Contents:
I.Backround
II.North Vietnamese Forces
III.Allied Forces
IV.North Vietnamese Losses
V.Allied Losses
VI.Conclusion
VII.Important Battles
VIII.Pictures
I.Backround
The Vietnam War is viewed as a lost war by most Americans. The reality is just the opposite. U.S. soldiers bravely won the war despite having no support at home. Battle after battle the North Vietnamese were pushed back, in fact there is not one battle where US forces were defeated. So why is the Vietnam War thought of as a lost war? Simply because the North Vietnamese won the propaganda war. The U.S. media picked them up and built an anti-war feeling at home. If you look at the facts you will realize that we won the Vietnam War. The war ended in 1972, last U.S. troops left in 1973. North Vietnam invaded the South in 1975 when no US troops were present. It is much more correct to say that the South Vietnamese lost a Civil War. U.S. troops left Vietnam while having the advantage, we were not pushed back and the Viet Cong suffered enormous casualties. If it wasn't for the problems at home with the public, South Vietnam would enjoy the same rights hippies and anti-war people took for granted.
I.Backround |
The Vietnam War was the legacy of France's failure to suppress nationalist forces in Indochina as it struggled to restore its colonial dominion after World War II. Led by Ho Chi Minh, a Communist-dominated revolutionary movement-the Viet Minh-waged a political and military struggle for Vietnamese independence that frustrated the efforts of the French and resulted ultimately in their ouster from the region. Vietnam had gained its independence from France in 1954. The country was divided into North and South. The North had a communist government led by Ho Chi Minh. The South had an anti-communist government led by Ngo Dinh Diem.
US involvement in Vietnam began during the administration of Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961), which sent US military to South Vietnam. Their numbers increased as the military position the Saigon government became weaker. In 1957 Communist rebels -- Viet Cong -- began a campaign of terrorism in South Vietnam. They were supported by the government of North Vietnam and later by North Vietnamese troops. Their goal was to overthrow the anti-communist government in the South.
John F. Kennedy (1961-1963) decided to commit American support troops to South Vietnam. Four thousand troops were sent in 1962. After John Kennedy was murdered, Vice President Lyndon Johnson served the last fourteen months of Kennedy's term. He then was elected to his own full term. It began in January 1965. Much of his time and energy would be taken up by the war in Vietnam. By early nineteen-sixty-four, America had about seventeen-thousand troops in Vietnam. The troops were there to advise and train the South Vietnamese military.
Under President Lyndon B. Johnson (1963-1968), US intervention mushroomed both militarily and politically. Johnson asked for a resolution expressing U.S. determination to support freedom and protect peace in Southeast Asia. Congress responded with the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, expressing support for "all necessary measures" the President might take to repel armed attacks against U.S. forces and prevent further aggression. In 1965, US air strikes were ordered against North Vietnam. By late 1965, such air strikes became part and parcel to daily activities of those stationed in Vietnam. But US forces were not permitted to attack some targets for fear of Chinese retaliation. In 1966, more than 200,000 troops were committed to Vietnam. The United States escalated its participation in the war to a peak of 543,000 troops in April 1969.
II.North Vietnamese Forces |
| Year | North Vietnamese Army | Vietcong | China | Russia | North Korea | 1964 | 180,700 | -- | -- | 3,000 | -- | 1965 | 180,700 | 5,800 | -- | 3,000 | -- | 1966 | 285,000 | 58,600 | -- | 3,000 | -- | 1967 | 261,000 | 79,400 | -- | 3,000 | -- | 1968 | 261,000 | 79,400 | -- | 3,000 | -- | 1969 | 225,000 | 79,400 | -- | 3,000 | -- | 1970 | 225,000 | 100,000 | -- | 3,000 | -- | 1971 | 225,000 | 100,000 | -- | 3,000 | -- | 1972 | 225,000 | 100,000 | -- | 3,000 | -- | 1973 | 225,000 | 100,000 | -- | 3,000 | -- |
|---|
North Vietnamese Air Force & Air Defenses:
177 Aircraft in 1964
North Vietnamese Army:
Hundreds of PT-76/T-34/T-54 Tanks
North Vietnamese Navy:
Small Patrol Boats
The Viet Cong were guerillas in the South fighting in support of the communist North. Their goal was to overthrow the South government and unite with the North. They infiltrated supplies and men from the North via the Ho Chi Minh trail. Main supplies came from the USSR and China. Soviet advisors were present in the North, helping out with the radars and SAM stations. North Korean and Chinese troops helped out the North also.
