US History 3/21/12 Mrs. Housenick The Vietnam War US History 3/21/12 Mrs. Housenick

Origins of the Vietnam War French controlled Vietnam since 1800s After World War II, Vietnamese push for independence Lead by Ho Chi Minh--wanted Vietnam to be independent and communist US supports French We don’t want communism to spread Want to protect our investments in Vietnam

The Division of Vietnam 1954: Vietnamese kick French out, gain independence Vietnam divided North Vietnam Communist--lead by Ho Chi Minh South Vietnam Democratic--supported by US US gives money to South Vietnamese, begin to send “military advisors” to help

The Domino Theory and US Containment in Vietnam Eisenhower’s Domino Theory Was a continuation of Truman’s policy of containment Eisenhower believed we must contain Communism in Vietnam, or all of Asia would fall 1960s: North Vietnamese begin to send Vietcong--communist rebels into South Vietnam to make them communist US increases military involvement in South Vietnam to contain communism to North

The Gulf of Tonkin Incident and Increase in US Involvement 1964: US spy boat off coast of North Vietnam clashed with Communist patrol boats Unclear whether US provoked attack or what exactly happened The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution--Congress gave President Johnson power to take any necessary action to defend South Vietnamese from Communists Johnson sends 500,000 troops into Vietnam JOHNSON MOST RESPONSIBLE FOR ESCALATING WAR IN VIETNAM!

An Impossible War Fighting in Vietnam unlike anything US troops had experienced Wet, dense terrain made movement difficult Vietcong (VC) used guerilla tactics to ward off US troops VC had miles of underground tunnels and bunkers to dart in and out of

Credibility Gap and Unpopularity of War Throughout 1960s, politicians kept saying we were about to win in Vietnam 1968: Tet Offensive--massive attack by North Vietnamese on US troops in South Showed US government wasn’t being honest about how strong enemy still was 1969: My Lai Massacre--news got out of American invasion of South Vietnamese village, where our soldiers killed 200 women, children and old men

Credibility Gap and Unpopularity of War ctnd. Americans begin to feel there is a credibility gap between what the government is saying about the war and what is really going on Made worse when secret government documents called Pentagon Papers published in NY Times--showed history of government lies Many begin to question, “what are we fighting for?” War is so unpopular, President Johnson decides not to run again for president

Nixon and Vietnamization 1968: Nixon becomes President, wanted to end war honorably Introduced Vietnamization--plan to pull out US soldiers, have South Vietnamese fight communists on own US did begin to pull troops out of South throughout 1970s Also passed War Powers Act—requires president to get Congress’s approval within 60 days of military action.

The End of the War 1973: Cease fire declared US begins massive pull out of any remaining troops As we were leaving, North once again invaded South ALL OF VIETNAM BECAME COMMUNIST! First war US lost 57,000 Americans killed, 4 million Vietnamese