8.8 The Vietnam War

The Vietnam War was one of America's longest and most divisive conflicts. From the 1950s to the 1970s, the United States fought to prevent communism from spreading in Southeast Asia, while the war reshaped domestic politics, protest movements, and public trust in government.

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What to Know About the Vietnam War

• After Vietnamese forces defeated France at Dien Bien Phu, Vietnam was temporarily divided into a communist North and an anti-communist South; the domino theory helped justify U.S. support for South Vietnam.
• Kennedy increased U.S. military advisors, and the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution gave Johnson broad powers to escalate the war; despite growing American involvement, the fighting reached a stalemate.
• Anti-war protests pressured the government to end the war, while the Tet Offensive shocked Americans and weakened support for the war despite being a military defeat for North Vietnam and the Viet Cong.
• Nixon's Vietnamization shifted fighting to South Vietnam's military as U.S. troops withdrew, but he also attacked communist bases in Cambodia; the Paris Accords ended U.S. involvement without bringing peace to Vietnam.
• North Vietnam took Saigon in 1975 and reunified Vietnam under communist rule; the war left deep divisions and made many Americans more skeptical of government and military leaders.

Origins of the Vietnam War

The Vietnam War had its roots in the end of World War II and the beginning of the Cold War. As countries in Asia sought independence, the United States worried about the spread of communism in the region. Decolonization after the war and powerful nationalist movements across Asia led both Cold War sides to look for allies among the new nations. Many of those nations stayed nonaligned, choosing not to join either side.

Fall of Indochina

After World War II, France tried to retake control of its former colony in Southeast Asia called Indochina (today's Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia). The French had lost this colony to Japan during the war, but now wanted it back. Many Vietnamese people, however, wanted independence, not French rule.

A Vietnamese leader named Ho Chi Minh organized resistance against the French. Ho was both a nationalist (someone who wanted independence for his country) and a communist. His communist beliefs worried American leaders, who were trying to stop communism from spreading around the world.

As fighting broke out between the French and Vietnamese independence fighters (called the Viet Minh):

• The United States began giving military aid to the French
• China and the Soviet Union supported Ho Chi Minh's forces
• In 1954, Vietnamese forces trapped and defeated a large French army at Dien Bien Phu
• This defeat convinced France to give up control of the region

President Eisenhower decided not to send American troops to help France, but he was concerned about communism spreading through Southeast Asia.

Vietnam Divided

After the French defeat, an international agreement at the 1954 Geneva Conference temporarily divided Vietnam at the 17th parallel (a line of latitude):

• North Vietnam came under Ho Chi Minh's communist government
• South Vietnam was led by Ngo Dinh Diem, who was anti-communist

This division was supposed to be temporary, with elections planned to reunify the country. However, these elections never happened, and the division became more permanent.

The United States supported South Vietnam with money and military advisors. From 1955 to 1961, the U.S. gave over $1 billion in aid to help build up South Vietnam as a strong, anti-communist state.

President Eisenhower explained America's interest in Vietnam using what he called the "domino theory." According to this idea:

• If South Vietnam fell to communism, neighboring countries would also fall one after another, like a row of dominoes
• Eventually, communism could spread throughout Southeast Asia to countries like Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and even Australia

This theory became the main justification for U.S. involvement in Vietnam for years to come.

Escalation Under Kennedy and Johnson

What began as limited support for South Vietnam gradually grew into a major military commitment under Presidents Kennedy and Johnson.

Kennedy Sends Advisors

When John F. Kennedy became president in 1961, the situation in Vietnam was getting worse. The Viet Cong (communist guerrillas supported by North Vietnam) were gaining strength in South Vietnam through attacks and terrorism.

Kennedy continued Eisenhower's policy of supporting South Vietnam against communism. Instead of sending regular combat troops, Kennedy:

• Increased the number of American military advisors from about 900 to more than 16,000
• Expanded economic aid to the South Vietnamese government
• Authorized American advisors to accompany South Vietnamese troops on combat missions

Meanwhile, South Vietnam's leader Ngo Dinh Diem was becoming increasingly unpopular with his own people. Diem, a Catholic in a mostly Buddhist country, faced growing protests. When Buddhist monks publicly set themselves on fire in protest, these shocking images appeared on American television.

As opposition to Diem grew, Kennedy approved a plan that allowed South Vietnamese generals to overthrow Diem. The coup took place on November 1, 1963, and Diem was killed. Just three weeks later, Kennedy himself was assassinated, leaving the growing Vietnam problem to his vice president, Lyndon Johnson.

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

In August 1964, an incident in the Gulf of Tonkin (off the coast of North Vietnam) dramatically changed American involvement in Vietnam.

The U.S. reported that North Vietnamese torpedo boats had attacked an American destroyer called the USS Maddox. A second attack was also reported two days later, although later evidence suggested this second attack probably didn't happen.

President Johnson used these incidents to ask Congress for special powers. On August 7, 1964, Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which:

• Authorized the president to take "all necessary measures" to protect American forces and prevent further aggression
• Gave Johnson broad powers to conduct military operations without a formal declaration of war
• Passed almost unanimously (only two senators voted against it)

This resolution became Johnson's legal justification for expanding the war. Later, many members of Congress would regret giving the president such broad powers.

