During World War II, ___________ invaded and occupied Vietnam, a nation on the eastern edge of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia that had been under ______________ administration since the late 19th century.
answer
Japan; French
question
Who was Ho Chi Minh and what did he do?
answer
Inspired by Chinese and Soviet communism, Ho Chi Minh formed the Viet Minh, or the League for the Independence of Vietnam, to fight both Japan and the French colonial administration. Ho's Viet Minh forces rose up immediately, seizing the northern city of Hanoi and declaring a Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) with Ho as president.
question
Explain the division of Vietnam between the northern half and southern half. Why did this happen? What were the major events?
answer
Seeking to regain control of the region, France backed Bao and set up the state of Vietnam (South Vietnam) in July 1949, with Saigon as its capital. Armed conflict continued until a decisive battle at Dien Bien Phu in May 1954 ended in French defeat by Viet Minh forces. The subsequent treaty negotiations at Geneva split Vietnam along the latitude known as the 17th parallel (with Ho in control in the North and Bao in the South).
question
In what ways was the United States' involvement in the Vietnam conflict an extension of its overall Cold War policies?
answer
The USA viewed its involvement in Vietnam similar to its involvement in Korea, in that it was hoping to stop the spread of communism. The conflict would prove to symbolize the greater divide/conflict between the east and west or the Soviet Union and the USA.
question
What was the "domino theory" and how did it apply to the American involvement in Vietnam?
answer
The "domino theory," was the idea that if one Southeast Asian country fell to communism, many would follow. The United States would use the "domino theory" to justify its involvement in Vietnam.
question
By 1962, the U.S. military presence in South Vietnam had reached some __________ troops, compared with fewer than ___________ during the 1950s.
answer
9,000;800
question
What happened in the Gulf of Tonkin and how did it impact USA involvement in Vietnam?
answer
In August 1964, torpedo boats attacked two U.S. destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin, Johnson ordered the retaliatory bombing of military targets in North Vietnam. Congress soon passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which gave Johnson broad war-making powers.
question
What was "Operation Rolling Thunder"?
answer
American bombing raids against the communist North Vietnamese.
question
In March 1965, _____________ made the decision-with solid support from the American public-to send U.S. combat forces into battle in Vietnam. By June, ________________ combat troops were stationed in Vietnam, and General William Westmoreland was calling for __________________ more by the end of 1965 to shore up the struggling South Vietnamese army.
answer
President Johnson; 175,000
question
What is meant by a strategy of "attrition"?
answer
A policy of attrition, involves aiming to kill as many enemy troops as possible rather than trying to secure territory.
question
How were the Viet Cong able to resupply and strengthen their air defenses?
answer
Supported by aid from China and the Soviet Union, North Vietnam strengthened its air defenses.
question
By November 1967, the number of American troops in Vietnam was approaching ______________, and U.S. casualties had reached _______________ killed and _________________ wounded.
answer
500,000;15,058; 109,527
question
Explain the issues that American government began to face within its own armed forces and on the home front as the Vietnam War dragged on.
answer
As the war stretched on, some soldiers came to mistrust their government's reasons for keeping them there, as well as Washington's claims that the war was being won. Bombarded by horrific images of the war on their televisions, Americans on the home front turned against the war as well: In October 1967, some 35,000 demonstrators staged a mass antiwar protest outside the Pentagon. Opponents of the war argued that civilians, not enemy combatants, were the primary victims and that the United States was supporting a corrupt dictatorship in Saigon.
question
What was the Tet Offensive?
answer
On January 31, 1968, some 70,000 DRV forces under General Vo Nguyen Giap launched the Tet offensive (named for the lunar new year), a coordinated series of fierce attacks on more than 100 cities and towns in South Vietnam.
question
Following the Tet Offensive, what did President Johnson argue in favor of?
answer
Johnson called a halt to bombing in much of North Vietnam in March promised to dedicate the rest of his term to seeking peace rather than re-election.
question
Explain President Nixon's term "Vietnamization".
answer
In an attempt to limit the volume of American casualties, Nixon announced a program of withdrawing troops, increasing aerial and artillery bombardment and giving South Vietnamese control over ground operations. He referred to this as "Vietnamization".
question
The website states that the anti-war protests related to the Vietnam War divided the USA bitterly. What evidence does the website provide to show this bitter divide?
answer
The anti-war movement, which was particularly strong on college campuses, divided Americans bitterly. For some young people, the war symbolized a form of unchecked authority they had come to resent. For other Americans, opposing the government was considered unpatriotic and treasonous.
question
When and where was the largest American anti-war protest?
answer
On November 15, 1969, the largest anti-war protest in American history took place in Washington, D.C., as over 250,000 Americans gathered peacefully, calling for withdrawal of American troops from Vietnam.
question
What is meant by "draft-dodging"? Why was this a problem for the United States?
answer
Soldiers who evaded joining the army by feeling to Canada. This was a problem for the USA because it showed the growing divide in American culture and the lowering morale among soldiers over the war effort in Vietnam.
question
What was the incident at Kent State? Why is this event significant?
answer
The Kent State shootings involved college protesters being shot to death by US National Guardsmen. It was significant because it showed the growing violent nature of the protests growing in the USA and marked a point where in the armed forces were turning against protesters.
question
When and how did the United States leave the conflict in Vietnam?
answer
In January 1973, the United States and North Korea concluded a final peace agreement, ending open hostilities between the two nations.
question
How did the Vietnam War affect the Vietnamese?
answer
The long conflict had affected an immense majority of the country's population; in eight years of warfare, an estimated 2 million Vietnamese died, while 3 million were wounded and another 12 million became refugees. War had decimated the country's infrastructure and economy, and reconstruction proceeded slowly.
question
In the United States, the effects of the Vietnam War would linger long after the last troops returned home in 1973. The nation spent more than _________ billion on the conflict in Vietnam from 1965-73.
answer
$120 billion
question
In 1982, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was unveiled in Washington, D.C. On it were inscribed the names of ______________ American armed forces killed or missing during the war; later additions brought that total to ________________.
answer
57,939; 58,200
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