-36 Mig-15/17
250 Aircraft in 1972
-100 Mig-21's
4,400 AAA in 1966
8,000 AAA in 1972
60 SAM sites in 1965
300 SAM sites in 1972
Hundreds of SA-7 Man Portable SAM's
Thousands of Artillery and Mortar pieces
III.Allied Forces
Allied Commander: Gen.Creighton Abrams(1968-1972)
| Year | US | South Vietnam | Australia | South Korea | New Zealand | Philippines | Thailand | 1959 | 760 | 243,000 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1960 | 900 | 243,000 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1961 | 3,205 | 243,000 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1962 | 11,300 | 243,000 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1963 | 16,300 | 243,000 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1964 | 23,300 | 514,000 | 198 | 200 | 30 | 20 | -- | 1965 | 184,300 | 642,500 | 1,560 | 20,620 | 120 | 70 | 20 | 1966 | 385,300 | 735,900 | 4,530 | 25,570 | 160 | 2,060 | 240 | 1967 | 485,600 | 798,700 | 6,820 | 47,830 | 530 | 2,020 | 2,200 | 1968 | 536,100 | 820,000 | 7,660 | 50,000 | 520 | 1,580 | 6,000 | 1969 | 475,200 | 897,000 | 7,670 | 48,870 | 550 | 190 | 11,570 | 1970 | 334,600 | 968,000 | 6,800 | 48,450 | 440 | 70 | 11,570 | 1971 | 156,800 | 1,046,250 | 2,000 | 45,700 | 100 | 50 | 6,000 | 1972 | 24,200 | 1,048,000 | 130 | 36,790 | 50 | 50 | 40 | 1973 | 50 | 1,110,000 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
|---|
US Air Force:
US Navy:
The United States first sent advisors to Vietnam to help keep the democratic government of the South alive from a growing communist threat to the North. But soon enough the US Army was tied down in a guerilla war against the Viet Cong.
600 Aircraft based in Thailand in 1968
150+ B-52's based in Guam
11(peak 1968) Aircaft Carrier Battle Groups
200+ Aircraft on Carriers
IV.North Vietnamese Losses
300,000 Vietnamese Missing
100,000 Cambodians Killed
750,000 Laotians Killed
13 Russian Advisors Killed
200 Aircraft Lost in Dogfights For a detailed table on aircraft losses click here.
100+ Tanks Destroyed
20,000 Trucks Destroyed
100+ of SA-2 Fixed SAM sites destroyed
The Viet Cong was very skilled in a guerilla war and they always had the advantage. The Viet Cong attacked when they wanted and retreated when they wanted. Even so they suffered immense casualties. Towards 1972 North Vietnam had to send troops disguised as Viet Cong to fight the US because of the Viet Cong losses. North Vietnam mobilized their entire nation for war, around 9 million people were organized to repair or reconstruct damaged infrastructure for the war. North Vietnam also received top of the line Soviet weapons including pilot training and even pilots. It has only come out recently that volunteer pilots from the Warsaw Pact fought in Vietnam, Poles and Czechs mainly. Even tough they went up against young and inexperienced US pilots, they did not fare well.
