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Ngo Dinh Diem was the US-backed leader of South Vietnam from 1954

Diem promised to establish a free western-style democratic republic, however his leadership was far from democratic

His methods and policies were divisive and controversial; especially including his persecution of the Buddhist population.

He was eventually overthrown and executed in a 1963 coup (a sudden, violent and unlawful seizure of power from a government.

Ngo Dinh Diem early life and extra notes

He was born into a Catholic family in the old imperial capital Hue. His family was better off than most at this time. His father worked in the imperial palace housekeeping and tending royal eunuchs (Male 🤬 removal).

He studied law at the university of Hanoi, and was planning to work in the public service, however his strong political opinions and calls for Vietnamese independence led him elsewhere.

Diem's family was targeted by the Viet Minh, which reportedly killed his brother.

Diem moved to the USA in 1951 & became quite popular

He returned back to Vietnam in mid-1954 as the Geneva Conference was coming to a close

Diem’s anti-democratic tendencies were soon exposed. He despised the Geneva Accords and had no intention of allowing the 1956 reunification elections to proceed.

He was very popular in the West initially due to his anti-communist political philosophy

He began to have declining popularity in Vietnam and was voted out.

Diem's war on Buddhists: In mid-1963, Diem’s persecution of Vietnam’s Buddhists made headlines in Western countries. By late 1963 the Kennedy administration, long weary of the stream of negative press flowing out of South Vietnam, lost patience.

Evie Hart

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Ho Chi Minh (1890-1869)  became the most significant figurehead of Vietnamese nationalism and was the leader of North Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh attempted to create an independent state, focusing on rebuilding his country. Ho Chi Minh ultimately led a long and successful campaign to make Vietnam independent. He was the founder and leader of the Vietnamese communism movement. He was the communist leader who was president of North Vietnam from 1945-69.

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1945-1954: First Indochina War ending with Dien Bien Phu 

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1945-1954: First Indochina War ending with Dien Bien Phu 

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On May 7, 1954, the French-held garrison at Dien Bien Phu in Vietnam fell after a four month siege led by Vietnamese nationalist Ho Chi Minh. In a significant win for the Viet Minh, more than 250,000 porters carried all supplies, piece by piece, through the jungle to take key positions ahead of this battle. After the fall of Dien Bien Phu, the French pulled out of the region.

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The Viet Cong was a communist network group full of agents and subversives that were founded in North Vietnam and were also active in the South. It was first founded in 1954 under the Geneva Accords. Military personnel were ordered to return to their place of origin, either North or South Vietnam. Many, however, remained in the South in 'underground' areas, within rural areas. By 1959, there were 20 different communist 'cells' scattered around Vietnam, each containing up to 3000 men.

Le Duan was the founder of a communist group in South Vietnam that plotted to overtake the leader of the south. Le Duan presented this plan, however, no one supported his idea for a full-scale war, and proposed the idea of waiting three years before starting a revolution within South Vietnam.

Mid-1957, acts of terrorism against foreigners, foreign sympathisers and government targets by the groups. South Vietnamese communists called this campaign of violence the “extermination of traitors”.  In July, 17 people were killed by the Viet Minh underground in Chau Doc. A police chief and his family were murdered in September. The insurgents also carried out bombings of hotels and cafes in Saigon and other cities. Many of these locations were frequented by foreigners and several Americans were injured during these attacks.

The revolutionary movement in South Vietnam was formalised on December 20th 1960, with the formation of Mat Tran Dan Toc Giai Phong Mien Nam (the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam). Westerners came to know it as the National Liberation Front (NLF).

On the ground, the NLF adopted its own “shadow government”, which operated across 20 regions and was commanded by a party official. Within each region, there were several districts and villages, overseen by one or more NLF cadres. The role of these cadres went beyond military and guerrilla operations. The NLF was also a political movement that worked to attract and build popular support.

For obvious reasons, most NLF operations could not be conducted in the open. In most parts of South Vietnam, the NLF remained an underground organisation; its movements and activities were often described as “ghostly”. There was no NLF uniform or insignia, so most Viet Cong were indistinguishable from ordinary South Vietnamese.

There was also no official NLF headquarters or even a particular area where NLF officials could be found. Presidium members held their meetings in remote locations, rarely meeting in the same place twice. Their decisions were passed along the chain of command either by word of mouth or on scrawled notes written in code.

With the approval of Hanoi, the NLF increased its terrorist activities in the South. In October 1961, there were 150 NLF bombings and attacks, triple the number of the previous month. This escalation prompted US president John F. Kennedy to increase the number of American military advisors in South Vietnam, with several thousand arriving over the next six months.

Summary points:

1. The Viet Cong was the military arm of the National Liberation Front (NLF), an underground communist insurgency formed in December 1960 and active in South Vietnam.

