Vietnam to 1968
As the French pulled out of an increasingly helpless situation, the United States became more involved to fill the power vacuum. Though many liberal college students mounted large protests against the conflict, the majority of the nation supported the war. Not until the Têt offensive did massive opposition arise.
Gulf of Tonkin: The Gulf of Tonkin is the northwestern arm of the South China Sea. China and the island of Hainan border it on the west by Vietnam. It is the site for the famous battle that led to the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which committed the U.S. in Vietnam.
North Vietnam, South Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia: The French empire condensed North and South Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia into one colony called Indochina. The separate regions resented this and nationalist stirrings caused widespread discontent among the people of each nation.
Ho Chi Minh: Ho was the Vietnamese Communist leader and the principal force behind the Vietnamese struggle against French colonial rule. Hoping for U.S. assistance in Vietnam’s struggle for independence, Ho later turned to the Soviet Union when the U.S. aided the French. He was a nationalist at heart and wanted Vietnamese independence far more than a communist government. He led the Vietminh, a group of guerrillas. In 1954, they defeated the French garrison at the battle of Dien Bien Phu.
First Indochina War: The French wanted Indochina back after losing control over the colony during the Vichy era of the Second World War. Ho Chi Minh refused to give up sovereignty which resulted in the First Indochina War; it drew the U.S. into the fight against communism, but Vietnam became more staunchly communist after the war.
Domino theory: Eisenhower’s domino theory claimed that once one nation fell to communism, bordering countries would follow like falling dominoes. The theory was used in context of the monolithic view of communism, which claimed that all communist countries were in a conspiracy to destroy democracy in the world. Applied to Asia, the U.S. could not let Vietnam fall after "losing" China to communism. Fearful of Soviet expansion, Eisenhower increased American involvement in Vietnam.
Dien Bien Phu: On May 7, 1954, the Vietminh surrounded and laid siege to the French garrison, forcing them to surrender. The U.S. refused to give aid to the French for fear of condoning imperialism. Facing this humiliating defeat, the French decided to give up their futile attempt to fight nationalist stirrings in Vietnam.
Geneva Conference, 1954: After the fall of the French garrison at Dien Bien Phu, an international conference was called in Geneva in 1954 to discuss the status of the war in Vietnam. The delegates of the conference decided that Vietnam should be divided into North and South at the seventeenth parallel until national elections took place in 1954. The elections were never held. The conference also created an area known as the demilitarized zone.
Viet Cong, National Liberation Front: The Viet Cong was the name given to the Vietnamese communist army; the National Liberation Front was a part of this group. In support of Ho Chi Minh, the group pushed to overthrow the South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem. The National Liberation Front was partly responsible for the fall of Dinh Bien Phu and organization of the Têt Offensive. The National Liberation Front consisted mainly of guerilla fighters.
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, 1964: After North Vietnamese gun boats assaulted American ships that were organizing air strikes and military moves, Johnson and his advisers drafted the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution that committed the United States in Vietnam. It was passed by Congress and gave Johnson a "blank check," granting him full authority against North Vietnamese forces. This led to the increased U.S. involvement in Vietnam.
Demilitarized zone: A demilitarized zone (DMZ) refers to areas in which military weapons and other installations are prohibited. The demilitarized zone during the Vietnam War was surrounded the seventeenth parallel. The parallel and the DMZ were created as a result of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolutions.
Têt Offensive: The NLF and the North Vietnamese arm mounted a massive offensive against the South Vietnamese and American armies on January 31, 1968, which was also the first day of the Vietnamese New Year known as Têt. The nationalists successfully penetrated Saigon and took the United States embassy. After being told that the enemy was virtually defeated, the offensive showed that the nationalists were still capable of fighting and that the government had lied. Popularity for the war vastly declined.
