history vietnam war summaries

7/30/2019 History Vietnam War Summaries

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Demi Tran 10A History [summaries] Miss Smith

Response to the Threat of Communism in

Asia

TERMS AND DEFINITIONS:

Communism:Communism is a political system where the government controls the nations wealth in the

belief that the state should provide everyone with an equal share, and where private ownership is very limited.

Capitalism: A system based on private ownership of property and business, and where the government

control is limited.

Iron Curtain: The concept of the Iron Curtain symbolized the boundary of Europe and its divisions into

separate areas after WWII until the end of the Cold War. Each side of the curtain developed their own

international economic and military alliances.

Yellow Peril: This is the colour, metaphor for a race of labourers which originated from Chinese.

KEY EVENTS:

After WWII, the United States and the Soviet Union became the new super powers The Soviet Union were communist and heading an Eastern Bloc of countries while the United

States were capitalists and were heading a Western Bloc.

The Eastern Bloc included countries: Poland, Romania, Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Yugoslavia,Czechoslovakia and East Germany.

In 1947 United States a policy to support free people who are resisting the attempted subjugation byarmed minorities or by outside pressure which aimed to check the growing power of communism.

The COLD WAR was the conflict between the Eastern Bloc and the Western Bloc. This war extended toAsia Pacific.

In 1949 China became communist and it was believed that the domino effect may occur (when allthe countries fall in a line of communism), causing the nations surrounding China to fall into the

trap, Australia was one of its neighbours.

The Australian also feared the yellow peril but a greater threat was the Soviet Union as they swept ared tide across the world.

Communism had become a threat to the national security. Each side accused the other of warlike intentions, so large armies were kept ready for war. The world lived in fear of the Cold War as this could escalate into a huge warfare, so countries stocked

destructive weapons and a lot of money was spent on defence.

In 1945, the term COLD WAR not only described the situation of mutual hostility and suspicion, butalso the fundamental clash between ideologies and interests

There was an atmosphere of paranoia and so Senator McCarthy sent out investigators to search forun-American activities


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Demi Tran 10A History [summaries], Miss Smith

KOREAN WAR:

From 1945, Korea was divided into two after the Japanese were forced out The South was occupied by the Americans and the North was occupied by the communist Russians The North was the Democratic Peoples Republic Korea and the South was the Republic Korea Each side wanted to unite the country On 25th June 1950,North Korean troops crossed the 38th parallel, where the country was divided as

they thought that the Americans were no longer interested in the South

The South was not expecting this invasion and was not prepared, the capital, Seoul, was captured. The South was assisted by the United Nations, and troops were sent in from 15 Nations, including

Australia

Australias involvement was providing American with airmen who arrived from the Japan Base, theseairmen began to take defence against the communist.

The country did not oppose to this action as they thought that is was necessary to stop the spread ofcommunism

The UN forces were under the command of General Douglas MacArthur They launched a massive counterattack against the communist in September 1950 The capital of the North, Pyongyang, was captured The Republic of China became involved and highly disciplined troops from China forced the US to

move back to the Chongchon River.

The UN was supposedly pushed backwards to the South. The troops of the UN were no longer able to defend the city and the Americans exited January 1951 The rest of the troops faced the communists at the 38th parallel and fought for another 15 months The UN attempted peace negotiations and this truce was finally signed, leaving the country in the

same position where it had started

On the 27th July 1953, the troops exited, including Australia

ANZUS TREATY:

While the Korean war was being fought, Australia, New Zealand and the United States signed theANZUS Treaty in 1

stSeptember 1951

This treaty resulted from a fear of communist expansion in the Asia- Pacific region and Australiasdesire to have America as a strong and powerful ally

America saw it was an opportunity to have two or more countries publicly take its side in the ColdWar

The Parties will consult together whenever, in the opinion of any one of the, the territorialintegrity, political independence or security of any of the Parties is threatened in the Pacific

ARTICLE III OF THE ANZUS TREATY, 1951

This treaty offered New Zealand and Australia with the protection against future aggression by Russiaor China

