War in Vietnam 1954-75 Flashcards
Dien Bien Phu and French withdrawal
- France wanted to regain its former colony in Vietnam
- Vietminh controlled north vietnam, France controlled the south
- In 1949, China became Communist and helped the Vietminh by giving supplies, advisers and troops
- The USA began to send the French supplies, military advisers and soldiers but they were told not to fight
- By 1954, US support paid 80 per cent of the cost of France’s war with the Vietminh
- The French and Vietminh fought a major batte in Dien Bien Phu in 1954. After 55 days of fighting the French were forced to surrender.
- The Geneva Conference 1954 divided Vietnam to two countries along the 17th parallel.
- North Vietnam (The Democratic Republic of Vietnam) led by Ho Chi Minh, and South Vietnam (the State of Vietnam) led by Ngo Dinh Diem
Eisenhower and the ‘domino theory’
- The USA had a great fear of communism and Eisenhower was worried that if Vietnam became communist, other countries in the region would follow - this was called domino theory
- Eisenhower set ul the Southeast Asia Treaty Organisation (SEATO) in 1954, its aim was to prevent the spread of communism.
Weakness of Diem’s government
- His government was corrupt and had little respect for the rural population and Buddhists
- Different revolutionary groups began developing in South Vietnam such as the ‘Vietcong’. North Vietnam backed them.
- Eisenhower sent advisers to train the to train the South Vietnamese army (ARVN).
Kennedy and Vietnam 1961-63
- Sent around 16,000 more advisers by late 1963.
- Authroised the use of Chemical sprays such as Agent Orange to kill crops and jungle areas that the Vietcong was hiding in from 1961 (Operation Ranch Hand)
- Changed tactics to searching for VC fighters, not just trying to draw them to battle.
US concerns leading to Diem’s Overthrow
- Knnedy believed that the VC were being beaten but ARVN lost the Battle of Ap Bac in 1963.
- The US media reported the battle as a defeat and Kennedy worried about the negative publicity
- A Buddhist monk burned himself to death in protest of Diem’s government and it gained worldwide publicity.
- Kennedy put pressure on Diem’s gov to make peace with the Buddhists but they didnt stop.
- In 1963, ARVN generals overthrew and assassinated Diem; the USA did not intervene to prevent this.
The Strategic Hamlet Program, 1962
- Diem and the USA built new villages to house the locals away from the VC, so they could not recruit them to fight.
- The ARVN forcibly removed and reloacted villages. However, the villagers did not want to leave their ancestral homes. Also, there was not enough food or basic provisions and many villagers starved to death.
- Made Diem and the USA more unpopular in South Vietnam
Johnson’s problems and aims, 1963
Johnson’s Aims:
- Stop the spread of communism
- Establish democratic gov in South Vietnam supported by the people
- Ensure that the situation did not deteriorate into a nuclear war.
Johnson’s problems:
- Communists in Vietnam were getting stronger
- The gov of South Vietnam was getting weak and unpopular
- The USSR was a superpower with nuclear capacity.
Increasing threat of the Vietcong 1963-1969
- The VC became more organised and effective, and their numbers increased
- Ordinary Vietnamese saw Americans as imperialists wanting to control Vietnam for their own aims.
- Many South Vietnamese were angry about Strategic Hamlet Program
- Many rural South Vietnamese supported the VC.
The Ho Chi Minh Trail
- The trail was a network of paths and smaller trails, which connected North and South Vietnam (often pasing through Loas and Combodia). It took about a month to get from one end to another.
- Sent weapons and troops.
The Gulf of Tonkin incident, 1964
In August 1964, two US naval ships reported attacks by North Vietnamese torpedo boats off the North Vietnamese Coast - US Maddox
Consequences:
- Johnson ordered air strikes against North Vietnam
- Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, allowing Johnson to use armed force to defend South Vietnam and US troops already stationed
- In response, the North Vietnam expanded their involvement in South Vietnam
Guerrilla tactics of the Vietcong
- Planned ambushes
- Deadly traps
- Avoided open battles
- Did not wear military uniform so integrated with rural peasants.
Operation Rolling Thunder 1965
- Targeted the Ho Chi Minh Trail, to stop supplies being taken south, and North Vietnam’s small industrial base.
- Widespread bombing raids in military and industrial targets and lasted for more than 3 years.
- The cost was calculated to be around $400,000 to kill one Vietcong fighter, 75 bombs and 400 artillery shells.
Search and Destroy
American troops would search and destroy the enemy. Would raid villain search of villagers that would help the Vietcong.
- Incorrect information often led to many villages being destroyed
- Created very high civillian casualites
- Made the Viet peasants support Vietcong.
Tet Offensive, 1968
Vietcong launched a massive attack on over 100 cities in the South, during the New Year, or Tet holiday.
- Public holiday: half of thr ARVN were on holiday
- Attacked high profile places like Saigon and thr US embassy, airport and radio station.
- Vietcong lost 84,000 soldiers - almost all.
- American public saw Tet as a failure even though only 1500 Americans died.
The Nixon Doctrine 1969
- The USA would follow through on any existing support it had promised its allies and help them against nuclear attack.
- However, it would only provide financial help and training against threats from countries that do not have nuclear capacity.
Vietnamisation
- Nixon wanted US troops to withdraw from Vietnam, while also giving the appearance the USA had not lost the war.
- ARVN was to take over more of the actual fighting, thus reducing the number of US military deaths.
- The gov focus was on money and and advisers, not soldiers.
- Failed because US training and equipment was not enough to ensure the ARVN was ready to take over the fighting.
Madman Theory
- Americans used this to scare the Hanoi gov into accepting the peace talks by threatening that Nixon would use nuclear weapons to end communism if the war continued.
- It did not have much impact as the Paris peace talks went on for some time after: 1968-73
Attacks on Cambodia 1970 and Laos 1971
- Nixon sent troops to Cambodia because the Vietcong and NVA were using it as a safe haven.
- Congress was outraged and cancelled the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution.
- Americans dropped 3 million tons of bombs in Cambodia, 100,000 killed and 2 million left homeless.
- South Viet troops later invaded Laos and destroyed the Ho Chi Minh Trail
- Renewed public outcry and there were demonstrations - Nixon called on the ‘silent’ majority that supported him.
Bombing of North Vietnam 1972
- The USA bombed North Vietnam in heavy air raids to weaken it.
- All areas were targeted and mines were dropped into Haiphong harbour to stop supplies from China and the USSR coming by sea.
- 1,600 civilians died and 70 US airmen were killed.
- New York times called it “Diplomacy through terror”
The Student Movement
- Many young people rejected the attitudes of previous generations and wanted social change.
- A new ‘counter change’ was emerging and students were a central part of it.
- Student numbers increased to 8.5 million in 1970.
In 1967, ex soldiers formed…
- Vietnam Veterans Against the War.
- They held protests and some publicity threw away their medals.
