The First Battle of Saigon, fought during the
Tet Offensive
The Tet Offensive was a major escalation and one of the largest military campaigns of the Vietnam War. It was launched on January 30, 1968 by forces of the Viet Cong (VC) and North Vietnamese People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) against the forces o ...
of the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
, was the coordinated attack by communist forces, including both the
North Vietnam
North Vietnam, officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV; vi, Việt Nam Dân chủ Cộng hòa), was a socialist state supported by the Soviet Union (USSR) and the People's Republic of China (PRC) in Southeast Asia that existed f ...
ese Army and the ''
Viet Cong
,
, war = the Vietnam War
, image = FNL Flag.svg
, caption = The flag of the Viet Cong, adopted in 1960, is a variation on the flag of North Vietnam. Sometimes the lower stripe was green.
, active ...
'' (VC), against
Saigon
, population_density_km2 = 4,292
, population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2
, population_demonym = Saigonese
, blank_name = GRP (Nominal)
, blank_info = 2019
, blank1_name = – Total
, blank1_ ...
, the capital of
South Vietnam
South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam ( vi, Việt Nam Cộng hòa), was a state in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975, the period when the southern portion of Vietnam was a member of the Western Bloc during part of th ...
.
Background
In late January 1968 the VC launched the
Tet Offensive
The Tet Offensive was a major escalation and one of the largest military campaigns of the Vietnam War. It was launched on January 30, 1968 by forces of the Viet Cong (VC) and North Vietnamese People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) against the forces o ...
attacking U.S. and South Vietnamese positions across South Vietnam.
Saigon
, population_density_km2 = 4,292
, population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2
, population_demonym = Saigonese
, blank_name = GRP (Nominal)
, blank_info = 2019
, blank1_name = – Total
, blank1_ ...
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
The Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN; ; french: Armée de la république du Viêt Nam) composed the ground forces of the South Vietnamese military from its inception in 1955 to the Fall of Saigon in April 1975. It is estimated to have suffe ...
Joint General Staff compound near
Tan Son Nhat International Airport
Tân Sơn Nhất International Airport ( vi, Sân bay quốc tế Tân Sơn Nhất or Cảng hàng không quốc tế Tân Sơn Nhất) is the busiest airport in Vietnam with 32.5 million passengers in 2016 and 38.5 million passengers in 2018 ...
, the
Independence Palace
The Independence Palace ( vi, Dinh Độc Lập), also publicly known as the Reunification Convention Hall ( vi, Hội trường Thống Nhất), is a landmark in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly known as Saigon), Vietnam. It was designed by architec ...
, the
U.S. embassy
The United States has the second most Diplomatic mission, diplomatic missions of any country in the world List of diplomatic missions of China, after Mainland China, including 166 of the 193 member countries of the United Nations, as well as obse ...
,
Tan Son Nhut Air Base
Tan Son Nhut Air Base ( vi, Căn cứ không quân Tân Sơn Nhứt) (1955–1975) was a Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF) facility. It was located near the city of Saigon in southern Vietnam. The United States used it as a major base durin ...
, the Long Binh
Naval Headquarters
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It include ...
and the National Radio Station. Because it was ''
Tết
Tết (), short for Tết Nguyên Đán (Chữ Hán: 節元旦), Spring Festival, Lunar New Year, or Vietnamese Lunar New Year is one of the most important celebrations in Vietnamese culture. The colloquial term "Tết" is a shortened form of , ...
'' (the Vietnamese New Year), the sound of firecrackers exploding masked that of gunfire, giving an element of surprise to the ''Vietcong'' attacks.
Battle
![ARVN Rangers defend Saigon, Tet Offensive](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/ARVN_Rangers_defend_Saigon%2C_Tet_Offensive.jpg)
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
Bien Hoa Air Base (Vietnamese: ''Sân bay Biên Hòa'') is a Vietnam People's Air Force (VPAF) military airfield located in South-Central southern Vietnam about from Ho Chi Minh City, across the Dong Nai river in the northern ward of Tân Phon ...
. The North Vietnamese
7th Division launched an attack on the
U.S. 1st Infantry Division and the ARVN
5th Division at
Lai Khê
Lai Khê (Lai Khê hamlet, Lai Hưng commune, Bến Cát, Bình Dương Province) (also known as Lai Khê Base) was a former Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) and U.S. Army base, located along Highway 13 to the northwest of Saigon and abou ...
. The VC
9th Division attacked the
U.S. 25th Infantry Division base at
Củ Chi Base Camp
Củ Chi Base Camp (also known as Củ Chi Army Airfield) is a former U.S. Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) base in the Củ Chi District northwest of Saigon in southern Vietnam.
History
1965-70
Củ Chi Base Camp was establishe ...
.
Adams photograph
The fighting in Saigon produced one of the Vietnam War's most famous images, photographer
Eddie Adams' image of the
summary execution
A summary execution is an execution in which a person is accused of a crime and immediately killed without the benefit of a full and fair trial. Executions as the result of summary justice (such as a drumhead court-martial) are sometimes include ...
of a VC prisoner on February 1, 1968.
Nguyễn Văn Lém
Nguyễn () is the most common Vietnamese surname. Outside of Vietnam, the surname is commonly rendered without diacritics as Nguyen. Nguyên (元)is a different word and surname.
By some estimates 39 percent of Vietnamese people bear this s ...
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
Major General Nguyễn Ngọc Loan (; 11 December 193014 July 1998) was a South Vietnamese general and chief of the South Vietnamese National Police.
Loan gained international attention when he summarily executed handcuffed prisoner Nguyễn ...
, the chief of the
National Police National Police may refer to the national police forces of several countries:
*Afghanistan: Afghan National Police
*Haiti: Haitian National Police
*Colombia: National Police of Colombia
*Cuba: Cuban National Police
*East Timor: National Police of ...
, 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
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
news crew. The photograph appeared on front pages around the world and won the
Pulitzer Prize for Spot News Photography
The Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography is one of the American Pulitzer Prizes annually awarded for journalism. From 2000 it has used the "breaking news" name but it is considered a continuation of the Pulitzer Prize for Spot News Photogr ...
,
a
World Press Photo
World Press Photo Foundation is an independent, non-profit organization based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Founded in 1955, the organization is known for holding an annual press photography contest. Since 2011, World Press Photo has organized a ...
award
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
Phase Two of the Tet Offensive of 1968 (also known as the May Offensive, Little Tet, and Mini-Tet) was launched by the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) and Viet Cong (VC) against targets throughout South Vietnam, including Saigon from 29 April ...
from 5 to 30 May, 1968.
References
Bibliography
*
*
Ronald H. Spector
Ronald Harvey Spector (born January 17, 1943) is a military historian, who contributes to scholarly journals and also teaches history. He is currently a professor at the George Washington University.
Military career
He enlisted in the United S ...
(1993). ''After Tet.'' Free Press.
* CBS news coverage (1968)
External links
Saigon Target Zero: RVN Documentary on Battle of Saigon (1968)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saigon
Battle of Saigon
Saigon, First
Saigon, First
Saigon, First
Saigon
History of South Vietnam
Saigon 1968
Saigon 1968
January 1968 events in Asia
February 1968 events in Asia
March 1968 events in Asia
Battles and operations of the Vietnam War in 1968