Escalation of the War

In 1965, Johnson made the major decision to send U.S. combat troops to Vietnam. This began a steady escalation of American involvement:

• February 1965: Johnson ordered Operation Rolling Thunder, a bombing campaign against North Vietnam
• March 1965: The first American combat troops (3,500 Marines) landed in Vietnam
• By the end of 1965: Nearly 200,000 American troops were in Vietnam
• By the end of 1967: Over 485,000 American troops were fighting in Vietnam

American military strategy in Vietnam included:

• "Search and destroy" missions to find and eliminate enemy forces
• Massive bombing campaigns against North Vietnam and supply routes
• The use of chemical defoliants like Agent Orange to remove jungle cover
• Efforts to win the "hearts and minds" of Vietnamese civilians

Despite growing American involvement, the war reached a stalemate. The U.S. and South Vietnamese forces controlled the major cities and towns, while the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese remained strong in the countryside.

The War at Home

As the war dragged on with no end in sight, opposition grew in the United States. The Vietnam War became increasingly unpopular and divisive.

The Anti-War Movement

By 1967, a strong anti-war movement had developed in the United States, especially on college campuses. Protesters had various reasons for opposing the war:

• Some thought the war was morally wrong
• Others questioned whether Vietnam was truly important to U.S. security
• Many young men didn't want to be drafted to fight in a war they didn't support
• Some saw the war as an example of American imperialism

Anti-war protests grew larger and sometimes turned violent. Major protests included:

• October 1967: A march of 100,000 people on the Pentagon
• 1968: Protests at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago
• May 1970: Demonstrations after the U.S. invasion of Cambodia, including one at Kent State University where National Guard troops shot and killed four students

The anti-war movement created deep divisions in American society and put pressure on the government to end the war.

The Tet Offensive

A major turning point came in January 1968 with the Tet Offensive. During Tet (the Vietnamese New Year), North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces launched surprise attacks across South Vietnam, including in the capital city of Saigon.

U.S. and South Vietnamese forces eventually repelled these attacks and inflicted heavy losses on the communists. From a purely military perspective, the Tet Offensive was a defeat for North Vietnam and the Viet Cong.

However, the psychological impact in the United States was enormous:

• The scale of the attacks shocked Americans who had been told the U.S. was winning
• Television brought graphic images of the fighting into American living rooms
• Respected CBS news anchor Walter Cronkite, after visiting Vietnam, told viewers the war had become a "stalemate"
• Public support for the war dropped dramatically
• The credibility gap between what the government said and what people saw grew wider

After Tet, President Johnson rejected requests from military leaders for 200,000 more troops. On March 31, 1968, Johnson announced he would limit bombing of North Vietnam and seek peace talks. He also shocked the nation by declaring he would not run for re-election.

Nixon and the End of the War

Richard Nixon was elected president in 1968 partly on his promise to end the war in Vietnam. However, it would take several more years and many more casualties before American involvement finally ended.

Vietnamization

Nixon's approach to ending the war centered on a policy called "Vietnamization." This strategy aimed to:

• Gradually withdraw American troops from Vietnam
• Build up South Vietnam's military so they could fight the war themselves
• Continue bombing and other military pressure on North Vietnam
• Negotiate a peace agreement that would allow the U.S. to leave "with honor"

Under this policy, U.S. troop levels in Vietnam declined from over 540,000 in 1969 to about 30,000 by 1972. Nixon also announced the "Nixon Doctrine," which stated that Asian allies would receive American support but would need to provide their own ground troops in future conflicts.

While reducing American ground forces, Nixon actually expanded the war in other ways:

• In 1970, he ordered American forces to attack communist bases in Cambodia
• Bombing of North Vietnam continued and even increased
• American air power was used extensively to support South Vietnamese forces

Peace Talks and the Paris Accords

Peace negotiations began in Paris in 1968 but made little progress for years. In 1972, Nixon ordered an intense bombing campaign of North Vietnam (known as the "Christmas bombing") to force concessions in the peace talks.

Finally, in January 1973, the Paris Peace Accords were signed. These agreements:

• Provided for a ceasefire between North and South Vietnam
• Required the withdrawal of all U.S. forces
• Arranged for the return of American prisoners of war
• Called for future elections and peaceful reunification of Vietnam

The Paris Accords allowed the United States to exit the war, but they did not bring peace to Vietnam. The agreements left thousands of North Vietnamese troops in South Vietnam, and fighting continued.

Fall of Saigon

After American forces withdrew, South Vietnam struggled to defend itself against continued pressure from the North. In early 1975, North Vietnam launched a major offensive against the South.

Without American air support, South Vietnamese forces quickly collapsed. On April 30, 1975, North Vietnamese tanks rolled into Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam. Americans watched on television as helicopters evacuated the last U.S. personnel from the roof of the American embassy.

Just before the final collapse, the U.S. managed to evacuate about 150,000 South Vietnamese who had worked with Americans and faced persecution if they remained.

The Vietnam War had finally ended with a communist victory. Vietnam was reunified under the communist government in Hanoi.

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The Vietnam War had profound impacts on American society and foreign policy. Over 58,000 Americans died in the conflict, while Vietnamese casualties numbered in the millions. The war cost the U.S. more than $118 billion, contributing to economic problems in the 1970s. Most importantly, the war left deep divisions in American society and made many people more skeptical of government and military leaders. The "Vietnam Syndrome" - a reluctance to get involved in foreign conflicts - would influence American foreign policy for decades to come.