America in Vietnam 1945-1967                     Name ______________________________

Unit Guide

History 8

 

 

1860-1941             Era of French Colonialism

1941-1945             Japanese Occupation

Formation of the Viet Minh

U.S. cooperation with the Viet Minh

1945                                Viet Minh declare independence

French announce their intention to return to Indochina

Should the United States support France’s return to Indochina?

1945-1954             Indochina War

1954                                French defeat at Dien Bien Phu

Geneva Conference

Partition of Indochina and Vietnam

1955-1963             Rule of Ngo Dinh Diem in South Vietnam

1956                Should the U.S. allow Diem to cancel the reunification elections?

1959                                Viet Cong begin armed insurrection

1961-1963             Buildup of U.S. military advisors under President Kennedy

North Vietnamese troops begin to enter the South

1963                                Battle of Ap Bac

Buddhist Protests

Should the U.S. support a coup against Diem?

Diem and President Kennedy killed

1964                                Instability in South Vietnam.  Increased communist activity in the South

Thieu/Ky government in Saigon

Gulf of Tonkin Incident

Should Congress authorize retaliation against North Vietnam (Gulf of Tonkin Resolutions)?

U.S. begins limited bombing of the North

Landslide election victory by Lyndon Johnson

1965                                Rolling Thunder

Should the United States commit ground troops to Vietnam?

U.S. commits ground troops in March

Search and Destroy missions begin in June

Battle of Ia Drang

Temporary bombing halt fails to lead to a peace agreement

1966                                U.S. troop strength reaches 400,000

Draft calls reach 40,000 per month

Televised Fulbright Hearings reveal the first doubts about U.S. policy

1967                                Troop strength exceeds half a million

15,000 Americans have died since March 1965

Presidential advisors claim there is, “Light at the End of the Tunnel.”

 

 

 

Main Ideas

1.         Describe the struggle of the Vietnamese to maintain their independence from China.

2.         Describe French rule in Indochina.

3.         Identify the significant events in Ho Chi Minh’s life prior to the Second World War.

4.         What impact did World War II have on Vietnam?

5.         In what ways did World War II strengthen the Vietminh?

6.         Describe the conflicts present in the formulation of U.S. policy toward Vietnam following the war.  What decision was eventually made?  Why?

7.         Describe the progress of the Indochina War.  Why did the U.S. become heavily involved in the war?

8.         Explain the circumstances of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.  What were the keys to the Vietminh victory?

9.         What decisions were made at the Geneva Conference of 1954?

 

10.     Describe the personal background and political career of Ngo Dinh Diem.  Why did he garner U.S. support?  In what ways did the U.S. support Diem?

11.     Why was the 1956 reunification vote canceled?

12.     Describe Diem’s rule of South Vietnam.

13.     What methods did the communists use to destabilize South Vietnam during the late 1950s?  How did the South Vietnamese government and its American allies respond to this challenge?

14.     What were the basic premises of the Kennedy administration’s Vietnam policies?  What actions did Kennedy take in regard to Vietnam?

15.     Describe the Buddhist Protests of 1963.

16.     Describe the coup d’ état that toppled Diem.

 

17.     Describe the two main goals that Lyndon Johnson had for his presidency.  What doubts did he express about the U.S.’s commitment to South Vietnam?

18.     Describe the deteriorating situation in South Vietnam prior to the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution.  What policy options did the U.S. consider during this time?

19.     Describe the incidents that led to the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution.  What authorization did the resolution grant the president?

20.     What factors led to U.S. combat troops being deployed in Vietnam in March 1965?  How did their mission change?  Why did President Johnson avoid publicizing the increasing American commitment?

21.     Describe the impact that the presence of American troops had on South Vietnamese society.

22.     What timetable did General Westmoreland establish for the U.S. ground effort?  What impact did the Battle of Ia Drang have on Westmoreland?

23.     Explain the role that technology played in the U.S. military operations.

24.     Describe the problems that U.S. combat troops experienced.

25.     What efforts did the U.S. make to halt infiltration down the Ho Chi Minh Trail?

26.     In what ways was the U.S. commitment in Vietnam different from previous wars?

27.     Describe public opinion and popular support for the war in 1965-67.  What criticisms were made of American policy?

28.     Describe the internal divisions over Vietnam policy present within the Johnson administration.  What was the general military outlook at the end of 1967?

 

 

Key Terms

A)       Ho Chi Minh

B)        Vo Nguyen Giap

C)       Vietminh

D)       domino theory

E)        Ngo Dinh Diem

F)        Vietcong

G)       ARVN

H)       Dean Rusk

I)          Robert McNamara

J)          William Westmoreland

K)       Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

L)        Jason Study

M)      J. William Fulbright

N)       Nguyen Van Thieu

 

 

Key Places

A)       Hué

B)        Da Nang

C)       Hanoi

D)       Mekong Delta

E)        Saigon

F)        Laos

G)       Cambodia

H)       Dien Bien Phu

I)          seventeenth parallel

J)          Ho Chi Minh Trail

K)       Gulf of Tonkin

L)        Ia Drang