tet offensive analysis

It was not until after the conclusion of the first phase of the offensive that Hanoi realized that its sacrifices might not have been in vain. The Tet Offensive was unquestionably the biggest occurrence of the Vietnam War. All eight of the attacks were controlled by the North Vietnamese headquarters of Military Region 5. By daylight, almost all communist forces had been driven from their objectives. [73], On 27 October, an ARVN battalion at Sông Bé, the capital of Phước Long Province, came under attack by an entire PAVN regiment. When the main operation began the next morning, the offensive was countrywide and well coordinated; eventually more than 80,000 PAVN/VC troops struck more than 100 towns and cities, including 36 of 44 provincial capitals, five of the six autonomous cities, 72 of 245 district towns, and the southern capital. To further enhance their political posture at the Paris talks, which opened on 13 May, the North Vietnamese opened the second phase of the General Offensive in late April. [217], On 27 February, Johnson and McNamara discussed the proposed troop increase. The first attacks may have been launched prematurely due to confusion over a changeover in the calendar date by North Vietnamese units. [27] According to public opinion polls, the percentage of Americans who believed that the U.S. had made a mistake by sending troops to Vietnam had risen from 25 percent in 1965 to 45 percent by December 1967. The Tet Offensive consisted of simultaneous attacks by some 85,000 troops under the direction of the North Vietnamese government. The Tet Offensive: A Concise History is essential reading for students and scholars of the war, and provides a thoughtful reexamination for anyone with an interest in the turning point of our nation’s longest war. On March 10, 1968, The New York Times ran a story under the headline “Westmoreland Requests 206,000 More Men, Stirring Debate in Administration.” This request galvanized the public and convinced them that, rather than a Vietnamization of the conflict, America’s involvement was increasing at the cost of American lives in the face of an unfaltering and seemingly unbeatable enemy. Please select which sections you would like to print: Corrections? Naval Institute Press, 2008. Two interpretations of the offensive's goals have continued to dominate Western historical debate. [185] 1968 became the deadliest year of the war to date for the ARVN with 27,915 men killed.[169]. Overall, during the "Border Battles" of 1967 and the nine-month winter-spring campaign, 45,267 PAVN/VC troops had been killed in action. Lorell, Mark & Kelley, Charles, Jr. "Casualties, Public Opinion and Presidential Policy During the Vietnam War" (1985), Laurence, John The Cat from Hue (2002) PublicAffairs Press, New York, Lorell, Mark & Kelley, Charles, Jr. Both the government and the Americans were encouraged by a new determination that was exhibited among the ordinary citizens of South Vietnam. Zaffiri, pp. It was this lack of communication that caused a rising disapproval rating for his conduct of the war. Palmer gave a figure of 70,000, p. 238. [61] The offensive, therefore, was aimed at influencing the South Vietnamese public, not that of the U.S. Tổng công kích, Tổng nổi dậy Tết mậu thân 1968 (Tet Offensive 1968) – ARVN's Đại Nam publishing in 1969, p. 35. Dougan and Weiss, p. 11. [95], According to Westmoreland, he responded to the news of the attacks with optimism, both in media presentations and in his reports to Washington. The South Vietnamese uprising they had hoped to spark did not materialize. [245][246], During the early morning hours of 4 May, PAVN/VC units initiated the second phase of the offensive (known by the South Vietnamese and Americans as "Mini-Tet") by striking 119 targets throughout South Vietnam, including Saigon. P 33. These units included the VC 12th Main Force Battalion and the Huế City Sapper Battalion. Tet Offensive Article Analysis Question Sheet Please answer the following questions in a separate word document. [144] Those taken into custody included South Vietnamese military personnel, present and former government officials, local civil servants, teachers, policemen, and religious figures. Tragedy had compounded tragedy as the conflict reached into the nation's cities for the first time. By 28 March Clifford was working hard to convince him to tone down his hard-line speech, maintaining force levels at their present size, and instituting Rusk's bombing/negotiating proposal. [123] Lasting 25 days,[124] the battle of Huế became one of the longest and bloodiest single battles of the Vietnam War. Although he had warned the President between 25 and 30 January that "widespread" communist attacks were in the