The dramatic failure of the Vietnam War

French colonialism in Vietnam began in the mid-19th century: officially 1887 with the formation of French Indochina.

During this time, the Vietnamese people were oppressed and exploited. Japan invaded Vietnam in 1940 during World War II.

The Vichy French government technically collaborated with Japan during this time, but ultimately, the Japanese were defeated by the Allied powers in 1945 and lost control of the region. 

After Japan’s surrender, France reasserted its control over Vietnam.

However, Ho Chi Minh, a communist leader of the Vietnamese independence movement, proclaimed the independence of Vietnam on September 2, 1945.

Ho Chi Minh saw Japan's defeat as an opportunity to establish an independent Vietnam.

To resist France's continued presence, Ho Chi Minh created the 'Viet Minh', short for Việt Nam Độc Lập Đồng Minh Hội, which means "League for the Independence of Vietnam".

It was a revolutionary force created to oppose French rule. It enjoyed significant support from rural Vietnamese peasants, who were often disillusioned by French exploitation and eager for land reforms promised by Ho Chi Minh.

Unfortunately, the United States was supportive of France's efforts to maintain control over Vietnam.

This tension between the Viet Minh and France led to the First Indochina War, between 1946 to 1954.

By 1950, the United States became concerned about the spread of communism in Southeast Asia and began providing military aid to France.

Unfortunately, their aid was not enough, and the French were defeated at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954 by Ho Chi Mihn's forces.

Following the defeat, the French surrendered control of Vietnam. An international treaty was signed, known as the 1954 Geneva Accords.

It divided the country into two parts along the 17th parallel, North Vietnam and South Vietnam, and stipulated that national elections would be held in 1956.

Ho was given control of the north and the south promised to hold the elections, which Ho was expected to win

However, South Vietnam’s president, Ngo Dinh Diem, refused to follow through on the promise, and the elections never took place.

He was supported by the United States, who feared that any victory by Ho would encourage the spread of communism in the region. 

As a result, Ho’s supporters, began a guerrilla war against the south. They were supported by China and the Soviet Union.

The United States sent 700 military advisers to South Vietnam in 1955. They were sent to help train the South Vietnamese army.

By the early 1960s, thousands of additional US military advisors were in South Vietnam.

In fact, President John F. Kennedy significantly increased the number of military advisers from fewer than 1,000 in 1961 to over 16,000 by the time of his assassination in 1963.

Then, on the 2nd and 4th of August 1964, in the Gulf of Tonkin, two US ships were allegedly attacked by North Vietnamese forces. 

Outraged, the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which was passed on August 7, 1964, gave US President Lyndon Johnson broad authority to use military force in Vietnam without a formal declaration of war.

So, on March 2, 1965, US President Lyndon Johnson approved Operation Rolling Thunder, which was a campaign of bombing airstrikes against North Vietnam.

To do this, they had to build air bases in southern Vietnam, which required US soldiers to guard them.

In response to this, the North Vietnamese began attacking the American soldiers as well.

As a result, the United States' commitment to the country escalated and the president deployed 40,000 ground troops to South Vietnam in March of 1965.

Operation Rolling Thunder lasted for over three years and caused extensive damage to North Vietnamese infrastructure.

Despite this, the North Vietnamese Army continued to gain ground, and by 1968 they had a significant presence and influence in South Vietnam.

The military presence also increased. By 1968, more than 500,000 combat troops were stationed in Vietnam.

The costs also escalated, with the US paying $2 billion every month to maintain their army, navy, and air force's roles in the war.

The draft, formally known as conscription, played a significant role during the Vietnam War in the United States.

Established under the Selective Service System, the draft required all males aged 18-25 to register for potential military service.

It was used as a means to bolster the number of US troops in Vietnam as the war escalated.

As the conflict continued with heavy American casualties and no clear path to victory, opposition to the draft and the war itself grew substantially.

Thousands of young American men evaded the draft, either by fleeing to Canada or by seeking deferments. Some burnt their draft cards as a form of protest.

The draft became a focal point of social and political unrest and contributed to a broader anti-war movement, with mass protests on college campuses and other public venues.

In 1973, as US troop withdrawal from Vietnam was underway, the draft was effectively ended, shifting the US military to an all-volunteer force.

The Tet Offensive was a series of surprise attacks by the Viet Cong (the military force of North Vietnam) and North Vietnamese army against South Vietnamese and US forces.

It began on January 30, 1968, which was the Vietnamese New Year (Tet) and was launched in over 100 cities and towns across South Vietnam.

It aimed to incite a popular uprising against the South Vietnamese government.

After it began, the North Vietnamese army and Viet Cong forces captured the city of Hue, where they executed thousands of civilians accused of supporting the South Vietnamese government.

Ultimately, the offensive was a failure militarily, but it was a turning point in the war because it showed that the North Vietnamese forces were capable of mounting a major offensive against the South Vietnamese and American forces.

It also led to increased support for the anti-war movement in the United States.

However, the US and South Vietnamese forces ultimately inflicted significant losses on the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces, even though the offensive shocked American public opinion.

One of the most notorious events of the war was the My Lai Massacre, which was a mass killing of civilians by US troops that occurred on March 16, 1968, in the village of My Lai, South Vietnam.

US troops entered the village and killed between somewhere between 347 and 504 civilians, including women and children.

The massacre led to increased opposition to the war in the United States.

The United States began to withdraw its troops from Vietnam in 1969. However, they continued to provide military aid to South Vietnam.

In January of 1973, the United States and North Vietnam signed a peace agreement: the Paris Peace Accords.

The accords allowed for a ceasefire, and US troops were gradually withdrawn from Vietnam. However, fighting between the North and South Vietnamese continued. 

On April 30, 1975, North Vietnamese troops entered the city of Saigon, which was the capital of South Vietnam.

This marked the end of the Vietnam War. The United States had withdrawn most of their troops by this time, but they did evacuate 7000 South Vietnamese citizens and US personnel from the city before it fell.

After the war, Vietnam was unified under Communist rule, and an estimated 300,000 South Vietnamese officials, soldiers, and intellectuals were detained in re-education camps, where they endured years of forced labor and study Communist ideology.

There was also a lot of economic hardship in the country after the war. Millions of people fled Vietnam as refugees.

Between 1975 and 1995, over 800,000 'boat people' fled Vietnam, often risking their lives to escape by sea and seek refuge in countries like the United States, Canada, and Australia.

The aftermath of the war was devastating for both countries involved. In Vietnam, over two million people were killed.

This included civilians, soldiers, and members of the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army.

In the United States, over 58,000 troops were killed and over 300,000 were wounded.

The war also had a significant economic cost. It is estimated that the war cost the United States over $150 billion.