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Vietnam

Explore the pivotal Gulf of Tonkin incident, Johnson's reaction, Operation Rolling Thunder, soldiers' experiences, media impact, Tet Offensive, and the intense battle at Khe Sanh during the Vietnam War.

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Vietnam

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Presentation Transcript

  1. Vietnam America shows up

  2. The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution • Robert McNamara, President Johnson’s Sec. Def. advises that U.S. should step up it’s commitment in SE Asia • A U.S. Destroyer is sent off the coast of Vietnam, the U.S.S. Maddox • The Maddox was supporting S. Vietnamese operations on N. Vietnamese coastline • Sonar operators mistook signals as torpedoes & reported being attacked

  3. The Report

  4. Johnson’s reaction to Tonkin • Pres. Johnson asked Congress to authorize military force to keep this from happening again • U.S. Troops began arriving in Vietnam in 1964 • 7th Fleet steams into the Gulf of Tonkin – “Yankee Station” air strikes begin

  5. Operation Rolling Thunder • Bombing Campaign of North Vietnam • Targeted the Ho Chi Minh Trail, a series of supply routes from the North to South Vietnam • Industrial centers & harbors were “off limits” • Chemical warfare – defoliants were sprayed – “Agent Orange”

  6. 1964 to 1967 • U.S. troop strength went from 185K to 486K • Many U.S. victories give the American public confidence in the war & is widely supported at home • By the end of 1967, very little seemed to have been accomplished

  7. “The average age was 19” • Soldiers in Vietnam spent 13 months “in country” • First war where soldiers rotated in and out as single elements – units no longer shipped together • The average U.S. Soldier was less educated, younger, & Poorer • No real “front line”, you could be hit anywhere at anytime

  8. The Media in Vietnam • Vietnam was the first “televised war”, people would tune in every night & watch the war • Overall public opinion was made from the numerous news reports

  9. The Tet Offensive • February 1968, N. Vietnam springs the most & least effective strike • Least effective: no real damage done • Most effective: It showed that no where in Vietnam was safe for anyone at anytime • Every major urban center in S. Vietnam was hit by Viet Cong fighters

  10. Khe Sanh: a USMC “Alamo” • Khe Sanh was a village near the DMZ • U.S. Military forces (Army & USMC) made fire bases on hill tops to protect civilian villages • Khe Sanh: 77 day siege, U.S. Marines & Army hold a strategic crossroads keeping infiltrators from Laos out • The odds of surviving were slim

  11. Khe Sanh

  12. Khe Sanh: Importance • 5,000 USMC up against 20,000 to 40,000 NVA (North Vietnamese Army) • General Westmorland wanted to lure the NVA into a major attack to crush them using the USMC as bait • The siege lasted 77 days

  13. Capturing the images of Khe Sanh • Robert Ellison was killed during one of many rocket attacks. • He was serving with the Marines

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