offing, his admonitions had tended to be so oblique or so hedged with official optimism that even the administration was unprepared. The South Vietnamese government reported that 7,721 civilians were killed in the fighting during the offensive, while an additional 18,516 were wounded. [85] On the evening of 30 January, 200 U.S. officers—all of whom served on the MACV intelligence staff—attended a pool party at their quarters in Saigon. The General was then ordered to the capital to explain his concept in person to the Military Central Commission. In most cases, the defense was led by the South Vietnamese. It went on to state that officials were saying in private that "widespread and deep changes in attitudes, a sense that a watershed has been reached. According to Clifford: "The simple truth was that the military failed to sustain a respectable argument for their position. U.S. and South Vietnamese officials declared that the communists had suffered a resounding military defeat, and this was certainly the case. Protesters demonstrating against the Vietnam War, New York City, April 27, 1968. Westmoreland also failed to communicate his concerns adequately to Washington. U.S. and other allied forces suffered 1,536 killed, 7,764 wounded, and 11 missing. According to American sources, there has been an extreme reluctance among Vietnamese historians to discuss the decision-making process that led to the General Offensive General Uprising, even decades after the event. [254] A thrust against Da Nang was preempted by the U.S. Marines' Operation Allen Brook. [214], Johnson dispatched Wheeler to Saigon on 20 February to determine military requirements in response to the offensive. The "general offensive and general uprising" of the north marked the sharp turn of the Vietnam War. These forces would join with local cadres who served as guides to lead the regulars to the most senior South Vietnamese headquarters and the radio station. The role of the U.S. media in fostering and furthering this belief in North Vietnamese strength during that period has been a topic of study and argument, and the Tet Offensive certainly produced some of the most enduring images of the war. University Press of Kansas, May 2002 (original 1995). The allies, however, still responded without any real sense of urgency. Although the initial attacks stunned the allies, causing them to lose control of several cities temporarily, they quickly regrouped, beat back the attacks, and inflicted heavy casualties on PAVN/VC forces. For years this figure has been held as excessively optimistic, as it represented more than half the forces involved in this battle. [167] This state of affairs did not last; heavy casualties and the backlash of the South Vietnamese and Americans resulted in more territorial losses and heavy casualties. [183], The human and material cost to South Vietnam was staggering. I Field Force, was the first to be hit, followed shortly by Ban Mê Thuột, Kon Tum, Hội An, Tuy Hòa, Da Nang, Qui Nhơn, and Pleiku. Southeast Asia Report No. [113] Bitter and destructive house-to-house fighting erupted in the area. Hanoi had announced in October that it would observe a seven-day truce from 27 January to 3 February for the Tet holiday, and the South Vietnamese military made plans to allow recreational leave for approximately half of its forces. Tet Offensive Article Analysis. This assignment will requireyou to utilize both direct and paraphrased quotations to support your arguments.To cite the article, simply follow the … I am absolutely certain that whereas in 1965 the enemy was winning, today he is certainly losing...We have reached an important point when the end begins to come into view. "[231], A great deal has been said by historians concerning how the news media made Tet the "turning point" in the public's perception of the war. The Tet Offensive, which was launched on 30 January 1958 by Northern Vietnamese communist forces against the U.S. supported South Vietnamese forces, had the tactical aim of spurring a communist revolt in South Vietnam. Popular CBS anchor Walter Cronkite stated during a news broadcast on February 27, "We have been too often disappointed by the optimism of the American leaders, both in Vietnam and Washington, to have faith any longer in the silver linings they find in the darkest clouds" and added that, "we are mired in a stalemate that could only be ended by negotiation, not victory. Although the north Vietnamese suffered massive casualties it gained a psychological and political victory for the communists, dramatically contradicting optimistic claims by … "[225] Between the results of Tet and the meetings of the group that bore his name, he became convinced that deescalation was the only solution for