The Vietnam War

Why did the Vietnam War start? The U.S entered the Vietnam war as a result of our strategy that aimed to contain the spread of Communism throughout Asia, and Europe.

What countries were in the Vietnam war The main countries involved in the Vietnam War were North and South Vietnam. South Vietnam was backed by anti-communist countries and members of the South East Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) which included the United States, South Korea, Australia, the Philippines, New Zealand, Thailand, Khmer Republic (later overthrown by Khmer Rouge), the Kingdom of Laos and Republic of China (Taiwan). North Vietnam was backed by the communist allies which included People’s Republic of China, Soviet Union, Pathet Lao (Laotian Communist insurgents), Khmer Rouge (Cambodian Communist insurgents) and North Korea.

What was the outcome of The Vietnam War The Vietnam War was a long, costly armed conflict that pitted the communist regime of North Vietnam and its southern allies, known as the Viet Cong, against South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States. The war began in 1954 after the rise to power of Ho Chi Minh and his communist Viet Minh party in North Vietnam, and continued against the backdrop of an intense Cold War between two global superpowers: the United States and the Soviet Union. More than 3 million people (including 58,000 Americans) were killed in the Vietnam War; more than half were Vietnamese civilians. In 1975, communist forces seized control of Saigon, ending the Vietnam War, and the country was unified as the Socialist Republic of Vietnam the following year.

Big figure in the Vietnam war Ho Chi-Minh. In 1945 he declared Vietnam’s independence and became the first president of the republic. In 1923 he was elected to the Committee of the Peasants International Congress. Vo Nguyen Giap. was a Vietnamese military commander most revered for his role in liberating Vietnam from French colonial rule. Giap also led the armies of North Vietnam during the war against the Americans and the South. Bao Dai. He was the last emperor of Vietnam. One year after the Geneva Conference created a republic in South Vietnam, Ngo Dinh Diem outsmarted Bao Dai and took power, after that Bao Dai retired to France. Ngo Dinh Diem. He was an anti-Communist and he joined the U.S government and made himself president in 1955. He murdered and imprisoned hundreds of Buddhists causing the U.S not to support him. He was assassinated in 1963 leaving Vietnam vulnerable to the Communist threat from the north, and resulting in the Civil War.

Big figure in the Vietnam war Nguyen Van Thieu. was a military general who served in the French-controlled Vietnamese army during French colonial rule in Indochina, and later served as president of South Vietnam during the war against the North. Dwight D. Eisenhower. In February 1954, President Eisenhower refused to commit American troops to the Franco-Vietnamese War. In a press conference he stated, "I cannot conceive of a greater tragedy for America than to get heavily involved now in an all-out war in any of those regions” John F. Kennedy. During his years as president, Kennedy tripled the amount of American economic and military aid to the South Vietnamese and increased the number of U.S. military advisors in Indochina. He refused to withdraw from the escalating conflict in Vietnam because, “he said, to withdraw from that effort would mean a collapse not only of South Vietnam, but Southeast Asia.” Lyndon B. Johnson. He was the 36th U.S. President. He sent more than 500,000 U.S. troops to Vietnam. Charles De Gaulle. Warned Kennedy about entering the Vietnam war calling it a “Bottomless political and Military Swamp”

Songs influenced by the Vietnam war Death-Politicians in my eyes CCR-It ain't me Rolling stones-Paint it black For what’s it’s worth-buffalo springfield Student demonstration time- beach boys King Crimson- 21st century schizoid man Bob Marley- no more trouble

Citations http://www.shmoop.com/vietnam-war/people.html http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/vietnam-war-history http://historyofthevietnamwar.blogspot.com/p/outcome.html