Vietnam War Midterm Review

Khe Sanh

- During the battle, a massive aerial bombardment campaign was launched by the U.S. Air Force to support the Marine base. Over 100,000 tons of bombs (equivalent in destructive force to five Hiroshima-size atomic bombs) were dropped until mid April by aircraft of the U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Marines onto the surrounding areas of Khe Sanh. This campaign used the latest technological advances in order to locate NVA forces for targeting. The logistical effort to support KSCB, once it was isolated overland, demanded the implementation of other tactical innovations in order to keep the Marines supplied.

Ho Chi Minh Campaign

- series of increasingly large-scale and ambitious offensive operations by the North Vietnam and the Viet Cong that began on 13 December 1974. The eventual goal of these operations was to defeat the armed forces and force the surrender of the government of the South Vietnam. After the initial success of what was to be a limited campaign in Phuoc Long Province, the North Vietnamese leadership increased the scope of the People's Army of Vietnam's offensive and quickly threatened the Central Highlands city of Buôn Ma Thuột.

Project Beefup

1961-63) Rejecting General Maxwell Taylor's proposal to send combat troops, the president nevertheless launched what was called Project BEEF-UP, a massive infusion of aid to save the embattled South Vietnamese government. o Project BEEF-UP brought only a short-lived advantage to the United States and its South Vietnamese ally. The infusion of American aid and personnel gave an immediate boost to South Vietnamese morale, and the helicopters, in particular.

Paris Peace Accords

1973 intended to establish peace in Vietnam and an end to the Vietnam War, ended direct U.S. military involvement, and temporarily stopped the fighting between North and South Vietnam. The governments of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam), the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam), and the United States, as well as the Provisional Revolutionary Government (PRG) that represented indigenous South Vietnamese revolutionaries, signed the Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam on January 27, 1973.

Ellsworth Bunker

Ambassador to Vietnam. He is perhaps best known for being a hawk on the war in Vietnam and Southeast Asia during the 1960s and 1970s.

Search & Destroy Mission

American ground operations in the south escalated dramatically between 1965 and 1967. Westmoreland's strategy was to eliminate the NLF and North Vietnamese. The idea of Search and Destroy was compared to Napoleon. Westmoreland felt like he had to commit large amount of troops because North Vietnam did. Westmoreland's plan was that once the enemy's regulars had been destroyed then the South Vietnamese government could stabilize its position and pacify the countryside and then the adversary would have to negotiate on terms acceptable to the United States. (page 179)

LBJ Speech, March 31, 1968

Attempts to begin discussing peace option again. They were declined several times. LBJ realizes the fighting needs to end.

Hawks vs. Doves

During the Vietnam War, America was split in half (not literally of course). One side was called the Hawks and they were the side that wanted to increase military force and send more troops into Vietnam to win the war. The Doves on the other hand, wanted the opposite and wanted the troops to be withdrawn and settle the war with peace.

Cooper-church Amendment

End funding to retain U.S. ground troops and military advisors in Cambodia and Laos after 30 June 1970 1. Bar air operations in Cambodian airspace in direct support of Cambodian forces without congressional approval 2. End American support for Republic of Vietnam forces outside territorial South Vietnam.

Leonid Brezhenev

General Secretary of Soviet Union after Krhustev. He helped aid communist Vietnam.

Clifford Task Force

General Westmoreland requested more troops which was debated with Clifford the secretary of defense. The president wanted to be less involved in the war and eventually declined sending the full amount of troops.

Lon Nol

He led a military coup against Prince Norodom Sihanouk in 1970 and became the self-proclaimed President of the newly created Khmer Republic.

Henry Kissinger

He was awarded the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize for helping to establish a ceasefire and U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam."In August 1965... [Henry Cabot Lodge], an old friend serving as Ambassador to Saigon, had asked me to visit Vietnam as his consultant. I toured Vietnam first for two weeks in October and November 1965, again for about ten days in July 1966, and a third time for a few days in October 1966... Lodge gave me a free hand to look into any subject of my choice". He became convinced of the meaninglessness of military victories in Vietnam, "...unless they brought about a political reality that could survive our ultimate withdrawal" In a 1967 peace initiative, he would mediate between Washington and Hanoi.

Le Duc Tho

He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize jointly with United States Secretary of State Henry Kissinger in 1973, but he declined it. In 1930, Tho helped found the Indochinese Communist Party. French colonial authorities imprisoned him from 1930 to 1936 and again from 1939 to 1944. After his release in 1945, he helped lead the Viet Minh, the Vietnamese independence movement, against the French, until the Geneva Accordswere signed in 1954. In 1948, he was in South Vietnam as Deputy Secretary, Head of the Organization Department of Cochinchina Committee Party. He then joined the Lao Dong Politburo of the Vietnam Workers' Party in 1955, now the Communist Party of Vietnam. Tho oversaw the Communist insurgency that began in 1956 against the South Vietnamese government. In 1963 Tho supported the purges of the Party surrounding Resolution 9. From 1978 to 1982 Tho was named by Hanoi to act as chief advisor to the Kampuchean United Front for National Salvation (FUNSK) and later to the nascent People's Republic of Kampuchea. Lê Đức Thọ's mission was to ensure that Khmer nationalism would not override Vietnam's interests in Cambodia after the Khmer Rouge was overthrown.

Robert McNamara

He was the Secretary of Defense under President Kennedy and Johnson and was involved in the United States escalated involvement in the Vietnam War.

George Ball

He was the Under Secretary of State for Economic and Agricultural Affairs in the administrations of John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. He is well known for his opposition to escalation in the Vietnam War. After Kennedy decided to send 16,000 "trainers" to Vietnam, "Ball, the one dissenter in Kennedy's entourage, pleaded with JFK to recall France's devastating defeat in 1954 at Dien Bien Phu and throughout Indochina. 'Within five years we'll have 300,000 men in the paddies and jungles and never find them again." In response to this prediction, "JFK laughed and replied, 'Well, George, you're supposed to be one of the smartest guys in town, but you're crazier than hell. That will never happen." Ball was one of the architects of Cable 243, and a supporter of the 1963 overthrow of South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem.

