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French Indochina; Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia were controlled by the French. During WWII, Japan invaded and controlled Indochina. After the war, France tried to regain control.
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French Indochina; Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia were controlled by the French. During WWII, Japan invaded and controlled Indochina. After the war, France tried to regain control.
1st Indochina War: The French with American help tried to regain power in Vietnam. The US was afraid of the “Domino Theory” the belief that if Vietnam fell to communism all of Southeast Asia would follow. The French suffered a humiliating defeat at Dien Bien Phu.
Geneva Accords: 1. Vienam was temporarily divided2. communist North Vietnam led by Ho Chi Minh3. democratic South Vietnam led by Ngo Dinh Diem.4. called for free elections to be held in 1956
Diem had a corrupt government but received US military supplies because Eisenhower felt he was the only alternative to communism.
Ho Chi Minh enjoyed popular support for his redistribution and social programs. He blamed land owners for Vietnam’s poverty so he had them imprisoned and jailed.
Civil War: Diem, with US support, refused to participate in 1956 elections. Diem imprisoned anyone who didn’t support his government.
The National Liberation Front (NFL) or Vietcong were communist guerilla forces that received funding and supplies from North Vietnam to help them oppose Diem’s government.
The National Liberation Front (NLF) or Vietcong were communist forces that received funding and supplies from North Vietnam to help them oppose Diem’s government. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfPx1jfoWjs
Eisenhower sent aid and military advisors to Vietnam.Kennedy sent more advisors and Special Forces to Vietnam. In 1963, the US had 16,000 military personnel in Vietnam. Vietnamese military leaders killed Diem because he was hurting the war effort.
Escalation of the war:In August 1965, US ships were attacked by North Vietnamese ships. President Johnson called it an act of war and called for air strikes against North Vietnam.
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution:An act of Congress which gave Johnson the power to “take all necessary measures” against the North Vietnamese.The 1st US combat troops arrived in Vietnam in March 1965.
“Operation Rolling Thunder”air strikes aimed at North Vietnamese industries.
Ho Chi Mihn Trail:network of paths, roads and tunnels from North Vietnam through Laos and Cambodia into South Vietnam. Johnson tried bombing the path to try and stop the supplies from reaching the Vietcong.
The US used napalm (jellied gasoline), and chemicals to destroy the jungle cover to expose the trail. The bombing campaign killed soldiers and civilians but did not destroy North Vietnam’s war effort.
June 8, 1972, Kim Phuc and her family flee their village, Trang Bang, which the South Vietnamese Airforce bombed with napalm. Kim’s clothes were burned off of her. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ev2dEqrN4i0 Kim received horrific burns which required her to stay in the hospital for 14 months and undergo 17 surgeries.
Escalation of the Ground War: 1. U.S. began sending more troops to Vietnam2. North Vietnam sent units from the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) to assist the Vietcong.
Search and destroy missions- U.S. policy of destroying enemy camps and supplies with massive firepower and air raids.Vietcong and NVA soldiers used guerrilla strategies against U.S. troops.
Pacification- program of setting aside civilian areas guarded by government troops in an effort to win the support of South Vietnamese villagers.It failed because the South Vietnamese villagers remained targets of the Vietcong.U.S. forces at times mistakenly destroyed the villages and crops of innocent South Vietnamese civilians.
Service in Vietnam1. More than 2 million U.S. soldiers served in Vietnam.2. Most soldiers were drafted into service.3. Many minorities served, while college students- typically white and middle-class-- could receive deferments, or draft releases.4. By mid-1967 more than 300 soldiers died every week in combat.B. Some 10,000 women served in Vietnam.
A Divided NationThe Media and the War1. Televised combat images led some Americans to question the war.2. Some journalists, such as Walter Cronkite, reported that the war was not going as well as military officials claimed.
American Attitudes1. Doves wanted theUnited States to pull out of the Vietnam conflict2. Hawks argued that defeating communism in Vietnam was a top priority and called for more military spending and more troops in Vietnam.3. College students led many protests against the war.
Most Americans supported the war until early 1968.Tet Offensive:1. Surprise attacks launched against U.S. forces on Tet, the Vietnamese New Year2. The custom had been to cease hostilities during Tet
3. Most agree that the communists were not the victors militarily 4. However, the US press broadcast coverage of the attacks nightly on the news and this turned many Americans against the warhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3PIcbx35mM
With North Vietnam’s Tet Offensive beginning, Nguyen Ngoc Loan, South Vietnam’s national police chief, was doing all he could to keep Viet Cong guerrillas from Saigon. As Loan executed a prisoner who was said to be a Viet Cong captain, photographer Eddie Adams won a Pulitzer Prize for a picture that turned public opinion against the war.http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=Tet+Offensive&view=detail&mid=336D2AFC28FE2FB7CD58336D2AFC28FE2FB7CD58&first=0&FORM=NVPFVR#view=detail&mid=B0023C1306C4DA3AB9BBB0023C1306C4DA3AB9BB
Viet Cong dead after an attack on the perimeter of Tan Son Nhut Air Base.
Effects of Tet1. Shocked many Americans who believed war would soon be over.2. Led some Americans to conclude that their leaders were not being honest3. President Johnson refused General Westmoreland's request for an additional 206,000 troops.
My Lai Massacre1. In 1968, the soldiers of Charlie Company entered the village of My Lai on a search and destroy mission.2. As the mission unfolded, it soon degenerated into the massacre of over 300 apparently unarmed civilians including women, children, and the elderly. 3. Lt. Calley, the officer in charge, was the only one who was convicted of murder and received a life sentence.4. He was released in 1974 following many appeals5. The My Lai Massacre caused many Americans to question the war and the military's tactics.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWchy6ykNnQ
1968 Democratic Candidates:1. Eugene McCarthy- Minnesota senator and war critic2. President Johnson lost support as doubts about the war grew and he decided not to run for reelection 3. Robert F. Kennedy- New York senator who wanted an end to the war 4. Hubert Humphrey- vice president who received Johnson's support
Violence1. Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated in June 1968 by Sirhan Sirhan.2. Democratic National Convention was marred by a riot between police and antiwar protesters.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUKzSsVmnpY
RFK after being shot following his victory speech in California primary.
Election 19681. Hubert Humphrey (D)2. George Wallace (American Independent Party)3.Richard Nixon (R)4. Nixon won in a very close election
"Peace with Honor"1. Henry Kissinger- national security adviser who helped Nixon create a policy of "peace with honor"2. Vietnamization- process of gradually turning over the fighting in Vietnam to the South Vietnamese army.
Cambodia1. Nixon ordered secret bombing raids on Cambodia and Laos in an effort to destroy the Ho Chi Minh trail.
2. Khmer Rouge- Cambodian communist army came into power as a result of the bombing raids on Cambodia and received support from North Vietnam after the United States bombed Cambodia.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccm-QlOxvPghttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOcRlEHrGBUhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFJF6smKykg
Nixon sent U.S. troops into Cambodia because he said they were trying to protect Cambodia from the Communist Vietnamese. Americans argued that the president was not working for peace but expanding the war.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSaDp9slJlA
Kent State1. In May 1970 students at Kent State University in Ohio protested Nixon's decision to send troops into Cambodia.2. National Guard units sent to stop the protests shot and killed four students.
National Guard use teargas to try and disperse crowd The body of Jeffrey Miller, one of the four that were killed at Kent State. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyzoNCJvy4c