1. Ch. 23 The War in Vietnam
Section 1: Background to Conflict
Section 2: US Involvement & Escalation
Info from American Nation textvook: Fighting photo: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/Bruce_Crandall
Boyer, Paul S., Sterling Stuckey, and Rinehart
Holt. "Vietnam War." The American nation: Civil
%27s_UH-1D.jpg/300px-Bruce_Crandall%27s_UH-1D.jpg
War to present. Annotated teacher's ed. Austin, Map photo: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/HoCMT.png/220px-
Tex.: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2001. Ch23. HoCMT.png
Print.

2. Causes of the War
 Vietnam's desire for freedom : After WWII, France reclaimed Vietnam as
a colony. The Communist Vietminh fought against the French.
 The Domino Theory : The U.S. believed if the Communists took over
Vietnam, communism would spread throughout Southeast Asia.
 South Vietnam fails to comply with Geneva Accords : After French rule
ended in 1954, elections to unify Vietnam under one rule were set for
1956. However, the leader of South Vietnam refused to hold them.
 North Vietnam attempts to unite country under Communist rule : In
1959, North Vietnam began sending weapons to Vietminh in the south in
hopes of uniting the country under Communist rule.
 U.S. supports anti-communist South Vietnam : The United States began
to send South Vietnam military advisers and troops.

3. French Rule in Vietnam
 Vietnam had been a French colony
for almost a 100 years.
 During WWII Japan invaded
Vietnam and took it over.
 After WWII the French attempted to
regain control over Vietnam but was
met with resistance from Ho Chi
Minh, a communist leader of the
Vietminh, also called the
Vietnamese Nationalists.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/Ho_Chi
_Minh_1946_cropped.jpg

4. French vs. Vietminh
 The Vietminh were based in the north and fought against
the French who were based in the south.
 The U.S. backed the French with money and supplies
because Eisenhower feared domino theory.
 The French were ousted out of Vietnam in May 1954 when
they were overran at Dien Bien Phu.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ae/Domino_theory.svg/
586px-Domino_theory.svg.png
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/24/Dien_Bien_P
hu002.jpg/800px-Dien_Bien_Phu002.jpg

5. Geneva Accords
 The Vietminh and Vietnamese nationalists (non-
communists) negotiated the Geneva Accords:
 temporarily split Vietnam at the 17th parallel
 planned a national election in 1956 to determine the
government of Vietnam
 The Vietminh (communist) were based in the north while
the Nationalists (non-communist) were based in the
south.
 Ngo Dinh Diem, the president of South Vietnam,
canceled the elections; the US, afraid of the communists
gaining control of all of Vietnam, backed Diem.

6. Ho Chi Minh Trail
 Due to Diem’s harsh
government a communist rebel
group formed in South Vietnam
(Vietcong) to oppose Diem.
 Ho Chi Minh supported the
Vietcong by sending them
supplies along the Ho Chi
Minh Trail.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/th
umb/c/cd/HoCMT.png/365px-HoCMT.png

7. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/38/Th%C3%ADch_Qu%E1%BA%A3ng_%C4%90%E1%BB%A9c_self-immolation.jpg
Photo of a Buddhist monk setting himself on fire in public to
protest Diem’s government.
Even though Diem grew more and more unpopular in South
Vietnam the US continued to back him; until Nov. 1, 1963 a
US backed military coup executed him.

8. Vietnamese Leaders
 Ho Chi Minh  Ngo Dinh Diem
 Communist  Anti-communist
 North Vietnam  South Vietnam
 Totalitarian  Unpopular because
 Popular because he seen as corrupt, brutal
gave land to peasants and favored wealthy.
 Supported Viet Cong  Refused to partake in
in South Vietnam. 1956 nationwide
election.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/w http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi
ikipedia/commons/1/17/Ho_C a/commons/9/9b/Ngo_Dinh_Diem_-
hi_Minh_1946_cropped.jpg _Thumbnail_-_ARC_542189.gif

9. Gulf of Tonkin Incident
 In 1964 the U.S.S Destroyer Maddox was operating
in waters off the coast of North Vietnam and
reported being under attack.
 President Johnson took this opportunity to ask
Congress to give him the power to escalate the war in
Vietnam.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/USS_Maddox_%28DD-731%29.jpg 4/MaddoxTonkin1.svg/608px-MaddoxTonkin1.svg.png

10. Gulf of Tonkin Incident
Britannica Encylopndia, ‘Gulf of Tonkin Resolution’, from youtube.com on May 10, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2s_gxMn9ELY

11. Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
 Congress passed the Tonkin Gulf
Resolution on August 7, 1964; which
gave Johnson broad military powers
in Vietnam.
 With the advice of his advisors
Robert McNamara
Robert McNamara and Dean Rusk http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/Robert_McNamara_
official_portrait.jpg/480px-Robert_McNamara_official_portrait.jpg
president Johnson decided to
escalate the war and began sending
large numbers of American troops to
Vietnam.
The 3 men together
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a5/Dean_Rusk
%2C_Lyndon_B._Johnson_and_Robert_McNamara_in_Cabinet_Room_meeting_February_1968.jpg
/250px-Dean_Rusk
%2C_Lyndon_B._Johnson_and_Robert_McNamara_in_Cabinet_Room_meeting_February_1968.jpg