Gerald Ford

In December 1974, months after Ford took office, North Vietnamese forces invaded the province of Phuoc Long. General Trần Văn Trà sought to gauge any South Vietnamese or American response to the invasion, as well as to solve logistical issues before proceeding with the invasion.[111] As North Vietnamese forces advanced, Ford requested aid for South Vietnam in a $522 million aid package. The funds had been promised by the Nixon administration, but Congress voted against the proposal by a wide margin.[99] Senator Jacob Javits offered "...large sums for evacuation, but not one nickel for military aid".[99] President Thieu resigned on April 21, 1975, publicly blaming the lack of support from the United States for the fall of his country.[112] Two days later, on April 23, Ford gave a speech at Tulane University. In that speech, he announced that the Vietnam War was over "...as far as America is concerned".[110] The announcement was met with thunderous applause

October Bombing Halt

In a televised address to the nation five days before the presidential election, President Lyndon Johnson announces that on the basis of developments in the Paris peace negotiations, he has ordered the complete cessation of "all air, naval, and artillery bombardment of North Vietnam." Accordingly, effective November 1, the U.S. Air Force called a halt to the air raids on North Vietnam known as Operation Rolling Thunder. The President further disclosed that Hanoi had finally agreed to allow the South Vietnamese government to participate in the peace talks. Johnson said that the United States would consent to a role for the National Liberation Front, though he stated that the latter concession "in no way involves recognition of the National Liberation Front in any form." The National Liberation Front (or Viet Cong, as it was more popularly known) was the classic Communist front organization that included both Communists and non-Communists who had banded together in opposition against the Saigon regime. Domestically, President Johnson's action drew widespread acclaim; both major presidential candidates expressed their full support. The reaction in Saigon, however, was much more subdued; President Thieu issued a communiqué declaring that the United States had acted unilaterally in its decision to halt the bombing

Eugene McCarthy & New Hampshire Primary, 1968

In the 1968 presidential election, McCarthy was the first candidate to challenge incumbent Lyndon B. Johnson for the Democratic nomination for president of the United States, running on an anti-Vietnam War platform. The unexpected vote total he achieved in the New Hampshire primary and his strong polling in the upcoming Wisconsin primary led Johnson to withdraw from the race, and lured Robert F. Kennedy into the contest. Fellow Minnesotan US Vice-President Hubert Humphrey also entered the race after Johnson's withdrawal. McCarthy would unsuccessfully seek the presidency five times altogether.

"Give Peace a Chance"

John Lennon song. Anthem of the Anti- American War movement during the 1970s.

March on the Pentagon

October 21st, 1968. Demonstrators including radicals, liberals, black nationalists, hippies, professors, women's groups, and war veterans march on the Pentagon. Started peaceful till radicals confronted US soldiers, who were protecting the pentagon. The protesters surrounded and besieged the military nerve center until the early hours of October 23. By the time order was restored, 683 people, including novelist Norman Mailer and two United Press International reporters, had been arrested. This protest was paralleled by demonstrations in Japan and Western Europe, the most violent of which occurred outside the U.S. Embassy in London when 3,000 demonstrators attempted to storm the building.

Wise Men

President Johnson holds a secret meeting with some of the nation's most prestigious leaders, who were collectively called "the Wise Men." This group included former Secretary of State Dean Acheson, General of the Army Omar Bradley, Ambassador-at-Large Averell Harriman, and former Ambassador to South Vietnam Henry Cabot Lodge. Johnson asked them for advice on how to unite the U.S. in the Vietnam War effort. They reached the conclusion that the administration needed to offer "ways of guiding the press to show the light at the end of the tunnel." In effect, they decided that the American people should be given more optimistic reports. When Johnson agreed, the administration, which included senior U.S. military commander in Saigon Gen. William Westmoreland, began to paint a more positive picture of the situation in South Vietnam. In early 1968, this decision came back to haunt Johnson and Westmoreland when the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese launched a major surprise attack on January 30, the start of the Tet New Year holiday. Stunned by the scope of the Communist attack after the administration had painted such an upbeat picture of Allied progress in the war, many Americans began to question the credibility of the president and antiwar sentiment increased significantly.

Earle Wheeler

President Lyndon B. Johnson appointed Wheeler Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in July 1964 to succeed General Maxwell Taylor. General Wheeler's tenure as the nation's top military officer spanned the height of America's involvement in the Vietnam War. supported the expanding U.S. military role in the Vietnam War in the mid‐1960s, consistently backing the field commander's requests for additional troops and operating authority. He often urged President Johnson to strike harder at North Vietnamand to expand aerial bombing campaigns. Wheeler was concerned with minimizing costs to U.S. ground troops. At the same time, he preferred what he saw as a realistic assessment of the capabilities of the South Vietnamese military. This earned him a reputation as a "hawk.

Election of 1972

Richard Nixon Won

Peace with Honor

Richard Nixon used that phrase in a speech to describe the Paris Peace Accord to end the war in Vietnam.

Prince Norodum Siahanouk

Ruler of Cambodia during the Vietnam War. His title was prince. He made an alliance with North Vietnamese and China to allow North Vietnamese in Cambodia.

