m





  










  !"#
 O



 
r France controlled ´Indochinaµ since
the late 19th century

r Japan took control during World

War II

r With U.S. aid, France attempted

re-
re-colonization in the postwar
period
 O



 
r mhe French lost control to
Ho Chi Minh·s Viet Minh
forces in 1954 at Dien Bien
Phu

r President Eisenhower declined to

intervene on behalf of France.
 O



 
r International Conference at
Geneva
r Vietnam was divided at 17th
parallel
Œ Ho Chi Minh·s nationalist
forces controlled the North
ΠNgo Dinh Diem,
Diem, a French-
French-
educated, Roman Catholic
claimed control of the
South
 O



 

r u date was set for democratic

elections to reunify Vietnam

r Diem backed out of the

elections, leading to military
conflict between North and
South
 ½



O
r Repressive dictatorial rule by Diem
r Diem·s family holds all power
r Wealth is hoarded by the elite
r Buddhist majority persecuted
r morture, lack of political freedom
prevail

r mhe U.S. aided Diem·s government

r Ike sent financial and military aid
r 675 U.S. urmy advisors sent by 1960.
 0  

 
 

Self-
Self-Emolation by a Buddhist Monk
 ½



O
r èennedy elected 1960
r Increases military ´advisorsµ to
16,000
r 1963: JFè supports a
Vietnamese military coup d·etat ²
Diem and his brother are
murdered (Nov. 2)
r èennedy was assassinated just
weeks later (Nov. 22)
 ¦

 

r Remembers mruman·s ´lossµ
of China r Domino mheory
revived

I·m not going to be

the president who
saw Southeast Asia
go the way China
went.
 ¦

 

r udvised to rout the communists
by Secretary of Defense,
Robert S. McNamara
r monkin Gulf Incident r 1964
(acc. to Johnson, the attacks were
unprovoked)
r monkin Gulf Resolution
r ´mhe Blank Checkµ *
 ½



 
 
ÑÑ
ÑÑÑ

ÑÑ
ÑÑÑ

ÑÑ
ÑÑÑ

  ÑÑ
ÑÑÑ

ÑÑ
ÑÑÑ

ÑÑ
ÑÑÑ

Ñ
      
   
 !"# !$
r No territorial goals
r Body counts on m every night
(first ´living roomµ war)
war)

r iet Cong supplies over the

Ho Chi Minh mrail
  % 
 !"# !$
r 1965: Sustained bombing of North ietnam
r Operation Rolling mhunder (March 2, 1965)

r 1966-68: Ongoing bombing of Hanoi

1966-
nonstop for 3 years! Esp. targets the
Ho Chi Minh mrail.
mrail.
r Downed Pilots: P.O.W.s
r Carpet Bombing ² napalm
  % &
% '   %


  

0(
r ietcong:
ietcong
r Farmers by day; guerillas at
night.
r ery patient people willing to
accept many casualties.
r mhe US grossly underestimated
their resolve and their
resourcefulness.
mhe guerilla wins if he does not lose,
the conventional army loses if it does
not win. -- Mao Zedong
  

0(
   
 !"# !$
r General Westmoreland,
Westmoreland late
1967:

We can see the

´light at the end of the tunnel.µ
  
)*
¦    !$
r N. ietnamese urmy + iet Cong
attack South simultaneously (67,000
attack 100 cities, bases, and the US
embassy in Saigon)
r make every major southern city
r U.S. + uR N beat back the offensive
r iet Cong destroyed
r N. ietnamese army debilitated
r BUm
it·s seen as an umerican defeat
by the media
  

)*
¦  
 !$
 




)
r Domestic U.S. Reaction:
Disbelief, unger, Distrust of
Johnson udministration

r Hey, Hey LBJ! How

many kids did you
kill today?
Johnson·s
popularity
dropped in
1968 from
48% to 36%.
 




  
Johnson announces (March, 1968):

 shall not
seek, and  will
not accept, the
nomination of my
party for another
term as your
President.
 %
  
O
 
r Disproportionate representation of
poor people and minorities.
r Severe racial problems.
r Major drug
problems.
r Officers in combat
6 mo.; in rear
6 mo. Enlisted
men in combat for 12 mo.
 %  O


 0(
Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry

r Mylai Massacre,
Massacre, 1968
r 200
200--500 unarmed villagers

r Lt. William Calley,

Calley,
Platoon Leader
 %
# 




Columbia University
1967
u

* + +
,
 %
# 



Student Protestors
at Univ. of Cu
in Berkeley, 1968

Democratic Convention
in Chicago, 1968
a  ¦ -

Jane Fonda: mraitor?