V.Allied Losses |
|
Year
|
Dead
|
|
1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 TOTAL |
453 |
Soldiers Killed in Combat: 47,000
Soldiers Killed in Accidents or Disease: 10,000
Allied Soldiers Killed: 5,000-6,000
South Vietnamese Losses: 500,000
Aircraft Lost:
-- AAA Fire: 1,580
-- Air Combat: 76
-- SAM's: 196:
-- Total Combat Losses: 1,852
-- Total Accidental Losses: 1,486
-- Total Aircraft Losses: 3,338
-- Helicopters Lost in Combat: 2,076
-- Helicopters Lost to Accidents: 2,566
-- Total Helicopters Lost: 4,642
The US intervention in Vietnam turned into a nightmare. Increasing death toll among US troops and government restrictions left many asking if we can ever win this war. The US government was to involved in the Vietnam War. MacNamara and his Wiz Kids along with Johnson and Nixon were calling the shots even though they knew nothing about warfare. For instance, early on in the war US pilots were not allowed to bomb SA-2 SAM sites being built. Johnson did not want to kill the Soviets building it and draw the USSR into the war. US pilots were not allowed to down enemy aircraft until visual recognition was achieved. This was hard because the Sparrow air-to-air missile was intended for a long range and was not accurate at close range. Many US aircraft did have a cannon, only missiles, so they were at a distinct disadvantage in close air combat. The government had complete control, even over what bombs to drop and where. Many veterans will say that they had their hands tied behind their back by the government who no clear objective. Even so the US Armed Force did more than hold their ground.
VI.Conclusion |
From 1965 to 1972 the US Armed Forces performed brilliantly even though the odds were against them. They have won every battle and constantly turned the enemy back. The Vietnam War also was a glimpse of modern war. Air-to-Air Missiles, SAM's, Helicopters, jets, precision guided bombs, laser guided missiles all were used at one point in Vietnam. Still many people find it hard to believe how we lost 4,600 helicopters and 922 aircraft. Majority of these were downed by Anti-Aircraft Artillery which the North possessed in huge numbers. SAM's were not very effective. In 1968 for example, North Vietnam would have to fire on average 30 SA-2 missiles just to down one aircraft. In the 1972 Christmas bombing the North ran out of SAM's. Helicopters were very vulnerable. An AK-47 could knock a helicopter down. The Viet Cong would often down an aircraft or helicopter and would wait for the rescue team to come in and then attack. On average the US lost 4 helicopters and 9 crew men every time it tried to rescue 1 downed aircraft and a pilot.
After Tet 68 it became clear to the North that all they had to do is prolong the war, no matter the losses, and the US public will increasingly not support the conflict. The Unites States under Nixon began what is now known as "Vietnamization". The process would allow US troops to be replaced by South Vietnamese troops. Beginning in late 1972, National Security Advisor Henry A. Kissinger's negotiations with North Vietnam began to move seriously towards a settlement. To build up the military of South Vietnam, Secretary of Defense Melvin R. Laird initiated Project Enhance Plus on 20 October 1972. The Pentagon ordered rush deliveries of some $2 billion worth of military equipment, including over 600 aircraft. The program gave South Vietnam the fourth largest air force in the world, with over 2,000 aircraft. Only the United States, the Soviet Union, and the Peoples' Republic of China maintained larger air forces. By this time South Vietnam also floated the fifth largest navy in the world (with 1,500 ships) and fielded the fourth largest army in the world (with 1.1 million troops).
Still the North refused to negotiate so Nixon ordered Operation Linebacker II to get Hanoi to negotiate. Linebacker II would have a decisive tone and it showed the North not just what US airpower is capable but also how weak they were. For the first time in the war, Haiphong was bombed and mined. Haiphong was an important North Vietnamese port through which Soviet supplies came in. Over 150 B-52's laid waste to the North's industry and military capabilities. In early 1973 the United States, North and South Vietnam, and the Viet Cong signed an armistice. Both the South and the North agreed on a peaceful reunification down the line, the US would pull out, and the North had to release US POW's. The war was finally over.
Saigon fell to the Communists on 29 April 1975. Large South Vietnamese forces were easily overrun by the NVA due to lack of good leadership. The South government panicked and escaped the country along with thousands of supporters.