the United States. The Joint Chiefs then played their hand, advising President Johnson to turn down MACV's requested division-sized reinforcement unless he called up some 1,234,001 marine and army reservists. By 09:20 the embassy and grounds were secured, with the loss of five U.S. [219] Johnson's friend Clifford was concerned about what the American public would think of the escalation: "How do we avoid creating the feeling that we are pounding troops down a rathole? To Washington's surprise, on 3 April Hanoi announced that it would conduct negotiations, which were scheduled to begin on 13 May in Paris. Provided with "blacklists" of military officers and civil servants, they began to round up and execute any that could be found. The South Vietnamese military, although it had performed better than the Americans had expected, suffered from lowered morale, with desertion rates rising from 10.5 per thousand before Tet to 16.5 per thousand by July. This is probably a low estimate. Both sides claimed that the battle had served its intended purpose. [74], The most severe of what came to be known as "the Border Battles" erupted during October and November around Dak To, another border outpost in Kon Tum Province. 30–50. In Saigon, attackers penetrated both the presidential palace and the compound of the U.S. embassy. U.S. and South Vietnamese casualties numbered 12,727, including more than 2,600 fatalities. This course of events disturbed Lieutenant General Frederick Weyand, commander of U.S. forces in III Corps, which included the Capital Military District. Doyle, Lipsman and Maitland, pp. The fighting in Hue City, Vietnam, was as intense and confusing as anything the Marines there had ever seen. The New York Times article had been released just two days before the Democratic Party's New Hampshire primary, where the President suffered an unexpected setback in the election, finishing barely ahead of Senator Eugene McCarthy. What was the main purpose of the Tet offensive? It wouldn't have been credible to us. Johnson was depressed and despondent at the course of recent events. Hanoi had launched the offensive in the belief that it would trigger a popular uprising leading to the collapse of the South Vietnamese government. William, Thomas Allison. [180] The plan for a popular uprising or people's war was abandoned for a greater combination of guerrilla and conventional warfare. Brigadier General Foster C. LaHue, the Task Force X-Ray commander, dispatched Company A, a single rifle company 1 st Battalion, 1 st Marines (1/1), to provide support to the city and reinforcements to the MACV and the LCU. DATA: The 1968 Tet offensive conducted by the NVA/VC forces within the I Corps Tactical Zone found the enemy's main effort as the seizure of Hue. Others: 4,124 killed19,295 wounded604 missingTotal casualties in Phase One:45,820 casualties (9,078 killed, 35,212 wounded, 1,530 missing)[7][8]123 aircraft destroyed, 214 heavily damaged and 215 medium damaged[9], The Tet Offensive (Vietnamese: Sự kiện Tết Mậu Thân 1968), or officially called The General Offensive and Uprising of Tet Mau Than 1968 (Vietnamese: Tổng Tiến công và Nổi dậy Tết Mậu Thân 1968) was a major escalation and one of the largest military campaigns of the Vietnam War. In the Tet Offensive of 1968, Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces launched a massive countrywide attack on South Vietnam. [58], The PAVN official history states that the objectives of the Tet Offensive were to: annihilate and cause the total disintegration of the bulk of the puppet army, overthrow the "puppet" (South Vietnamese) regime at all administrative levels, and place all government power in the hands of the people. [108][109][110], Outside the city proper two VC battalions attacked the U.S. logistical and headquarters complex at Long Binh Post. Hoang, p. 84. The first maintained that the political consequences of the winter-spring offensive were an intended rather than an, Dougan and Weiss, p. 23. [133] By this point in the battle 16 to 18 PAVN battalions (8,000-11,000 men) were taking part in the fighting for the city itself or the approaches to the city. Concurrently, a propaganda offensive to induce ARVN troops to desert and the South Vietnamese population to rise up against the government would be launched. By 1967 growing numbers of Americans were becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the war. [96] In comparison with MACV's previous communications, which had been full of confidence, optimism, and resolve, Westmoreland's 12 February request for 10,500 troops was much more urgent: "which I desperately need ... time is of the essence". "[30] This prompted the administration to launch a so-called "Success Offensive", a concerted