people displayed the widespread public protest against the war in Vietnam, placing pressure on officials. The media has analysed papers from the Pentagon, confirming that the US did not have any precise war aims, and revealing the inconsistent military strategy. People lost faith in the military, and in turn, the government as misinformation had been spread, and information had been concealed from the people.
Why had there been opposition to the war in Australia?
Opposition to the war in Australia began with mandatory military service, called conscription or National Service, which was introduced on the 5th of November, 1964. This was due to requests for assistance by the South Vietnamese government in South Vietnam during the war, in which Australia responded to, sending soldiers to Vietnam. People believed that the Australian government had failed in its moral obligations to the people, sending young people to their deaths. This was due to minors being conscripted to National Services after their birthdays were pulled out of a hat on television.
This began the Save our Sons campaign, which began on the 13th of May, 1964, who had focused on conscription of men under 18. It was formed by 15 mothers in Sydney whose children had been conscripted. Although this received negative publicity, resulting in the imprisonment of 5 members for 14 days in April 1971, conscription was abolished on the 5th of December, 1972 as a result of opposition to war. The early initiative from the Save our Sons movement, which formed just two weeks after the announcement of conscription, helped increase awareness over the war and played a role in the eventual end to conscription. The height of the anti-war protests was after 1964, where over 200,000 people and been involved. In 1968, street marches and sit-ins were held to oppose the war in Vietnam.
How was the war fought by the North Vietamese?
The North Vietnamese had adopted the use of Chu Chi Tunnels, which were a network of underground tunnels to move discreetly around South Vietnam. Such tunnels enabled for the Viet Cong (VC) to move undetected and to avoid missile barrages and the burning of the Vietnamese Jungle by the US. For example, this was used to combat Operation Rolling thunder, March 1965-67, where the US used missile barrages against North Vietnam to force them into peace talks. The VC employed the use of booby traps, such as punji pits, with the objective to slow down the opposition and reduce their morale and resources. Traps such as tripwires, can bombs, pits with infected spikes and venomous animals, such as snakes or scorpions, were used to do so. This was attempted to be combatted by the US who sent soldiers named ‘tunnel rats’ to clear tunnels, however the use of booby traps only increased.
Such guerrilla tactics assisted the VC in reducing the opposition’s morale, as people had feared entering the Vietnamese tunnels, and had fallen into various traps. The Chu Chi tunnels were effective in avoiding the burning of the jungle and missile barrages, providing a quick method of escape and concealment against the US forces.
