Vietnam

Vietnam

what are the factors for change in Vietnam

• role of government

• role of president

• role of science and technology

• role of warfare

• role of media

• role of ideology

• independence and freedom from empire

• role of economy

• attitudes in society and protests

when did the battle of Dien Bien Phu begin

13 Mar 1954

what were the two sides of Dien Bien Phu

Vietnamese (Vietminh) and French

cause of the battle of Dien Bien Phu

Vietnam was a French colony and wanted independence from them

when did France lose control of Vietnam

during WW2

why did France lose control of Vietnam

the Japanese occupied it and took control

what was the name of the Vietnamese force which was fighting for independence

Vietminh

who led the Vietminh

Ho Chi Minh

when did Ho Chi Minh announce Vietnamese freedom as an independent state

August 1945, when Japan surrendered in WW2

what was the name of the now independent Vietnam that Ho gave it

Democratic Republic of Vietnam

why did the French find it hard to sustain their influence over Vietnam after WW2

• they lost a lot of men and money due to war, meaning they couldn’t afford to keep it and didn’t have the men to keep control there

• Vietminh declared independence, meaning that public were less supportive of French control, meaning they won’t be accepting of them

what power did Ho want to help him secure Vietnam’s independence

USA

why were the USA reluctant to help the Vietnamese achieve independence

they were worried they would become independent as a communist country

why did USA not want Vietnam to become a communist country

this was during the Cold War, where the Truman Doctrine said that USA would do whatever possible to contain communism and didn’t want it to spread as this means the USSR is spreading, which they did not want

why was the USA interested in Vietnam

• worried Ho would make Vietnam communist

• China began trading with Vietnam

why were Russia and China interested in Vietnam

• wanted Vietnam to be their puppet state if they too were communist

• wanted them to be communist as this means their ideology would be spread and seen as superior if they were to defeat capitalist France and USA

• Russia wanted to use it as advantage in the Cold War (sphere of influence and bargaining chip with USA)
  victory for communism and would embarrass the USA on world stage

where did French troops march in Vietnam and why

the south, because support for Ho Chi Minh was weaker here

what did the French set up in the south of Vietnam and who was in charge

the State of Vietnam, ruled by Bao Dai (who they controlled)

what did the US do in response to the French invasion

sent the French supplies and military advisers

how much of the cost of Frances war were USA paying in 1954

80%

what was the French plan for Dien Bien Phu

to trick the Vietminh by building an airstrip at Dien Bien Phu, to lure them out to battle

how many troops did the French bring to Dien Bien Phu

15,000

did the French trick the Vietminh

no; they knew in advance

what was the Vietminh response to the French at Dien Bien Phu (number of troops and what they had with them)

50,000 Vietminh troops with anti-aircraft guns, and other artillery

how many troops did the Vietminh have in reserve at DBP

50,000

how many civilian workers did the Vietminh have at DBP

200,000

how long did the battle of DBP last

55 days

when did the French surrender to the Vietminh at DBP

7 May 1954

why did Eisenhower not send troops to the French at DBP despite them asking for them

Eisenhower felt that congress would refuse to send troops as the USA had just ended the Korean war with lots of troops lost

how many troops did the USA lose in the Korean War

34,000

what were the reasons that the Vietminh won at Dien Bien Phu

• local conditions

• local support

• chinese aidd

• Vietminh commitment

• French problems

what type of landscape did the battle of DBP happen on

mountain

how did the local conditions aid the Vietminh winning at DBP

• it was their country so they understood the landscape and how it worked

• saw the French had built a trap for them

• saw access to the mountains as possible and used the natural landscape to their advantage, allowing them to hide their troops and weapons

how did local support help the Vietminh win at DBP (what did they help them do)

• villagers helped them dig 5 new roads to move supplies

• helped move these supplies

• spied on the French for the Vietminh

• provided extra manpower to help Vietminh

what did the local support of the Vietminh show about French support for the war

showed that the whole nation was in favour of removing the French- unpopular with all

what did the Chinese supply Vietminh with to help win DBP

• weapons and ammunition

• bikes to move supplies

• help in planning

• some troops

how many bikes did the Chinese provide to the Vietminh to move supplies

20,000

how were the Vietminh committed to winning the battle of DBP

• Vietminh armhy worked day and night to build roads and move supplies

why was it in the Vietnamese interest to work hard to win DBP

they were fighting for their own personal independence from French rule so in their own interest to work hard and therefore encouraged them to keep going

what were the French problems that helped the Vietminh win DBP

• underestimated support for the Vietminh

• didn’t expect the Vietminh to be so well armed and prepared

• supply planes shot down by Vietminh anti-aircraft guns

• troops lacked commitment

why did the French troops lack commitment when fighting DBP

many were Germans and not French so had no personal interest other than their own lives to fight hard, as this was not their colony or problem

when did the Geneva Accords begin

the day after French surrender (May 8 1954)

which countries were at, agreed on and signed the Geneva Accords

• Cambodia

• China

• France

• Laos

• UK

• USA

• USSR

• North Vietnam

• South Vietnam

when was the Geneva Accords agreed

21 July 1954

what was decided in the Geneva Accords

• Vietnam temporarily divided with DMZ in between

• Ho Chi Minh will run the north from Hanoi

• Bao Dai would run the south (state of Vietnam) from Saigon

• Viet troops and people could move between north and south for a bit of time after the agreement