Clark Clifford

Secretary of defense following McNamara. A month after Clifford arrived at The Pentagon, Johnson, in an effort to get peace talks started, ordered the cessation of bombing north of the 20th parallel, an area comprising almost 80 percent of North Vietnam's land area and 90 percent of its population. In the same address, Johnson announced that he would not be a candidate for reelection in 1968, surprising everyone, Clifford included. Soon the North Vietnamese agreed to negotiations, which began in Paris in mid-May 1968. Later, on October 31, 1968, to encourage the success of these talks, the President, with Clifford's strong support, ordered an end to all bombing in North Vietnam. Clifford, like McNamara, had to deal with frequent requests for additional troops from military commanders in Vietnam. When he became secretary, the authorized force in Vietnam was 525,000. Soon after moving into his Pentagon office, Clifford persuaded Johnson to deny General William Westmoreland's request for an additional 206,000 American troops in Vietnam.

Maxwell Taylor

Taylor was of crucial importance during the first weeks and months of the Vietnam War. Whereas initially President Kennedy had told Taylor that "the independence of South Vietnam rests with the people and government of that country," Taylor was soon to recommend that 8,000 American combat troops be sent to the region at once. After making his report to the Cabinet and the Chiefs of Staff, Taylor was to reflect on the decision to send troops to South Vietnam: "I don't recall anyone who was strongly against, except one man, and that was the President. The President just didn't want to be convinced that this was the right thing to do.... It was really the President's personal conviction that U.S. ground troops shouldn't go in." He opposed the 1963 South Vietnamese coup that overthrew and killed President Ngo Dinh Diem.

Phoenix Program

The Program was designed to identify and "neutralize" (via infiltration, capture, terrorism, torture, and assassination) the infrastructure of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam. The CIA described it as "a set of programs that sought to attack and destroy the political infrastructure of the Viet Cong". The major two components of the program were Provincial Reconnaissance Units (PRUs) and regional interrogation centers. PRUs would kill and capture suspected VC. They would also capture VC and civilians who were thought to have information on VC activities. Many of these people were then taken to the interrogation centers where some were tortured in an attempt to gain intelligence on VC activities in the area. The information extracted at the centers was then given to military commanders, who would use it to task the PRU with further capture and assassination missions. The program was in operation between 1965 and 1972, and similar efforts existed both before and after that period. By 1972, Phoenix operatives had "neutralized" 81,740 suspected NLF operatives, informants and supporters, of whom 26,369 were killed.

Rolling Thunder

The United States relied heavily on bombing. The airpower doctrine emphasized that the destruction of an enemy's war-making capacity would force that enemy to come to terms. The navy and air force had unrealistic expectations of what air bombing could accomplish. Air bombing offers a quick and easy solution to a big problem. Heavy bombing started in early 1965 in North Vietnam hoping it would lead the North into the South for a conference. Rolling Thunder concentrated on military bases, supply depots, and infiltration routes in the southern part of the country. Air strikes were increasingly directed against the North Vietnamese industrial and transportation systems and moved steadily northward. Johnson authorized attacks on petroleum storage facilities, transportation networks, steel factories, power plants, and targets near Hanoi, Haiphong, and near the Chinese border. This disrupted North's agriculture and industrial productivity causing 600 million dollars worth of damage. The air bombings had little effect on the war. (page 173)

My Lai

The Vietnam War mass murder of between 347 and 504 unarmed civilians in South Vietnam on March 16, 1968. It was committed by the U.S. Army soldiers from the Company C of the 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 11th Brigade of the 23rd (Americal) Infantry Division. Victims included women, men, children, and infants. Some of the women were gang-raped and their bodies mutilated.Twenty six soldiers were charged with criminal offenses.

B-52

The first combat mission, Operation Arc Light, was flown by B-52Fs on 18 June 1965, when 30 bombers of the 9th and 441st Bombardment Squadrons struck a communist stronghold near the Bến Cát District in South Vietnam. The first wave of bombers arrived too early at a designated rendezvous point, and while maneuvering to maintain station, two B-52s collided, which resulted in the loss of both bombers and eight crewmen. The remaining bombers, minus one more which turned back due to mechanical problems, continued toward the target. Twenty-seven Stratofortresses dropped on a one-mile by two-mile target box from between 19,000 and 22,000 feet, a little more than 50% of the bombs falling within the target zone. The force returned to Andersen AFB except for one bomber with electrical problems that recovered to Clark AFB, the mission having lasted 13 hours. Post-strike assessment by teams of South Vietnamese troops with American advisors found evidence that the VC had departed the area before the raid, and it was suspected that infiltration of the south's forces may have tipped off the north because of the ARVN troops involved in the post-strike inspection. In total, 31 B-52s were lost during the war, which included 10 B-52s shot down over North Vietnam.

Kent State-Jackson State Incidents

The incidents were shootings on the college campuses of Jackson State and Kent State. The killings were in result to the students protesting the Vietnam War. There were 4 students killed at Kent State and at Jackson 2 were killed. These events happened eleven days apart from each other.

Ho Chi Minh Trail

The main artery of North Vietnamese support for the southern insurgency wound more than 600 miles over rugged territory to delivery points in South Vietnam. The bicycle was an essential tool to move up to 500 pounds of supplies up the trail. The trail was updated when the Americans joined the war. The north Vietnamese could move 400 tons of supplies per week. (page 175)

Cambodian Incursions

The objective of the campaign was the defeat of the approximately 40,000 troops of the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) and the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam (NLF, also known as Viet Cong) who were ensconced in the eastern border regions of Cambodia.

Hubert Humphrey

Vice president to Johnson and later ran against Nixon losing. His lost was because of heightened dislike towards the Vietnam War and because of Senator Kennedy and MLK assassinations in 1968.

VVAW

Vietnam Veterans against the War. In 1967 after six Vietnam vets marched together in a peace demonstration.