effort to alter the widespread public perception that the war had reached a stalemate and to convince the American people that the administration's policies were succeeding. The decision signaled the end of a bitter, decade-long debate within the North Vietnamese Government between first two, and then three factions. Kham Duc was evacuated by air while under fire, and abandoned to the North Vietnamese. [215] Wheeler's written report of the trip, however, contained no mention of any new contingencies, strategies, or the building up the strategic reserve. The Tet Offensive Analysis 1202 Words | 5 Pages. Three of the four ARVN Corps' commanders, for example, were replaced for their dismal performance during the offensive. The Tet Offensive was an operation that the North Vietnamese conducted that called for a simultaneous attack on every major city in South Vietnam; its shock value would prove to be a major blow to American support for the war at home even though it was a great tactical victory for Allied forces. Please answer the following questions in a separate word document. [127], Since there were no U.S. formations stationed in Huế, relief forces had to move up from Phu Bai Combat Base,[128] eight kilometers to the southeast. Westmoreland's fixation upon the base continued even as the battle raged around him in Saigon. Upon their arrival, the two men bolstered the administration's claims of success. The Tet Offensive was a military failure for the Viet Cong, but, at the same time, it devastated the American public's support for the war. [72] The intense shelling (100–150 rounds per day) prompted Westmoreland to launch Operation Neutralize, an intense aerial bombardment campaign of 4,000 sorties into and just north of the DMZ. 216 U.S. Marines and soldiers had been killed during the fighting and 1,609 were wounded. Dougan and Weiss, p. 35. This was purely a political ploy, however, since the North Vietnamese would probably again refuse to negotiate, casting the onus on them and "thus freeing our hand after a short period...putting the monkey firmly upon Hanoi's back for what was to follow. [158] Westmoreland himself claimed a smaller number of enemies disabled, estimating that during the same period 32,000 PAVN troops were killed and another 5,800 captured. On March 22 Johnson approved only a small increase of troops. On 4 February, the residents were ordered to leave their homes and the area was declared a free fire zone. The popular uprising anticipated by Hanoi never happened. "[221] To meet Wheeler's request would mean a total U.S. military commitment to South Vietnam. Tet Offensive Article Analysis. [122] Both sides then rushed to reinforce and resupply their forces. During the first half of 1969, more than 20,000 PAVN/VC troops rallied to allied forces, a threefold increase over the 1968 figure.[257]. 118, 120. Although Giáp went to work "reluctantly, under duress", he may have found the task easier due to the fact that he was faced with a fait accompli. They also resisted the idea of negotiating with the allies. The MACV Combined Intelligence Center, on the other hand, maintained that the number could be no more than 300,000. Except at Huế and mopping-up operations in and around Saigon, the first surge of the offensive was over by the second week of February. [120] The rest of the city was overrun by PAVN forces which initially totaled approximately 7,500 men. [151] By the end of 1967, MACV had moved nearly half of its manoeuvre battalions to I Corps in anticipation of just such a battle. [112] A total of 35 PAVN/VC battalions, many of whose troops were undercover cadres who had lived and worked within the capital or its environs for years, had been committed to the Saigon objectives. [157], Except at Huế and mopping-up operations in and around Saigon, the first surge of the offensive was over by the second week of February. “The launching of the Tet Offensive signified the end of a bitter, decade-long debate within the VWP,” writes Nguyen. The logistical build-up began in mid-year, and by January 1968, 81,000 tons of supplies and 200,000 troops, including seven complete infantry regiments and 20 independent battalions made the trip south on the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Palmer, p. 245. A further 87,000 were made homeless while more than 500 were killed and another 4,500 were wounded. The offensive was launched prematurely in the late night hours of 30 January in the I and II Corps Tactical Zones of South Vietnam. MACV estimated that 5,500 PAVN troops had been killed and considerably more wounded. 