Vietnam worksheet section 2 fighting the war describing the war and the difficulties faced by American soldiers
What were two types of booby traps used by the Vietcong
1. Spike Board- A pad is placed on the ground, and a catapult like board with spikes flies forward into the enemy's chest or face when the pad is stepped on. 2. Tiger Trap- a tripwire is placed on the ground below a spiked board which falls when the wire is moved. 3. Grenade Trap- Two posts are on either side of a stream and are connected by a tripwire, and a grenade is on one of the posts when the wire is tripped the pin is pulled, and the grenade detonates.
What happened at the My Lai massacre?
A company of American soldiers brutally killed most of the people—women, children and old men—in the village of My Lai on March 16, 1968. More than 500 people were slaughtered in the My Lai massacre, most horrific incidents of violence committed against unarmed civilians during the Vietnam War. Th young girls and women were raped and mutilated before being killed. U.S. Army officers covered up the carnage for a year before it was reported in the American press, sparking a firestorm of international outrage. The brutality of the My Lai killings and the official cover-up fueled anti-war sentiment and further divided the United States over the Vietnam War.
What is saturation bombing and what type of bomber was used for it?
Carpet bombing, also known as saturation bombing, is a large aerial bombing done in a progressive manner to inflict damage in every part of a selected area of land. The phrase evokes the image of explosions completely covering an area, in the same way that a carpet covers a floor. Carpet bombing is usually achieved by dropping many unguided bombs. Type of Bombers used were the B-52's
What were three advantages the Vietcong had in Vietnam
Knowledge of the jungle Blended in w/civilians Have something to fight for
What was the Ho Chi Minh trail used for?
a network of jungle paths used to transport supplies from North Vietnam to South Vietnam without crossing the border directly and provided the Vietminh a safe way to transfer supplies and arms to the Vietcong because the US could not attack the trail since it is mainly in Laos and Cambodia
Why were Vietnamese civilians in danger during the war?
fighting took place in Vietnam, the Vietnamese land and people paid a much heavier price for the war. An estimated 4 million Vietnamese were killed or wounded on both sides of the conflict, including as many as 1.3 million civilians (people not involved in the military, including women and children) in South Vietnam. Much of the death and destruction resulted from bombing. The U.S. military used more than 14 million tons of explosives during the Vietnam War, mostly on the South Vietnamese countryside. The U.S. military also sprayed millions of gallons of defoliants (chemical agents that killed or burned crops, forests, and other vegetation) on the South Vietnamese land during the war.
What was the objective for America in Vietnam?
prevent communist domination of South Vietnam; to create in that country a viable and increasingly democratic society
What types of tactics did the Vietcong use in Vietnam
Dug tunnels Hit and run ambush/gorilla warfare Blending in with Civilians Booby traps
What is the difference between Hawks and doves?
Hawks supported Johnson's policy and believed Vietnam was a crucial front in the Cold War. Doves believed that the Vietnam conflict was a localized civil war and did not agree with Johnson's war policy, whereas
What did Hugh Thompson do?
He played a major role in ending the My Lai Massacre. Thompson and his crew stopped a number of killings by threatening and blocking officers and enlisted soldiers from committing more harm. He and his crew saved a number of Vietnamese civilians by personally escorting them away from advancing United States Army ground units and assuring their evacuation by air. Thompson reported the atrocities by radio several times nothing was done to stop the massacre. After evacuating a child to a hospital, Thompson angrily reported to his superiors at Task Force Barker headquarters that a massacre was occurring and Superiors ordered all ground units in Sơn Mỹ to cease search and destroy operations in the village. In 1970, Thompson testified against those responsible for the My Lai Massacre. Twenty-six officers and enlisted soldiers, including William Calley and Ernest Medina, were charged with criminal offenses, but all were either acquitted or pardoned
What happened to Vietnamese civilians at Hue?