Creighton Abrams

Westmoreland had for years run the war using search-and-destroy tactics, these gave way to the clear-and-hold strategies that Abrams was so keen to implement. Under his authority, American forces were broken up into small units that would live with and train the South Vietnamese civilians to defend their villages from guerrilla or conventional Northern incursions with heavy weapons. Abrams also devoted vastly more time than his predecessor had to expanding, training, and equipping the ARVN. In contrast to Westmoreland, Abrams implemented counterinsurgent methods that focused on winning the hearts and minds of the population. Nevertheless, there was still more continuity than change in Vietnam after Abrams succeeded Westmoreland. After the election of President Richard Nixon, Abrams began implementing the Nixon Doctrine referred to as Vietnamization. The doctrine aimed to decrease U.S. involvement in Vietnam. With this new goal, Abrams had decreased American troop strength from a peak of 543,000 in early 1969 to 49,000 in June 1972. brams was also in charge of the Cambodian Incursion in 1970. Troop levels in Vietnam eventually reached 25,000 in January 1973, at the time of the four power Paris Peace Accords. Although it occurred before he assumed total command, he bore the brunt of fallout from the My Lai massacre in March 1968.

Operation Duck Hook

White House code-name of an operation President Richard Nixon had threatened to unleash against North Vietnam during the Vietnam War, if North Vietnam did not yield to Washington's terms at the Paris peace negotiations. Duck Hook called for the possible-nuclear bombing of military and economic targets in and around Hanoi, the mining of Haiphong and other ports, air strikes against North Vietnam's northeast line of communications as well as passes and bridges at the Chinese border, and air and ground attacks on other targets throughout Vietnam.

Christmas Bombings

a "maximum effort" bombing campaign to "destroy major target complexes in the Hanoi and Haiphong areas...which could only be accomplished by B-52s."[6][7] It saw the largest heavy bomber strikes launched by the US Air Force since the end of World War II. Linebacker II was a modified extension of the Operation Linebacker bombings conducted from May to October, with the emphasis of the new campaign shifted to attacks by B-52 Stratofortress heavy bombers rather than smaller tactical fighter aircraft.

Operation Linebacker

a U.S. Seventh Air Force and U.S. Navy Task Force 77 air interdiction campaign conducted against the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) from 9 May to 23 October 1972, during the Vietnam War. Its purpose was to halt or slow the transportation of supplies and materials for the Nguyen Hue Offensive (known in the West as the Easter Offensive), an invasion of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam), by forces of the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN), that had been launched on 30 March. "Peace is at hand"- Kissinger announced this at a press conference in Washington

Pentagon Papers

a United States Department of Defense history of the United States' political-military involvement in Vietnam from 1945 to 1967. The papers were discovered and released by Daniel Ellsberg, and first brought to the attention of the public on the front page of The New York Times in 1971.[1] A 1996 article in The New York Times said that the Pentagon Papers "demonstrated, among other things, that the Johnson Administration had systematically lied, not only to the public but also to Congress, about a subject of transcendent national interest and significance".

Easter Offensive

a military campaign conducted by the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) against the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN, the regular army of South Vietnam) and the United States military between March 30 and October 22, 1972, during the Vietnam War.[9] This conventional invasion (the largest offensive operation since 300,000 Chinese volunteers had crossed the Yalu River into North Korea during the Korean War) was a radical departure from previous North Vietnamese offensives. The offensive was not designed to win the war outright, but to gain as much territory and destroy as many units of the ARVN as possible, to improve the North's negotiating position as the Paris Peace Accords drew towards a conclusion.

Operation Cedar Falls

a military operation of the Vietnam War conducted primarily by US forces. The aim of this massive search and destroy operation was to eradicate the so-called "Iron Triangle", an area located in close proximity to Saigon which had become a major stronghold of the communist National Liberation Front (NLF) or Viet Cong. The operation began on January 8, 1967 and ended on January 28, 1967. Operation Cedar Falls was the largest American ground operation of the Vietnam war. Two Army divisions, one infantry and one paratrooper brigade, as well as one armored cavalry regiment participated in the operation; altogether, Operation Cedar Falls involved 30,000 US and South Vietnamese troops.] The Vietcong, however, chose to evade this massive military force by either fleeing across the border to Cambodia or hiding in a complex system of underground tunnels. Nevertheless, the allied forces uncovered and destroyed some of the tunnel complexes as well as large stockpiles of Vietcong supplies. In the course of the operation, so-called tunnel rats were introduced to infiltrate Vietcong tunnel systems. In an attempt to permanently destroy the Iron Triangle as a Vietcong stronghold, Operation Cedar Falls also entailed the complete deportation of the region's civilian population to so-called New Life Villages, the destruction of their homes, as well as the defoliation of whole areas.

Vietnamization

a policy of the Richard M. Nixon administration during the Vietnam War, as a result of the Viet Cong's Tet Offensive, to "expand, equip, and train South Vietnam's forces and assign to them an ever-increasing combat role, at the same time steadily reducing the number of U.S. combat troops."

Watergate

a political scandal that occurred in the United States in the 1970s as a result of the June 17, 1972 break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C., and the Nixon administration's attempted cover-up of its involvement.

