Unit 1 Lessons of Vietnam

 Length & Width 1,000 Miles Long; 100 Miles Wide  Population & Capital 60 Million, Hanoi  Food & Language Rice & Vietnamese

 Located in Southeast Asia (SE Asia)  Tropical Zone Jungles, Swamps, Rice Paddies Temp: Degrees

 Truong Son “Central Mountains” w/ Laos & Cambodia on Other Side  Shape of Vietnam Like “Two Rice Baskets” Red River Delta in the North Mekong Delta in the South

 Vietnam was Formerly Apart of China For Over 1,000 Years  Education Learned Chinese Language and Culture Practiced Confucianism

 China’s View Working to “Civilize” the Vietnamese  Vietnam’s Independence (950 AD) Took Advantage of Problems in China & Separated  Dai Viet (Greater Viet) Became Independent Nation

 Confucian System Importance of Family & Community over Self Gov’t Officials Selected Through Exams  Dao (The Way) Emperor must be Compassionate and have Concern

 Need for Growing Community to Find More Land Past the Red River Delta  Takeovers Champa (land formerly used by Indian settlers) Angkor (declining state; later becomes Cambodia)

 Peasants were Born, Lived, and Died in their Villages  Decisions Made by Council of Elders in Each Village

 Power Emperor had Representatives, but No Power over Actual Villages Could tax & Call on Citizens to Serve  Problems Villages Decided the Tax Rate Citizens have STRONG Connection to Village but Little Concern over Gov’t

 Rice Farming Main Job of Villagers Took a LOT of Work  Family System Often Three Generations in One House Male Dominated

 Vietnamese 90% of the Population Strong Homogeneity  Other Ethnicities Mountain People Cham & Khmer Chinese

 Buddhists Traditional, Asian Religion  Catholics French Influenced, Western Religion  Cao Dai Combines Western & Asian Beliefs  Hoa Hao Reformed Buddhist

 The North Red River Delta More Traditionalists/Asian Ideals  The South Mekong River Delta More Individualists/Western Ideals

 Skepticism Vietnamese Did Not Trust the Europeans  French Influence Met w/ Resistance And Failure at First Success in Taking Mekong Region  Indochinese Union French Control of Vietnam, Cambodia, & Laos

 Missions “Mission Civilisatrice” (Civilizing the Vietnamese or White Man’s Burden)  Benefits Exporting Rubber, Rice, etc Introduced Western Ideals

 Colonialism Sign of Power in Europe Push for Takeover  Mercantilism Export of Goods and Resources Provided Funds for French

 Democracy Villages Had No Effective Power  Economic Benefit Only Small Profits Came from Exports  Land Ownership The Wealthy Could Buy Up Land Leaving the Peasants Out

 Nationalism is a Strong Pride in one’s Nation, Sometimes to a Fault  Anti-Colonial Resistance Attempt to Settle Differences Vietnam’s Push for Independence

 Produced Large Student Demonstrations Against the French  Organized Resistance  Fractured Over Tactics to Use

 Father Protested Against French Rule  Spent Time in America Studied, Worked  Asked WWII Allies to Grant Independence of Vietnam Ignored

 Anti-French Colonial Rule  Marxist View of Government Communism

 Strongly Supported by the Poor & Destitute  Dynamic Figure, Inspirational

 Organizations Revolutionary Youth League Indochinese Communist Party Vietminh Vietcong  Successes Removing French Influence from Vietnam Gureilla Warfare

 Ho Seizes Control of Hanoi Forming the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV)  French & Vietminh Try Compromise Fails  Vietminh Officially Attack the French

 French Traditional War Tactics Former Emperor Bao Dai as a Symbol Formed “Associated States of Vietnam”  Vietminh Guerilla War Tactics Assisted by China

 View of SE Asia Strategic, Important Area w/ Mad Resources  U.S. Didn’t Trust Either Side, but Helped Associated States

 Gen. Vo Ngyuen Giap Planned Surprise Attacks Against French Demoralizer  French Public Were Against the War No End In Sight

 French Military Post  Attacked During Negotiations HUGE Loss of Life of the French  Causes the French to Give In To Ho’s Demands

 Two Major Agreements to End War:  1) Cease-Fire btwn French & Vietminh Divide Vietnam on 17 th Parallel (DMZ) Vietminh in North; Bao Dai in South  2) Political Accord to Settle Issues Reps from Each Zone To Develop National Elections

 Split Vietnam Into Two Sides North- Communist, South-Democratic  U.S. Did Not Agree to Political Accords Did NOT Want Ho Chi Minh to Win Election

 Background Catholic, Supported by U.S. Beat Bao Dai by 98 Percent of the Vote  Philosophy Opposed Communism Refused to Meet w/ DRV  Personality Corrupt, Autocratic

 Land Redistribution Giving Land to Poor (Unsuccessful)  Strategic Hamlets Forts Around Villages

 Communists Started Uprisings in SV Against Diem  Buddhists Oppressed All Non-Catholics

 Formed by U.S. to Help protect The Area From Communists  SV Couldn’t Join Legally

 Pres. John F. Kennedy Increased Military Advisors to Vietnam Rejected Sending Troops  “Hearts & Minds” Attempt to Win Over The Vietnamese Citizens FAIL

 Ngo Dinh Diem (11/1/63) U.S. Supported Coup Against Diem Brutal  John F. Kennedy (11/22/63) Killed by Sniper in Dallas,TX  Results SV Now Run By Military General “Big Minh” NV Steps Up Attacks

 The Incident (8/1964) American Warships Claimed to Have been Attacked by NV Conspiracy?  Resolution Congress gave LBJ Authority to Take Whatever Action Needed to Stop Communism Begin to Send Troops in to Vietnam

Unit I Daily Quizzes

Day 1- Introduction  1. What is the Major FOOD in Vietnam?  2. What Country was Vietnam Once Apart of?  3. Name the Two Deltas in Vietnam  4. What Philosophy Did the Vietnamese Follow?

Day 2- The People  1. What is the Major Industry in Vietnam?  2. How Do the People Organize Themselves?  3. Name the Two Major Religions in Vietnam  4. The Major Ethnicity in Vietnam is…?

Day 3- The West  1. What Western Nation Had the Largest Influence on Vietnam?  2. What Was One of Their True Motives?  3. What Group Was Formed to Resist Their Rule?  4. How was Democracy Contradicted in Vietnam?

Day 4- HO  1. What Did Ho Ask the WWII Allies to Do?  2. What Country was Vietnam Once Apart of?  3. What was Ho’s Government Philosophy?  4. Name ONE of Ho’s Organizations?

Day 5-Revolution  1. What Did Ho Form After His August Revolution?  2. Who Fought in the First Indochina War?  3. What Attack Signaled the Failure of the French in the War?  4. North Vietnam Became ____ & South Vietnam Became ____?

Day 6-Ngo Dinh Diem  1. What Was Ngo Dinh Diem’s Religion?  2. Why Did Buddhists Oppose Diem’s Regime?  3. What Organization Was Formed to Protect Southeast Asia from Communism?  4. What Incident Caused the United States to Entire Into Vietnam?