Side of the North Koreans Side of the South Koreans

USSR Communist China North Korea

United States United Kingdom Philippines UN countries South Korea


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For the USA, it offered a secure stake in the Pacific helping contain Communist powers in the world This signing of the treaty was significant as Australia joined this alliance without Britain In 1986, New Zealand was suspended from the treaty as they denied the access of the US ships after

their concerns of nuclear products onboard

This treaty is still continued with Australia and America, and the partnership is still strongSEATO TREATY:

SEATO was created to combat the further communist gains in South East Asia The SEATO alliance was organized on the 8th of September 1954 under the South East Asia collective

defence treaty by:

o Australiao Franceo Great Britaino New Zealando Pakistano The Philippineso Thailando United States of America Each member of the treaty was expected to come to each others aid in the event of external

aggression

American wanted the SEATO treaty to be limited and wouldnt sign it unless some conditions wereagreed to:

o At least one other European power would become involved in any conflicto They would only provide for the air and sea cover, not ground troopso They would only act against communist aggression and was not prepared to commit forces to Asian

inter-country conflicts

o SEATOs main role was to give the OK to the US in Vietnam because France and Pakistan did not agreeto send in troops.

o It was disbanded in 1977Strengths Limitations

Protection against future aggressionby Russia or China

Set goals of economic, social orcultural co-operation between the

countries Included countries from different

parts of the world- some being

powerful allies

Reassurance that Australia was notjust an isolated country but a major

player in the world stage

ANZUS did not force the countries tofight to defend each other, just

consult

There was no large military forcecreated


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Response to the Threat of Communism

within Australia

MENZIES COMMUNIST DISSOLUTION BILL

TERMS AND DEFINITIONS:

Double dissolution: ends the term of parliamentarians in the House of Representatives and the Senate and the

results in the new election

Espionage:the practice of spying or using spies to obtain information about the plans and activities especially

of a foreign government or a competing company

LIST OF EVENTS:

1949: Menzies makes communism an election issue Raises fear amongst Australians that communists were gaining control of unions, political parties and

government organisations

27th April 1950: presents the Communist Party Dissolution Bill in the HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 28th April 1950: Royal Commission investigating communist activities in Victoria reported that the Communist Partyaimed to use armed insurrection to siege power of workers and smash the states as we know it Menzies Bill was opposed in the House of Representatives by the leader of the Opposition, Ben

Chifley, but because the majority of the Lower House voted for, it passed

When the Bill reached the Senate, the Labor controlled Senate proposed many amendments andreturned it to the Lower House

The Labor Party was split over whether to support or oppose the Bill. When the vote was taken, 11 ofthe 34 members attended Parliament but it was eventually passed.

March 1951: After the Communist Party of Australia challenged the new Act in the High Court At this time Menzies also had a bill that aimed to prevent any Nationalist Banks Menzies reaction to the High Courts decision was to have the Governor General dissolve both houses

of Parliament.

The election was held on the 28th of April in 1951 and resulted in Menzies and his coalitiongovernment controlling the Senate; however, he lost 5 seats in the House of Representatives- he was

able to pass the Commonwealth Bank Bill

On the 22nd of September, Menzies moved to change the Constitution to legally ban CommunistParty by holding a referendum on communism.

Results: 2 317 927 YES (49.52%) 2 370 009 NO (50.48%) Menzies failed to gain support to ban the Communist Party because many Australians didnt feel

threatened.


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PETROV AFFAIR:

Vladimir Petrov: a Soviet (USSR) ministry member attached to the Russian embassy in Canberra, married to

Evdokia

Evdokia Petrov: wife of Vladimir

Robert Menzies: Australian Prime Minister, leader of the Liberal Party, anti- communist, facing election

Herbert Evatt: Leader of the Opposition, Auatralia Labor Party

Colonel Charles Spry: Director- General of ASIO (Australian Security Intelligence Organisation)

Joyce Bull: Airline hostess on the flight carrying Mrs Petrov out of Australia

Menzies and the Labor Party were losing support and it was expected that Mezies pulled a rabbit outof a hat in order to gain attention and votes.