Commitee for the Reelection of the President

abbreviated CRP but often mocked by the acronym CREEP, was a fundraising organization of United States President Richard Nixon's administration. Besides its re-election activities, CRP employed money laundering and slush funds and was directly and actively involved in the Watergate scandal

Ho Chi Minh City

also known as Saigon. capitol of the Republic of South Vietnam. named after the South Vietnam President Ho Chi Minh

Anatoly Dobrynin

ambassador of the Soviet Union. Served Under 6 presidents

Robert Kennedy

as the campaign manager for his brother Jack in the 1960 presidential election and was appointed Attorney General during his presidential administration. He also served as a White House adviser to the president from 1961 to 1963. His tenure is best known for its advocacy for the African-American Civil Rights Movement, crusade against organized crime and the mafia, and diplomacy during the Berlin Crisis of 1961. After his brother's assassination, Kennedy left the Johnson administration to run for the United States Senate in 1964, defeating Republican incumbent Kenneth Keating. In 1968, Kennedy campaigned for the presidency and was a leading Democratic candidate, appealing particularly to black, Hispanic, and Catholicvoters. Shortly after midnight on June 5, 1968, after Kennedy defeated Senator Eugene McCarthy in the California presidential primary, he was assassinated by Sirhan Sirhan and died the following day.[1]

George McGovern

democratic party's nominee. Senator of South Dakota.In a speech on the Senate floor in September 1963, McGovern became the first member to challenge the growing U.S. military involvement in Vietnam

POW Release

diplomatic negotiations that in January 1973 made possible the return of 591 American prisoners of war held by North Vietnam. On Feb. 12, 1973, three C-141 transports flew to Hanoi, North Vietnam, and one C-9A aircraft was sent to Saigon, South Vietnam to pick up released prisoners of war. The first flight of 40 U.S. prisoners of war left Hanoi in a C-141A, later known as the "Hanoi Taxi" and now in a museum. From February 12 to April 4, there were 54 C-141 missions flying out of Hanoi, bringing the former POWs home.

Abbie Hoffman

during the Vietnam War, Hoffman was an anti-war activist, using deliberately comical and theatrical tactics. In October 1967, David Dellinger of the National Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam asked Jerry Rubin to help mobilize and direct a March on the Pentagon. The protesters gathered at the Lincoln Memorial as Dellinger and Dr. Benjamin Spock gave speeches to the mass of people. From there, the group marched towards the Pentagon. As the protesters neared the Pentagon, they were met by soldiers of the 82nd Airborne Division who formed a human barricade blocking the Pentagon steps. Not to be dissuaded, Hoffman vowed to levitate the Pentagon claiming he would attempt to use psychic energy to levitate the Pentagon until it would turn orange and begin to vibrate, at which time the war in Vietnam would end. Hoffman's symbolic theatrics were successful at convincing many young people to become more active in the politics of the time

Provisional Revolutionary Government

formed on June 8, 1969, as an underground government opposed to the South Vietnamese government of President Nguyễn Văn Thiệu. Delegates of the National Liberation Front (the Vietcong), as well as several smaller groups, participated in its creation.

Paris Peace Talks

intended to establish peace in Vietnam and an end to the Vietnam War, ended direct U.S. military involvement, and temporarily stopped the fighting between North and South Vietnam. The governments of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam), the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam), and the United States, as well as the Provisional Revolutionary Government (PRG) that represented indigenous South Vietnamese revolutionaries, signed the Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam on January 27, 1973. The agreement was not ratified by the U.S. Senate.[1] The negotiations that led to the accord began in 1968 after various lengthy delays. As a result of the accord, the International Control Commission (ICC) was replaced by International Commission of Control and Supervision (ICCS) to carry out the agreement. The main negotiators of the agreement were United States National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger and Vietnamese politburo member Lê Ðức Thọ; the two men were awarded the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts, although Lê Ðức Thọ refused to accept it.

William Cally

is a convicted American war criminal and a former U.S. Army officer found guilty of murder for his role in the My Lai Massacre on March 16, 1968, during the Vietnam War.

W. Averell Harriman

is noted for supporting, on behalf of the State Department, the coup against Vietnam president Ngo Dinh Diem in 1963. Johnson's confession in the assassination of Diem indicated complicity on Harriman's part. The orders that ended in the deaths of Diem and his brother originated with him and were carried out by Henry Cabot Lodge's own military assistant. Harriman, having served as ambassador to Moscow and governor of New York, was in the middle of a long public career. In 1960, President-elect Kennedy appointed him ambassador-at-large, to operate "with the full confidence of the president and an intimate knowledge of all aspects of United States policy." By 1963, according to Corson, Harriman was running "Vietnam without consulting the president or the attorney general." The president had begun to suspect that not everyone on his national security team was loyal. As Corson put it, "Kenny O'Donnell (JFK's appointments secretary) was convinced that McGeorge Bundy, the national security advisor, was taking orders from Ambassador Averell Harriman and not the president. He was especially worried about Michael Forrestal, a young man on the White House staff who handled liaison on Vietnam with Harriman."

Agent Orange

is one of the herbicides and defoliants used by the U.S. military as part of its herbicidal warfareprogram, Operation Ranch Hand,[1] during the Vietnam War from 1961 to 1971. Vietnam estimates 400,000 people were killed or maimed, and 500,000 children born with birth defects as a result of the use of contaminated batches of the compound. The Red Cross of Vietnam estimates that up to 1 million people are disabled or have health problems due to Agent Orange. The United States government has challenged these figures as being unreliable and unrealistically high.

Daniel Ellsburg

made copies of the pentagon papers. He was an anti-war protestor.

Mayday Tribe

members of the youth international party protesting the Vietnam War in Washington DC. Large scale civil disobediences happening on May Day of 1971.

Thich Quang Duc

o A 66-year-old Buddhist monk whose self-immolation on June 11, 1963, intensely affected the attitude of the Kennedy administration toward Diem and vividly signified the Buddhist-government crisis in South Vietnam. He burned himself to death at a busy Saigon intersection in full view not only of passersby but also the media, which the Buddhists had alerted before the episode. The result was maximum exposure, particularly in the United States. While self-immolation is a traditional form of protest in many parts of Asia, the event violated the sensibilities of the policymakers in Washington and was a decisive factor in convincing them that Diem was incapable of governing the Republic of Vietnam. As a result, the incident also reflected the sophistication of the Buddhist anti-Diem movement in understanding the importance of the press as a convenient method of expressing its position.

