Notes
Background to the Vietnam War
- Originally a French colony (Indochina)
- Ho Chi Minh and his communist supporters resisted Japanese occupation during WWII
- After WWII the French reoccupied
- Ho Chi Minh fought the French and defeated them in 1954 (Dien Bien Phu)
- Laos, Cambodia granted independence
- Vietnam divided along the 17th parallel
- South Vietnam was led by a Catholic named Ngo Dinh Diem
- The mainly Buddhist south had opposition in the form of the National Liberation Front (NLF) and the Viet Cong (a guerrilla force)
- The North (Ho Chi Minh) supported both of these groups
- The north never accepted the Geneva agreement of 1954
- U.S. saw this as another situation in which containment was necessary (SEATO)
- The U.S. had supported the French (military advisors)
- Kennedy increased troops in 1962 from 500-10,000
- CIA overthrows Diem in 1963 (corruptness)
- Offensive launched by the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) in 1968
- Surprises Americans
- Is played up as a major victory for the North although very little is achieved
- Public relations victory
- Anti-war demonstrations increase as a result
- A fabricated incident was set up; an American destroyer (USS Maddox) was torpedoed
- Led President Johnson to install the Tonkin Gulf Resolution
- Lead to the commitment of regular ground troops and air support
- 200,000 troops in 1965 - 600,000 in 1968
- The National Liberation Front (NLF) supported by the North
- Sent supplies on a route from the north through Cambodia, Laos and behind lines into south Vietnam
- The U.S. refused to fight on Cambodia or Laotian territory so supplies remained safe
Summary
American lost the Vietnam War (a media war). North Vietnam was communist, and the south was democratic; therefore, the Americans supported the south. America joined the war because SEATO, and sent in military advisers (don't fight) to make sure the south doesn't become communist. President Johnson (current US president) got involved in the war and sent in troops all due to The Gulf of Tonkin Incident, in 1964. In 1968, the North Vietnamese army attacked the Americans right before they were about to leave, and they filmed this; eventually, it was showed in USA which changed peoples thoughts about their own government.
Quote
"No event in American history is more misunderstood than the Vietnam War. It was misreported then, and it is misremembered now." - Richard Nixon
Subjunctive Question
What would of occurred if the domino theory did happen? Would of there been a bigger war?