The war in Vietnam revealed many weaknesses in the US Armed Forces command and the way war was waged at the time. Swift changes were implemented soon afterwards. The shift from a draft army was made to a professional army. Officers were better trained, new missiles and smart bombs were added. A 20 year rebuilding program began, where everything was improved or changed. Most importantly the Armed Forces took a bad rap over Vietnam. Countries began to question the US might. Soon one country in particular, Iraq, would defiantly taunt the US and challenge its stance in the world. It would pay a dear price for such a mistake.
VII.Important Battles |
Key Battles:
Ia Drang Valley
Operation Phoenix
Tet Offensive
Khe Sanh
Hue
Invasion Of Cambodia
Campaign in Laos
Ia Drang Valley
19 Oct. - 26 Nov., 1965
The first conventional battle of the Vietnam war took place as American forces clashed with North Vietnamese units in the Ia Drang Valley. In November of 1965, 450 American soldiers were sent in by helicopters to the Ia Drang Valley. They were dropped off at landing zone Albany. Within 30 minutes they were ambushed by over 2000 Vietnamese. The Americans were outnumbered 16 to 1. After what was called the biggest single-day battle in Vietnam, the surviving Americans were rescued. Three days later, a battalion only miles away was heading towards landing zone X-Ray so they could leave. The area was going to be fire-bombed. Few made it. The rest were ambushed again and many more were left dead. The US lost 304 soldiers and 524 were wounded. 1,519 dead Viet Cong were counted and 157 were taken prisoner. The Viet Cong sustained crippling losses and withdrew from the area. Their failure forced them to abandon the plan to seize the Central Highlands. Helicopters and air support played a crucial role in the victory.
Operation Phoenix
1967
It was a war waged not only against guerrillas but also to capture the "hearts and minds" of the people. The U.S. counterinsurgency effort in Vietnam relied heavily on both violence and propaganda, and often the two were intertwined to enhance each others' effectiveness. In the case of the Phoenix Program, U.S. military and intelligence officials staged all manner of psychological operations (PSYOP) to expand the reach of what would become the most notorious assassination operation of the war. Even comic books were used to encourage South Vietnamese villagers to turn rebels over to the government.
Launched by the CIA in the 1967, the Phoenix Program was a vicious set of "internal security" measures designed to eliminate the Viet Cong, the armed resistance to U.S. forces and the government of South Vietnam. The program targeted the Viet Cong leadership, in the hopes that by "neutralizing" these key players the insurgency would sputter out. According to William Colby, a CIA official who for a time oversaw Phoenix and later became CIA Director, the program resulted in the extrajudicial killing of at least 20,000 suspects. Other estimates suggest that the total number of Phoenix assassinations may have run as high as 40,000.
Tet Offensive
1968
The Tet offensive came when the US agreed to cease fire for the Tet holiday. The North wanted to take advantage and catch the US of guard. Some 80,000 NVA and Viet Cong attacked 36 provincial capitals and 23 allied bases. The North believed that once they did this a general uprising would take place and bring more support to their cause.
Gen.Giap was prepared to take a gamble. His divisions had been battered whenever they met the American forces in conventional combat and the VC- if not exactly on the retreat -was at least being pushed backwards. Hanoi was perfectly aware of the growing US peace movement and of the deep divisions the war was causing in American society What Giap needed was a body-blow that would break Washington's will to carry on and at the same time would undermine the growing legitimacy of the Saigon Government once and for all. In one sense, time was not on Giap's side. While Hanoi was sure that the Americans would tire of the war as the French had before them, the longer it took, the stronger the Saigon Government might become. Another year or so of American involvement could seriously damage the NLF and leave the ARVN capable of dealing with its enemies on its own. Giap opted for a quick and decisive victory that would be well in time for the 1968 US Presidential campaign.