• no foreign troops could set up bases in either

• elections would be held across N and S Vietnam to declare and choose a gov to unite the country

what parallel was Vietnam divided along

17th

was N or S Vietnam bigger

south

who ruled S Vietnam after Bao Dai

Ngo Dinh Diem (made PM)

when did Ngo Dinh Diem made PM

June 1954

where did Bao Dai go after being kicked out as leader of S Vietnam

France

how many days could Vietnamese people move between north and south after the agreement

300 days

who would supervise the Vietnamese elections for unification

international observers

when would elections for a unified Vietnam be held

July 1956

who refused to obey the Geneva Accords and why

USA and S Vietnam as they knew that a communist leader would be elected in the elections which USA could not have due to Cold War and containment

what did N Vietnam disagree with in the Geneva Accords

• wanted to divide at the 13th parallel

• hold elections in 6 months rather than 2 years later

who supported N Vietnam’s disagreement

China

what did Eisenhower send to Vietnam after the Geneva Accords despite being able to end support there

more US aid

what is the domino theory

the fear of other countries in SE Asia also becoming communist if Vietnam does first

why was the Domino theory particularly worrying for the USA

China had become communist in 1949 and had lots of influences over SE Asian countries

what organisation did Eisenhower set up in SE Asia

SEATO (South East Asia Treaty Organisation)

when did Eisenhower set up SEATO

September 1954

what other countries were involved in setting up SEATO

UK, France, Thailand and more

what did SEATO agree to work together to do

act together to stop the spread of communism, with force if necessary

was Diem’s gov in S Vietnam a good one

no; did not have widespread support

what religion is Diem

catholic

why was Diem’s gov weak

• communists were in S Vietnam controlling some northern areas so didn’t like Diem’s anticommunist stance

• other religious, political and criminal groups had support and their own armies

• Diem favoured other catholics even though most of the country was not catholic

• Diem gave lots of jobs to his family and other catholics

• didn’t help villagers and didn’t make any reforms for their support

what religion was most of Vietnam

Buddhist

why did Diem not help the villagers

his government was Saigon (city) based and so had little respect for peasants in villages

who ran most S Vietnamese villages

corrupt officials or greedy landlords

how did Eisenhower support Diem

sending in more advisers to train the S Vietnamese army

what is the name of the S Vietnamese army

ARVN

what did the USA want the war to be like and involve at this point

• wanted ARVN to win control of S Vietnam

• limited war with no US troops

• did not want war with China or USSR as that might involve nuclear weapons

what did the previous leader of S Vietnam (Bao Dai) say about Diem

spoke out against him

when did Bao Dai speak out against Diem

October 1955

what did Diem do as a result of Bao Dai’s backlash to help him secure support and remove any threats

held a referendum to choose either him or Bao Dai as leader

who won the referendum to decide the S Vietnamese leader and why did people think this was the result

Diem did

US helped him run the election and many saw it as a fix

how did Diem change the government when he won the referendum

• said he was president instead of PM

• Vietnam now a republic

what did Diem do that the villagers disliked after winning the referendum

stopped villagers from selecting their own officials and put resented officials in charge

did Diem hold the elections decided in Geneva Accords

no

what was Diem’s argument for not holding the agreed upon elections at Geneva

his government hadn’t existed when the Geneva Accords were agreed so he did not have to obey them

why did the USA support Diem

they feared a communist government would be elected

what did Eisenhower then do to help Diem

more aid

what warnings were given to Eisenhower about giving Diem more aid

it would make S Vietnam dependent on the US

what was Diem increasingly becoming as time continued

less democratic

what was the US advisers argument as to why Diem should stay in power

that he needed to use force to stay in power and then he would make reforms and hold elections (but did not)

what did Diem do with the US aid and advice

• took the aid and money

• did not listen to the advice

what campaign did Diem then set up

a campaign against his opponents and arrested many of them

what did Diem urge people to do as part of his campaign

to report communists to the gov

what did the ARVN do as part of Diem’s campaign

sent to find and arrest communists

how many communists did ARVN arrest

65,000

how many communists did the ARVN kill

2,000

what did the remaining communists do in response to Diem’s eradication of them

fought back against the ARVN and local officials, killing many

how many officials had been killed by March 1958

over 4000

what was the name for the various groups that fought against Diem

Vietcong- Vietnamese Communists

what did the N Vietnamese hope that the VC would do

bring about a revolution

what did the N Vietnamese with China’s support do as a result of there being no revolution

sent troops along the Ho Chi Minh Trail

when did the N Viet’s send troops along the HCM Trail

May 1959

what did the N Vietnamese troops do when in S Vietnam

• trained VC

• fought alongside them

what was the name of the group formed when VC joined with other anti-Diem groups

National Liberation Front (NLF)

when was NLF founded

November 1960