 %
# 



r May 4, 1970
r 4 students
shot dead.
r 11 students
wounded

r Jackson State
University
r May 10, 1970
r 2 dead; 12
èent State University wounded
 '.  
 
r Nixon·s 1968 Campaign promised an
end to the war: Peace with Honor
r uppealed to the great
´Silent Majorityµ
r ietnamization
r Expansion of the
conflict r mhe ´Secret Warµ
r Cambodia
r Laos
r ugent Orange
(chemical defoliant)
 a
  *-
 /
r Former defense analyst Daniel Ellsberg
leaked govt. docs. regarding war efforts
during Johnson·s administration to the
New York mimes.
mimes.
r Docs.r Govt. misled Congress & umer. People
regarding its intentions in ietnam during
mid-
mid -1960s.
r Primary reason for fighting not to

eliminate communism, but to avoid

humiliating defeat.
defeat.
r New York mimes v. United States (1971) *
  0 *
 /1
r 
 is
t h
 r èissig r, 1972
r North i t
m
tt
ks South
r Most
Mot M
iv U.S. bombig omm  

r 1973: C
 fir ig  b tw 

r U.S., South i t
m, & North i t
m

r 
 with hoor (r i t Nixo)

 

'



r US &
ietnamese
argue for
5 months
over the
size of the
conference
table!

Dr. Henry èissinger & Le Duc mho

  0 *
 /1
r Conditions:
1. U.S. to remove all troops
2. North ietnam could leave troops
already in S. .
3. North ietnam would resume war
4. No provision for POWs or MIus
r Last umerican troops left South
ietnam on March 29, 1973
r 1975: North ietnam defeats South
ietnam
r Saigon renamed Ho Chi Minh City
   


South ietnamese
uttempt to Flee the Country
    


uril 30, 1975

umerica ubandons Its Embassy

    



North ietnamese
at the Presidential Palace
 % ½
 
 

Formerly Saigon
  0

1. 3,000,000 ietnamese killed
2. 58,000 umericans killed;
300,000 wounded
3. Under
Under--funding of Great Society
programs
4. $150,000,000,000 in U.S.
spending
5. U.S. morale, self-
self-confidence,
trust of government, decimated
  

r 26th umendment
umendment:: 18-
18-year
year--olds vote
r Nixon abolished the draftr
all-
all -volunteer army
r War Powers uct, 1973 Ë
r President must notify Congress within 48
hours of deploying military force
r President must withdraw forces unless he
gains Congressional approval within 90
days
r Disregard for eterans r seen as
´baby killersµ
r POW/MIu issue lingered

 %
 ) 
2
 

a  
-

Senator John McCain

(R-
(R-uZ)
 2,583 umerican
POWs / MIus
still unaccounted for today.
 %

 03

Ho Chi Mih:
 w h
 to ight, w
ill ight. You ill kill
t  o our m 
  ill
kill o o your,
 i th  it
ill b you ho tir  o it.
 A
 

%
 

1. Wars must be of short duration.
2. Wars must yield few umerican
casualties.
3. Restrict media access to
battlefields.
4. Develop and maintain Congressional
and public support.
5. Set clear, winnable goals.
6. Set deadline for troop withdrawals.
  
 
 *

*  0
 
 ½



 

 
  
 ½

'  
 
"$*444
 President Clinton
formally recognized
ietnam on
July 11, 1995
   5

 *  (

mhi 

h
ut
u till!
 %' )%53
 67
-


8   


2003 to ?: ´Operation Iraqi Freedomµ

2400+ umerican dead and counting
?
counting
?
 unother
ietnam?
)2
u transformation of
the Middle East?

Only time & history

can tell!
 O9 
r Nash, Gary, et al. mhe Ameria
eole, Harer & Row, 1986
r Comto·s Eyloedia 2000
Deluxe, Broderbud, 1999.
r mhe Amerias, MDougal Littell,
1998
r A myriad of web sites o the
iteret