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Vietnam War

Vietnam War. Background. Communism. Economic system Government control of property and resources Single political leader No individual rights. Containment. The idea that America should keep communism “contained” and not allow it to spread to any more areas in the world.

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Vietnam War

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  1. Vietnam War

  2. Background

  3. Communism • Economic system • Government control of property and resources • Single political leader • No individual rights

  4. Containment The idea that America should keep communism “contained” and not allow it to spread to any more areas in the world

  5. Dwight D. Eisenhower • 34th President • 1953 – 1961 • Republican • New York

  6. Domino Theory “The loss of any single country in South East Asia could lead to the loss of all Asia, then India and Japan, finally endangering the security of Europe. . . . You have a row of dominoes set up, you knock over the first one and what will happen to the last one is a certainty, that it will go over very quickly.” U.S. President Eisenhower

  7. Domino Theory • American leaders believed that if the communists captured one country, nearby nations would also fall to communism, like dominoes falling

  8. French Indochina • France had controlled Vietnam since 1858 • The colony became known as Indochina • Vietnamese fiercely resisted French control, demanding independence

  9. Indochina consisted of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia

  10. Ho Chi Minh

  11. Ho Chi Minh • Born May 19, 1880 in Vietnam • Son of a government official who resigned in protest against French rule • Worked as a cook on a French ocean liner • Lived in London and Paris after WWI • Helped found the French Communist Party • Soviet Communist Party summoned him to Moscow to be trained as a spy

  12. Ho Chi Minh • Using various aliases, and disguised as a Buddhist monk or a Chinese journalist, he organized a revolutionary movement among Vietnamese exiles in China • In 1929 he organized the Indochinese Communist Party (ICP) in Hong Kong • Soon exiled by authorities in Hong Kong • Returns in 1930 and writes this statement of his goals:

  13. Ho Chi Minh • To overthrow French imperialism, feudalism, and the capitalist class • To make Indochina completely independent • To establish a worker­peasant and soldier government • To confiscate all of the plantations and property belonging to the imperialists and the capitalist class and distribute them to poor peasants

  14. Ho Chi Minh • To implement the eight hour working day • To abolish poll tax and unjust taxes for the poor • To bring back all freedom to the masses • To carry out universal education • To implement equality between men and women

  15. Ho Chi Minh • 1940 – The Japanese enter Vietnam • Ho Chi Minh returns to Vietnam (after 30 years) • Leads followers to fight both the Japanese and the French • Organizes the Viet Minh • Takes the name Ho Chi Minh (Bringer of Light)

  16. Viet Minh • Vietnamese Independence League • Created by Ho Chi Minh in 1940 • Supported the liberation of Vietnam from outside control • Seized power in 1945 when Japan surrendered at the end of WWII and set up a government in Hanoi

  17. MAAG • Military Assistance Advisory Group • President Eisenhower sends the first military advisors to Vietnam in the 1950s to gather intelligence on the situation • America gives the French $25 million to help maintain control of the country • Advised U.S. leaders that it would be unwise to get involved in Vietnam for the following 3 reasons:

  18. MAAG • The conflict was more about nationalism than communism since 80% of the Viet Minh were NOT communists • The Viet Minh were extremely popular with the people • U.S. soldiers were not trained for guerilla warfare in jungles

  19. Dien Bien Phu • May 6, 1954 • French forces were gathered in the fortress of Dien Bien Phu • Vietnamese forces surrounded the compound and began raining artillery • Eventually the French surrendered (similar to the Alamo)

  20. Dien Bien Phu

  21. Geneva Accords • May, 1954 • After the French defeat at Dien Bien Phu, world leaders met at Geneva, Switzerland • Agreed to divide Vietnam at the 17th parallel • Elections were to be held in 1956 on the issue of unification.

  22. Vietnam Remains Divided • But in 1956 the South refused to hold elections, claiming that the communists would prevent fair elections.

  23. North Vietnam • DRVN • Democratic Republic of Vietnam • Communist dominated • President - Ho Chi Minh • Capital city - Hanoi

  24. South Vietnam • RVN • Republic of Vietnam • Anti-communist • President - Ngo Dinh Diem • Capital city - Saigon • America backs South Vietnam to prevent a communist takeover

  25. National Liberation Front • South Vietnamese rebels who organized to remove Diem from power and re-unite Vietnam as one nation • Carried out assassinations of Diem’s officers

  26. Vietcong (VC) • Our name for the Communistmilitary wing of the National Liberation Front • A major difficulty throughout the war was to identify and eliminate Vietcong in South Vietnam

  27. Flag of the National Liberation Front

  28. Aerial view of the jungle canopy in Vietnam

  29. Vietnam

  30. Vietnam

  31. How many soldiers can you find hidden in the jungle?

  32. John Fitzgerald Kennedy

  33. John F. Kennedy • Elected President in 1960 • Increased spending on RVN’s efforts to repel the Vietminh • Increased U.S. military involvement in Vietnam • Wanted to prove to his critics in the U.S. that he was not weak on fighting the communists

  34. John F. Kennedy • But he was reluctant to become deeply involved in Vietnam • Top ranking military leaders advised him that the situation in Vietnam was growing worse daily - it was only a matter of time before the RVN fell to communist control

  35. Training Mission • Reluctantly, the U.S. military engaged in training RVN forces to be able to defend their own country against the communist forces

  36. RVN Trainees

  37. Ap Bac • January 2, 1963 • Ap Bac was a village 40 miles southwest of Saigon in the Mekong Delta • RVN (South Vietnam) forces outnumbered the Viet Cong 4:1 • The Viet Cong were well-supplied with captured American M-1 rifles and 30 caliber machine guns • RVN was poorly led and unprepared

  38. Ap Bac • 5 U.S. helicopters were shot down • 3 U.S. advisors were killed and 8 wounded • First major victory for Viet Cong • VC used the victory for propaganda purposes • VC began to plan for full scale war against the RVN • U.S. realized we would need to send additional support for the RVN

  39. Downed chopper at Ap Bac January 2, 1963

  40. Ap Bac January 2, 1963

  41. Downed choppers (flying bananas) January 2, 1963

  42. Ap Bac (January 2, 1963)

  43. Ap Bac Casualties

  44. Ngo Dinh Diem

  45. Ngo Dinh Diem • 1954 -appointed prime minister of RVN • He was seen as a U.S. puppetleader • This alienated many South Vietnamese • He refused some basic land reforms • He seized peasant land and gave it to friends/family • He was Catholic • He persecuted the Buddhists

  46. Ngo Dinh Diem • U.S. advisors stated that even the non-communists preferred Ho Chi Minh • By 1963, we learned that Diem had been secretly trying to create a coalition government that would include the communists • U.S. helped to arrange a coup (the overthrow of a government)

  47. Catholic-Buddhist Crisis • May 8, 1963 • On Buddha’s birthday, Diem banned the display of religious flags • Buddhists raised their prayer flags to celebrate anyway • Diem orders RVN troops to disperse the crowd

  48. Buddhist Prayer Flags

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