Charlie Samuels - The Tet Offensive

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Samuels, Charlie.

The Tet Offensive / by Charlie Samuels.

p. cm. (Turning points in US military history)

Includes index.

ISBN 978-1-4824-0436-4 (pbk.)

ISBN 978-1-4824-0438-8 (6-pack)

ISBN 978-1-4824-0435-7 (library binding)

1. Tet Offensive, 1968 Juvenile literature. 2. Vietnam War, 1961-1975 Campaigns Juvenile literature. I. Samuels, Charlie, 1961-II. Title.

DS557.8.T4 S26 2014

959.704dc23

Published in 2014 by

Gareth Stevens Publishing

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New York, NY 10003

2014 Brown Bear Books Ltd

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Managing Editor: Tim Cooke

Childrens Publisher: Anne ODaly

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Picture Credits:

Front Cover: US National Archives

All images US National Archives except:

Robert Hunt Library: .

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CONTENTS

Introduction

Vietnam Divided

US Arrival in Vietnam

An Elusive Enemy

Americas Southern Allies

Westmorelands Plan

Battles of 19661967

The Siege of Khe Sanh

The Tet Offensive

The Battle for Saigon

The Battle for Hue

Impact on America

From Tet to Defeat

TIMELINE

GLOSSARY

FURTHER INFORMATION

INDEX

INTRODUCTION

T he Tet Offensive of January 30, 1968, marked the turning point of the Vietnam War. It was a major assault by the North Vietnamese Army and Vietcong guerrillas against US and South Vietnamese positions in cities throughout South Vietnam. After the first shock, the Americans and their allies fought back and defeated the attacks. Despite the US victory, however, the Tet Offensive confirmed the growing fear that the United States would ultimately lose the war.

Unexpected Resistance

US ground forces had been in Vietnam since spring 1965 to support South Vietnam in its war against its communist neighbor. Many Americans expected an easy victory. But US troops found themselves facing an enemy whose tactics took away the advantages of the modern US Army.

American Opinion

The North Vietnamese government was prepared to suffer huge losses, because it had loyal support from its population. Many Americans, however, were not clear about why US soldiers were losing their lives in a faraway land. As they watched the Tet Offensive on their TV screens, it became clear to many that the United States could not win the war. It was time to find an alternative solution to end the fighting.

US B-52 Stratofortresses drop bombs on enemy positions, but bombing did not make the North Vietnamese stop fighting.

US tanks are held up behind a farmers ox cart. The war was mainly fought in the countryside with no fixed front lines.

Vietnam Divided

The modern-day country of Vietnam, in Southeast Asia, was known as Indochina in the 19th century, when it was conquered by the French. The French were eager to exploit Vietnams natural resources, which included gold, silver, and precious stones, as well as silk, spices, and rice. In 1887, the French made Vietnam a colony of their empire, called French Indochina.

Vietminh troops parade through North Vietnams capital, Hanoi, in January 1955, after the country became independent.

A French artillery crew shells Vietminh positions outside the base during the siege at Dien Bien Phu.

By the end of the 19th century, up to 50,000 French people lived in Indochina. They treated the local people badly, which led to frequent uprisings against the unpopular rulers.

World War II

When war began in Europe in 1939, Japan took over Indochina. Its rule lasted only until its defeat in the war in 1945. But local communists, led by Ho Chi Minh, did not want the French to resume their control. The Vietnamese were tired of being ruled by foreigners. They backed Ho Chi Minh, who declared himself president of Vietnam in August 1945.

DIEN BIEN PHU

Dien Bien Phu was a French base behind enemy lines in North Vietnam, 10 miles (16 km) from the border with Laos. Some 16,000 French troops were stationed there. On March 20, 1954, the North Vietnamese laid siege to the base. For six weeks, the French were unable to get supplies into the base, while the men there came under constant shelling. On May 7, 1954, the French were forced to surrender. More than 2,200 French troops had died.

In October 1945 French troops returned to Vietnam. They resumed colonial rule of the southern part of the country, but Ho Chi Minh and the communists controlled the north. With the backing of China and the Soviet Union, Ho created a communist state. In January 1946 he became president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, or North Vietnam.

The First Indochina War

The south was initially called the Republic of Cochin-China; it later became South Vietnam. The French and the communists both wanted to control the whole country. The First Indochina War broke out between the French and the Vietminh, Hos nationalist movement, in December 1946.

South Vietnamese leader Ngo Dinh Diem (left) joins French officials as the French surrender Vietnam in September 1954.

Vietminh troops take control of the town of Haiphong in early 1955, after Vietnam was officially split into two countries.

Defeat for France

After eight years of fighting, the French eventually lost the war. The French army surrendered after a long siege of their base at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. Vietnam was divided ocially into the North and the South. The backing of the Soviet Union and China made North Vietnam the stronger country of the two. The US government was worried the communists would take over their southern neighbor. It sent special forces advisors to help the South Vietnamese avoid a possible attack. The first US troops arrived on January 1, 1955.