The Vietnam War grew out of Vietnam's long history as a French colony. After World War 2, Vietnam was divided into a communist North and democratic South. The US backed South Vietnam in an attempt to contain communism, believing that if South Vietnam fell, other countries would too. Despite US bombing campaigns and search/destroy missions that caused massive casualties, the Viet Cong waged a successful guerrilla war. US involvement became increasingly unpopular as the war dragged on. Ultimately, the US was unable to stop the communist takeover and North Vietnam reunified the country in 1975.

1. The Vietnam War

2. Vietnam War
• The Vietnam War grew
out of the long conflict
between France and
Vietnam.
• Vietnam had long been a
colony of France
• Japan invaded during
world war II
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3. • Following the defeat of Japan
in ww2, France again took
control until the communists
rebels succeeded in taking
over the country
• However, France managed
push the communists north
following a bloody conflict.
• A truce was finally and
Vietnam was split into
communist north and
democratic south

4. Ho Chi Minh
• He was the leader of the
communist groups in
Vietnam called the Vietminh
and Vietcong.
• He wanted Vietnam to rule
itself and be communist
• Communist China and
Russia sent money and arms
to Ho Chi Minh and the
Vietminh.

5. Build up to war
• After Vietnam was split into North and South elections
were meant to be held to decide who would rule the
country
• They didn’t go ahead in the South because the USA
thought Communism would win. Instead they backed
the unpopular leader Diem.
• This angered Ho Chi Minh who now tightened his grip
over North Vietnam. In 1957 he wanted to reunite
Vietnam using the Vietminh and Vietcong (South
Vietnam communist supporters) to attack the South
Vietnam Government and its supporters.

6. Why was the US involved in Vietnam
at all?
• They believed that Ho Chi Minh was communist
and due to “Communist Containment” and their
belief in the “Domino Theory”, Truman sent a few
military advisors, Eisenhower sent more.
• No president wanted to be the one to lose
against communism. Kennedy sent more advisors
and weapons to the South Vietnamese army who
didn’t want communism in their country.

7. The war itself up to 1963
• The communist Vietnamese were carrying out
a guerrilla war in the jungle and mountains.
• This didn’t suit the techniques of the US. He
agreed to have Diem killed as he was very
unpopular.

8. USA tactics in the War
• Operation Rolling Thunder
Bombing N. Vietnamese towns to destroy morale
• Search and Destroy
Looking for the Vietcong in villages. If Vietcong presence was
suspected, the village was destroyed
• Napalm
A fluid that burns through almost anything. The Americans hoped
it would hit Vietcong bases. In fact, it often hit civilians.
• Agent Orange
Chemical that destroyed crops and trees making it easier to fight
in the jungle. Attacked the human body and led to birth defects

9. Vietcong tactics
• Booby traps were cheap and effective
• Aimed to kill and injure Americans
• Spikes covered in excrement
• Tunnel system
• Ho Chi Minh trail

10. Ho Chi Minh Trail
• A jungle path
• 60 tonnes a day carried to the Vietcong in the
south.
• Essential to Vietnamese Victory

11. The War in America
• The Vietnam War had a major impact on everyday life in
America as people became angry with the war.
• Since there were not enough volunteers to continue to
fight a protracted war, the government instituted a draft
(compulsory signing up)

12. Anti-War Protests
• Protests erupted on college campuses and in
major cities at first, but by 1968 every corner
of the country seemed to have felt the war's
impact.

13. Kent State
• At Kent State in Ohio, four students were killed
by National Guardsmen who were called out to
preserve order on campus after days of anti-
Nixon protest.

14. The Tet Offensive
• By 1968, things had gone from bad to worse for the
Johnson administration. In late January, North Vietnam
and the Vietcong launched coordinated attacks against
major southern cities.
• These attacks, known as the Tet Offensive, were
designed to force the Johnson administration to the
bargaining table.

15. A Secret Plan to End the War
• Negotiations began in the spring of 1968, but the
Democratic Party could not rescue the presidency from
Republican challenger Richard Nixon who claimed he had
a secret plan to end the war.
• Nixon's secret plan involved a process called
“Vietnamization.” This strategy brought American troops
home while increasing the air war over North Vietnam
and relying more on the South Vietnamese army for
ground attacks.

16. The Paris Peace Agreement
• In early January 1973, the Nixon White House
convinced South Vietnam that they would not abandon
them if they signed the peace accord.
• On January 23 an agreement was signed. The south
was to fall to communism within 3 years

17. Results of Vietnam war:
1. Massive death & destruction & returning veterans drug
problems
2. Huge cost of $112 bn – could have been much better spent
3. Communist Containment in ruins – Vietnam, Laos & Cambodia
are all soon communist
4. US military morale at low point & US wary of any international
involvement for next 20 years
5. Leaked Pentagon Papers showed just how much Johnson’s
administration had misled the public

18. The Fall to Communism
• From March 1973 until the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975,
the South Vietnamese army tried desperately to save the
South from political and military collapse.
• The end finally came when North Vietnamese tanks rolled
south along National Highway One.
• On the morning of April 30, Communist forces captured the
presidential palace in Saigon, ending the Vietnam War.