war in vietnam 17-3. ho chi minh ho chi minh turned to communism for independence from french
TRANSCRIPT
War in Vietnam
17-3
Ho Chi Minh
• Ho Chi Minh turned to Communism for independence from French
Dien Bien Phu• Huge loss for
French
• French done
• North and South divided at 17th parallel
Domino Theory• Pres.
Eisenhower - like a row of domino’s, once one falls to Communism the rest would fall
Ngo Dinh Diem
• S. Vietnamese leader
–Backed by U.S.
–Corrupt – no free elections
Vietcong
• S. Vietnamese Communist guerrillas
U.S. involved
• Involved since late 1950’s
–Tanks, planes, & equipment
Lyndon Johnson
• 1964 - tells Congress that N. Vietnamese attacked 2 American destroyers in Golf of Tonkin
–Congress ok’s sending troops in
• 1965 -185,000
• 1968 - 500,00+
•Lyndon Johnson
Problems• U.S. has best equipped and most
advanced army – can’t win • 2 problems
–Fighting guerilla war in unfamiliar jungle
–S. Vietnamese govt. was unpopular making Vietcong grow
Bomb ‘em
• U.S. can’t win so turn to bombing
–Strengthens peasant support against U.S.
Unpopular at Home• Late 1960’s
U.S. people unhappy with loss of life –Youth
protests – colleges (Kent State)
Vietnamization
• Pres. Richard Nixon - slow withdraw of U.S. troops, gradually increasing S. Vietnamese involvement
U.S. Gone
• 1973 U.S. forces gone from Vietnam
• 2 yrs later N. Vietnam takes over the south
• 1.5 million Vietnamese dead
• 58,000 U.S. dead
Postwar Vietnam• 1.5 million flee Vietnam
• 70,000 settle in U.S./Canada
Cambodia
• Khmer Rouge
• Slaughter 2 million under Pol Pot in 2yrs