Battle of Saigon (1968)
First Battle of Saigon | |||||||
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Part of the Tet Offensive of the Vietnam War | |||||||
Black smoke covers areas of the capital city and fire trucks rush to the scenes of fires set during attacks by the Viet Cong during the festive Tet holiday period. Saigon, 1968. | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
South Vietnam United States Supported By Australia | North Vietnam | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Nguyễn Văn Thiệu William Westmoreland Robert McNamara | Trần Độ Trần Văn Trà | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
Unknown | 1,100 killed |
- v
- t
- e
- Laos
- Biên Hòa
- Đồng Khởi
- Chopper
- Palace Bombing
- Sunrise
- Shufly
- Ấp Bắc
- Go Cong
- Hiep Hoa
- 34A
- Long Dinh
- Kien Long
- Quyet Thang 202
- USNS Card
- Nam Dong
- An Lao
- Binh Gia
- Camp Holloway
- Dương Liễu – Nhông Pass
- Qui Nhơn
- Ka Nak
- Sông Bé
- Ba Gia
- Dong Xoai
- Starlite
- Piranha
- An Ninh
- Plei Me
- Hump
- 1st Bau Bang
- Ia Drang
- Bushmaster II
- Harvest Moon
1966
- Marauder
- Crimp
- Van Buren
- Masher/White Wing
- Mastiff
- Suoi Bong Trang
- New York
- Harrison
- Cocoa Beach
- Utah
- Silver City
- A Sau
- Oregon
- Texas
- Lincoln
- Fillmore
- Jackstay
- Buddhist Uprising
- Xa Cam My
- Georgia
- Birmingham
- Davy Crockett
- Austin IV
- Paul Revere
- Crazy Horse
- El Paso
- Hardihood
- Wahiawa
- Lam Son II
- Hawthorne
- Hill 488
- Nathan Hale
- Jay
- Macon
- Hastings
- Minh Thanh Road
- John Paul Jones
- Prairie
- Colorado
- Duc Co
- Long Tan
- SS Baton Rouge Victory
- Amarillo
- Byrd
- Sunset Beach
- Seward
- Thayer, Irving and Thayer II
- Attleboro
- Deckhouse IV
- Shenandoah
- Atlanta
- Paul Revere IV
- Geronimo
- Tan Son Nhut airbase
- Fairfax
- Firebase Bird
1967
- Deckhouse V
- Cedar Falls
- Desoto
- Gadsden
- Sam Houston
- Pershing
- Enterprise
- Tra Binh Dong
- Bribie
- Junction City (1st Prek Klok
- 2nd Prek Klok
- Ap Gu
- Suoi Tre
- 2nd Bàu Bàng)
- Francis Marion
- Lejeune
- Union
- Baker
- Manhattan
- The Hill Fights
- Beaver Cage
- Con Thien/DMZ
- Crockett
- Malheur I and Malheur II
- Kole Kole
- Barking Sands
- Union II
- Dragnet
- Akron
- Billings
- Concordia
- The Slopes
- Hong Kil Dong
- Diamond Head
- Coronado
- Coronado II
- Hood River
- Suoi Chau Pha
- Benton
- Coronado IV
- Swift
- Dragon Fire
- Wheeler/Wallowa
- Coronado V
- Kunia
- Bolling
- Medina
- Shenandoah II
- MacArthur
- Dak To
- Osceola
- Lancaster
- Coronado IX
- Neosho
- Santa Fe
- Essex
- Kien Giang 9-1
- Napoleon
- Phoenix
- Manchester
- Saratoga
- Yellowstone
- Muscatine
- Badger Tooth
- Auburn
- New Year's Day battle of 1968
- McLain
- Khe Sanh
- Coronado X
- Tet Offensive
- Hop Tac I
- Coronado XI
- Houston
- Patrick
- Tam Kỳ
- Truong Cong Dinh
- Lima Site 85