Military Assist. Com. Vietnam (MACV)

o A joint-service Command of the United States Department of Defense.MACV was created on 8 February 1962, in response to the increase in United States military assistance to South Vietnam. MACV was first implemented to assist the Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG) Vietnam, controlling every advisory and assistance effort in Vietnam, but was reorganized on 15 May 1964 and absorbed MAAG Vietnam to its command when combat unit deployment became too large for advisory group control. MACV was disestablished on 29 March 1973.

Army of the Rep of Vietnam (ARVN)

o ARVN were the ground forces of the Republic of Vietnam Military Forces, the armed forces of South Vietnam, which existed from 1955 until the Fall of Saigon in 1975. It is estimated to have suffered 1,394,000 casualties (killed and wounded) during the Vietnam War. o After the fall of Saigon to the invading North Vietnamese Army (NVA), the ARVN was dissolved. While some high-ranking officers had fled the country to the United States or elsewhere, thousands of former ARVN officers were sent to reeducation camps by the communist government of the new, unified Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO)

o American foreign policy after World War II was based on the goal of containing Communism and the assumptions of the so-called "domino theory"—if one country fell to Communism, the surrounding countries would fall, like dominoes. In response to that threat, the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) was formed in 1955 to prevent Communist expansion, and President Dwight D. Eisenhower sent some 700 military personnel as well as military and economic aid to the government of South Vietnam. The effort was foundering when John F. Kennedy became president.

Roger Hilsman

o An aide and adviser to President John F. Kennedy. He resigned in March 1964 in a disagreement with President Johnson's Vietnam policy. He was an author of a book called "American Guerilla."

Henry Cabot Lodge

o As ambassador to South Vietnam from 1965 to 1967, Lodge supported President Johnson's decision to escalate American involvement in the Vietnam War, believing strongly that a communist takeover in the South would be disastrous for U.S. foreign policy goals. Remaining with the State Department for another ten years after leaving Vietnam, Lodge served as ambassador to Germany (1968-69), envoy to the abortive Paris Peace Talks (1969), and occasionally as the American representative.

Edward Lansdale

o Colonel Edward Lansdale flew into Saigon from the 31st Air-Sea Rescue Squadron. In 1950 Lansdale ran paramilitary and political operations against the Viet Minh in Indochina. In Saigon, Lansdale took on the cover of an assistant air attaché at the U.S. Embassy, an arrangement that allowed him to work with both the ambassador, Donald Heath, and General O'Daniel's MAAG.

Hilsman-Forrestal Report

o It exposed the weaknesses of the South Vietnam government, which the report contended were caused in part by corruption within the Ngo Dinh Diem government. It asserted that Diem was increasingly isolated from his own people and was only supported by his family and people with close ties. It also criticized the Hamlet program.

John F. Kennedy

o JFK was a believer in containing communism. In his 1st speech on becoming president, Kennedy made it clear that he would continue the policy of the former President, Dwight Eisenhower, and support the government of Diem in South Vietnam. Kennedy also made it plain that he supported the 'Domino Theory' and he was convinced that if South Vietnam fell to communism, then other states in the region would as a consequence. o In 1961, Kennedy agreed that America should finance an increase in the size of the South Vietnamese Army from 150,000 to 170,000. He also agreed that an extra 1000 US military advisors should be sent to South Vietnam to help train the South Vietnamese Army. Both of these decisions were not made public as they broke the agreements made at the 1954 Geneva Agreement.

John Paul Vann

o Lieutenant in U.S. army. Vann was assigned to South Vietnam in 1962 as an advisor to Colonel Huỳnh Văn Cao, commander of the ARVN IV Corps. In the thick of the anti-guerrilla war against the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam, Vann became concerned with the way in which the war was being prosecuted, in particular the disastrous Battle of Ap Bac. Directing the battle from a spotter plane overhead, he earned the Distinguished Flying Cross for his bravery in taking enemy fire.

Pierre Mendes-France

o Made a promise to French nationalists to resolve problem in Geneva Conference in 30 days. If Mendes failed than French would keep fighting and U.S. would get involved. On the 18th of June 1954, Mendes France was accepted by the Parliament as Prime Minister with the pledge that he would go to Geneva himself to negotiate. While the 1954 agreement set the framework for what became the US war in Vietnam, at the time it was seen both in France and Vietnam as the start of peace and a big step in the decolonization process.

J. Lawton Collins

o President Dwight D. Eisenhower asked Collins to stay on active duty as the U.S. representative on the Military Committee & Standing Group of NATO. He served in this capacity until being sent as a special representative to South Vietnam with the rank of Ambassador (November of 1954 ~ May of 1955). His posts included service as special envoy to Vietnam. Collins' opinion of Diem was that he was unsuited to lead the country and that U.S. interests would be better served with somebody else holding the reigns of government. Collins's opinion stemmed from an anti-communist domino effect ideology, meaning that the South Vietnamese must be united under a strong leader to combat the invasion of communism. Ultimately, the United States government does not act upon Collins's recommendations and the mission ends.

Geneva Conference

o Representatives from the United States, the Soviet Union, the People's Republic of China, France, and Great Britain came together in April 1954 to try to resolve several problems related to Asia. o One of the most troubling concerns was the long and bloody battle between Vietnamese nationalist forces, under the leadership of the communist Ho Chi Minh, and the French, who were intent on continuing colonial control over Vietnam. o The United States had been supporting the French out of concern that a victory for Ho's forces would be the first step in communist expansion throughout Southeast Asia. When America refused France's requests for more direct intervention in the war, the French announced that they were including the Vietnam question in the agenda for the Geneva Conference. o Discussions on the Vietnam issue started at the conference just as France suffered its worst military defeat of the war, when Vietnamese forces captured the French base at Dien Bien Phu. In July 1954, the Geneva Agreements were signed. As part of the agreement, the French agreed to withdraw their troops from northern Vietnam. Vietnam would be temporarily divided at the 17th parallel, pending elections within two years to choose a president and reunite the country. During that two-year period, no foreign troops could enter Vietnam. Ho signed off on the agreement though he believed that it cheated him out of the spoils of his victory. o The non-communist puppet government set up by the French in southern Vietnam refused to sign, but without French support this was of little concern at the time. The United States also refused to sign, but did commit itself to abide by the agreement. Privately, U.S. officials felt that the Geneva Agreements, if allowed to be put into action, were a disaster. They were convinced that national elections in Vietnam would result in an overwhelming victory for Ho, the man who had defeated the French colonialists. o The U.S. government scrambled to develop a policy that would, at the least, save southern Vietnam from the communists. Within a year, the United States had helped establish a new anti-communist government in South Vietnam and began giving it financial and military assistance, the first fateful steps toward even greater U.S. involvement in Vietnam.