Giap prepared a bold thrust on two fronts. With memories of the victory at Dien Bien Phu still in his mind, he planned an attack on the US Marines' firebase at Khe Sanh. At the same time. the NVA and the NLF planned coordinated attacks on virtually all South Vietnam's major cities and provincial capitals. If the Americans opted to defend Khe Sanh, they would find themselves stretched to the limit when battles erupted elsewhere throughout the South. Forced to defend themselves everywhere at once, the U~ARVN forces would suffer a multitude of small to major defeats which would add up to an overall disaster Khe Sanh would distract the attention of the US commanders while the NVA/VC was preparing for D-day in South Vietnam's cities but, when this full offensive was at its height, it was unlikely that the over-stretched American forces would be able to keep the base from being overrun and Giap would have repeated his triumph of fourteen years before.
All attacks were turned back and the uprisings predicted did not take place. US and South Vietnamese forces suffered 4,424 killed and 16,063 wounded. The NVA and Viet Cong suffered 45,000-50,000 dead and 7,000 captured. These crippling losses would make it years before the NVA could launch another big scale attack.
The Tet Offensive today is seen as the turning point of the war. Militarily it was a huge failure but a big psychological victory. Americans at home were being told that US Forces were controlling the war and that the North was being defeated. When the North invaded with such a big force and was able to take the US by surprise, many back home felt that the military was hiding the truth. All hopes for a victory diminished and antiwar demonstrations erupted. President Johnson refused to run for office because of the Tet and the demonstrations. Gen.Westmoreland asked Johnson for another 200,000 troops that would bring the total to 750,000. This would be used to make a small invasion of the North. However because of Tet this was denied and the next president, Nixon, began cutting down US forces and turning the war to the South Vietnamese.
Khe Sanh
21 Jan. - 14 Apr., 1968
Khe Sanh was a North Vietnamese attempt to embarrass the US forces and create another Dien Bien Phu. 6,000 US Marines and South Vietnamese were defending against 20,000 NVA troops.
A comparison with Dien Bien Phu is tempting, and indeed influenced American opinion at the time, but is not appropriate. For example, the garrison's artillery, consisting of three batteries of 105mm howitzer and one of 155mm howitzers, had additional support from four US Army batteries of 175mm guns, firing from bases to the north and east; the total American artillery expenditure during the siege amounted to 159,000 rounds. Again, airstrikes around the base, including some delivered by B-52 heavy bombers, dropped no less than 96,000 tons of bombs. Furthermore, the communists never succeeded in interdicting Lownd's(Commander of the garrison) air supply line. It is not possible, therefore, to equate the situation of those holding Khe Sanh with that of de Castries' doomed garrison at Dien Bien Phu. Khe Sanh was intended to be the crown of all other achievements of the Tet Offensive, so demonstrating that the Americans could be defeated as easily in the field as the French. However Tet itself was defeated and Khe Sanh would add to the catastrophic communist losses during Tet. 199 US and South Vietnamese soldiers were killed and 1,600 wounded. It's very difficult to pinpoint communist losses, but the lowest estimates put it at 9,800 with one-third of those dead. The communists were forced to withdraw yet again.
Hue
31 Jan. - 25 Feb., 1968
Hue was part of the Tet offensive. Four NVA and six Viet Cong battalions invaded and occupied the city. Eleven South Vietnamese battalions along with 3 US Marine and 3 US Army battalion sought to repel the communists out of Hue.
Hue was the former Annamese Imperial capital and, because it contained numerous buildings of historic and cultural importance, the Allies were inhibited in their use of artillery. The task of clearing the city took longer than it would normally have done and involved bitter street fighting. The modern area south of Perfume river was cleared first, followed by the fortifications of the ancient Citadel to the north. After the battle it was discovered that during their occupation the communists massacred several thousand innocent civilians, including foreign nationals, whom they believed to be unsympathetic to their cause.
South Vietnamese forces lost 384 soldiers along with 1,800 wounded. The US lost 119 soldiers and 961 wounded. NVA and VC losses were at 5,113 and 89 captured.
