America’s Longest War: 1950-1975


200 B.C. Chinese invade Red River
Delta
Conquest and colonialism in
Indochina

939 A.D. After nearly 1000 years of Chinese control, the Vietnamese win independence but the Chinese remained a threat

Mid-1800s French imperialism begins on the Indochina peninsula

By 1883 Vietnam is completely controlled by the French

Over the next several decades,
France adds Laos and Cambodia to
French Indochina


The roots of the Vietnam War date back to WWII when Japan occupied
Indochina.

In 1941, a Vietnamese nationalist movement, the Viet Minh, was formed by Ho Chi Minh to resist the occupiers.

A communist, Ho Chi Minh waged a guerilla war against the Japanese with the support of the United
States.

Near the end of the war, the
Japanese began to promote
Vietnamese nationalism and granted
Vietnam limited independence.
Ho Chi Minh
1890-1969


In 1945, after the
Japanese defeat in the
Pacific, Ho declares independence.

"All men are created equal. They are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness"

“Nevertheless, for more than eighty years, the French imperialists, abusing the standard of Liberty,
Equality, and Fraternity, have violated our Fatherland and oppressed our fellow-citizens. They have acted contrary to the ideals of humanity and justice. In the field of politics, they have deprived our people of every democratic liberty.”

“They have built more prisons than schools. They have mercilessly slain our patriots- they have drowned our uprisings in rivers of blood.”


In 1946 France attempts to reclaim Vietnam

U.S. must choose between selfdetermination for communist
Vietnam or support a democratic ally--France
The French attempt to reclaim their colony

Truman makes his choice: He authorizes $10 million to aid the French in Indochina fighting a war against guerilla forces led by Ho
The Domino Effect

July 1954:Geneva
Accords
1.
2.
Establishes a temporary division at
17 th parallel (northern half to be governed by the Vietminh, the southern half to be governed by the State of Vietnam then led by Bao-Dai)
Provides for free elections to be held by July 1956
May 1954: French colonial presence ends with a
Vietnamese victory at Dien
Bien Phu


Diem ousts emperor Bao Dai in
1955

This anti-communist earned U.S. support in an election many considered fraudulent

Ike backs Diem regime in South
Vietnam by sending weapons and military “advisers”

Diem consolidated his power in
South Vietnam

His rule proved authoritarian, nepotistic, and corrupt. A Roman
Catholic, Diem, pursued policies that rankled and oppressed the
Buddhist majority.
Ngo Dinh Diem
1955-1963


Kennedy sends 9,000 military “advisers” to
Vietnam and doubles aid to the South
Vietnamese army
(ARVN)

Diem is overthrown after JFK gives tacit approval to a coup

Strategic Hamlet program

Operation Ranch Hand


On Aug. 4, 1964, North
Vietnamese torpedo boats in the
Gulf of Tonkin were alleged to have attacked without provocation 2 U.S. destroyers that were reporting intelligence information to South Vietnam.

President Lyndon B. Johnson and his advisers decided upon immediate air attacks on North
Vietnam in retaliation; he also asked Congress for a mandate for future military action.

On Aug. 7, Congress passed the
“Tonkin Gulf Resolution”

According to Johnson, like grandma’s nightshirt, “it covered everything”

USS Maddox
"For all I know, our Navy was shooting at whales out there."
Resolved… that the Congress approves and supports the determination of the President, as Commander in Chief, to take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against the forces of the United States and to prevent further aggression.

During this period, the
U.S. Air Force and Navy aircraft engaged in a bombing campaign designed to force Ho Chi
Minh to abandon his ambition to take over
South Vietnam.
U.S. military aircraft attacked targets throughout North Vietnam from March 1965 to October 1968

Eddie Adams – Saigon Execution
– photograph – 1968 – Vietnam
Number of U.S. troops in Vietnam increases, reaching 543,000 in 1968, but U.S. and ARVN forces make only limited progress against the guerilla forces.

The Tet Offensive causes widespread destruction and heavy casualties.

W. L. Calley
The mass murder conducted by a unit of the U.S. Army of 347–504 unarmed citizens in South
Vietnam, all of whom were civilians and a majority of whom were women, children (including babies) and elderly people.

March 31, LBJ announces a reduction in bombing, plans for peace talks, and his decision not to run for reelection.

Nixon administration initiates the secret bombing of Cambodia, increases the bombing of N. Vietnam while reducing U.S. troops in the
South, and pursues peace talks.

The Kent State massacre occurred at Kent State University in Ohio on May
4, 1970. The national guardsmen killed four students and wounded nine others. Some of the students who were shot had been protesting against the American invasion of Cambodia.

Daniel Ellsberg
was a top-secret U.S. Department of Defense history of the United States' political-military involvement in Vietnam from 1945 to 1967. The papers were first brought to the attention of the public on the front page of the New York Times in
1971. The Pentagon Papers "demonstrated, among other things, that the Johnson
Administration had systematically lied, not only to the public but also to
Congress.”

General Westmoreland
1970-1971:U.S. troops in Vietnam decrease from 334,600 to 140,000
1972: With peace talks stalled, the Nixon administration orders the most devastating bombing of North Vietnam of war.

U.S., North Vietnam, and South Vietnam sign a formal accord in Paris.

North Vietnam launches new offensive in South Vietnam, defeating
ARVN. Vietcong troops occupy Saigon, remaining it Ho Chi Minh City.

Turmoil and healing.

The War Powers Resolution of 1973 was a
United States Congress joint resolution providing that the President can send U.S. armed forces into action abroad only by authorization of Congress or if the United
States is already under attack or serious threat. The War Powers Resolution requires the president to notify Congress within 48 hours of committing armed forces to military action and forbids armed forces from remaining for more than 60 days, with a further 30 day withdrawal period, without an authorization of the use of military force or a declaration of war. The resolution was passed by two-thirds of
Congress, overriding a presidential veto.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial honors the men and women who served in the Vietnam War.
Its main monument, known as 'The Wall' is the most visited memorial in Washington.