1. VIETNAM WAR I. Overview of the Vietnam War A. A Painful War
1. Longest War & Only War Lost
2. Show Limits = power, govt. & “exceptionalism”
3. Shape Foreign Policy for Decades
B. US Participation in War
1. Enter War to Prevent Spread of Communism
2. US w/draw 1973, Communists takeover 1975
The Costs of the War
1. 57,000 Americans & 4 million Vietnamese killed
2. “Tragedy of epic dimensions”

2. VIETNAM WAR II. The French in Vietnam A. French Involvement & Control
B. Establishment of the Viet Minh
1. Vietnamese Nat’lists, led by Ho Chi Minh = main goal of pushing French out
C. US Support for France in Vietnam
1. Fear Communist Influence & Ally to France WWII
D. French Defeat in Vietnam
1. Defeated at Dien Bien Phu (1954)
2. Geneva Accords = split country into N. & S. w/ elections in two years = elections never held

3. VIETNAM WAR III. US Intervention Begins A. Eisenhower’s Domino Theory
1. Fear loss of Vietnam, then loss of all Indochina
2. Becomes basis for intervention

4. VIETNAM WAR B. US Support of South Vietnam
1. US supports Diem, leader of the South
2. President Kennedy sends military “advisors” & military personnel to Vietnam
3. Diem’s rule undemocratic = losing support = US allows military coup to assassinate him

5. VIETNAM WAR IV. US Presence Escalates in Vietnam
A. The Gulf of Tonkin Incident
1. US Boat clashes w/ N. Viet. Boat = US portrays as unprovoked attack
B. The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
1. President given right to “take all necessary measures”
2. Gives Johnson right to send troops w/out declaration of war from Congress

6. VIETNAM WAR C. Johnson Escalates War 1. 1965 = 200,000 troops

7. VIETNAM WAR Vietcong A. Supported by North Vietnamese Army
B. Organized peasants in the South
C. Lived amongst the South Vietnamese

8. VIETNAM WAR VI. Hardships and Disillusionment on the War Fronts
A. Guerilla Warfare
1. Wet/Dense Terrain, guerilla attacks & ambushes
B. Effective Vietnamese Forces
1. Purpose, hit and run, know terrain

9. VIETNAM WAR C. Distinguishing Friends from Enemies
D. Growing US Disillusionment
1. Beginning – feel fighting for freedom
2. End = Disillusionment

10. VIETNAM WAR VII. Vietnamese Nationalism and Determination
A. The Vietnamese “People’s War”
B. The Ho Chi Minh Trail
C. The Plight of Vietnamese Civilians

11. VIETNAM WAR VIII. American Public Support for War Wanes
A. Unpopularity of the War
B. Antiwar Demonstrations at Home
C. Resistance to the Draft
D. US Leaders Speak Out

12. VIETNAM WAR IX. Fighting a Losing Battle A. 1968 = The Tet Offensive
1. 70,000 communist soldiers launch a surprise attack
2. Shows US is vulnerable & public turns against the war

13. VIETNAM WAR
B. Cost of War
C. Johnson Leaves Office

14. VIETNAM WAR X. Violence Escalates at Home and Abroad
A. The 1968 Presidential Election

15. VIETNAM WAR B. The My Lai Massacre
, US forces massacred village of My Lai

16. VIETNAM WAR C. Nixon’s Policy of “Peace with Honor”
1. Vietnamization = more responsibility to S. Vietnamese troops
D. US Bombing in Cambodia
1. Nixon Secretly authorized bombing & invasion of Cambodia
E. Escalating Protests and Kent State Shootings

17. VIETNAM WAR XI. The US Pulls Out and the War Ends
A. Cease-Fire Declared =Jan. 1973
B. US Forces Leave Vietnam = March 1973
C. Fighting Resumes in Vietnam
, Communists take over South

18. VIETNAM WAR D. The Effects of the Vietnam War
1. US = 3 million serve; 58,000 died; Side Effects
2. Vietnamese = 4 million die
E. Vietnam after the War