THE UNITED STATES & VIETNAMhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ur9qVP2As3Y

Before WWII Vietnam was part of the French empire

During WWII Vietnam was overrun by the Japanese

After WWII France was given back control of South Vietnam, but North Vietnam formed its own government, led by Ho Chi Minh

The Situation

Ho Chi Minh (1890-1969)

The French in Vietnam

In 1946, the French began to reclaim North Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh and his Viet Minh guerillas fought to retain their independence

Growing opposition to French control

The French in Vietnam

By 1950, the Viet Minh were supported by China and the Soviet Union

In late 1953, French troops sent into Dien Bien Phu were defeated by the Viet Minh’s guerilla tactics

France left Vietnam in 1954 http://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=tG3mifrpGp0&feature=related

Viet Minh Dien Bien Phu

The Geneva Peace Accords (1954)

Vietnam split at the 17th Parallel with pressure from the USSR & US

Ngo Dinh Diem was given charge of South Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh was given charge of North Vietnam

Friction between the North and South

US supported Ngo Dinh Diem who opposed communism but ruled as a dictator

The North Vietnamese, supported by China and the Soviet Union, spread communism to their oppressed neighbors to the South

Friction between the North and South

In 1956, the Viet Minh formed the North Vietnamese Army and fought in the South

The Viet Cong, South Vietnamese communists, used guerilla warfare in the South

America’s Domino Theory The US wanted to contain communism

in North Vietnam, fearing its spread to the South then to surrounding nations

The US sent increasing numbers of special forces to train the South Vietnamese to fight the Viet Cong

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_RL7vwl_T4&feature=endscreen&NR=1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QP9QDRDLw6c

America steps up its involvement In 1963, Diem was overthrown and

killed by the South Vietnamese army In 1964, an American destroyer was

attacked by North Vietnamese gunboats in the Gulf of Tonkin

America steps up its involvement The US Congress passed the Gulf of

Tonkin Resolution which allowed the president to take "all necessary steps" to protect the United States and its allies

No formal declaration of war was ever made

Peak American Involvement

At the war’s peak, 500,000 American troops were stationed in Vietnam

American troops tended to be drafted and were trained conventionally Draftees were typically from low-income families,

unable to get deferments for going to college http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HO06__Z_So

Peak American Involvement

Viet Cong continued to use guerilla warfare Shoot and run Booby traps Blend in with the civilian population

1968 Tet Offensive – VC changed strategies and attacked directly Sparks massive American protests and causes LBJ to

not seek reelection

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqQGQwBi5ag

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_Sji9OhAuI

Tet Offensive (1968)

Changing American Strategy and Attitudes

Nixon wins election in 1968 hoping for “peace with honor”

Vietnamization: training and equipping South Vietnamese to assume combat role in place of Americans Gradual reductions in US troop numbers from

1969 to 1973

Invasion of Cambodia: wanting to prevent attacks by North Vietnamese on South Vietnam from neighboring Cambodia

Restarts mass protests against war effort, including deadly protests at Kent State

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pr-zRI7Gu-U&feature=related

Renewed shifts of opinion against the war Congress revokes authority of

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution Pentagon Papers: excerpts of

Defense Dept. documents showing govt. justifications by war published by New York Times in 1971

My Lai Massacre: killing of over 300 unarmed South Vietnamese civilians, with military personnel put on trial

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3wKQLE7nks

End of American Involvement and the Fall of Saigon Negotiations restart in 1972,

Nixon drops demands for full North Vietnamese withdrawal

Both secret and public negotiations near completion before the 1972 election, then break down

Christmas bombings: massive bombing of North Vietnamese cities in late December 1972

Paris Accords: peace agreement reached on January 27, 1973 Cease fire between North and South

Vietnam Return of American POWs

North Vietnamese launch attack on South Vietnam in March 1975 with no American intervention Saigon, the capitol of Vietnam

was captured and renamed Ho Chi Minh City in 1975

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3AiyFF9qOls