421 ARVN troops were killed, another 2,123 were wounded, and 31 were missing. The multi-pronged offensive, named Tet after the Vietnamese Lunar New Year, proved to be a military defeat for the Communists. No history of that war can be complete without an analysis of this offensive. Please answer the following questions in a separate word document. [213] On 13 February, 10,500 previously authorized U.S. airborne troops and marines were dispatched to South Vietnam. On 1 February Thiệu declared a state of martial law, and on 15 June, the National Assembly passed his request for a general mobilization of the population and the induction of 200,000 draftees into the armed forces by the end of the year (a decree that had failed to pass only five months previously due to strong political opposition). [218] These monetary concerns were pressing. Nguyen, p. 30. Stanley Karnowclaims he confirmed this figure in Hanoi in 1981. DEFINE THE SUBJECT On January 30 th and 31 st, 1968, a series of coordinated surprise attacks by North Vietnam took place on South Vietnam.Ranging from military outposts, provincial capitals, the autonomous cities, district capitals and towns, and the capital of South Vietnam called Saigon. The Tet Offensive. However this offensive had far reaching consequences due to its effect on the views of the Vietnam War by the American public. [134] Two of the PAVN regiments had made a forced march from the vicinity of Khe Sanh to Huế in order to participate. The 1968 Tet Offensive is described as one of the bloodiest military campaign of the Vietnam War; the North Communists launched against the South. The plan called for all these initial forces to capture and hold their positions for 48 hours, by which time reinforcements were to have arrived to relieve them. "[68], Despite all the warning signs, however, the allies were still surprised by the scale and scope of the offensive. The attacks were carried out against five major South Vietnamese cities, dozens of military installations, and scores of towns and villages throughout South Vietnam. [39] General Nguyễn Chí Thanh the head of Central Office for South Vietnam (COSVN), headquarters for the South, was another prominent militant. Two days later, another PAVN regiment attacked a U.S. Special Forces border outpost at Lộc Ninh, in Bình Long Province. U.S. Army units participating in the defense included the 716th Military Police Battalion, seven infantry battalions (one mechanized), and six artillery battalions. This is my view, not that of Mr. Willbanks. The overland supply route to the base had been cut off, and airborne resupply by cargo aircraft became extremely dangerous due to heavy PAVN antiaircraft fire. Tet Offensive revision Two quick summary tasks to review the events and consequences of the Tet Offensive On January 31, 1968, coinciding with the Vietnamese Tet holiday, North Vietnam launched a massive conventional invasion, known officially as … [113], On the morning of 2 March 1968, while patrolling 4 miles (6.4 km) north of Tan Son Nhut Air Base near the small village of Quoi Xuan to locate VC rocket sites, Company C, 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment walked into an ambush losing 48 killed in just 8 minutes. [22], In May, MACV attempted to obtain a compromise from the CIA by maintaining that VC militias did not constitute a fighting force but were essentially low-level fifth columnists used for information collection. To fulfill it would require an increase in overall military strength of about 400,000 men and the expenditure of an additional $10 billion during fiscal 1969 and another $15 billion in 1970. To probe this question, we must review briefly the details of the Tet offensive. [81], In the days immediately preceding the offensive, the preparedness of allied forces was relatively relaxed. Significantly, during this series of actions only North Vietnamese forces participated and targets were military in nature, with less concise attacks against city-targets. They saw in the successful rebuke of their enemies’ attacks an undeniable weakening of communist forces and strength. [199] In 1969, the year after the Tet battles, the US suffered 11,780 killed, the second highest annual total in the war. On 5 May Trường Chinh rose to address a congress of Party members and proceeded to castigate the Party militants and their bid for quick victory. In August, Chinh's report on the situation was accepted in toto, published, and broadcast via Radio Hanoi. The first article that was insightful of the time before the Tet Offensive came from a newspaper called The Tuscalossa News in August 5, 1964 which is a day after a big attack on American Navy by the North Vietnamese. In total, about 85,000–100,000 PAVN/VC troops had participated in the initial onslaught and in the follow-up phases. Despite these advance warnings, when the North Vietnamese offensive began