It is summary executions and mass killings by the Viet Cong (VC) and People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) during their capture, occupation and later withdrawal from the city of Hue during the Tet Offensive, considered one of the longest and bloodiest battles of the Vietnam War, January 31, 1968, and lasted a total of 26 days. During the months and years that followed, dozens of mass graves were discovered in and around Victims included women, men, children, and infants. The estimated death toll was between 2,800 and 6,000 civilians and prisoners of war The Republic of Vietnam released a list of 4,062 victims identified as having been either murdered or abducted. Victims were found bound, tortured, and sometimes buried alive. Many victims were also clubbed to death.
What was the Tet Offensive?
It was a coordinated series of North Vietnamese attacks on more than 100 cities and outposts in South Vietnam. The offensive was an attempt to foment rebellion among the South Vietnamese population and encourage the United States to scale back its involvement in the Vietnam Though U.S. and South Vietnamese forces managed to hold off the attacks, news coverage of the massive offensive shocked the American public and eroded support for the war effort. Despite heavy casualties, North Vietnam achieved a strategic victory with the Tet Offensive, as the attacks marked a turning point in the Vietnam War and the beginning of the slow, painful American withdrawal from the region.
Why was the Tet Offensive a psychological victory for the Viet Cong?
The outcome of the offensive ultimately led to a major shift in American strategy from trying to defeat the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army to finding a way to disengage from the conflict. the Tet Offensive was a crushing defeat for the Communist forces. It was simply the audacity and ferocity of the attack that caught American leaders so off guard and so shocked American TV viewers that the course of the war changed in an instant, ending the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson in the process.
What is Agent Orange and what was it used for?
herbicide/defoliant - a chemical that kills plants and makes their leaves fall off. This seems like a somewhat strange weapon, but since the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces were using the jungles for cover, destroying the jungle itself was seen by American military planners as a method of forcing the enemy into the open.also used to attack rural crops and farmlands in an effort to make rural living difficult and hence force the population to become more centralized, since US/South Vietnamese forces controlled the central cities and major settlements but had difficulty expanding their reach to rural villages. Agent Orange was a tool rather than a weapon - its objective was to reshape the countryside to create conditions that favored the US/South Vietnamese forces, not to kill enemy soldiers.
What is napalm and what were its effects?
highly flammable petroleum gel used in incendiary bombs and flamethrowers first used in flamethrowers for U.S. ground troops; they burned down sections of forest and bushes in hopes of eliminating any enemy guerrilla fighters. Later on in the war B-52 Bombers began dropping napalm bombs and other incendiary explosives. Air raids that used napalm were much more devastating than flamethrowers; a single bomb was capable of destroying areas up to 2,500 square yards. Its effects can cause severe burns asphyxiation, unconsciousness, and death. I napalm fires can create an atmosphere of greater than 20% carbon monoxide and firestorms with self-perpetuating winds of up to 70 miles per hour. One of the main anti-personnel features of napalm is that it sticks to human skin, with no practical method for removal of the burning substance.
What was Operation Rolling Thunder and what effect did it have in Vietnam?
the code name for an American bombing campaign during the Vietnam War. U.S. military aircraft attacked targets throughout North Vietnam from March 1965 to October 1968. Effects on Vietnam began using surface-to-air missiles and radar-controlled anti-aircraft artillery, the North Vietnamese shot down hundreds of American planes over the course of the bombing campaign. As a result, pilots and aircraft weapon systems operators accounted for the majority of the American prisoners of war who were captured and held by North Vietnam. North Vietnamese leaders also took a number of other steps to reduce the impact of the American bombing raids. They constructed networks of bombproof tunnels and shelters, and dispatched crews by night to rebuild the roads, bridges, communication systems and other facilities struck by bombs. Additionally, the communists used the destructive air strikes for propaganda purposes to increase anti-American sentiment and patriotism among North Vietnamese citizens.
What is escalation and which president escalated the war in Vietnam?
to increase in extent, volume, number, amount, intensity, or scope. Lyndon B Johnson escalated the war in Vietnam