Walt W. Rostow

o Rostow was brought to the White House by President John F. Kennedy in January 1961 as deputy national security adviser. He later developed the "Rostow thesis," which held that an externally supported insurgency could be defeated only by military action against the external source of support. The thesis called for a series of escalating military measures designed to raise the cost of supporting the insurgency. As the number of American ground troops in Vietnam increased by early 1966, Rostow emerged as the leading proponent of President Lyndon B. Johnson's Vietnam policy. In March 1966, Johnson named him national security adviser; he became one of the president's closest foreign policy advisers and a major advocate of bombing North Vietnam.

McGeorge Bundy

o Special assistant to the president for national security affairs. He is known primarily for his role in escalating the involvement of the United States in Vietnam and the bombing in Northern Vietnam during the Kennedy and Johnson administrations.

Bay of Pigs

o The Bay of Pigs invasion begins when a CIA-financed and -trained group of Cuban refugees lands in Cuba and attempts to topple the communist government of Fidel Castro. The attack was an utter failure. o Castro's attacks on U.S. companies and interests in Cuba, his inflammatory anti-American rhetoric, and Cuba's movement toward a closer relationship with the Soviet Union led U.S. officials to conclude that the Cuban leader was a threat to U.S. interests in the Western Hemisphere. In March 1960, President Dwight D. Eisenhower ordered the CIA to train and arm a force of Cuban exiles for an armed attack on Cuba. John F. Kennedy inherited this program when he became president in 1961. o Kennedy gave the go-ahead for the attack. On April 17, 1961, around 1,200 exiles, armed with American weapons and using American landing craft, waded ashore at the Bay of Pigs in Cuba. The hope was that the exile force would serve as a rallying point for the Cuban citizenry, who would rise up and overthrow Castro's government. The plan immediately fell apart--the landing force met with unexpectedly rapid counterattacks from Castro's military, the tiny Cuban air force sank most of the exiles' supply ships, the United States refrained from providing necessary air support, and the expected uprising never happened. Over 100 of the attackers were killed, and more than 1,100 were captured.

Buddhist Crisis

o The Buddhist crisis was a period of political and religious tension in South Vietnam between May and November 1963, characterized by a series of repressive acts by the South Vietnamese government and a campaign of civil resistance, led mainly by Buddhist monks. o The crisis was precipitated by the shootings of nine unarmed civilians on May 8 in the central city of Huế who were protesting a ban of the Buddhist flag. The crisis ended with a coup in November 1963 by the Army of the Republic of Vietnam, and the arrest and assassination of President Ngo Dinh Diem on November 2, 1963.

Democratic Republic of Vietnam

o The Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRVN), also known as North Vietnam, was founded by Ho Chi Minh and was recognized by China and the USSR in 1950. In 1954, after the defeat of France at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, France formally recognized the DRV and the country was partitioned in two. North Vietnam was a Communist State, the first in South-East Asia.

Geneva Accords

o The Geneva Accords stated that Vietnam was to become an independent nation. Elections were to be held in July 1956, under international supervision, to choose a government for Vietnam. During the two-year interval until the elections, the country would be split into two parts; the North and the South.

Ngo Dinh Diem

o The United States supported a military government in the South and the decision of its leader, Ngo Dinh Diem, to prevent free elections, which might result in the unification of the country under the control of the Communists. Guerilla forces supported by the Communist government of the North initiated a series of attacks in South Vietnam, and the Geneva Accord began to crumble.

Paul D. Harkins

o The first commanding general of MACV (COMUSMACV), General Paul D. Harkins, was also the commander of MAAG Vietnam. o He occupied that post between February 1962 and June 1964. Harkins was a strong supporter of Ngo Dinh Diem, although the South Vietnamese president frequently ignored his advice. Harkin's opposition to the coup that ultimately toppled the Diem regime put him at odds with U.S. State Department officials in Saigon, most notably Ambassador Henry Cabot Lodge.

Strategic Hamlet Program

o The strategic hamlet program was started in 1962 and was modeled on a successful British counterinsurgency program. The program aimed to bring the South Vietnamese peasants together in fortified strategic hamlets to provide security from Viet Cong attacks. Although much time and money was put into the program, it had several basic weaknesses. There was much animosity toward the program on the part of the South Vietnamese peasants, who were forcibly displaced from their ancestral lands. Also, the security afforded by the hamlets was inadequate and actually provided lucrative targets for the Viet Cong. Finally, the entire project was poorly managed. After the assassination of the program's sponsor, President Ngo Dinh Diem, in November 1963, the program fell into disfavor and was abandoned.

Vietcong (VC)

o Vietnamese Communists, the guerrilla force that, with the support of the North Vietnamese Army, fought against South Vietnam (late 1950s-1975) and the United States (early 1960s-1973). o They had begun a program of terrorism and assassination against government officials and functionaries. The Viet Cong's ranks were soon swelled by many noncommunist Vietnamese who had been alienated by the corruption and intimidation of local officials.

