the vietnam war by: michael mahoney. introduction different names for the war background of the war...
TRANSCRIPT
The Vietnam War
By: Michael Mahoney
Introduction
• Different names for the War
• Background of the War
• The beginning of the War
• The end of the War
The Vietnam War also known as…
• The Second Indochina War
• Vietnam Conflict
• The American War
About the Vietnam War
• The Vietnam War was a Cold War military conflict that happened in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia.
• The war took place from November 1st, 1955 until April 30th, 1975 (when Saigon Fell).
Continued…….
• The Vietnam War followed the First Indochina War
• It was fought between:– The Communist North Vietnam
VS.– The government of South Vietnam
Help
• North Vietnam was supported by:– Communist Allies
• South Vietnam was supported by:– The United States– Other Anti-Communist Nations
Viet Cong
• Lightly-armed South Vietnamese communist-controlled common front– Fought a guerrilla war against anti-communist
forces in the region.
North Vietnamese Army
• Fought in a more conventional war
– At some points in the war, they committed large units into battle.
South Vietnamese Army
• Viet Cong
• The United States and the South Vietnamese forces heavily relied on air superiority and great firepower to conduct “Search and Destroy” operations.– Involved: ground forces, artillery and air
strikes.
The United States
• Entered the war to stop a communist takeover of South Vietnam as part of their wider strategy of containment.
• Military advisors arrived beginning in 1950.
• United States involvement escalates in the early 1960’s.– U.S. troop levels tripling in 1961, and again in
1962.
The United States
• U.S. combat units were sent out in 1965.• Operations spanned borders, with Laos and
Cambodia being heavily bombed.
• Involvement came to its climax in 1968 during the time of Tet Offensive.– After this, U.S. ground forces were withdrawn as part
of the policy “Vietnamization” – Ignoring the Paris Peace Accords (signed by all the
parties in January 1973), fighting continued.
The Case-Church Amendment
• Passed by the United State Congress.
• It prohibited use of American military after August 15th, 1973.– Unless the president secured congressional
permission in advance.
Background of the War to 1949
• France began its conquest of Indochina during the 1850’s.
• They completed the pacification by 1893.
• The Treaty of Hue formed the basis for French colonial rule in Vietnam for the next several decades.
• Viet Minh – common front, controlled by the Communist Party of Vietnam.
• Founded in 1941.
Background continued….
(Viet Minh)
Continued…
• During WWII the French were beat by the Germans in 1940.– For French Indochina, this meant that the
authorities became “Vichy French.”– Vichy French are allies of the German-Italian
Axis powers.– Scared that French authorities were not able
to be trusted, the Japanese army jailed all of the French on March 9th, 1945.
Continued……..
• 1944-1945, a deep famine struck northern Vietnam due to a mixture of poor weather and Japanese abuse.– One million people died of starvation.
August 1945
• The Japanese had been overcome and surrendered completely.
• In French Indochina, this formed a power vacuum as the French were still incarcerated and the Japanese military stood down.
• Into this vacuum, the Viet Minh entered and grasped power throughout Vietnam.– “August Revolution”– (in large part supported by the Vietnamese
residents.)
September 2nd, 1945
• Ho Chi Minh, the leader of the Viet Minh, confirmed the independent Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
January 1946
• Viet Minh won elections throughout central and northern Vietnam and began killing off enemy politicians..
March and November 1946
• By March 1946, the French landed in Hanoi.
• November 1946, the French ousted the Viet Minh from the city.– After this, the Viet Minh started a guerrilla war
against the French Union forces.– This started the first Indochina War..
War Spreads
• The war spread to Laos and Cambodia.
• The Viet Minh fight was a disadvantage, because of the lack of weapons.– This changed by 1949, because the Chinese
Communists had essentially won the Chinese Civil War.
– This meant they were free to provide help to the Vietnamese.
1950
EXIT
OF
THE
FRENCH
January 1950
• People’s Republic of China (PRC), noticed the Viet Minh’s Democratic Republic of Vietnam as the government of Vietnam.
• Non-Communist nations acknowledged the French-backed State of Vietnam in Saigon, led by Bao Dai.
June 1950
• The outburst of the Korean War persuaded many Washington policymakers that the Indochina War was an example of communist expansionism controlled by Kremlin.
People’s Republic of China (PRC)
• PRC military advisors began supporting the Viet Minh in July 1950.
MAAG
• MAAG – Military Assistance and Advisory Group.
• In September 1950, the United States created the MAAG to monitor French requests for aid, advise on strategy, and train Vietnamese soldiers.
• There were also talks between the French and Americans in which the possible use of three nuclear weapons was considered.
• U.S. carriers sailed to the Gulf of Tonkin, and exploration flights over Dien Bien Phu were conducted during the negotiations.
Battle of Dien Bien Phu
• The Battle of Dien Bien Phu marked the end of French participation in Indochina.
• On May 7th, 1954, the French Union stronghold surrendered.
Geneva Conference
• At the Geneva Conference the French negotiated an armistice agreement with the Viet Minh.
– Independence was established for Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam.
TRANSITION
P
E
R
I
O
D
Transition Period
• Vietnam was momentarily partitioned at the 17th parallel.
• Civilians were to be given the chance to freely move between the two temporary states for a 300-day period.– Elections were held in 1956.– Catholics fled to the South.– Elections
• The Viet Minh left approximately 5,000 to 10,000 cadres in South Vietnam as a “politico-military substructure within the object of its irredentism.
• French soldiers leave Vietnam in April 1956.– PRC completed their exit from North Vietnam
around the same time.
In the South….
• Former Emperor Bao Dai’s State of Vietnam operated, with Ngo Dinh Diemas his prime minister.
June 1955
• In June 1955, Diem announced that elections would not be held.
April-June 1955
• Diem cleared the decks of any political resistance in the south by beginning military operations against the Cao Dai religious sect.
• In a referendum on the future of the State of Vietnam on October 23rd:– Diem rigged the poll supervised by his brother
Ngo Dinh Nhu and was recognized with 98.2% of the vote.
October 26th, 1955
• Diem declared the new Republic of Vietnam (ROV).
• Diem was president.
• The ROV was started largely because of the Eisenhower administration’s desire for an anti-communist state in the region.
1955- 1963
D
I
E
M
E
R
A
Domino Theory
• Argued that if one country fell to communist forces, then all of the surrounding countries would follow.
• The Domino Theory was first proposed as policy by the Eisenhower administration.