America “lost” South Vietnam because it was an artificial construct created in the wake of the French loss of Indochina. Because there never was an “organic” nation of South Vietnam, when the U.S. discontinued to invest military assets into that construct, it eventually ceased to exist.
As many as 2 million civilians on both sides and some 1.1 million North Vietnamese and Viet Cong fighters. The U.S. military has estimated that between 200,000 and 250,000 South Vietnamese soldiers died in the war.
The deadliest year of the Vietnam War was 1968. The deadliest day –- shown graphically on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial –- was Jan. 31, when 246 U.S. personnel were killed.
America never lost any major battles in Vietnam, yet the North Vietnamese lost many, including the 1968 Tet Offensive. America never lost or gave up ground, yet many NVA/VC strongholds were decimated. America lost approximately 59,000 dead during the Vietnam War, yet the NVA/VC lost 924,048.
So Americans decided not to take the war to North Vietnam on ground because of fears of Chinese intervention. Whether Peking's threats were genuine or not, American presidents prudently refused to risk such high odds. North Vietnam remained inviolable to ground attack.
As reports from the field became increasingly accessible to citizens, public opinion began to turn against U.S. involvement, though many Americans continued to support it. Others felt betrayed by their government for not being truthful about the war. This led to an increase in public pressure to end the war.
1968 was a turning point in U.S. history, a year of triumphs and tragedies, social and political upheavals, that forever changed our country. In the air, America reached new heights with NASA's Apollo 8 orbiting the moon and Boeing's 747 jumbo jet's first flight.
By mid-February, or two weeks into the offensive, Washington was estimating that enemy casualties had risen to almost 39,000, including 33,249 killed. Allied casualties were placed at 3,470 dead, one-third of them Americans, and 12,062 wounded, almost half of them Americans.
At the end of the Tet Offensive, both sides had endured losses, and both sides claimed victory. The U.S. and South Vietnamese military response almost completely eliminated the NLF forces and regained all of the lost territory.
President Nixon believed his Vietnamization strategy, which involved building up South Vietnam's armed forces and withdrawing U.S. troops, would prepare the South Vietnamese to act in their own defense against a North Vietnamese takeover and allow the United States to leave Vietnam with its honor intact.
The General Offensive, General Uprising would then commence with simultaneous actions on major allied bases and most urban areas, and with particular emphasis on the cities of Saigon and Hu?. Concurrently, a substantial threat would have to be made against the U.S. Khe Sanh Combat Base.
The Tet Offensive, a surprise attack launched by North Vietnam in the pre-dawn hours of Jan. 31, 1968, was a major turning point in the war. It shocked the American public into reality about the escalating conflict and led to President Johnson's decision not to seek re-election.
Even though the Tet Offensive ended up being a military loss for the Vietcong and North Vietnamese, it was a strategic win. It substantially decreased American public support for the war. Seeing this, President Johnson announced that he would not run for another term in office.
The most dangerous creatures in Vietnam
- The Vietnamese Giant Centipede. Also known as the red-headed centipede, this fast-moving, 100-legged menace feeds on everything from bats to wolf spiders.
- Bats. Come dusk, every street lamp in the country teems with bats.
- Gaur.
- Mosquitoes.
China had become communist in 1949 and communists were in control of North Vietnam. The USA was afraid that communism would spread to South Vietnam and then the rest of Asia. It decided to send money, supplies and military advisers to help the South Vietnamese Government.
By every traditional measure, the United States “won” the Vietnam War. U.S. troops moved with impunity and held the field of battle after almost every engagement. Casualty rates were extremely lopsided in America's favor. Yet, by 1976, South Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia were communist.
All organs of Vietnam's government are controlled by the Communist Party.
For this reason, in Vietnam today it is known as the American War. It was a direct result of the First Indochina War (1946–1954) between France, which claimed Vietnam as a colony, and the communist forces then known as Viet Minh. It ended with communist victory in April 1975.
Which Countries Were Involved in the Vietnam War?
- France.
- United States.
- China.
- Soviet Union.
- Laos.
- Cambodia.
- South Korea and Other U.S. Allies.
- Vietnam.