Evdokia and Vladmir came to Australia as they were undercover as Russian Diplomats and their aimwas to establish an illegal network of spies

THE CASE was concerning leaks of information from the Australian Department of External Affairs tothe Soviet Union

The Petrovs arrived in 1951 and Vladmir defected on the 3rd of April 1954 under top secretconditions. The reason was because he befriended man named Bialoguski, not knowing he worked for

ASIO. He told his friend he was a spy and then this lead to his defection.

He was taken to a safe house where he attended serious and tense meetings. Evdokia was his wife and she chose to go back home and stop spying, but she feared execution. When

she arrived at the airport in Austral, Colonel Charles Spry asked her if she wanted to stay in Australia

and seek asylum and she agreed.

Evatt, who was the leader of the Opposition Party believed that this affair was planned and werepart of a sinister conspiracy devised by Menzies so that the Labor Party could claim victory

As a result of the Petrov Affair, the Labor Party split into 2 and this played a major role for when it wastime to vote as the coalition won.

The Petrovs became Australian citizens in 1956 and lived in Melbourne. They lived in fear ofassassination and hardly left the house.

The election is held in 1955Splitting of the Labor Party:

The Labor Party began to fall apart under the strain of ontinuing rumour campaign about Dr Herbert Evatt and

the communist investigation in Australia. The ALP was split, with one side being call the Democratic Labor

Party, DLP, led by B. A. Santamaria, new policies were anti- communist.

Figure 1: Mr and Mrs Petrov


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Australias Involvement in the Vietnam

War

The main reasons as to why Australia became involved in the war were:

Australias military weakness: meant that they were in potential danger from neighbouringcountries, communists. Indonesia was unstable at the time and Australia would have been an easy

target for attack or invasion

It was in Australias interests to commit to the United States to Asia and fight against communism:Australia and the US had formed a new bond and they fought together in the Korean War. It was

expected that they helped each other once more and Australia

Australia wanted the US to be the new powerful Western Nation to take the place of Britain afterthey withdrew from world commitments.

Australias military force size was small compared to the US, who had a huge force They wanted to support their allies: after signing the treaties, SEATO and ANZUS, America had

become a partner and they agreed to having another European country involved in the same conflict,

also, they agreed to helping each other so by joining the war, they were helping fight against

communism

The main reason as the why Australia joined the Vietnam War was their fear of communism:o There was a growing fear of communismo The invasion of the North Korean communists into democratic South Korea was seen as a threat

to democracy

o Sending troops to Vietnam was a move to support democracy Prime Minister Menzies announced that:

We have decided and this has been after close consultation with the Government of the United States to

provide an infantry battalion for service in South Vietnam

Australian and American politicians felt that if Vietnam fell to communism then other countries such

as Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia would also fall to the communists

SUMMARY:

DOMINO THEORY FEAR OF COMMUNISM LIBERAL PARTY LEADING COUNTRY, HATED COMMUNISM SEATO

Figure 2: Domino Theory


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BATTLE OF LONG TAN:

In 1966, the Battle of Long Tanoccurred with the Australians beating the Viet Cong The Viet Cong were a large group of Vietnamese who specialized in guerrilla warfare The Australians were lured into an ambush in a rubber plantation before being attacked by hundreds

of the Viet Cong The Viet Cong became a growing threat as their group expanded They dug underground chambers filled with traps as well as their own facilities like a medical room They placed Punji traps in the ground, which was a hole large enough for a foot. These traps had

spikes in the bottom which was covered in animal faeces, resulting in the amputation of a leg if a

soldier was injured as this poisoned their blood

The conditions were wet and dark because of the heavy bushes and trees as well as the leaf litter onthe ground, which disguised the traps

Men were being killed by rifle and machine gun bullets The Australians were nearly surrounded and isolated with ammunition running low

