US History Vietnam War

Teri Klein

Main reason for U.S. involvement in Vietnam

To stop the spread of communism

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

Gave the president power to send troops without declaring war

Buddhist monks' protest against Diem's government

Set themselves on fire

Effect of TV coverage of the war

Turned public opinion against the war

Pentagon Papers

Government documents that showed the public had been lied to about the status of the war in Vietnam

Geneva Accords

Divided Vietnam at the 17th parallel into North and South. Elections to be held in 1956 for unified ruler of Vietnam.

Domino Theory

If one country falls to communism, others nearby will follow

U.S.-backed leader of South Vietnam

Ngo Dinh Diem

Communist leader of North Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh

War Powers Act

The president must get congressional approval for long-term military actions

1968 Democratic National Convention

Protests and violence broke out

Assassination during the 1968 presidential campaign

Robert F. Kennedy

After U.S. troops left Vietnam

North Vietnam took over and unified the country under communism

Chemical weapons used in Vietnam

Napalm and Agent Orange

Reason for fighting between North and South Vietnam

Because of Diem's harsh treatment of South Vietnamese people

U.S. fear if Vietnam became communist

Other Southeast Asian countries would also turn communist

U.S. soldiers' feelings during the war

South Vietnamese citizens didn't want their help

Difficulties for U.S. troops in Vietnam

Jungle terrain, traps, and guerrilla warfare

Reasons people protested the war

The draft, government spending, and anti-war beliefs

Counterculture movement

protest movement in the 1960s where young Americans rejected traditional American values and culture

Vietnamization

The U.S. plan to train and equip South Vietnamese to fight their own war and slowly withdraw our troops

Treatment of Vietnam veterans upon return

Ignored or mistreated

My Lai Massacre

1968, in which American troops had brutally massacred around 300-400 innocent civilians the village of My Lai, also led to more opposition to the war.

Saigon at the end of the war

It fell and was renamed Ho Chi Minh City

Capital of North Vietnam

Hanoi

SALT Treaty

Limited nuclear weapons between the U.S. and the Soviet Union

Example of détente

Nixon visited communist China and USSR

SALT Treaty

Watergate Scandal's effect on public trust

Made Americans more suspicious of political leaders

Hippies

Members of the youthful counterculture that dominated many college campuses in the 1960s; they challenged conventional standards, rejected traditional values, and experimented the use of drugs.

26th Amendment

Lowered the voting age to 18

Gulf of Tonkin Incident

Alleged attack of US ships by North Vietnamese torpedoes in the Tonkin Gulf on August 4, 1964. Prompted the escalation of the War in Vietnam.

Led to Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

Woodstock Festival

1969 music festival attended by four hundred thousand young people in 1969 to celebrate their vision of freedom, peace, unity, and rejection of war

Détente

A policy of reducing Cold War tensions that was adopted by the United States during the presidency of Richard Nixon.

Kent State Shootings (1970)

The Ohio National Guard shot into a crowd of students protesting American involvement in Cambodia, killing four and wounding nine.

Viet Cong

A Communist-led army and guerrilla force in South Vietnam that fought its government and was supported by North Vietnam.

Ngo Dinh Diem's Downfall

South Vietnamese president that was catholic and strongly opposed communism. His poor leadership and corrupt government spelled doom

Saigon

Captial of South Vietnam, capture of this city marks the conclusion of the war in 1975

SEATO

Southeast Asia Treaty Organization to send more aid and advisors to Asian countries

Hawk and Dove

Americans: Hawks wanted to increase military force and send more troops into Vietnam to win the war. Doves wanted the troops to be withdrawn and settle the war with peace.

Operation Rolling Thunder

bombing campaign over North Vietnam, supposed to weaken enemy's ability and will to fight

Guerilla Warfare in Vietnam

Military strategy of North Vietnam against US. Meant to terrorize enemy. Included:

• Hit and Run

• Underground Tunnels

• Land Mines

• Booby Traps

• hiding among civilians

• child soldiers

Ho Chi Minh Trail

A supply route used to carry troops and supplies from North Vietnam to South Vietnam. The US tried to destroy it with multiple failed attempts

Tunnel Rats

US soldiers who cleared out Viet Cong tunnels

What was used extensively by the US in Vietnam?

Helicopters

Tet Offensive

1968, during Tet, the Vietnam lunar new year - Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army raiding forces attacked provincial capitals throughout American controlled cities and places Vietnam. U.S. opinion began turning against the war.

draft dodging

The active and illegal ways to get out of military service; a.k.a. draft evasion.

• leaving country, burning draft cards, refusing to serve

Teach ins

University students and teachers who taught classes on the Vietnam war and protested against its expansion

President Nixon

US President who created "Vietnamization" and began to take troops out of Vietnam

Paris Peace Accords 1973

This intended to establish peace in Vietnam and an end to the Vietnam War. It ended direct U.S. military combat, and temporarily stopped the fighting between North and South Vietnam.

Henry Kissinger (Vietnam)

negotiated the cease-fire and treaty in Vietnam and pushed for the bombing of North Vietnam and Cambodia

Pardon

legal forgiveness of a crime

Watergate Scandal

A political scandal in the 1970s involving a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters by Nixon's campaign workers. Nixon attempted to cover up the crime, leading to investigations, his resignation in 1974, and a subsequent pardon by his successor, Gerald Ford.

Silent Majority

A term used by President Nixon to refer to Americans who supported his ideas but didn't speak out publicly. He used this term to describe people who were quiet during protests

Challenges of Soldiers during Vietnam

Soldiers faced harsh environments, guerrilla warfare, unclear goals, mental stress (including PTSD), difficult terrain, and hostile public opinion upon returning home. These challenges made the war difficult and complex for those who served.

Stagflation

a period of slow economic growth and high unemployment (stagnation) while prices rise (inflation)

Hard Hat Riots - 1970

• 200 construction workers demonstrated in favour of Nixon's policies

• Construction workers joined by hundreds of others + attacked anti-war demonstrators in NYC