2. The seeds of the NLF were several thousand communists who defied the terms of the Geneva Accord (1954) and remained underground in South Vietnam.

3. As support for the NLF grew it adopted organisation and command structures similar to those of the Lao Dong, as well its own a military arm, the Viet Cong.

4. The NLF and Viet Cong were shadowy organisations that blended into rural life but remained politically and militarily active, recruiting and disseminating propaganda.

5. Viet Cong bombings and operations increased from late 1961. Using guerrilla methods they targeted foreign and government personnel, buildings and facilities.

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1952: Eisenhower elected US President - Bella BC

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1952: Eisenhower elected US President - Bella BC

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Originally, Eisenhower said he had no interest in politics because he had to devote full attention to his duty as commander of NATO forces in Europe. Finally, in January 1952, Eisenhower announced that he was a Republican and that he would be willing to accept the call of the American people to serve as President. On election day, Eisenhower won a big victory with 55 percent of the popular vote and a landslide in the electoral college, with 442 votes to Stevenson's 89. Eisenhower’s decisions in Vietnam can be best described as a mixed bag; he showed an advanced understanding of the situation in Vietnam, beyond that of many of his contemporaries, in his decision to avoid U.S. military intervention in Indochina in 1954; however, his intense subscription to Domino Theory sentiments led him and his administration to commit intense and unwavering support to a shaky South Vietnam, planting the seeds for an eventual conflict in Vietnam, one that the U.S. might be forced to join.
Bella BC

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- John F Kennedy was a Democratic senator (from Massachusetts) and defeated other candidate Vice President Richard Nixon in the 1960 presidential election on a margin of 0.17%.
- Inaugurated on 20 January 1961.
- He was an idealist and challenged the status quo (believed in national secularity, against racism etc), which attracted younger citizens.
- Many of his votes came from traditional Democratic voters-members of labour unions, African Americans, and members of other minority groups

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Harriet Garlick

Australia’s involvement in Vietnam was driven by a fear of communist expansion in Asia and the government’s desire to align itself with the United States.

- Began with 30  Military advisors in 1962
- Australian military personnel served in Vietnam from 1962-1973.  Approximately 60,000 Australian soldiers would serve.

Australia fought alongside South Vietnamese Government troops against the Vietcong, a communist-led insurgent force supported by the North Vietnamese army.

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Lyndon Baines Johnson - US President Nov. 1963 -1969

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Lyndon Baines Johnson - US President Nov. 1963 -1969

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Gretal

-Lyndon Baines Johnson was the 36th President of the USA, who became president on the 22nd of November following the assassination of JFK

-Under Johnson, US involvement in Vietnam escalated, compared to JFK, who had been reluctant to allow direct US military involvement, instead choosing to strengthen the South Vietnamese army and slowly increasing the number of American advisors in the area

-Johnson believed that if he "left that war and let the communist take over South Vietnam, then [he] would be seen as a coward and [his] nation would be seen as an appeaser"

-Johnson relied heavily on his advisors as he was less informed on foreign policies. These advisors assured him that the communists in Indochina could be defeated if America got involved

-Johnson (who believed in the domino theory and need to contain communism in Asia), eventually agreed to escalate US military involvement in Vietnam, however, only after the Nov. 1964 Presidential election.

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Sophia Woods

In early August of 1964, two U.S destroyers Maddox and Turner Joy, stationed in the Gulf of Tonkin - off the coast of Vietnam reported an attack by North Vietnamese Torpedo boats. These attacks led to the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution that allowed US President Lyndon B Johnson to ramp up U.S Military involvement in the Vietnam War.

Earlier that year, the Maddox had been sent to the area to support South Vietnamese war efforts and intercept North Vietnamese communications. On the 31st of July South Vietnamese commandos attacked North Vietnamese radar and military installations near the Gulf of Tonkin. The Maddox  - on patrol in the area and unaware of the raids, observed torpedo boats aimed at South Vietnamese vessels and thus withdrew. The Maddox returned on August the 1st.

The following day, The Maddox declared that it was being approached by 3 North Vietnamese Torpedos and sent warning shots but but the torpedos opened fire in return. The Maddox managed to escape unharmed.

This event led the US to believe that North Vietnam was targeting its intelligence-gathering mission and another destroyer The Turner Joy was sent to reinforce the Maddox.

The main attack was on the 4th of August by North Vietnamese Torpedos that attacked both Maddox and Turner Joy.