EXPERIENCES:

The soldiers were in constant fear as they looked out for enemies, it was guerrilla warfare, whichmeant that enemies could jump out of the jungle unexpectedly

They witnessed a lot of horrific deaths and injuries They were fearful of sudden attacks They were often traumatized by what they saw, because it was seen every day and something so

devastating, they couldnt erase the memory

There was intense fighting and were under heavy fires The leaders or the one in charge of a specific group would often blame themselves if a member died

because it was their duty to command them

The conditions were different to that of Australia, as it was wetter and darker in the jungles, making itharder to fight as they werent used to it

They would have to have good communicating skills in order to send messages because the sound ofmachine guns and artillery was loud

They had to be precise with firing as well as walking around because artillery was pouring one metreahead of the defenders, one slight error could kill someone.

Vietnam was not a war fought on open fronts, with areas of safety to which soldiers could retreat.Soldiers were constantly on alert for the enemy.

Soldiers did not always know who the enemy was. The enemy could be the women and childrensoldiers thought they were protecting.

Figure 3: interpretation of Long Tan Battle


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Differing views of Australias Involvement

in the Vietnam War

From the day the Menzies government announced Australian troops were to be sent to Vietnam, there was a

division in Australia society- those who supported the decision and those who opposed

THOSE SUPPORTERS:

Liberal Party Returned Services League Catholic Church People who feared communism

The Liberal Party:

Showed a lot of support for the action There was no ideological splits in the Liberal Party compared to the Labor Party Harold Holt, who replaced Menzies after his retirement, announced that when it came to the Vietnam

War, Australia would be

All the waywith LBJ

The RSL:

Supported the policy of the involvement in the Vietnam War Questioned when the conscripted soldiers were used Supported the NASHOS and airmen Previous generations had fought in wars They supported the government also

Catholic Church:

Saw South Vietnam not only as the last democracy in South East Asia, but also as a CatholicDemocracy

Ngo Dinh Diem was a Catholic Leader and there was a widespread support for the government of theRepublic of Vietnam even after his assassination

The Fearful Australian Public:

Those who feared communism supported the war They were afraid that communism would spread into Australia especially after hearing the domino

theory

They saw that by fighting communism in Vietnam, it would prevent it, or have the possibility ofpreventing it from spreading


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THOSE OPPOSERS:

Save our Sons Moratorium protestor Conscientious objectors

Save Our Sons:

Established in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Newcastle and Adelaide as well as America This movement protested against the conscription of Australians to fight in the Vietnam War The movement made conscription of men, especially their sons, their main focus of their campaign They gave out placard, leaflets and wrote letters to newspapers Chained themselves in front of the parliament house Even children carried around signs They believed that the conscription of young men was immoral, unjust and a denial of human rights They circulated petitions and approached members of the parliament Called communists at the time anti- Australians Their protest was successful as they were able to communicate to the public the way the Australian

Government was taking away their sons to fight for the country

SOURCES:

Figure 5: conscription Figure 4: Save our Sons


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Moratorium Movement:

They thought that if they could prove enough popular support for withdrawing from Vietnam, thenthe government would have to listen

This first took place in America when hundreds of thousands ofpeople stopped work for the day andmarched in the streets to protest

In Australia, the moratoriums were organised by leaders of anti- was groups. It was a turning point in the anti- war movement in Australia as it was the first time that there would

be a nationwide response to the Vietnam war

It was a very successful movement as troops were actually being brought back home These protestors continued to protest in order for more withdrawal First moratorium occurred on the 8th and 9th 1970 and over 200 000 took part. It was a peaceful demonstration and no arrests were made

Conscientious Objector:

Were a group of men who when inducted into the military service, they would express their beliefthat is was wrong to kill, by burning draft cards and protesting or just not attending examination

They were morally against the war and refused to take part in it They were often referred to as cowards for not fighting for their country They were people who oppose serving in the armed forces and/or bearing arms on the ground of

moral or religious principles

SOURCES:

