War In Vietnam 1964-1975 Flashcards
(39 cards)
What shocking defeat was enough to make the French give up on the idea of controlling Vietnam?
Diem Bien Phu 1954
What was decided at the Geneva Conference 1954?
Split Vietnam into 2 parts (border along 17th parallel)
- N communist ruled by Ho Chi Minh
- S non-communist
Elections would be held at some date in the future to see if Vietnamese wanted to be joined as one country- because of conflict didn’t happen
Who led S Vietnam?
Diem
Why was Diem’s rule unpopular?
- Christian- most S Vietnamese Buddhist (he even maltreated buddhists, frustrated as couldn’t practice their religion and way of life freely)
- Corrupt: Gov money used for own private wealth (members of his family+ supporters rewarded with top positions) took land from peasants to give to his own supporters
Why did the US feel like they had to make a strong stand against communism in S Vietnam?
Domino theory
What were the communist fighters in S Vietnam called + when did they form?
Vietcong
1960
What was the Vietnam Cong’s aim?
To defeat Diem’s government and unite Vietnam
By 1962 what was the US President, Kennedy doing?
Backing the S Vietnamese army with weapons + sending military advisors
What happened in 1963 + why did the US let it happen?
Diem assassinated by his own army generals
US knew it was going to happen but allowed it in hoe that the replacement government would be more popular
From 1963-1964 what was the new president Johnson trying to do?
Get congress to give him the go ahead to send in much greater military support (US not yet fully committed to a war against the viet cong
What happened in August 1964 + what was the consequence?
A US warship was fired on by Vietnamese patrol boats (the “Tonkin Gulf Incident”
Congress passed the Tonkin gulf resolution which agreed that the US president could take all steps to bring peace and security to S Vietnam
What was happening from 1965-68
Full-scale US military commitment
When did Operation Rolling thunder start?
March 1965
When did Operation rolling thunder continue until + how many casualties did it cause?
November 1968
90000
In a guerilla war what is the aim for the guerilla side?
To make the war too expensive in lives and money for the other side - keep war going until they lose the will to keep fighting and withdraw
What did the Vietnam gong do to demonstrate their power to villagers?
Murder unpopular land owners and government tax collectors
Why did the US aim to win over the “hearts and minds” of the civilians?
So that the viet cong would have less support and fewer places to shelter and hide
What turned the S Vietnamese people more against the USA?
The money that they poured in often found its way into the wrong hands leading to a rise in organises from and corruption.
Dropping bombs and carrying out attacks on the Viet Cong tended to kill civilians as well
What military tactic did the US use on the viet cong?
Search and destroy
Napalm
Agent orange
Difficulty of dealing with guerilla tactics led US to increase bombing of N Vietnam in operation rolling thunder
When was the My Lai Massacre, when did it become pillbox knowledge + how many were killed?
March 1968
Public knowledge November 1969
Between 347 and 504 unarmed civilians
What were the consequences of shocking events like My Lai?
Helped to destroy US’s self confidence and belief that it always acted in the right.
However Nixon had already begun withdrawal of US troops by the time it was public knowledge so added to but did not create public’s feelings that US should get out of S Vietnam
US publics attitudes towards the war in 1964 compared to 1968
1964 clear majority in favour
1968 below 50% of US public, Nixon elected in that year and in his election campaign he had promised to lower the number of US troops in Vietnam
In the US what was there by 1968?
Major protest movement against the war
Some men publicly burnt their call-up papers
What happened in May 1970?
There was a series of large demonstrations at Kent State University
