1 / 17

Vietnam War

Vietnam War. French Vietnam. Vietnam colonized by French in 1700’s…French Indochina Imposed harsh taxes & limited political freedoms No taxation without representation! Wanted to fight for their independence from France. Ho Chi Minh.

hanh
Download Presentation

Vietnam War

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Vietnam War

  2. French Vietnam • Vietnam colonized by French in 1700’s…French Indochina • Imposed harsh taxes & limited political freedoms • No taxation without representation! • Wanted to fight for their independence from France

  3. Ho Chi Minh • Vietnamese nationalist/patriot & leader • wanted a communist revolution to combat French colonial imperialism • he organized the Vietminh – the League for the Independence of Vietnam • during WWII, the Japanese fought the French out of Indochina Japanese lose WWII  Vietnam becomes independent in 1945 (but French insist its still theirs)

  4. Causes of Vietnam War • fear of communism & the Cold War • domino theory • if Vietnam fell to communism, who would be next • containment • contain communism to this single country • internationalism • communism would broaden to neighboring countries because they share common cultures

  5. Geneva Accords • Geneva Accords – agreement to temporarily divide Vietnam in 2 parts (North & South) • North = communist; South = western culture (but not democratic) • Does this work??? • President Eisenhower supported S. Vietnam (even though very unjust leader)

  6. Vietcong • communist guerilla forces • supported the National Liberation Front in South Vietnam • NLF – organization dedicated to end S. Vietnam’s leader (Diem) rule • Inevitably… CIVIL WAR! • President Kennedy sent more troops over to Vietnam to fight communism & Vietcong • Diem killed by military takeover  S. Vietnam got worse

  7. The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution • U.S. ships reported a torpedo attack from a N. Vietnam naval ship in the Gulf of Tonkin (on N. Vietnam coast) • President Johnson declared this attack an act of war & increased U.S. involvement in Vietnam • the resolution gave President Johnson the authority to take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against U.S. forces

  8. U.S. Military • Operation Rolling Thunder –air strikes to destroy war industries in N. Vietnam • the Ho Chi Minh Trail (a network of paths that supplied the Vietcong with weapons) • goal: crush N. Vietnam’s ability to supply Vietcong  war would end • dropped napalm & chemical poisons to burn the trail, which went through the jungle forest • tactic: More bombs, more napalm, more air raids • Search & Destroy Missions • find enemy camps & demolish them

  9. Vietnamese Military • tactic: guerilla warfare & knowledge of geography • moving secretly, they set traps & land mines to kill & injure Americans • surprise attacks • How do Americans find the “enemy?”

  10. American War Effort • TV & media shaped public opinion • saw images of the war & casualties • changed people’s minds from pro war to anti-war • Martin Luther King Jr. = antiwar (focus on home problems) • College kids voice their opinion & protest the draft

  11. Tet Offensive • Tet – Vietnamese New Year; N. Vietnamese & Vietcong attacked American forces • this surprise attack shocked Americans & weakened public confidence in the government’s conduct of the war; however, more troops were sent • … we were losing the war • this event resulted in the increase of American opposition to the war

  12. Vietnamization • President Nixon’s plan to gradually turn over all of the fighting to the South Vietnamese Army & pull out • U.S. would continue to provide supplies & training to S. Vietnam • Nixon threatened nuclear war, but it did nothing • N. Vietnamese determined to unite all of Vietnam

  13. Consequences of War • 1 million N. Vietnamese soldiers dead • 185,000 S Vietnamese soldiers dead • 500,000 Vietnamese civilians dead • Laos & Cambodia became communist countries (neighbors to Vietnam) • 60,000 American soldiers dead • Led to American’s eyes being opened to govt. deception • War Powers Act

  14. Legislation passed because of Vietnam • 26th amendment • War Powers Act of 1973

  15. 26th Amendment • lowered the federal voting age from 21 to 18 • if you’re old enough to fight, you’re old enough to vote

  16. War Powers Act of 1973 • required U.S. President to get congressional approval before committing U.S. troops to an armed struggle (i.e. Iraq); limits President’s power • this gave Congress increased responsibility for setting U.S. war policy

More Related