Indochina• 1800’s – French colonize Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam

France

• WWI and WWII – busy with wars so can’t hold on to colonies

• After WWI Vietnamese want self-determination but it isn’t granted

• Late 1930’s – the balance of power shifts and Japan takes over Vietnam

• During WWII Vietnam is held by the Japanese– after the war the Japanese pull out

• WWII ends• France wants Vietnam back

– French/Vietnamese clashes

• Japanese occupy Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia

• Japanese transfer power to Vietminh (North Vietnamese communist party)

1945

1946

• France reinstalls its colonial apparatus in Vietnam– Violates agreement to have referendum on

uniting Vietnam

• Negotiations with Ho Chi Minh, leader of the Vietminh, break down, and war between France and the Vietminh begins.

1949 1950

• Bao Dai, leader in exile from Vietnam, and the French President sign an agreement making Vietnam an “associated state” within the French Union.

• France retains control of Vietnam’s defense and finances.

• Ho Chi Minh declares the Democratic Republic of Vietnam the only legal government. Recognized by USSR and China. China provides weapons to Vietminh.

• Not surprisingly, US and Great Britain recognize Bao Dai’s government in South Vietnam.

1949 1950

South North

1950North Korea invades South Korea

Propping up Dominoes:President Truman grants $15 million in military aid to France for war in Indochina. Towards the war’s end, US is supplying up to 80% of France’s war needs.

1953France grants Laos full independence, and Vietminh forces push into Laos soon after.

1954

• French are defeated at Dien Bien Phu. Vietminh force France to leave North Vietnam, and Vietnam is partitioned.

In response to the French defeat, President Eisenhower outlined the Domino Theory

1954

The French pull out and

the US sends “advisors”

to train the southern armies

Who were these “advisors”?

1954• “Advisors” = gung-ho

military guys who want to fight– They lead a group into battle

and they’re fighting and there are casualties

• Letters sent home saying that they died in an accident but it was battle

• This is why some historians date the war’s beginning to 1954

• The name began appearing in Saigon newspapers in 1956

• U.S. soldiers referred to the Vietcong as Victor Charlie or V-C.

• "Charlie" referred to communist forces in general, both Vietcong and North Vietnamese.

Viet Cong

US builds airfields, begins bombing VC targets in South Vietnam

Airfields are attacked; US sends in Marines

and other troops to protect airfields.

Begin search and destroy missions to extend

perimeter and keep VC from infiltrating.

US takes over a larger and larger role in the war.

Keep in Mind

• World War II– clear objective

• get to Berlin

– soldiers as heroes

• Vietnam – at war for nearly 40 years

• 3 generations

– no clear objective– soldiers as “baby killers”

• We are “advising” form 1954 – 1965

• Deaths starting to pile up– The deaths are not legitimate

• How to explain them?

– We’re fighting a war but we haven’t declared war

1955• Diem defeats Bao Dai in rigged election

and proclaims himself President of Republic of Vietnam. US supports him.

Ngo Dinh Diem

1957

Communist insurgent activity in South Vietnam begins.

1959• North Vietnamese

begin infiltrating cadres and weapons into South Vietnam via the Ho Chi Minh Trail in Cambodia. – becomes a strategic

target for future military attacks

• Diem orders crackdown on communists, dissidents.

1962• US Air Force

begins using Agent Orange to expose roads and trails used by Vietcong forces – a defoliant that

came in metal orange containers

• Use of napalm is also widespread– incendiary mixture

Rows of Agent Orange containers ready to be sprayed over Vietnam (image obtained from the US National Archives).

Spraying agent orange

1962

• Diem palace bombed in coup attempt.

• Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield reports back to JFK from Saigon his opinion that Diem had wasted the two billion dollars America had spent there.

1963

• With tacit approval of the United States, operatives within the South Vietnamese military overthrow and assassinate Diem.

1963• JFK is assassinated.

Malcolm X remarks that this is “chickens coming home to roost.” – referring to our

attempts to kill Castro and our complicity in the killing of Patrice Lumumba in the Congo and Diem in South Vietnam

1964• Alleged attack on

American Destroyer Maddox in the Tonkin Gulf.

• LBJ uses this incident to gain nearly unanimous resolution giving him power to escalate war in SE Asia– essentially

sanctioning what the US is already doing.

Gulf of Tonkin

Photograph taken from USS Maddox (DD-731) during her engagement with three North Vietnamese motor torpedo boats in the Gulf of Tonkin, 2 August 1964. The view shows all three of the boats speeding towards the Maddox.

1965• March 8th two marine

battalions sent to defend Danang airfields– supposedly the first

American combat troops in Vietnam

• Sustained American bombing raids of North Vietnam begin – nearly continuous air

raids go on for three years

1965• The first conventional

battle of the Vietnam War takes place– American forces clash

with North Vietnamese units in Ia Drang Valley.