- Quyet Thang
- My Lai Massacre
- Walker
- Carentan
- Pegasus
- Cochise Green
- Toan Thang I
- Burlington Trail
- Scotland II
- Delaware
- Allen Brook
- May Offensive
- Jeb Stuart III
- Nevada Eagle
- Mameluke Thrust
- Toan Thang II
- Robin
- Binh An
- Thor
- Pocahontas Forest
- Quyet Chien
- Somerset Plain
- Phase III Offensive
- Champaign Grove
- Vinh Loc
- Thượng Đức
- Maui Peak
- Henderson Hill
- Sheridan Sabre
- Meade River
- Hat Dich
- Speedy Express
- Taylor Common
- Fayette Canyon
- DMZ Campaign (1969–1971)
- Bold Mariner
- Dewey Canyon
- Toan Thang III
- 2nd Tet
- Iron Mountain
- Massachusetts Striker
- Wayne Grey
- Purple Martin
- Ben Het
- Maine Crag
- Atlas Wedge
- Frederick Hill
- Geneva Park
- Montana Mauler
- Oklahoma Hills
- Washington Green
- Virginia Ridge
- Apache Snow
- Hamburger Hill
- Lamar Plain
- Pipestone Canyon
- Binh Ba
- Montgomery Rendezvous
- Utah Mesa
- Campbell Streamer
- Idaho Canyon
- Nantucket Beach
- Fulton Square
- LZ Kate
- Toan Thang IV
- Randolph Glen
- Green River
- Texas Star
- Cambodian campaign
- Pennsylvania Square
- Clinch Valley
- Elk Canyon
- Pickens Forest
- Wolfe Mountain
- Chicago Peak
- Firebase O'Reilly
- Chenla I
- Imperial Lake
- Jefferson Glenn
- Tailwind
- Son Tay Raid
- Cuu Long 44-02
- Toan Thang 1/71
- Lam Son 719
- Finney Hill
- Middlesex Peak
- Caroline Hill
- Long Khánh
- Chenla II
- Nui Le
1972
Post-Paris Peace Accords (1973–1974)
- War of the flags
- Cửa Việt
- Hồng Ngự
- Tong Le Chon
- Trung Nghia
- Ap Da Bien
- Quang Duc
- Tri Phap
- Svay Rieng
- Iron Triangle
- Duc Duc
- Thượng Đức
- Phú Lộc
- Phước Long
- Ban Me Thuot
- Hue–Da Nang
- Phan Rang
- Xuân Lộc
- Fall of Phnom Penh
- Fall of Saigon
- Mayaguez incident
- Farm Gate
- Chopper
- Ranch Hand
- Pierce Arrow
- Barrel Roll
- Pony Express
- Flaming Dart
- Iron Hand
- Rolling Thunder
- Steel Tiger
- Arc Light
- Combat Skyspot
- Tiger Hound
- Shed Light
- Thanh Hoa
- Bolo
- Popeye
- Yen Vien
- Niagara
- Igloo White
- Commando Hunt
- Giant Lance
- Menu
- Patio
- Freedom Deal
- Proud Deep Alpha
- Linebacker I
- Enhance Plus
- Linebacker II
- Homecoming
- Tan Son Nhut Air Base
- Babylift
- New Life
- Eagle Pull
- Frequent Wind
- Yankee & Dixie stations
- Gulf of Tonkin
- Market Time
- Vung Ro Bay
- Game Warden
- Double Eagle
- Stable Door
- PIRAZ
- Sea Dragon
- Deckhouse Five
- Bo De River, Nha Trang, Tha Cau River
- Sealords
- Đồng Hới
- Pocket Money
- Custom Tailor
- End Sweep
- Paracel Islands
- East Sea
- 1964
- 1965
- 1966
- 1967
- 1968
- 1969
- 1970
- 1971
- 1972
- 1973–74
- 1975
The First Battle of Saigon, fought during the Tet Offensive of the Vietnam War, was the coordinated attack by communist forces, including both the North Vietnamese Army and the Viet Cong (VC), against Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam.
