U.S. saw it as proof that attrition works

1. la Drang Valley • U.S. saw it as proof that attrition works • The VC claimed that they had forced the U.S. into combat to inflict casualties and learn about U.S. tactics. • VC did not consider this a defeat.

2. la Drang Valley

3. la Drang Valley U.S. Infantry disembarks

4. Scene from 2001 motion picture, We Were Soldiers

5. Starring Mel Gibson

6. Operation Phoenix • U.S. assassination program • We tried to eliminate VC leaders • Thousands died in these related attacks.

7. Ho Chi Minh Trail • North Vietnamese supply line from DRVN and ending at various points near the South Vietnamese border • A honeycomb of routes through jungle and grassland areas that totaled 12,000 miles of trail • Although Laos was supposedly neutral (per the Geneva agreement of 1954), 100’s of miles of the trail passed through that country

8. Ho Chi Minh Trail

9. Ho Chi Minh Trail

10. Ho Chi Minh Trail • Before 1964, the trail was used by bicycles that were specially modified to carry pallets of rifles and ammunition weighing 400 pounds. • In 1964 the trail was upgraded with bridges, way stations, underground barracks, storage facilities, workshops, and fuel depots • In 1965 80,000 laborers were building 2 miles of new road each day

11. Ho Chi Minh Trail

12. Ho Chi Minh Trail • 2,294 trucks passed through from Jan to May of 1965 • 12,000 DRVN soldiers infiltrated into the South in 1965 • 24,000 DRVN soldiers in 1966 • It became of primary importance to stop this infiltration along the trail • April 1965, the U.S. began air strikes against the trail called “Steel Tiger”

13. Ho Chi Minh Trail

14. Ho Chi Minh Trail • This led to the secret expansion of the war into Laos in 1965 • In March of 1970 President Nixon finally admitted U.S. military operations in Laos, claiming that the North Vietnamese had violated the Geneva Accord “before the ink was dry” and that over ½ million North Vietnamese troops had entered the South though Laos

15. The Cu Chi Tunnel • Of major importance during the Vietnam War • About 250 kilometers long

16. NAPALM • Destructive gelled gasoline chemical that burns uncontrollably • Sticks to bodies and sears off flesh • Burns at 800 to 1200 degrees Celsius

17. NAPALM

18. NAPALM

19. NAPALM

20. NAPALM

21. Agent Orange • A deforesting agent that killed jungle life, exposing VC hiding places • Contained dioxin – extremely toxic • Reported to cause death, debilitating diseases, and genetic defects to those exposed

22. Agent Orange

23. Agent Orange

24. Agent Orange

25. Agent Orange C 123 “Supplier” of Agent Orange

26. Agent Orange Service Patch awarded for flying Agent Orange “Ranch Hand” missions

27. Immediate and Genetic Effects of Agent Orange

28. Agent Orange

29. Agent Orange

30. Agent Orange

31. Agent Orange

32. Agent Orange

33. Agent Orange

34. The American Public is Misled • May 1967 – CIA estimates that 430,000 Viet Cong had infiltrated the South • Dec 1967 – 45% of American public said our involvement in Vietnam was a mistake

35. The American Public is Misled • Nov 1967 – Vice President Humphrey says on the “Today Show” – “We are on the offensive. Territory is being gained. We are making steady progress.”

36. The American Public is Misled • Nov 21, 1967 – General Westmoreland says that DRVN was “unable to mount a major offensive . . . I am absolutely certain that whereas in 1965 the enemy was winning, today he is certainly losing.” • Westmoreland says in interview with Time Magazine, “I hope they try something, because we are looking forward for a fight.”

37. Tet Offensive • TếtNguyênDán – January 31 - the lunar new year– most important Vietnamese holiday • Both North and South Vietnam had announced on national radio that there would be a three-day cease-fire during the Tet celebration

38. Tet Offensive • Jan 31, 1968 - The VC launched a series of unexpected highly coordinated attacks all across South Vietnam. • 80,000 VC troops struck more than 100 towns and cities – including Saigon • U.S. embassy in Saigon was invaded • The largest military operation by either side in the war up until then

39. Tet Offensive

40. Tet Offensive Saigon burns

41. Tet Offensive • The North Vietnamese had hoped to spark a nationwide Communist rebellion among the people of South Vietnam. • They were unsuccessful. • But it showed the American public that our government had not been truthful about the situation in Vietnam.

42. Tet Offensive • Attacks continued until September 1968. • Ended U.S. hopes of winning the war • After Tet, we were looking for a way out.

43. Credibility Gap • The Media shapes how the public views events- through graphic images • The public stops trusting the gov’t when they keep saying we are winning the war but the images show the opp.

44. My Lai Massacre • March 16, 1968 • “Search and destroy” mission • A small village in South Vietnam where 250 VC were rumored to be hiding • When we arrived, we found only women and children

45. My Lai Massacre • Lt. William Calley ordered all of the inhabitants rounded up and executed • Only one U.S. chopper crew flew in and stopped the slaughter. • 407 villagers were killed • American public was shocked and outraged

46. My Lai Massacre

47. My Lai Massacre

48. My Lai Massacre

49. My Lai Massacre

50. Lt. William Calley • Lt. William Calley was tried for murder • Claimed he was only following orders to kill everyone in the village • Dishonorably discharged and received a life term in prison • His sentence was later reduced by President Nixon • Released on parole in November 1975