• By December, there are about 200,000 US troops in Vietnam

Conventional?!Techniques of Vietnam War

• Guerilla warfare• War of attrition

– wearing down or weakening resistance, often as a result of continuous pressure or harassment

Marines of Company H walk through a punji-staked gully, January 28, 1966. http://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/vietnam-photos/images/company-h.gif

May 15, 1965• First large scale Teach-

In on the Vietnam War. – debate with pro and con

sides • arguing various points on

our foreign policy • what was our purpose in

Southeast Asia

– Washington D.C. 3,000 students and professors

– broadcast via closed circuit to over 100 college campuses throughout the U.S.

1966• Veterans from WW I and II and the

Korean War stage a protest rally in New York City.

1967• The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) issues a

report claiming that the US military draft places "a heavy discriminatory burden on minority groups and the poor."

Posters 1967

“Somehow this madness must cease. We must stop now. I speak as a child of God and brother to the suffering poor of Vietnam. I speak for those whose land is being laid waste, whose homes are being destroyed, whose culture is being subverted. I speak of the -- for the poor of America who are paying the double price of smashed hopes at home, and death and corruption in Vietnam. I speak as a citizen of the world, for the world as it stands aghast at the path we have taken. I speak as one who loves America, to the leaders of our own nation: The great initiative in this war is ours; the initiative to stop it must be ours.”MLK April 4, 1967

1967 Khe Sanh

1967 Khe Sanh• General Westmoreland sends 5,000 marines

to fortify the base as a “tethered goat” – to provoke attacks by the North Vietnamese – quickly encircled, rocketed and shelled daily – weather and damage to the airfield limit resupply

and removal of wounded

• The battle escalates

• LBJ eventually authorizes (or orders) the intensive bombing of North Vietnam around Khe Sanh

• General Westmoreland testifies that we are winning the war – VietCong and North Vietnamese on the run

• Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara testifies that we are not winning the war– US bombing raids against NVN have not achieved

their objectives– movement of supplies to SVN has not been reduced,

and neither the economy nor the morale of the North Vietnamese has been broken

Westmoreland vs. McNamaraDueling Updates

1967Which is the True War Story?

1967 US troop strength approaches 500,000 by year’s end

1968 Tet Offensive

• North Vietnamese and Vietcong forces sweep down on several key cities in South Vietnam, including the capital, Saigon – catches the US military off guard – within days, American forces turn back the attack and

recapture most areas.

• Militarily, Tet is a huge defeat for the Communists

• Politically and psychologically, it is a victory

TURNING POINT IN THE WAR

Posters 1968

1968• Popularity for anti-war politicians, such as

McCarthy, Humphrey, and Nixon, surges

"Be clear where America stands. Human brotherhood and equal opportunity for every man, woman, and child, we are committed to it, in America and around the world." HH Humphrey 1967

1968 Hue• Hue was the country’s cultural capital

– blend of French and Vietnamese influence

• The Imperial City • Retained the glory of Vietnam’s past while its

universities educated Vietnam’s brightest minds for the future.

• Hue was a symbol of everything the Vietnamese people admired and respected– for this reason, it was spared the terrible effects of

war—until Tet 1968• When Hue was captured by Communist forces    

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDy0Z3HSkTECBS News

1968 Battle for Hue• One of the bloodiest and longest battles of the War • The Army of the Republic of Vietnam and U.S.

Marine Corps attacked and defeated People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) and National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam (NLF, VietCong)

• Hue was nearly leveled in the battle – nearly all of its population left homeless

• After battle, mass graves were discovered – people executed during the Communist occupation

Before After

The Dark Shadow of Both Sides• American and South Vietnamese soldiers later

discovered that North Vietnamese Army/VC leaders rounded up South Vietnamese teachers and government officials and killed them. – Hue Massacre– the NVA/VC murdered nearly 3,000 residents of Hue

and buried them in a mass grave

• Two weeks after the battle for Hue ended, U.S. forces committed the most publicized, talked about, and politicized atrocity of the Vietnam War, the My Lai Massacre.

1968 My Lai Massacre

• On March 16, the angry and frustrated men of Charlie Company, entered the village of My Lai. "This is what you've been waiting for -- search and destroy -- and you've got it," said their superior officers.

1968• Lt. William Calley ordered his men to enter the

village firing, though there had been no report of opposing fire

• The "search and destroy" mission degenerated into the massacre of over 300 unarmed civilians – old men were bayoneted, praying women and

children were shot in the back of the head, and at least one girl was raped and then killed

• Calley rounded up a group of villagers, ordered them into a ditch, and mowed them down in a fury of machine gun fire

SP4 Dustin setting fire to a dwelling

SP5 Capezza burning a dwelling

Lt William Calley

Seymour Hersh• Word of the atrocities did not reach the American public

until November 1969• Journalist Seymour Hersh published a story detailing his

conversations with Vietnam veteran Ron Ridenhour– Ridenhour learned of the events at My Lai from members of

Charlie Company who had been there• Before speaking with Hersh, Ridenhour had appealed to

Congress, the White House, and the Pentagon to investigate the matter

• When news of the atrocities surfaced, it sent shockwaves through the US political establishment, the military's chain of command, and an already divided American public.