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1965-1973: U.S. Escalation - Alana Collins

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1965-1973: U.S. Escalation - Alana Collins

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After Lyndon Johnson (36th US President), was elected, he ordered massive bombing runs over North Vietnam.
February 7th 1965 - Operation Flaming Dart is authorised (series of targeted bombing against the north in response to Viet Cong attacks)
March 1965 - Operation Rolling Thunder began and would continue until 1968. In all dropped more than 780 million kilograms worth of bombs on North Vietnam

US troops began arriving in Vietnam in 1965.
Arrivals of US troops occurred throughout 1965 and were originally tasked with defending the south however many American commanders disliked this approach e.g. General William Westmoreland. And ground missions were eventually changed to be offensive. (More mobile, expeditious and aggressive).

The success of missions was established by "body count" rather than territory gained.
Escalation in US involvement also caused a rise in casualties, and support for the war in America fell.

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The battle of Long Tan was fought on 18 August 1966 in Long Tan, Vietnam. It was one of the largest battles fought by Australians in the Vietnam War.

In the days before the battle, radio signals indicated the presence of strong Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces within 5km of the Nui Dat base (the base for Australian forces in Long Tan.)

On the 18th the Viet forces attacked using machine guns and carried Soviet-designed automatic AK47 assault rifles. Major Harry Smith and his dispersed company of 108 young and mostly inexperienced Australian and New Zealand soldiers fought for their lives. The Australians called for helicopters to drop bullets to them. The Battle of Long tan went for 3 hours in the pouring rain and uneven plantation of Long Tan.

During the battle, 17 Australians were killed and a further 25 were wounded, one of whom later died of wounds. This was the highest number of Australian casualties that occurred in any one engagement of the Vietnam War. The Australians defeated the Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese forces that dramatically outnumbered them.

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the Tet Offensive was a campaign launched by the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army (NVA) in South Vietnam in 1968. While this operation was tactically unsuccessful, the Tet Offensive shattered American optimism about the progress of the war and convinced many that it was unwinnable.
- was a military victory but a political failure

The offensive's main objective was to instigate a popular uprising in South Vietnam. Hanoi believed that a popular uprising would undermine the Saigon government and lead to its collapse. The offensive would be accompanied by a wave of propaganda, with the offensive targeting Saigon's radio stations.

Tet = the Vietnamese New Year (late January 1968)

the Tet Offensive was a failure for the VC and NVA due to to superior US firepower.

The Tet Offensive marked a shift in North Vietnamese strategy, from guerrilla warfare to major offensive. This caused some division among North Vietnamese leaders

For North Vietnam and the Viet Cong, Tet became a significant propaganda victory. In late 1967, just weeks before Tet, General Westmoreland had assured the American public that the war was going well and the communists were in retreat.

Historian Tom Engelhardt:
"Tet summed up the puzzle that was Vietnam. Victory somehow meant defeat."
"a breaking point in terms of public support for the war effort"

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1968-1970: Anti-war protests and moratoriums (Aust)- Nellie

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1968-1970: Anti-war protests and moratoriums (Aust)- Nellie

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Antiwar protests

-During march and april of 1969 there were mass sit ins and street marches across Australia.
-Peaked in the 1970s as 200,000 people across the country marched in protest.
-Was declared the largest protest in Australia of the time.
the majority of the anti-war protestors were under 20 years old prepared to defy all authority

moratouriums:

moratourium: means a halt to business as per usual .
in the early 1970s a moratourium was held by Australia in melbourne.
The two objectives were to withdraw Australian troops from Vietnam and to end conscription.

- The leader of the moratorium movement was Shadow Minister for Trade and Industry Dr Jim Cairns, and motivated people to march and process for peace.

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1969: My Lai Massacre- harriet sutherland

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1969: My Lai Massacre- harriet sutherland

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- Killing of Vietnamese villagers by American soldiers in the coastal province of Quang Ngai.
- March 1968 US Soldiers were sent to an area that were believed to house Viet Cong sympathisers
- The men were ordered to fire at buildings and locations that they believed were sheltering Viet Cong in My Lai
- No armed people were found, it soon became apparent that the village was entirely occupied by women, children and elderly
- This discovery did not stop the shooting. The men rounded up a group of 80 civilians and killed them with a machine-gun in the village square.
- Villagers found hiding in buildings and bunkers were also murdered, either with gunfire or hand grenades.
- Livestock and pets were also shot or bayoneted.
- Unconfirmed reports claimed that soldiers raped women and young girls.
- when massacre was revealed several months later it caused outrage all over the US and world
-  It raised questions about the methods being used in Vietnam and whether American soldiers were doing more harm than good.
- American reports suggest that 347 people were killed
- Vietnamese government reports 500 dead
-Calley (lieutenant) went to trial in November 1970, charged with giving orders that led to the murder of 109 Vietnamese civilians.