Background
In late January 1968 the VC launched the Tet Offensive attacking U.S. and South Vietnamese positions across South Vietnam.
Saigon was the main focal point of the offensive, but a total takeover of the capital was not intended or feasible. They rather had six main targets in the city which 35 battalions of VC were to attack and capture: the ARVN Joint General Staff compound near Tan Son Nhat International Airport, the Independence Palace, the U.S. embassy, Tan Son Nhut Air Base, the Long Binh Naval Headquarters and the National Radio Station. Because it was Tết (the Vietnamese New Year), the sound of firecrackers exploding masked that of gunfire, giving an element of surprise to the Vietcong attacks.
Battle
The Vietcong launched 35 battalions at Saigon. Sapper Battalions and the local forces attacked the Presidential Palace, the National Radio Station, the U.S. Embassy, and other principal targets.
The VC 5th Division launched an attack on the military bases at Long Binh and Biên Hòa Air Base. The North Vietnamese 7th Division launched an attack on the U.S. 1st Infantry Division and the ARVN 5th Division at Lai Khê. The VC 9th Division attacked the U.S. 25th Infantry Division base at Củ Chi Base Camp.
Adams photograph
The fighting in Saigon produced one of the Vietnam War's most famous images, photographer Eddie Adams' image of the summary execution of a VC prisoner on February 1, 1968. Nguyễn Văn Lém was captured by South Vietnamese national police, who identified him as the captain of a VC assassination and revenge platoon, and accused him of murdering the families of police officers. He was brought before Brigadier General Nguyễn Ngọc Loan, the chief of the National Police, who briefly questioned him. Loan then drew his sidearm and shot the prisoner. Nguyễn's motives may have been personal; he had been told by a subordinate that the suspect had killed his six godchildren and a police major who was Loan's aide-de-camp and one of his closest friends, including the major's family as well.
Present at the shooting were Adams and an NBC television news crew. The photograph appeared on front pages around the world and won the Pulitzer Prize for Spot News Photography,[1] a World Press Photo award[2] as well as seven other awards. The NBC film was played on the Huntley-Brinkley Report and elsewhere, in some cases the silent film embellished with the sound effect of a gunshot. General Westmoreland later wrote, "The photograph and film shocked the world, an isolated incident of cruelty in a broadly cruel war, but a psychological blow against the South Vietnamese nonetheless".
Aftermath
By early February, the communist's high command realized that none of their military objectives were being met, and they halted any further attacks on fortified positions. Sporadic fighting continued in Saigon until March 8. Some sections of the city were left badly damaged by the combat and U.S. retaliatory air and artillery strikes in particular. The Chinese district of Cholon suffered especially, with perhaps hundreds of civilians killed in the American counterattacks.
As cited in the Spector book on page xvi, "From January to July 1968 the overall rate of men killed in action in Vietnam would reach an all time high and would exceed the rate for the Korean War and the Mediterranean and Pacific theaters during World War II. This was truly the bloodiest phase of the Vietnam War as well as the most neglected one."
The Vietcong attacked targets in and around Saigon with much success during the May Offensive from 5 to 30 May, 1968.
References
- ^ Winslow, Donald R. (April 19, 2011). "The Pulitzer Eddie Adams Didn't Want". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
- ^ "1968 Eddie Adams SN1". World Press Photo. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
Bibliography
- James R. Arnold (1990). The Tet Offensive 1968. Praeger Publishers. ISBN 0-275-98452-4.
- Ronald H. Spector (1993). After Tet. Free Press. ISBN 0-02-930380-X
- CBS news coverage (1968)
External links
- Saigon Target Zero: RVN Documentary on Battle of Saigon (1968)
10°46′01″N 106°40′01″E / 10.7669°N 106.6669°E / 10.7669; 106.6669