National Liberation Front "NLF"

o Vietnamese political organization formed on Dec. 20, 1960, to effect the overthrow of the South Vietnamese government and the reunification of North and South Vietnam. The NLF was represented by its own diplomatic staffs in all communist countries and in several neutral countries. o Unlike the Viet Minh (anti-French guerrilla force, many members of which became part of the Viet Cong), the NLF did not establish a provisional government until June 1969, when the Provisional Revolutionary Government (PRG) of South Vietnam was announced. With the reunification of Vietnam in 1976, the NLF joined the Vietnamese Communist Party and the other political organizations in forming a National United Front.

Sects Crisis

o Was critical to diminishment of French political influence in Vietnam. The consolidation of Diem's regime in 1955 shifted the balance of power between Western allies in Vietnam with U.S. replacing France. The spring 1955 sect crisis destroyed Franco-American attempts to create a coordinated policy.

Taylor-Rostow Mission

o With Laos at the center of his troubles, Kennedy set in motion a series of events that would culminate in a fateful trip to South Vietnam inOctober 1961, led by General Maxwell Taylor and Walt Rostow. That mission became one of the most decisive events of the Kennedy administration.

Nhu Dien Diem

o Younger brother to Ngo Dihn Diem. Administer Hamlet program.

Battle for Hue

one of the bloodiest and longest battles of the Vietnam War (1959-1975). The city was poorly defended. The South Vietnamese and U.S. forces were completely unprepared when the North Vietnamese army and Viet Cong failed to observe the promised Tet Truce. The North Vietnamese forces rapidly occupied most of the city. Over the next month they were gradually driven out during intense house-to-house fighting led by the Marines. In the end, although the Allies declared a military victory, the city of Huế was virtually destroyed and more than 5000 civilians were killed,

Tet Offensive

one of the largest military campaigns of the Vietnam War, launched on January 30, 1968 by forces of the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army against South Vietnam, the United States, and their allies. It was a campaign of surprise attacks against military and civilian commands and control centers throughout South Vietnam. The operations are referred to as the Tet Offensive because there was a prior agreement to "cease fire" during the Tet Lunar New Year celebrations. Both North and South Vietnam announced on national radio broadcasts that there would be a two-day cease-fire during the holiday. Nonetheless, the Communists launched an attack that began during the early morning hours of 30 January 1968, the first day of Tet. The offensive was the largest military operation conducted by either side up to that point in the war. Included 80,000 communist attacking.

John Kerry

served as a Lieutenant in the United States Navy during the Vietnam War, during the period from 1966 to 1970. His last tour in Vietnam was four months as officer in charge of a Swift boat in 1969. Kerry received several combat medals during this tour, including the Silver Star, Bronze Star, and three Purple Hearts.

Chicago Seven

seven defendants—Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, David Dellinger, Tom Hayden, Rennie Davis, John Froines, and Lee Weiner—charged with conspiracy, inciting to riot, and other charges related to protests that took place in Chicago, Illinois on the occasion of the 1968 Democratic National Convention.

Graham Martin

succeeded Ellsworth Bunker as United States Ambassador to South Vietnam in 1973. He would be the last person to hold that position.

Election of 1968

the Republican nominee, former Vice-President Richard Nixon, won the election over the Democratic nominee, incumbent Vice-President Hubert Humphrey. Nixon ran on a campaign that promised to restore law and order to the nation's cities, torn by riots and crime.

Fall of Saigon

the capture of Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, by the People's Army of Vietnam and the National Liberation Front on April 30, 1975. The event marked the end of the Vietnam War and the start of a transition period leading to the formal Reunification of Vietnam into a communist state.

Iron Triangle

was a 120 square miles (310 km2) area in the Binh Duong Province of Vietnam, so named due to it being a stronghold of Viet Minh activity during the war. The region was under control of the Viet Minh throughout the French war in Vietnam and continued to be so throughout the phase of American involvement in the Vietnam War, despite concerted efforts on the part of US and South Vietnamese forces to destabilize the region as a power base for their enemy, the communist North Vietnamese-sponsored and -directed South Vietnamese insurgent movement, the National Liberation Front or Viet Cong (NLF). Its proximity to Saigon was both a reason for American and South Vietnamese efforts to eradicate it, as well as why it remained a crucial area for Communist forces to maintain control over.

William Westmoreland

was a United States Army general, who commanded U.S. military operations in the Vietnam War at its peak (1964-68), including during the Tet Offensive. He adopted a strategy of attrition against the Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese army. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara told President Lyndon B. Johnson in April that Westmoreland was "the best we have, without question" He believed "Your continued strong support is vital to the success of our mission. . . . Backed at home by resolve, confidence, patience, determination, and continued support, we will prevail in Vietnam over the communist aggressor!"

USS Pueblo

was boarded and captured by North Korean forces on 23 January 1968. The capture was less than a week after President Lyndon B. Johnson's State of the Union address and only a week before the start of the Tet Offensive. North Korea stated that Pueblo strayed into their territorial waters, but the United States maintains that the vessel was in international waters at the time of the incident. Pueblo, still held by North Korea today, officially remains a commissioned vessel of the United States Navy.

Nguyen Van Thieu

was president ofSouth Vietnam from 1965-75. He was a general in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN), became head of a military junta, and then president after winning a scheduled election. He established rule over South Vietnam until he resigned and left the nation a few days before the fall of Saigonand the ultimate communist victory.

Operation Chaos

was the code name for a domestic espionage project conducted by the Central Intelligence Agency. A department within the CIA was established in 1967 on orders from President of the United States Lyndon B. Johnson and later expanded under President Richard Nixon. The operation was launched under Director of Central Intelligence (DCI) Richard Helms, by chief of counter-intelligence,James Jesus Angleton, and headed by Richard Ober. The program's goal was to unmask possible foreign influences on the student antiwar movement.