Chapter 25---The Vietnam War (1954-1975)



Chapter 25---The Vietnam War (1954-1975)

Chapter 25 Section 1---The United States Focuses on Vietnam

I. Early American Involvement in Vietnam (pp. 772-774)

A. Ho Chi Minh—Leader of the Vietnamese Communist

1. Vietminh—Nationalists group of Communists & non-communists to force Japan out in 1941

2. 1945—declared Vietnam an independent nation after WWII

3. France declared Vietnam as part of their colonial empire

a. U.S. supported the French because they did not want to see Vietnam fall to Communism

b. Truman’s support came as a result of 2 events:

1. Fall of China to Communism

2. Outbreak of the Korean War

c. Eisenhower’s Domino Theory—Belief if Vietnam fell to Communism, other nations in Southeast Asia would follow

4. 1945-1954—Vietnam v. France

II. The Vietminh Drive Out the French (pp. 774-775)

A. French struggled with the Vietnam because the Vietnamese used:

1. guerilla tactics (irregular troops who blend into civilian population

2. used hit-and-run and ambush tactics

B. Dien Bien Phu (May 7, 1954)

1. Vietminh defeat the French & force them to withdraw from Indochina

C. Geneva Accords (1954)

1. French Indochina divided into 3 nations—Vietnam, Laos, & Cambodia

2. Vietnam divided at the 17th Parallel

a. North—Communist—Ho Chi Minh

b. South—Pro Western (Democracy)—Ngo Dinh Diem

3. 1956 Elections held to unite the country under a single government

a. Elections never held because fear was that the Communists would win

b. Eisenhower increased American military & economic aid

Chapter 25 Section 2---Going to War in Vietnam

I. American Involvement Deepens (pp. 776-778)

A. Vietcong—South Vietnamese Communist Guerillas

1. Goal: Reunify North & South Vietnam

B. President Diem was an unpopular leader of South Vietnam because:

1. his government was corrupt

2. he created strategic hamlets ( villages protected by machine guns, bunkers, trenches, & barbed wire)

a. Villagers moved here to protect them from the Vietcong & to prevent them from giving aid to the Vietcong

3. he discriminated against Buddhism

1 November 1, 1963---Diem overthrown by a Military Coup

4. Made the U.S. get more involved in Vietnam because the new S. Vietnamese government was very weak

5. President Kennedy killed 3 weeks later

II. Johnson and Vietnam (pp. 778-779)

A. August 7, 1964—Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

1. Authorized the President to take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack on U.S. forces

2. Congress gave up its power to declare war to the President

2 Feb. 1965---Operation Rolling Thunder

3. Bombing of North Vietnam

4. President Johnson’s popularity went up from 41% to 60%

III. A Bloody Stalemate Emerges (pp. 779-781)

A. Vietcong used ambushes, booby traps, & guerrilla tactics

B. United States used:

1. “search & destroy “ missions---find enemy troops, bomb their positions, destroy their supply lines, & force them out into the open for combat

2. Napalm—jellied gasoline that explodes on contact

3. Agent Orange—chemical that strips leaves from trees & shrubs

C. Vietcong were very determined to succeed:

1. U.S. underestimated the VC’s strength, stamina, & morale

D. President Johnson refused :

1. a full invasion of North Vietnam because he feared China would enter the war

2. to allow a full scale attack on the Ho Chi Minh Trail (VC’s supply line)

E. As American casualties increased, many American citizens began questioning the U.S. involvement in the war

Chapter 25 Section 3----Vietnam Divides the Nation

I. A Growing Credibility Gap (pp. 784-785)

A. What the government was saying about the war was not what the people interpreted after seeing reports on the television (Credibility Gap)

II. An Antiwar Movement Emerges (pp. 785-787)

A. College students began to publicly protest the war

B. March 1965—Teach-in—University of Michigan

1. informally discussed issues of the war and why they opposed it

2. Impact: triggered tech-ins at many college campuses

1 Protests focused on what many felt was an unfair Draft system

1. College students could delay military service until graduation

2. Low income & limited education people were called to serve

a. Result: Minorities were called to war

3. Impact:

a. College students burned their draft cards & refused to go

b. Many moved to Canada (draft dodgers)

c. 1969—Lottery System introduced

d. 1971—26th Amendment—Voting age reduced to 18 years old

2 Hawks v. Doves

3. Hawks—supported the war

4. Doves—wanted the U.S. to withdraw from the war

III. 1968: The Pivotal Year (pp. 787-789)

A. Tet Offensive (Jan. 30, 1968)

1. VC & North Vietnamese attack South Vietnam’s major cities & American airbases

2. Result:

a. Militarily: North Vietnam & VC lost 40,000 men

b. Politically/ Psychologically—Great victory for North Vietnam & the VC

c. President Johnson’s approval rating plummeted

B. President Johnson with drew from the Presidential Race (March 31, 1968)

C. April 4, 1968—Dr. Martin Luther King, r. assassinated

D. June 5, 1968—Robert F. Kennedy assassinated by Sirhan Sirhan

E. August 1968—Democratic National Convention (Chicago)

1. Hubert Humphrey—Democratic Candidate for President

2. Riots in the streets between police & protestors

F. November 1968---Republican Richard Nixon defeats Democrat Hubert Humphrey

1. Vows to restore order &end the war in Vietnam

Chapter 25 Section 4---The War Winds Down

I. Nixon Moves to End the War (pp. 790-791)

A. Vietnamization---gradual withdrawal of American troops in Vietnam, allowing South Vietnam to assume more of the fighting

B. Henry Kissinger (special assistant for national security affairs) given authority to find a way to end the Vietnam War

1. Linkage—improve relations with China & Soviet Union (Suppliers of aid to North Vietnam)

2. August 1969—Peace talks in Paris with Le Duc Tho

II. Turmoil at Home Continues (pp. 791-792)

A. My Lai Massacre

1. Lt. William Calley & his platoon killed over 200 unarmed South Vietnamese civilians (old men, women & children)

1 April 1970—U.S. invaded Cambodia to destroy VC military bases

2. May 4, 1970—Kent State Riots—4 killed & 9 wounded

3. May 14, 1970—Jackson State—2 Black students killed

2 December 1970—Congress repealed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

D. 1971—Pentagon Papers (Daniel Ellsberg)

4. revealed that many government officials had privately questioned the war while publicly defending it

5. showed how the various administrations deceived the public about Vietnam

III. The United States Pulls Out of Vietnam (pp. 792-793)

A. By 1971, 2/3rd of the Americans wanted to end the Vietnam War

B. October 1972—Kissinger announced that “Peace was at Hand”

C. Peace negotiations broke down when South Vietnam’s Nguyen Van Thieu refused any plan that left North Vietnamese troops in South Vietnam

D. December 1972—U.S. goes on a “Christmas Bombing” raid for 11 straight days

E. January 27, 1973—Peace treaty signed

1. U.S. promised to withdraw the rest of their troops

2. Both sides agreed to an exchange of prisoners of war

F. March 1975—North Vietnam launches a full scale invasion on South Vietnam

G. April 30, 1975—North Vietnam captured Saigon & renamed it Ho Chi Minh City

IV. The Legacy of Vietnam (pp. 793-794)

A. The Vietnam War costs $150 Billion & resulted in 58,000 deaths

B. B. Many soldiers faced psychological problems & some families were left uncertain about POWs & MIAS

C. War Powers Act (1973)

1. required the President to inform Congress of any commitment of troops abroad within 48 hours & to withdraw them in 60 days unless Congress approved the troop commitment

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