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The Americanization of the war also undermined efforts to lure rural Vietnamese away from the Viet Cong. Search-and-destroy missions often created more enemies than friends among the peasants. Bomb raids had the chance of hurting allies. The Viet Cong had significant popular support among Vietnamese nationalists. But the insurgents also used brutal means to ensure loyalty. These ruthless tactics helped the Viet Cong gain control of much of South Vietnam.

how did the viet cong maintain popular support?

Some, especially in the countryside, joined the Viet Cong or supported their cause. Others, mostly in the cities, backed the government of South Vietnam. A third group, perhaps even the majority, remained neutral in the conflict.

how did the war divide the south Vietnamese people?

napalm

jellied gasoline dropped from U.S. planes during the Vietnam War as an incendiary bomb designed to burn forests and destroy enemy installations

twenty sixth amendment

the constitutional change ratified in 1971 lowering the voting age to 18

north vietnamese army

the troops of communism vietnam which supported the Viet Cong with troops and supplies

army of the republic of vietnam

the troops of the government of South Vietnam

pacification

a U.S. policy designed to promote security and stability in South Vietnam

limited war

a battle in which the weapons used, the nations or territory involved, or the objectives pursued are restricted in some way

tet offensive

a major battle in 1968 by Viet Cong and NVA soldiers that resulted in growing opposition among Americans to the war

war of attrition

a military campaign designed to wear down the enemy's strength

land mines

an explosive device buried just below the ground, designed to blow up when stepped on

agent orange

an herbicide used by the U.S. military in Vietnam to kill foliage in an effort to deny cover to the enemy

credibility gap

he difference between the reality of the Vietnam War and the Johnson administration's positive portrayal of it

To counter growing opposition to the war, the Johnson administration tried to persuade Americans that there was "light at the end of the tunnel." Officials presented statistics and reports to show that the United States was winning the war. LBJ's campaign to restore confidence worked. American support for the war effort increased—at least for a few months.

how did LBJ try to restore confidence in the war?

To win the communists had to engage in guerrilla warfare. The ability of the insurgents to avoid detection frustrated U.S. commanders. The chief tactic in their war of attrition strategy was the search-and-destroy mission. Search-and-destroy missions, however, made U.S. combat soldiers clear targets for enemy attack. Many became demoralized because of this

how did soldiers choose to fight the enemy?

This uncomfortably humid/hot tropical climate also gave rise to a host of insects and other pests, as well as diseases like malaria. Perhaps the greatest geographic challenge for U.S. soldiers, however, was Vietnam's rugged topography. Troops had to march through soggy, lowland rice paddies and swamps and over steep, jungle-clad mountains. In an effort to deny the enemy its forest cover, the U.S. military sprayed chemical herbicides from the air.

how did soldiers struggle with the geography of vietnam?

Night after night, news of the war was broadcast into their living rooms. At first, those news reports struck a positive note. as the war continued, however, television reports began to show more scenes of violence, suffering, and destruction—the human toll of the war.

how did television play a role in how americans viewed war?

The peace movement, or antiwar movement, blossomed on college campuses. Younger students also took action. Protesters also turned to civil disobedience. Many young men took advantage of college deferment, a law that exempted college students from the draft. Still, the draft fell disproportionately on poor Americans and minorities who were unable to attend college.

how did the peace movement thrive in the united states?

By 1968, most of the ground troops in Vietnam were not professional soldiers like the marines who first landed at Da Nang. As the war progressed, more and more of the fighting was done by men who had been drafted into the army. Many of them took a dim view of the war.

how did the soldier demographics shift as the war progressed?

The war had exhausted the president, and he seemed to think he had lost his political influence. 1968 had already been one of the most turbulent years in recent American history. The country was reeling from the combined effects of the Vietnam War, antiwar protests and other social unrest, and the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. Under pressure from LBJ, Humphrey approved the platform and won the Democratic nomination. Meanwhile, thousands of antiwar protesters rallied in parks near the convention center. In contrast, the Republican National Convention was a tidy affair. Delegates chose Richard M. Nixon, Eisenhower's vice president, as their candidate for president. In November 1968, Americans voted for change, electing Nixon as their new president.

what occurred during the election of 1968?

In the summer of 1967, North Vietnamese military planners decided on a risky new strategy. They would launch attacks on cities in South Vietnam, while staging an uprising in the countryside. Communist leaders hoped this strategy would reveal the failure of pacification efforts and turn Americans even more against the war. Like a shockwave rolling through South Vietnam, some 85,000 Viet Cong and NVA soldiers attacked cities, villages, military bases, and airfields. In battle after battle, South Vietnamese and U.S. forces pushed back the attackers.

what occurred during the tet offensive?

The soaring costs of the war, both human and economic, began to trouble more Americans. As Americans began taking a closer look at the war, some began to question LBJ's policies. They criticized the bombing of North Vietnam and the sending of combat troops without a declaration of war. Television newscasts emphasized a credibility gap

what questions did the war raise among americans?

Although it was a military disaster for the communists, the Tet Offensive shocked the American people and became a psychological defeat for the United States. No amount of positive analysis from the administration could persuade reporters or the public that this was a U.S. victory. Instead, many Americans saw these statements as another example of a widening credibility gap.

what was the result of the tet offensive for the u.s.?

First, the ARVN lacked the leadership, skills, and dedication to effectively provide security for villages being pacified. The lack of security, in turn, made it difficult for rural development teams to carry out their mission of building roads, schools, and other basic infrastructure.

what were the issues that pacification brought?

Pacification involved two main programs, both run by the Saigon government but organized by the U.S. Army and the CIA and funded by the United States. The first aimed to bring economic development to rural South Vietnam. The second pacification program sought to undermine the communist insurgency by having the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) remove the Viet Cong and their sympathizers from villages.

what were the two programs involved in pacification, which lbj used to gain southern vietnamese support for the war?

General Westmoreland believed that a war of attrition could achieve victory. The goal was to kill more enemy soldiers than North Vietnam or the Viet Cong could replace. Second, U.S. leaders saw grave dangers in pursuing a total war with no limits. Total war calls for the complete mobilization of a nation's resources to achieve victory.

what were the two reasons the u.s. pursued a limited war

The limited war proved ineffective, however, because the strategy of attrition failed. There were simply too many enemy forces to eliminate. Ultimately, Americans underestimated their enemy. The Viet Cong and North Vietnamese saw the United States as another colonial power that had to be expelled from their country.

what were two reasons the limited war failed

After Tet, polls showed that only 26 percent of Americans approved of LBJ's conduct of the war. LBJ saw Tet as a political catastrophe. The United States, he said, would try to "deescalate the conflict" by cutting back on the bombing of North Vietnam and by seeking a negotiated settlement of the war.

why did LBJ choose not to run for re-election?

The war had turned several hawkish advisers into doves. But with public opinion shifting against his war policy, he feared that he would also lose public support for his civil rights and antipoverty programs.

why did johnson feel the vietnam war would take a toll on his presidency?