Invasion Of Cambodia
1969-1973
In March 1969 Nixon ordered the secret bombing of Cambodia. Intended to wipe out North Vietnamese and NLF base camps along the border with South Vietnam in order to provide time for the buildup of the ARVN, the campaign failed utterly. The secret bombing lasted four years and caused great destruction and upheaval in Cambodia, a land of farmers that had not known war in centuries. Code-named Operation Menu, the bombing was more intense than that carried out over Vietnam. An estimated 100,000 peasants died in the bombing, while 2 million people were left homeless. In April 1970 Nixon ordered U.S. troops into Cambodia. He argued that this was necessary to protect the security of American units then in the process of withdrawing from Vietnam, but he also wanted to buy security for the Saigon regime. When Nixon announced the invasion, U.S. college campuses erupted in protest, and one-third of them shut down due to student walkouts. At Kent State University in Ohio four students were killed by panicky national guardsmen who had been called up to prevent rioting. Two days later, two students were killed at Jackson State College in Mississippi. Congress proceeded to repeal the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. Congress also passed the Cooper-Church Amendment, which specifically forbade the use of U.S. troops outside South Vietnam. The measure did not expressly forbid bombing, however, so Nixon continued the air strikes on Cambodia until 1973. Three months after committing U.S. forces, Nixon ordered them to withdraw from Cambodia.
Campaign In Laos
1964-1973
The United States began conducting secret bombing of Laos in 1964, targeting both the North Vietnamese forces along sections of the Ho Chi Minh Trail and the Communist Pathet Lao guerrillas, who controlled the northern part of the country. Roughly 150,000 tons of bombs were dropped on the Plain of Jars in northern Laos between 1964 and 1969. By 1970 at least one-quarter of the entire population of Laos were refugees, and about 750,000 Laotians had been killed. Prohibited by the Cooper-Church Amendment from deploying U.S. troops and anxious to demonstrate the fighting prowess of the improved ARVN, Nixon took the advice of General Creighton Abrams and attempted to cut vital Communist supply lines along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. On February 8, 1971, 21,000 ARVN troops, supported by American B-52 bombers, invaded Laos. Intended to disrupt any North Vietnamese and NLF plans for offensives and to test the strength of the ARVN. Gen.Abrams claimed 14,000 North Vietnamese casualties, but over 9000 ARVN soldiers were killed or wounded, while the rest were routed and expelled from Laos.
VIII.Pictures
Map of Asia
Dead VC in Saigon
Another Dead VC in Saigon
More Dead VC in Saigon
Marine Sniper at Khe Sanh
Battle for Hue
Battle for Hue
US Helicopter
NVA Prisoners
NVA Prisoners
Sources Used
Ia Drang Valley |
The first conventional battle of the Vietnam war took place as American forces clashed with North Vietnamese units in the Ia Drang Valley. In November of 1965, 450 American soldiers were sent in by helicopters to the Ia Drang Valley. They were dropped off at landing zone Albany. Within 30 minutes they were ambushed by over 2000 Vietnamese. The Americans were outnumbered 16 to 1. After what was called the biggest single-day battle in Vietnam, the surviving Americans were rescued. Three days later, a battalion only miles away was heading towards landing zone X-Ray so they could leave. The area was going to be fire-bombed. Few made it. The rest were ambushed again and many more were left dead. The US lost 304 soldiers and 524 were wounded. 1,519 dead Viet Cong were counted and 157 were taken prisoner. The Viet Cong sustained crippling losses and withdrew from the area. Their failure forced them to abandon the plan to seize the Central Highlands. Helicopters and air support played a crucial role in the victory.
Operation Phoenix |
It was a war waged not only against guerrillas but also to capture the "hearts and minds" of the people. The U.S. counterinsurgency effort in Vietnam relied heavily on both violence and propaganda, and often the two were intertwined to enhance each others' effectiveness. In the case of the Phoenix Program, U.S. military and intelligence officials staged all manner of psychological operations (PSYOP) to expand the reach of what would become the most notorious assassination operation of the war. Even comic books were used to encourage South Vietnamese villagers to turn rebels over to the government.
