French Vietnam sat on a wall

French Vietnam had a great fall

The French had control over Vietnam, but around WW2, Vietnamese rebels, led by Ho Chi Minh, declared independence. The Indochina War (1946-1954) ended with the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, and the French were defeated.

The French surrendered

to the Viet Minh

The Geneva Accords couldn't put Vietnam back together again

After the war, the Geneva Accords were held to negotiate. The French had to leave Vietnam, and Vietnam would temporarily divide into North and South. This ended in a power struggle and elections for a single leader never happened.

With the help of China, the Viet Minh

was trying to implement communism

Ho Chi Minh was seeking attainment

President Truman ratified containment

Communist North Vietnam wanted all of Vietnam to be communist. China, also being communist, took their side.

The objective of Truman's containment policy was to keep communism from spreading to other countries.

Eisenhower theorized that one communist country would lead to more

so America sided with South Vietnam in the war

From analyzing past events, Eisenhower created the Domino Theory. He believed that Vietnam becoming communist would result in the rest of Southeast Asia becoming communist. The Domino Theory is a major reason for America's involvement in the war.

JFK

Ngo Diem Dinh

South Vietnam's ruling had become tyranny,

so the US allowed the the Vietnamese to commit mutiny

Not long after, JFK was killed too.

VP, Lyndon B Johnson stepped in to fill his shoe(s)

South Vietnam's leader, Ngo Diem Dinh's rules had become undemocratic, so the US deliberately ignored his people planning his assassination. Three weeks after his death, JFK was also assassinated for unrelated reasons.

His Vice president, LBJ stepped in to take his place.

When a US spy mission

went against commission

LBJ wrote a petition

in which requesting permission

To remove the inhibition

Of the US acting on any proposition

Having to do with the enemy’s ambition

A US spy mission ship, the SS Maddox. had a run in with communist patrol boats. This became known as the Gulf of Tonkin Incident. Because of this, LBJ drafted the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. South Veitnam leader, Doung Van Minh, agreed, allowing the US to oppose any "communist aggression" by any means necessary.

War is bad, Man

The war was not popular in the states

The resentment had raised the stakes.

Young people were resisting

rather than enlisting

Many US citizens grew frustrated with the war. Many didn't understand so much as why we were involved. Peaceful protests and sit-in became wide spread in the mid-sixties. This was known as the anti-war movement. Many resisted or cheated the draft, and as the war carried on, the peaceful protests became more violent.