Vietnam War Background Review Flashcards

1
Q

What three countries have controlled Vietnam before 1954?

A

China, Japan, France

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2
Q

Who was the American puppet leader in South Vietnam following the countries’ division in 1954?

A

Ngo Dinh Diem

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3
Q

What was the name of the American special forces in Vietnam?

A

Green Berets

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4
Q

Who was the Communist head of North Vietnam?

A

Ho Chi Minh

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5
Q

What was the dividing line between North and South Vietnam?

A

17th parallel/DMZ

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6
Q

What communist superpower borders Vietnam and provided the Communists with military aid?

A

China

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7
Q

What is the name of the South Vietnamese guerrilla fighters who aided the Communists?

A

Vietcong

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8
Q

What did SEATO stand for?

A

Southeast Asia Treaty Organization

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9
Q

What was SEATO?

A

Tied US to defense of South Vietnam to protect it from Communism

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10
Q

What was the Domino Theory?

A

A theory about the spread of Communism in Asia that we need to stop all the dominoes from falling in Asia to Communism.

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11
Q

What is MAAG?

A

advisory group that we used with our allies that we fought for in the Cold War. It was established under Truman and we sent in advisors.

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12
Q

What did MAAG stand for?

A

Military Assistance Advisory Group

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13
Q

What did MACV stand for?

A

Military Assistance Command in Vietnam

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14
Q

Who founded MACV?

A

JFK

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15
Q

What was MACV?

A

We began sending in Green Berets, taking on an act of fighting role.

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16
Q

What did NLF stand for?

A

National Liberation Front

17
Q

Who created the NLF?

A

Ho Chi Minh and the Vietminh

18
Q

What was the NLF?

A

Divided and created the Vietminh and Vietcong, which made Vietnam part civil and part world.

19
Q

What was the theory of the Buddhist BBQ?

A

Diem’s sister-in-law referenced suicides and burning of Buddhists, protesting Diem’s government and to draw attention to the situation.

20
Q

What was the Strategic Hamlet Program?

A

US program for counter-guerrilla warfare, we separated friendlies from the enemies, but the program was flawed.

21
Q

What did ARVN stand for?

A

Army of the Republic of Vietnam

22
Q

What was the ARVN?

A

South Vietnam’s army; it was helped by American military aid and advisors, they were our allies in the war.

23
Q

What were MIGs?

A

Soviet fighter planes that the Soviets sent to Vietnam to help beat us in the air control battle.

24
Q

What was Saigon?

A

capital of South Vietnam

25
Q

What is Saigon called now?

A

Ho Chi Minh City

26
Q

What is Hanoi?

A

capital of North Vietnam

27
Q

What are B-52s?

A

American mass bomber planes, used for carpet bombings

28
Q

What is the Mekong Delta?

A

Delta south of Saigon, the region where the Mekong River empties into the South China Sea. It was far from the DMZ and never controlled.

29
Q

What was the Coup d’etat?

A

They removed Diem from power. The Big Minh killed him, which was our operation to remove him from power.

30
Q

What is the Ho Chi Minh Trail?

A

A supply line that started in China and went around the DMZ and through neutral nations. It was a way the Vietminh could get supplies and men over the line without a direct crossing.

31
Q

What were two reasons why the US got involved in Vietnam?

A
  1. To stop Communism from spreading, contain it.

2. Arrogance-we are the superpower undefeated nation and nobody has heard of Vietnam, so we felt we could easily win.

32
Q

Why was Diem unsuccessful at creating peace and stability in South Vietnam between 1954-1963?

A

He was really a dictator and too aggressive and forceful of his beliefs. He disrespected his people’s beliefs, was never connected positively to his people, and never progressed towards Democracy.

33
Q

Why was arrogance a reason we lost the Vietnam War?

A

We did not know enough about Vietnam, we underestimated what they would bring, and their guerrilla warfare strategy worked to beat us.