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Ho Chi Minh & The Creation of Viet Minh
Ho Chi Minh is a communist leader and created the Viet Minh group. The U.S was impacted by this event because they didn’t want communism to spread. The U.S. is afraid indochina might fall communist because of domino theory in North Vietnam; it says if one falls then the rest will fall as one. One of the U.S goals was to stop communism from spreading and this causes tension between Communist and Capitalists. -
The First Indochina War (1946–1954)
France ruled Indochina; Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. However, Vietnam wanted to overthrow French rule and that's when the battle of Dien Bien Fu (a town occupied by the French) started. The French and U.S were impacted by this event because one wanted to stop communism and one wanted to rule colonialism. They teamed up on North Vietnam and tried to regain control. This increases tensions between capitalists and communist because the U.S does not want communism to spread. -
America Aids France (1950)
Although the U.S does not support colonialism they did not want communism to spread so they teamed up with France. The U.S supported about ¾ of France militarism and gave 15 million dollars aid to France with limited military forces in the Indochina War. However, the Viet Minh ended up winning. French and U.S because they lost to the Viet Minh. This increases tensions between capitalists and communist because the U.S does not want communism to spread and will get through anything to stop it. -
The Domino Theory (1950-1975)
Domino theory is when if one falls into communism, then the rest will fall to communism, as well. The U.S was afraid that communism would spread in Southeast Asia. This increases tension between capitalism and communism, making the U.S more involved. -
The Geneva Accords (1954)
The Geneva Accords ended the first Indochina War. The French and Viet Minh agreed to divide North and South Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. The South would have the ruler Ngô Đình Diệm and the North would have Ho Chi Minh. However, North Vietnam is communist, turning U.S involvement even more towards Vietnam. -
Diệm’s assassination (1963)
The South Vietnamese leader was assassinated, which means no more elections for Indochina, and the 17th parallel divides North Vietnam from Cambodia, Laos, and South Vietnam. This increases U.S involvement because they do not want communism to spread. The South also had hard political stability in its country after Diem’s assassination on November 2, 1963. -
The Gulf of Tonkin Incident (1964)
U.S involvement increases because 3 North Vietnamese torpedo boats attack the Maddox ship that sailed in the Gulf of Tonkin. The people impacted are the U.S because they are getting attacked by 3 torpedo boats. Also, creating the tension between capitalism and communism. -
The Tet Offensive (1968)
North Vietnam surprisingly attacks U.S soldiers and South Vietnam. The people affected are the U.S. military, soldiers, and Southern Vietnamese people. This impacted the U.S soldiers and South Vietnam because they were surprised attacked and a lot of people died. This creates tension between communism and capitalism because of the surprise attack. -
My Lai Massacre (1968)
The company of Charlie Company, U.S. Army Soldiers, killed around 500 innocent people brutally. It impacted the public opinion, dead villagers, and Southern Vietnamese because the U.S. Army Soldiers killed the villagers in South Vietnam, and public opinion in the U.S. is rising. This causes tension between communism and capitalism because South Vietnam lost trust in the U.S. -
Use of Agent Orange (1961-1969)
The U.S Army sprayed herbicides that caused cancer, destroyed crops, contaminated food and crops, and had long-term effects on health conditions in the body. It impacted the North Vietnamese with the exposed herbicide and contaminated food and crops. It caused tension between communism and capitalism because the involvement of the U.S increases. -
U.S. troop withdrawals and Vietnamization (1969–1973)
Withdrawing troops back to the U.S. was not easy while trying to fight or hold on to the war in Vietnam. This impacted the soldiers, the U.S, and the ongoing war. This creates tension between capitalism and communism because the war is continuing, and their goal was to shift the effort to South Vietnamese. -
War Powers Act (1973)
Johnson took too much control of militarism and the War Powers Act was created to limit the president’s power on military commands. This impacted the president's interference or power of the military. This creates tension between the communist and capitalist because it limits the command or power of president interference. -
The Fall of Saigon (1975)
The South Vietnamese fell into communist and North Vietnam unified Vietnam. This impacts the U.S. and the South Vietnamese army and government because communism spreads. The tension rises because communism spreads in South Vietnam.