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Daniel Ellsberg who leaked the pentagon papers 

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Lucinda C

Papers that were a top-secret study into all the decisions made by the US government made regarding the Vietnam war between the years of 1945-1968

It was 47 volumes, and initially 15 copies were distributed

It contained private military information which posed a threat to public opinion regarding the government's response to the war

One of the authors Daniel Ellsberg had developed an opposition to the war and believed the release would fuel peace protests and bring about an end to US involvement in the war

He submitted 44 of the 47 volumes to Neil Sheehan of the New York Times

When the New York Times began publishing (1971), President Nixon filed an injunction in order to prevent further publication

The case was eventually brought to the Supreme Court, who claimed that Nixon had not provided enough proof as to why the papers should remain confidential, and they were permitted to be published

Once published, the papers were actually not particularly effective at stirring debate, however they did reveal several questionable decisions made by the president and military staff during the course of the Vietnam War

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The Paris Peace Accords signed in January 1973 consisted of 22 Articles to end the Vietnam War. The Accords involved the recognition of Vietnam as an Independent country, a cease-fire being observed in South Vietnam and the United States to remove, permanently deactivate, or destroy all the mines in the territorial waters, ports, harbors, and waterways of North Vietnam. The United States will not continue its military involvement. foreign countries will dismantle their military bases in South Vietnam. Adding the new government as the Dominican Republic of Vietnam and any discussion or agreements made for the country's future. The expectation was that the Dominican Republic of Vietnam and the United States of America will have an equal and mutually beneficial relationship.

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1974
- america had very limited support in vietnam
- new president ford

1975
- launched attack on march 10th - US did not react with military action
- Hanoi’s military leadership anticipated that the reunification of Vietnam would be a long process

- they were stunned by the rapid collapse of South Vietnam’s military force -> lost american air support

- Within a week Saigon had surrendered two more northern provinces and thousands of ARVN soldiers had deserted.

- Hanoi immediately expanded the offensive -> expected victory

- By the end of March, the major cities of Hue and Da Nang had been captured and more than 100,000 ARVN had been taken as prisoners.

- April 21st, South Vietnamese president Nguyen Van Thieu appeared on Saigon television to announce his resignation
- he criticised the United States for its treachery and broken promises

- Thieu then fled to Taiwan, with the assistance of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)

- By April 27th, the city was surrounded and under fire from North Vietnamese rockets.

- ARVN troops  lacked orders and effective leadership.

- US began Operation Frequent Wind: the evacuation by helicopter of several thousand US and South Vietnamese military, diplomatic and civilian personnel.

- Fearing a communist massacre, thousands of Saigon residents rushed the US embassy, -> they too were airlifted out on the morning of April 30th.

- By midday, the NVA and Viet Cong controlled Saigon and the fall of South Vietnam was complete -> Duong Van Minh, announced the surrender of South Vietnam

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War was broadcast into people's loungerooms in USA - consider the impact of TV on US foreign policy

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War was broadcast into people's loungerooms in USA - consider the impact of TV on US foreign policy

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In December 1978, Democratic Kampuchea (Cambodian democratic party) was invaded by almost a quarter-million soldiers of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Vietnam was motivated to do this by many factors, including the desire to fight off attacks, defend their claims to certain land, and to remove the Khmer Rouge (a communist movement), led by Pol Pot (Cambodian Prime Minister), from power.

Without foreign allies or an industrial base to supply their military, the Khmer Rouge was hopelessly outgunned by Vietnamese planes, tanks and armoured vehicles.

Phnom Penh (Cambodia's capital) fell to the Vietnamese in just two weeks, forcing Pol Pot  and his followers to seek refuge in western Cambodia.

They remained in these jungle hideouts for two decades, leading a small but persistent insurgency against Vietnams invasion

The Vietnamese eventually withdrew from Cambodia in 1989.

Vietnam: 15,000–25,300 killed

Cambodia - 25,000–52,000 killed

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The term đổi mới is a general term used in Vietnam that means innovate. It refers to a series of economic reforms initiated in Vietnam in 1986 that had the goal of creating a "socialist-oriented market economy", which was a transition from a command economy (where a central government dictates the  level of production of goods and controls their distribution and prices)
These reforms introduced a greater role buyers and sellers to have a greater role in the economy without government control, allowed economic activity between enterprises and government, allowed the ownership of small enterprises as well as the creating of a stock exchange.

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1995: Normalization of U.S.-Vietnam Relations - issy 

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1995: Normalization of U.S.-Vietnam Relations - issy 

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In 1995 , the first liaison offices were opened in each country which came after the US have removed trade bans on Vietnam from the year prior, even though high tariffs still remained . These offices were then turned into embassies. They also began to strengthen their relationship through solving long standing issues from the war , such as the Vietnamese government assisting in the accounting of 2,238 missing American soliders from the war. This year Bill Clinton also announced the normalization of diplomatic relations between them and Vietnam.