TET Offensive conflict
In 1968, a surprise attack occurred by the Vietcong and the North Vietnamese army on numerous cities. The simultaneous strikes, while ending in military defeat for the Communist, stunned the American public. Many people with moderate views began to turn against the war.
On January 30th, it was the Vietnamese equivalent of New Year’s Eve, the beginning of the lunar New Year festivities known in Vietnam as Tet. In 1968, all throughout that day, villages were taking advantage of a week-long truce proclaimed for Tet that streamed into cities across South Vietnam to celebrate their new year. At the same time, many funerals were being held for war victims. Accompanying the funerals were the traditional firecrackers, flutes, and coffins.
The coffins, however, contained weapons, and many of the villagers were Vietcong agents. That night the Vietcong launched an overwhelming attack on over 100 towns and cities in South Vietnam, as well as 12 U.S. air bases. The fighting was especially strong in Salgon and the former capitol of Hue. The Vietcong even attacked the U.S. embassy in Salgon, killing five Americans. The Tet offensive continued for about a month before the U.S. and South Vietnamese forces regained control of the cities.
General Westmoreland declared the attacks an overwhelming defeat for the Vietcong, whose “well-laid plains went afoul.” From a military standpoint, Westmoreland was correct. The Vietcong lost about 32,000 soldiers during the month long battle, while the American and ARVN forces lost little more than 3,000.
The Tet offensive ratted and had shaken up the American public, which had been said over and over and had come to believe that the enemy was close to defeat. Now the Pentagon’s continued reports of favorable body counts or massive attacks by an enemy that seemed to be everywhere.
In a matter of weeks, the Tet offensive changed millions of minds about the war. Despite the years of antiwar protest, a poll taken just before Tet showed that only 28 percent of Americans called themselves doves, while 56 percent claimed to be hawks. After Tet, both sides tallied 40 percent. The mainstream media, which had reported the war in a generally balanced way, now openly criticized the war. One of the nation’s most respected journalists, Walter Cronkite, told his viewers that it now seemed “more certain than ever that the bloody experience of Vietnam is to end in a stalemate.”
In 1968, a surprise attack occurred by the Vietcong and the North Vietnamese army on numerous cities. The simultaneous strikes, while ending in military defeat for the Communist, stunned the American public. Many people with moderate views began to turn against the war.
On January 30th, it was the Vietnamese equivalent of New Year’s Eve, the beginning of the lunar New Year festivities known in Vietnam as Tet. In 1968, all throughout that day, villages were taking advantage of a week-long truce proclaimed for Tet that streamed into cities across South Vietnam to celebrate their new year. At the same time, many funerals were being held for war victims. Accompanying the funerals were the traditional firecrackers, flutes, and coffins.
The coffins, however, contained weapons, and many of the villagers were Vietcong agents. That night the Vietcong launched an overwhelming attack on over 100 towns and cities in South Vietnam, as well as 12 U.S. air bases. The fighting was especially strong in Salgon and the former capitol of Hue. The Vietcong even attacked the U.S. embassy in Salgon, killing five Americans. The Tet offensive continued for about a month before the U.S. and South Vietnamese forces regained control of the cities.
General Westmoreland declared the attacks an overwhelming defeat for the Vietcong, whose “well-laid plains went afoul.” From a military standpoint, Westmoreland was correct. The Vietcong lost about 32,000 soldiers during the month long battle, while the American and ARVN forces lost little more than 3,000.
The Tet offensive ratted and had shaken up the American public, which had been said over and over and had come to believe that the enemy was close to defeat. Now the Pentagon’s continued reports of favorable body counts or massive attacks by an enemy that seemed to be everywhere.
In a matter of weeks, the Tet offensive changed millions of minds about the war. Despite the years of antiwar protest, a poll taken just before Tet showed that only 28 percent of Americans called themselves doves, while 56 percent claimed to be hawks. After Tet, both sides tallied 40 percent. The mainstream media, which had reported the war in a generally balanced way, now openly criticized the war. One of the nation’s most respected journalists, Walter Cronkite, told his viewers that it now seemed “more certain than ever that the bloody experience of Vietnam is to end in a stalemate.”