Launched by the CIA in the 1967, the Phoenix Program was a vicious set of "internal security" measures designed to eliminate the Viet Cong, the armed resistance to U.S. forces and the government of South Vietnam. The program targeted the Viet Cong leadership, in the hopes that by "neutralizing" these key players the insurgency would sputter out. According to William Colby, a CIA official who for a time oversaw Phoenix and later became CIA Director, the program resulted in the extrajudicial killing of at least 20,000 suspects. Other estimates suggest that the total number of Phoenix assassinations may have run as high as 40,000.
Tet Offensive |
The Tet offensive came when the US agreed to cease fire for the Tet holiday. The North wanted to take advantage and catch the US of guard. Some 80,000 NVA and Viet Cong attacked 36 provincial capitals and 23 allied bases. The North believed that once they did this a general uprising would take place and bring more support to their cause.
Gen.Giap was prepared to take a gamble. His divisions had been battered whenever they met the American forces in conventional combat and the VC- if not exactly on the retreat -was at least being pushed backwards. Hanoi was perfectly aware of the growing US peace movement and of the deep divisions the war was causing in American society What Giap needed was a body-blow that would break Washington's will to carry on and at the same time would undermine the growing legitimacy of the Saigon Government once and for all. In one sense, time was not on Giap's side. While Hanoi was sure that the Americans would tire of the war as the French had before them, the longer it took, the stronger the Saigon Government might become. Another year or so of American involvement could seriously damage the NLF and leave the ARVN capable of dealing with its enemies on its own. Giap opted for a quick and decisive victory that would be well in time for the 1968 US Presidential campaign.
Giap prepared a bold thrust on two fronts. With memories of the victory at Dien Bien Phu still in his mind, he planned an attack on the US Marines' firebase at Khe Sanh. At the same time. the NVA and the NLF planned coordinated attacks on virtually all South Vietnam's major cities and provincial capitals. If the Americans opted to defend Khe Sanh, they would find themselves stretched to the limit when battles erupted elsewhere throughout the South. Forced to defend themselves everywhere at once, the U~ARVN forces would suffer a multitude of small to major defeats which would add up to an overall disaster Khe Sanh would distract the attention of the US commanders while the NVA/VC was preparing for D-day in South Vietnam's cities but, when this full offensive was at its height, it was unlikely that the over-stretched American forces would be able to keep the base from being overrun and Giap would have repeated his triumph of fourteen years before.
All attacks were turned back and the uprisings predicted did not take place. US and South Vietnamese forces suffered 4,424 killed and 16,063 wounded. The NVA and Viet Cong suffered 45,000-50,000 dead and 7,000 captured. These crippling losses would make it years before the NVA could launch another big scale attack.
The Tet Offensive today is seen as the turning point of the war. Militarily it was a huge failure but a big psychological victory. Americans at home were being told that US Forces were controlling the war and that the North was being defeated. When the North invaded with such a big force and was able to take the US by surprise, many back home felt that the military was hiding the truth. All hopes for a victory diminished and antiwar demonstrations erupted. President Johnson refused to run for office because of the Tet and the demonstrations. Gen.Westmoreland asked Johnson for another 200,000 troops that would bring the total to 750,000. This would be used to make a small invasion of the North. However because of Tet this was denied and the next president, Nixon, began cutting down US forces and turning the war to the South Vietnamese.
Khe Sanh |
Khe Sanh was a North Vietnamese attempt to embarrass the US forces and create another Dien Bien Phu. 6,000 US Marines and South Vietnamese were defending against 20,000 NVA troops.
A comparison with Dien Bien Phu is tempting, and indeed influenced American opinion at the time, but is not appropriate. For example, the garrison's artillery, consisting of three batteries of 105mm howitzer and one of 155mm howitzers, had additional support from four US Army batteries of 175mm guns, firing from bases to the north and east; the total American artillery expenditure during the siege amounted to 159,000 rounds. Again, airstrikes around the base, including some delivered by B-52 heavy bombers, dropped no less than 96,000 tons of bombs. Furthermore, the communists never succeeded in interdicting Lownd's(Commander of the garrison) air supply line. It is not possible, therefore, to equate the situation of those holding Khe Sanh with that of de Castries' doomed garrison at Dien Bien Phu. Khe Sanh was intended to be the crown of all other achievements of the Tet Offensive, so demonstrating that the Americans could be defeated as easily in the field as the French. However Tet itself was defeated and Khe Sanh would add to the catastrophic communist losses during Tet. 199 US and South Vietnamese soldiers were killed and 1,600 wounded. It's very difficult to pinpoint communist losses, but the lowest estimates put it at 9,800 with one-third of those dead. The communists were forced to withdraw yet again.
