The Vietnam War

The Viet Cong Oppose Diem  Diem’s new government in S. Vietnam was corrupt and he had little support from the people.  The Vietnamese Communists or Viet Cong opposed his government in South Vietnam.  The North Vietnamese supported the Viet Cong. 1

Ho Chi Minh Trail  North Vietnam supplied the Viet Cong via the Ho Chi Minh Trail.  This trail weaved through the jungles of neighboring Laos and Cambodia. 2

The Fall of Diem  With the Viet Cong close to victory the U.S. pressured Diem to make reforms.  He refused.  On Nov. 1, 1963 a U.S. backed coup overthrew and killed Diem. 3

The War Escalates  By late 1964 the Viet Cong were close to victory.  Johnson did not want to be the president who lost Vietnam.  He needed to escalate the war, but had to get congressional approval.

The Gulf of Tonkin  In August 1964 the U.S. destroyer Maddox was supposedly attacked by N. Vietnamese gun boats.  However no one could confirm this event. 4

The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution  Never the less President Johnson used the incident to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution authorizing the use of military force in Vietnam.  The number of troops in Vietnam would swell to almost 536,000 by ,6

A Long War  Many Americans thought that with their superior technology that they would win a quick victory in Vietnam.  However, this was not the case.  There were several factors in Vietnam that made the war difficult to win: 7