Figure 6: Conscientious Objectors Figure 7: Moratorium Movement


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Impact on the Veterans and Families

Veterans:

The veterans were angry and confused by the reaction of the Australian public as they were notwelcomed as expected

Many felt as if they were blamed for the war and they did not have an official welcome parade until1987

They were unrecognised and unthanked They suffered physical and psychological effects of the war The effects psychologically were like any other war, they did not know how to deal with it This war was not fought on open fronts, so the soldiers did not have any safety zones and they were

faced with danger constantly

The main psychological damage was the POST- TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER (PTSD) Studies proved that compared to any other man in the same generation, Vietnam veterans have

higher rates of psychiatric disorders, heart disease, alcoholism and a higher suicide rate

Veterans could not cope with things they were exposed to like blood and brutal killings They lived in stress throughout the war and did not understand the way they felt PTSD was not diagnosed during the war, but later when they had returned home to realise what they

had done and the memories

Many men had become emotionally detached from their lives and families Since the conscription was selective, it meant that while they were fighting, the rest of the men not

selected were carrying on in lives and didnt experience any of the war

When the men arrived home, they felt as though society just shifted and time moved on, with peoplegoing about doing daily routines without them

This meant that only a small section of the population could understand the stress and the pain theywent through

not many people could understand the extreme circumstances those men lived through for two year AGENT ORANGE: these soldiers were exposed to chemicals which affected their health and had

effects on their children, if they were to have any

This chemical was used to kill off the jungle so that the Viet Cong would not be able to hide It affected the veterans as they were more likely to become ill, get cancer and become abnormal They were excluded from the RSL club because the war was not a real war Their return was not celebrated They were spat on and ashamed Their CODE WORD: EMBARRASSED They were physically affected, mainly with the scar of injuries and wounds and amputations They were missing parts of their body


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Families:

Since they could no longer become emotionally attached to themselves and their families, therelationship between the people weakened

Men felt as if they could no love or show affection to their wives and children, even years after thewar was over

Over the long time, their wives or girlfriends would have moved on and possibly cheated on them Because of the AGENT ORANGE, it meant that their children are also affected They had a higher risk of being born ill and deformed. These children would have a higher suicide rate as well as their parents The higher rates of birth defects and miscarriages, depression, suicide, cancers, alcoholism and the

many other physical effects of herbicide poisoning were ignored for a long time.

Figure 9: Disable Vietnam Veteran

Figure 8: Agent Orange sprayed


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Definitions, Facts and Dates

Arms Race: competition between nations in the building up of military resources

Capitalist: describes a system in which the means of production, distribution and exchange are privately

owned and organised

Cold War: An ideological (about different beliefs and ideas) conflict between the countries that supported

capitalism and democracy and the countries that supported communism that emerged after WWII

Communist: a person who believes in a political system based on controlling wealth in the belief that the state

should provide everyone with an equal share

Conscientious Objection: is a refusal to take part in the military service based on moral or religious beliefs

Conscription: the compulsory enrolment of men for services in the armed force

Defection: changing allegiance or deserting from a duty

Double Dissolution: ends the terms of parliamentarians in the House of Representatives and the Senate and

results in a new election

Guerrillas: small bands of soldiers who harass the enemy by surprise attacks

Ideology: the theories, ideas and beliefs associated with a particular political system

Moratorium: a general suspension of something

1951: referendum to BAN THE COMMUNIST party (Menzies)

1951: ANZUS signed

1954: SEATO signed

1950: Korean War starts

1953: Korean War ends

1972: Australia withdraws troops from Vietnam

1964: LOTTERY conscription

1951:PETROVs arrive

Australias response within the country? Referendum t Ban the Communist, Petrov Affair Sent? 5190 Killed? 496 Wounded? 2398 Supporter? Liberal Party, RSL, Uni Cadet Group Involvement? Domino theory, Fear of Communism, Liberal Party leading- anti- communist, SEATO Australias response in Asia? Australia sends military advisors to Vietnam


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