Seymour Hersh is also the journalist who uncovered the torture at Abu Ghraib

1969• In an effort to destroy

Communist supply routes and base camps in Cambodia, President Nixon gives the go-ahead to "Operation Breakfast."

• Covert bombing of Cambodia conducted without the knowledge of Congress or the American public– continues for over a year

1969• Massive anti-war

demonstrations in San Francisco and Washington D.C., Berkley

• 300 anti-war students at Harvard University seize the admin building, throw out eight deans, then lock themselves in

• Woodstock• Returning soldiers in Seattle•

1969• April 30 U.S. troop levels peak at 543,400

• There have been 33,641 Americans killed by now, a total greater than the Korean War

Posters 1969

1970

• Leadership in Cambodia changes hands, further destabilizing Indochina

Prince Sihanouk to Pol Pot

1970• After repeatedly denying US troop

involvement in Cambodia, Nixon finally announces that US forces have invaded Cambodia to attack communist sanctuaries

Kent State Shooting May 4,1970

• National Guardsmen open fire on a crowd of student antiwar protesters at Ohio's Kent State University

• Some protesters were hurling rocks and empty tear gas canisters at the Guardsmen

• Four students were killed and eight wounded• President Nixon publicly deplores the actions of

the Guardsmen, but cautions: "...when dissent turns to violence it invites tragedy.“

Posters 1971

• A legacy of deception, concerning US policy in VN, on the part of the military and the executive branch is revealed as the New York Times publishes the Pentagon Papers.

• The Nixon administration, eager to stop leaks of what they consider sensitive information, appeals to the Supreme Court to halt the publication.

• The Court decides in favor the Times and allows continued publication.

1971

• The announcement of intensified bombing of Hanoi and the mining of areas of Haiphong Harbor raises the threat of war with the USSR, which had ships in the harbor

1972

North Vietnamese Posters 1972

Nothing is More Precious Than Freedom and Independence

Whether [American Bombers] Fly High or Low, They Cannot Escape

Cuban Posters 1972

“Nixon’s Peace”

“Symposium on Yankee genocide in Indochina”

1972• Nixon cuts troop levels by 70,000 and wins

reelection.

1972 Watergate• "Watergate" describes a

complex web of political scandals between 1972 and 1974 – refers to the Watergate Hotel in

Washington D.C. – the Democratic National

Committee had offices in the building

• broken into on June 17th, 1972 • Involved break-ins, lies, secret

taping, cover-ups• Led to the resignation of

President Richard Nixon on August 9, 1974– only resignation of any U.S.

President• Resulted in the indictment, trial,

conviction and incarceration of several Nixon administration officials

1973• Stalled Paris talks resume. Cease-fire

agreements formally signed in Paris. The draft ends in US.

1973 The last American troops leave Vietnam on March 29th

South Vietnamese people who had worked with Americans knew they would be killed once the Viet Cong took over Saigon

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mfndf1fQe8&feature=fvst

“All Our Rivers Flow Into the Eastern Sea. The North and South United Under One Roof!”

North Vietnamese Posters 1975

Results• 3 million VN killed • Nearly 3 million Americans served• 58,000 Americans killed

– 10,000 MIA– 365,000 wounded

• Military lost prestige• Changed US view of government• By some accounts (1954 start date) longest war in US history (19

years)• "War" was never officially declared by the United States• Over-all total U.S. cost of the Vietnam war at $200 billion• Total U.S. bomb tonnage dropped during:

– World War II =   2,057,244 tons– Vietnam War =  7,078,032 tons  (3-1/2 times WWII tonnage)

• Bomb tonnage dropped during the Vietnam War amounted to 1,000 lbs. for every man, woman and child in Vietnam

• An estimated 70,000 draft evaders and "dodgers" were living in Canada by 1972

Two million Vietnamese fled their country after the US pulled support from the region. Thousands died at sea.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TsZVgQf4Ss60 Minutes

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xxBPZBeC5MWar Story

Results

Results: PTSD

• The average infantryman in the South Pacific during World War II saw about 40 days of combat in four years

• The average infantryman in Vietnam saw about 240 days of combat in one year thanks to the mobility of the helicopter

Results: Censorship• During the Vietnam War the daily pictures of flag-

covered bodies coming back to the tarmac in Dover helped shift America's attitude against the war – the Pentagon began referring to how the public might react to a

military operation's casualties as "the Dover test."

• During the first Gulf War, the George H. W. Bush administration didn't want public opinion to falter by seeing bodies of soldiers coming home from a war that was supposed to be "high tech" and have fewer casualties– he instituted a ban on photographing/filming flag-draped caskets– continued through the Bill Clinton administration and through the

George W. Bush administration

• The 18 year ban was lifted in 2009

Results: More support for soldiers today