TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. Origins of the Vietnam War

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. Explain how Vietnam became a focus of conflict after World War II. Explain why the United States was concerned about developments in Vietnam. Describe how American involvement in Vietnam began to increase under President Kennedy. Objectives

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. Terms and People Ho Chi Minh – a Communist leader who freed Vietnam from French colonial rule in 1954 and then became ruler of Communist North Vietnam domino theory – the idea that if one country fell to the Communists, neighboring countries would follow Ngo Dinh Diem – ruler of South Vietnam; in 1963, he was assassinated by South Vietnamese military leaders

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. Terms and People (continued) guerrilla – a fighter who carries out hit-and-run attacks Lyndon B. Johnson – John F. Kennedy’s Vice President; in 1963, he became President after Kennedy was assassinated

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. In the 1950s, the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union intensified. The Vietnam War was the longest war that the United States ever fought, and it was also very divisive. How did Vietnam become a major battlefield in the war against communism?

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. Vietnam is a small country in Southeast Asia, stretching 1,000 miles along the South China Sea. In the 1800s, France seized Vietnam and ruled it for nearly 100 years as part of the colony of Indochina.

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. During World War II, French rule was interrupted when Japan occupied Vietnam. In August 1945, Japan surrendered, and World War II was over. Some Vietnamese saw the Japanese defeat as an opportunity to free themselves from French colonial rule.

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. Communist leader Ho Chi Minh organized a revolt to end French colonial rule. The Americans refused to help because Ho was a Communist. With his followers, the Vietminh, Ho occupied Hanoi and proclaimed an independent Vietnam.

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. After World War II, U.S. leaders saw the Soviet Union and its system of communism as a threat to world peace. Adding to their fears, China came under Communist rule in 1949, and Communist North Korea attacked South Korea in 1950.

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. In the hope of blocking the spread of communism, the United States supported France in its resulting war with Vietnam. Fighting between the French and the Vietminh continued for nearly 8 years.

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. The turning point came in 1954, when the Vietminh forced the French to surrender after a 56-day battle at Dien Bien Phu. French control over Vietnam came to an end.

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. An international conference in Geneva, Switzerland, determined Vietnam’s fate. Under the Geneva Accords, Vietnam was temporarily divided into two states, but the country was to be unified by elections within a few years.

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. North Vietnam was under the Communist rule of Ho Chi Minh. South Vietnam was governed by Ngo Dinh Diem. The United States supported South Vietnam because political leaders feared a widespread Communist takeover in Southeast Asia. This idea was called the domino theory.

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. South Vietnamese guerrillas terrorized villages controlled by Diem’s officials. Diem lost support within the country when he blocked the promised elections. John F. Kennedy continued to support South Vietnam by sending aid and military advisers. The North Vietnamese gave weapons to the guerrillas, who came to be called the Vietcong.

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. The United States withdrew support from Diem. Meanwhile, Diem angered many South Vietnamese by imprisoning his critics and employing corrupt officials. U.S. leaders feared that Diem’s actions were increasing support for the Vietcong. Military leaders seized control of the government and assassinated Diem.

TEKS 8C: Calculate percent composition and empirical and molecular formulas. Three weeks later, in an incident unrelated to Vietnam, President Kennedy was assassinated. Kennedy’s Vice President, Lyndon B. Johnson, became the new President. American involvement in Vietnam would continue for many more years.