Gulf of Tonkin

A detailed Summary of Gulf of Tonkin

Was President Johnson's decision for retaliatory acts against North Vietnam after the Gulf of Tonkin incidents justified? Or an even better question to ask is, did both incidents ever really happen? To answer these questions it's necessary to look at some of the historical background of the region.

For much of Vietnam's history it has been under foreign rule, primarily by the Chinese. In 1860, France began its domination of the area and had, by the late 19th century, had several colonies in a number of regions around the Gulf of Tonkin. During WWII, the Japanese government took control of much of the area and set up a "puppet regime" that was eventually forced out by the Vietnamese at the end of 1945. After WWII and until 1955, France fought hard to regain their former territories in the region, their effort was wasted. The French were finally defeated at Dien Bien Phu on the 8th of May 1954 by the communist general Vo Nguyen Giap. The communist regime set up its headquarters in Hanoi under the leadership of Ho Chi Minh. Many North Vietnamese left the country and fled south where the self-proclaimed president, Ngo Dinh Diem had formed the Republic of Vietnam. In the 1950's, the United States began to send troops to Vietnam, d

North Vietnam, which fully recognized the first attack, completely denies that the second attack ever happened. Peking (Chinese Communist Government) has said, "In fact, the so-called second Tonkin Gulf incident of Aug. 4 never occurred. That night the DRV (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) did not have a single war vessel on the waters where the U.S. warships were. (Tonkin Gulf: The Questions by David Wesley, 1964). North Vietnam has been quoted, as saying the news of the second attack was "completely invented and fabricated by the United States."

uring the following 25-year period; the war would create some of the strongest tensions in US history. Almost 3 million US men and women were sent thousands of miles to fight for what was a questionable cause. In total, it is estimated that over 2 million people on both sides were killed.

And yes, of course President Johnson is justified in is decision, only if you believe the foregone conclusion that the United States has made, that the North Vietnamese attacked the U.S.S. Maddox and the U.S.S. C. Turner Joy "unprovoked" off the coast of North Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin. But if you accept as true the fact that the North Vietnamese admitted whole-hearted to the first attack and yet completely dismissed the second attack you can see serious contradiction between the opposing accounts of the United States and the North Vietnamese. On top of this evidence, you'd think after increased security measures put on by the United States. That even through bad weather, either the U.S.S. Maddox or the U.S.S. C. Turner Joy could have identified the alleged assailants of the attack. And so, after review these cr

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Category: History