Hue |
Hue was part of the Tet offensive. Four NVA and six Viet Cong battalions invaded and occupied the city. Eleven South Vietnamese battalions along with 3 US Marine and 3 US Army battalion sought to repel the communists out of Hue.
Hue was the former Annamese Imperial capital and, because it contained numerous buildings of historic and cultural importance, the Allies were inhibited in their use of artillery. The task of clearing the city took longer than it would normally have done and involved bitter street fighting. The modern area south of Perfume river was cleared first, followed by the fortifications of the ancient Citadel to the north. After the battle it was discovered that during their occupation the communists massacred several thousand innocent civilians, including foreign nationals, whom they believed to be unsympathetic to their cause.
South Vietnamese forces lost 384 soldiers along with 1,800 wounded. The US lost 119 soldiers and 961 wounded. NVA and VC losses were at 5,113 and 89 captured.
Invasion Of Cambodia |
In March 1969 Nixon ordered the secret bombing of Cambodia. Intended to wipe out North Vietnamese and NLF base camps along the border with South Vietnam in order to provide time for the buildup of the ARVN, the campaign failed utterly. The secret bombing lasted four years and caused great destruction and upheaval in Cambodia, a land of farmers that had not known war in centuries. Code-named Operation Menu, the bombing was more intense than that carried out over Vietnam. An estimated 100,000 peasants died in the bombing, while 2 million people were left homeless. In April 1970 Nixon ordered U.S. troops into Cambodia. He argued that this was necessary to protect the security of American units then in the process of withdrawing from Vietnam, but he also wanted to buy security for the Saigon regime. When Nixon announced the invasion, U.S. college campuses erupted in protest, and one-third of them shut down due to student walkouts. At Kent State University in Ohio four students were killed by panicky national guardsmen who had been called up to prevent rioting. Two days later, two students were killed at Jackson State College in Mississippi. Congress proceeded to repeal the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. Congress also passed the Cooper-Church Amendment, which specifically forbade the use of U.S. troops outside South Vietnam. The measure did not expressly forbid bombing, however, so Nixon continued the air strikes on Cambodia until 1973. Three months after committing U.S. forces, Nixon ordered them to withdraw from Cambodia.
Campaign In Laos |
The United States began conducting secret bombing of Laos in 1964, targeting both the North Vietnamese forces along sections of the Ho Chi Minh Trail and the Communist Pathet Lao guerrillas, who controlled the northern part of the country. Roughly 150,000 tons of bombs were dropped on the Plain of Jars in northern Laos between 1964 and 1969. By 1970 at least one-quarter of the entire population of Laos were refugees, and about 750,000 Laotians had been killed. Prohibited by the Cooper-Church Amendment from deploying U.S. troops and anxious to demonstrate the fighting prowess of the improved ARVN, Nixon took the advice of General Creighton Abrams and attempted to cut vital Communist supply lines along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. On February 8, 1971, 21,000 ARVN troops, supported by American B-52 bombers, invaded Laos. Intended to disrupt any North Vietnamese and NLF plans for offensives and to test the strength of the ARVN. Gen.Abrams claimed 14,000 North Vietnamese casualties, but over 9000 ARVN soldiers were killed or wounded, while the rest were routed and expelled from Laos.
VIII.Pictures
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Map of Asia
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Dead VC in Saigon
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Another Dead VC in Saigon
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More Dead VC in Saigon
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Marine Sniper at Khe Sanh
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Battle for Hue
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Battle for Hue
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US Helicopter
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NVA Prisoners
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NVA Prisoners
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