in the early morning hours of January 30–31, 1968, it was larger and more intense than U.S. intelligence had anticipated. [29] A poll taken in November indicated that 55 percent wanted a tougher war policy, exemplified by the public belief that "it was an error for us to have gotten involved in Vietnam in the first place. General Fillmore K. Mearns would describe this as "a classic example of a properly executed ambush." [83] The following afternoon, General Cao Văn Viên, chief of the South Vietnamese Joint General Staff,[84] ordered his four Corps' commanders to place their troops on alert. [59], The operation would involve a preliminary phase, during which diversionary attacks would be launched in the border areas of South Vietnam to draw American attention and forces away from the cities. To a lesser extent characterised as mere disappointment in the official history (a heavy characterisation for an official history), Duiker, William J. In July 1967 North Vietnam’s communist leaders decided to gamble upon a course of action that would ideally break the stalemate between North Vietnam and U.S.-backed South Vietnam. The Tet Offensive: a brief history with documents. Throughout the country, some 75,000 homes were damaged or destroyed. [200] This was a clear indication that the North Vietnamese were capable of ongoing offensive actions, despite their losses at Tet. 15–16. The number of civilian dead was estimated by the government at 14,300 with an additional 24,000 wounded. On 1 March, Clifford had succeeded McNamara as Secretary of Defense. Add to Favorites: Add. "We are on the offensive. 25. Lt. Gen. Weyand invited CBS News Correspondent John Laurence and Washington Post reporter Don Oberdorfer to his III Corps headquarters in the week before the Tet Offensive to alert them that a major enemy attack was coming "just before or just after Tet." Beijing advocated that North Vietnam conduct a protracted war on the Maoist model, fearing that a conventional conflict might draw China in, as had happened in the Korean War. Tet Offensive, attacks staged by North Vietnamese forces beginning in the early hours of January 31, 1968, during the Vietnam War. Instead, the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong advance was checked by surprisingly resilient ARVN defenders, and most cities—with the notable exception of Hue—were liberated within days of the initial attack. 1968 Tet offensive . General William C. Westmoreland, the commander of the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV), believed that if a "crossover point" could be reached by which the number of communist troops killed or captured during military operations exceeded those recruited or replaced, the Americans would win the war. The term "Tet Offensive" usually refers to the January–February 1968 offensive, but it can also include the so-called "Mini-Tet" offensive that took place in May and the Phase III Offensive in August, or the 21 weeks of unusually intense combat which followed the initial attacks in January.[20]. A Gallup poll in January 1968 revealed that 56 percent polled considered themselves hawks on the war and 27 percent doves, with 17 percent offering no opinion. There was also the problem of forcing conflict on opponents, a problem underlined by the politically imposed necessity of using air but not ground forces in attacking the opponents’ base area of North Vietnam. [65] This announcement provoked a flurry of diplomatic activity (which amounted to nothing) during the last weeks of the year. Many urban dwellers were indignant that the communists had launched their attacks during Tet, and it drove many who had been previously apathetic into active support of the government. Although U.S. commanders generally held a low opinion of the Army of the Republic of South Vietnam (ARVN), South Vietnamese soldiers fought with bravery and tenacity during the Tet Offensive. This assignment will requireyou to utilize both direct and paraphrased quotations to support your arguments.To cite the article, simply follow the … 315–316. Westmoreland agreed with his estimate and ordered 15 U.S. battalions to redeploy from positions near the Cambodian border back to the outskirts of Saigon. At Clifford 's suggestion, Johnson and Westmoreland stated that they had predicted the offensive either or! Was concerned, the PAVN/VC did not seek a total of 27 allied maneuver battalions defended the city and CIA/South! Allies, however, these later claims were rather `` self serving '' eight of the most tactical. To 47 percent, Lê Duẩn also came under severe criticism and five ARVN Ranger,. To your inbox if it worked, all of the people on the part of the Vietnam war. the! 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