12. The war escalates…
 In 1965, over 61% of Americans
favored escalation of the war and by
the end of 1965 180,000 US soldiers
were in Vietnam
 General William Westmoreland,
leader of American forces in Vietnam,
was unimpressed by the South
Vietnamese allies and continually
asked for more troops.
 By 1967 there were over 500,000 US
soldiers in Vietnam. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/t
humb/9/94/Gen_William_C_Westmoreland.jpg/4
80px-Gen_William_C_Westmoreland.jpg

13. U.S. Involvement in Vietnam:
• Domino Theory; aided French forces at regaining control after
WWII.
Eisenhower
• Began sending money and weapons to South Vietnam
• Military advisors sent to train South Vietnamese army
• Believed in the Domino Theory
• Increased the number of military advisors and army special forces,
Kennedy or Green Berets
• Advisors were not to take part in combat, but many did
• Believed an expanded U.S. effort was the only way to prevent a
Johnson Communist victory in Vietnam
• Asked Congress to pass the Tonkin Gulf Resolution
• Escalated war by sending more troops

14. War in the Jungle
 The US believed its superior weaponry
would lead to victory in Vietnam but the
jungle terrain and guerrilla tactics used
by the enemy turned the war into a
frustrating stalemate.
 They used booby traps, land mines and
even American weapons against them.
 The Vietcong used hit-and-run tactics
and were interspersed amongst the
civilian population making it hard for http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/
110612-M-EV637-065.jpg/800px-110612-M-EV637-065.jpg
American’s to determine friend from foe.

15. Tunnels
 The Vietcong added to
their elusiveness by
constructing elaborate
tunnels that they could
use to launch surprise
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/VietnamCuChiTunnelstrapopen.jpg
attacks and then quickly
disappear. They could
eat, sleep, store
weapons, and treat
their wounded in the
tunnels.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ad/Tunnel_rats.jpg/476px-Tunnel_rats.jpg

16. Tunnel Rats and VC tunnels
wwww.Militaryvideo.com, ‘’Tunnel Rats in Vietnam War’’, from youtube.com on May 10, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6ZbPqvfvBI

17. U.S. weaponry and techniques
 Westmoreland believed that the superior weapons and
manpower the US possessed would make the
communists crumble. The communists continued to suffer
and resist and were willing to fight to the last to obtain
their freedom.
 Americans also tried to win the “hearts and minds” of
the rural population but their tactics to combat the
Vietcong included the use of napalm and Agent
Orange which left the countryside in ruins.
 US soldiers also conducted Search-and-Destroy missions
which destroyed villages suspected of ties to the
Vietcong.

18. Napalm
A gasoline based bomb that set fire to the jungle
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/d/d4/TrangBang.jpg/220px-TrangBang.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/French_indochina_napalm_1953-12_1.png

19. Agent Orange
 a chemical
defoliant used
by the US.
 It was later
found to be
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1f/US-Huey-helicopter-spraying-Agent-Orange-in-Vietnam.jpg/800px-US-
Huey-helicopter-spraying-Agent-Orange-in-Vietnam.jpg
toxic and to
cause many
deaths and birth
defects.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/60/Agent-Orange-dioxin-skin-damage-Vietnam.jpg

20. Search & Destroy Mission
Click the Link Below to watch a movie on Search and Destroy missions in Vietnam:
http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/videos#search-and-destroy
“Search and Destroy.” 2012. The History Channel website. May 10 2012, 6:44
http://www.history.com/videos/search-and-destroy.

21. The Soldiers
 As the war continues soldiers became disillusioned with the
war effort and morale declined a lot.
 Many soldiers turned to alcohol, marijuana, or other drugs
 Some soldiers even resorted to “fragging” their superior
officers.
 killing
them in the heat of the battle with a fragmentation
grenade.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/02/Chec
king_house_during_patrol.jpg

22. The Early War at Home
 The high cost of the war led to a decline in the economy
and the lack of funds to continue the Great Society
programs President Johnson had initiated.
 Johnson and military personnel continually told the
American public that the war was going well. A
credibility gap developed between what Johnson said
about the war and what the public began to believe
based on the gruesome images of US soldiers in body
bags that they saw on the nightly news.

23. Ch 22 Sec 1&2 Assignment
 Take out a sheet of paper and answer the following:
 1. Evaluate why you believe soldier morale dropped steadily
as the Vietnam War dragged on. Use 3 specific examples
from Ch 22 Sec 1&2 to back up your argument.
 2. Assess the United States military tactics in fighting the
Vietnam War. What could they have done differently?