why did the US enter a full scale war with Vietnam in 1965

Question 1

why did the US enter a full scale war with Vietnam in 1965

Answer 1

In the 1960s and 1970s, the US government was following a policy of containment in an attempt to stop the spread of Communism, causing the US military to become involved in a civil war in Vietnam

Question 2

how did the war start

Answer 2

with the gulph of tonkin

Question 3

when was the gulph of tonkin

Answer 3

August 2, 1964

Question 4

what was the gulph of tonkin

Answer 4

When america blamed that north vietnamese ships attacked a US torpedo military ship unprecedently

Question 5

where did the gulf of tonkin happen

Answer 5

It happened in the Gulf of Tonkin, off the east coast of North Vietnam.

Question 6

was war ever actually waged

Answer 6

no

Question 7

so why did America actually get involved

Answer 7

North vietnam was communist, and wanting to tke over the south of vietnam, but because the USA hated communism and was in a period of containment, they wanted to help the SV

Question 8

Who was Ho Chi Minh

Answer 8

North Vietnamese nationalist and communist leader

Question 9

when did Ho Chi Minh become the leader of North Vietnam

Answer 9

in 1954 after the Geneva conference

Question 10

what did the viet minh stand for and when was it founded

Answer 10

the league for indipendance of vietnam and founded in 1941

Question 11

who founded the viet minh

Answer 11

Ho Chi Minh

Question 12

what was the viet minh

Answer 12

communist led independance movement formed during WW2.

A coalition of various nationalist groups

Question 13

what was the geneva conference

Answer 13

held in 1954 to resolve the conflict between France and the Viet Minh

Question 14

what was agreed at the geneva conference (2)

Answer 14

that Vietnam would be divided along the 17th parallel:

• NV led by Ho Chi Minh
• SV led by non com. and supported by western powers

Promised national election in 1956 to reunify the country

Question 15

who was Ngo Dinh Diem

Answer 15

SV leader from 1955

Question 16

when did Ngo Dinh Diem become leader

Answer 16

1955

Question 17

was Ngo Dinh Diem supported by the US

Answer 17

yes

Question 18

what religion was Ngo Dinh Diem

Answer 18

catholic

Question 19

was Ngo Dinh Diem a success

Answer 19

no

Question 20

why was Diems government a failure

Answer 20

because his government was repressive, corrupt and unpopular.

Question 21

why did the US remove their support for Diem

Answer 21

because his discrimination against buddhism (dominant religion of Vietnam) led to widespread protests like the self-immolation of buddhists

Question 22

when did the US remove their support for Diem

Answer 22

1963

Question 23

what was the viet Cong

Answer 23

national liberation front ( a communist insurgent group in south vietnam)

Question 24

what did the viet cong do and who was it supported by

Answer 24

supported by North Vietnam, it fought to overthrow the south vietnamese government

Question 25

what tactics did the viet cong use and were they a good enemy

Answer 25

guerilla tactics, and a formidable enemy

Question 26

what did Truman and Eisenhower provide in vietnam (2)

Answer 26

financial and military aid

Question 27

what did Kennedy do in vietnam

Answer 27

increased number of military advisers in vietnam

Question 28

what did Lyndon Johnson do in vietnam

Answer 28

escalated US involvement after the tonkin incident

Question 29

what did the gulf of tonkin incident result in

Answer 29

congress passing the gulf of tonkin resolution, which gave president Johnson broad powers to escalate military involvement

Question 30

what was the gulf of tonkin resolution used as

Answer 30

a pretext for deploying US combat troops to vietnam in 1965

Question 31

what was the domino theory

Answer 31

the udea that if one country fell to communism, neighbouring countries would follow and US policymakers believed losing vietnam to communism would destabilize southeast asia

Question 32

what happened in the elections of 1956

Answer 32

South Vietnam, with US backing refused to hold elections, fearing a communist victory and a united vietnam under the leadership of Mingh .

Question 33

what did the failure and refusal of holding elections do to SV

Answer 33

undermined the legitimacy of SV government and heightened tensions

Question 34

was the South Vietnamese government popular / viewed well

Answer 34

no, many people turned to the Viet cong because they were seen as more legitimate alternative.

Question 35

what tied the SV government to an unpopular regime and why

Answer 35

the US commitment of supporting the SV because they didn't 'win the hearts and minds' of the people

Question 36

in summary, why did the US enter a full scale war with vietnam in 1965

Answer 36

due to a combination of ideological differences and commitments (domino theory), political decisions (supporting Diem and ignoring Geneva accords), and specific incidents (gulf of Tonkin). The failure of the south Vietnamese government to win popular support and the growing threat of the Viet Cong created conditions for direct US military involvement.

Question 37

what was SEATO and when was it created

Answer 37

in 1956, and it gave credibility to South vietnam. it basically meant that if NV attacked the south, then the other countries would need to intervene

Question 38

poor people in vietnam moved where

Answer 38

to north

Question 39

rich people in vitenman would move to

Answer 39

south

Question 40

vietnam was a part of who's colony and what was it called

Answer 40

french French Indochina

Question 41

from when was Vietnam a part of french indocina until when

Answer 41

1887-1954

Question 42

by who was vietnam invaded by in the second world war

Answer 42

Japan

Question 43

when did Ho Chi Minh declare Vietnam an independant country

Answer 43

1945

Question 44

how did Ho Chi Minh declare the indipendance and was it successful

Answer 44

by stating the US declaration of indipendance, france didn't accept it

Question 46

the percieved failure of Ngo Diem (what had america given him)

Answer 46

america had given him 1.6 billion to support his government but he was still unpopular

Question 47

overall, there were 6 reasons why the US started the war, what were they?

Answer 47

1- Gulf of tonkin incident 2- percieved failure of Ngo Diem 3- emergence of vietcong 4- domino theory 5- installation of Ngo Dinh Diem as leader 6- President Johnson was more prepared to be more involved int he war

Question 48

why did the Vietcong emerge

Answer 48

the unpopularity of Ngo Dinh Diem led NV to more actively trying to 'liberate' the south. The vietcong was founded to supply people in south vietnam with weapons to fight against Diem's governnment