The Tet Offensive: A Concise History / Edition 1

by James Willbanks

Overview

In the Tet Offensive of 1968, Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces launched a massive countrywide attack on South Vietnam. Though the Communists failed to achieve their tactical and operational objectives, James Willbanks claims Hanoi won a strategic victory. The offensive proved that America's progress was grossly overstated and caused many Americans and key presidential advisors to question the wisdom of prolonging combat.

Willbanks also maintains that the Communists laid siege to a Marine combat base two weeks prior to the Tet Offensive-known as the Battle of Khe Sanh—to distract the United States. It is his belief that these two events are intimately linked, and in his concise and compelling history, he presents an engaging portrait of the conflicts and singles out key problems of interpretation.

Willbanks divides his study into six sections, beginning with a historical overview of the events leading up to the offensive, the attack itself, and the consequent battles of Saigon, Hue, and Khe Sahn. He continues with a critical assessment of the main themes and issues surrounding the offensive, and concludes with excerpts from American and Vietnamese documents, maps and chronologies, an annotated list of resources, and a short encyclopedia of key people, places, and events.

An experienced military historian and scholar of the Vietnam War, Willbanks has written a unique critical reference and guide that enlarges the debate surrounding this important turning point in America's longest war.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780231128407
Publisher:	Columbia University Press
Publication date:	11/14/2006
Edition description:	ANN
Pages:	272
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

James H. Willbanks is director, Department of Military History, U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He is a retired Lieutenant Colonel with twenty-three years service as an Infantry officer in various assignments, including a tour as an advisor in Vietnam. He is the author of two books on the Vietnam War, including Abandoning Vietnam (University Press of Kansas) and The Battle of An Loc (Indiana University Press), and the editor of a collection of essays entitled The Vietnam War (Ashgate Publishing Limited).

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
Introduction
Maps
AbbreviationsPart I
Historical OverviewChapter 1. PreludeAmerican Public Opinion
Public Relations and Westmoreland's Optimism
Troop Disposition
The Communist Decision to Conduct the Offensive
The Plan
Preparing for the OffensiveChapter 2. Border Battles, Hill Fights, and Khe SanhKhe Sanh
The Hill Fights
Operation Niagara
The Siege of Khe Sanh BeginsChapter 3. The Tet OffensiveThe Offensive Begins
The Battle for Saigon
The Battle at the U.S. Embasssy
Attacks Around the City
The Battle of Cholon
TEt CountrywideChapter 4. The Battle for HueThe Battle Begins
The Marines Respond
Fighting in the New City
The Fight for the CitadelChapter 5. The Siege of Khe SanhThe Fall of Lang Vei
Resupplying the Marines
Tactical Air Support
A New Attack
Lifting the SiegeChapter 6. The Impact of the Tet OffensivePolitical Fallout
The Request for Additional Troops
The New Hampshire Primary
The Presidential Election of 1968Chapter 7. Assessing the Tet OffensivePart II
Issues and InterpretationsChapter 8. Motivations and Objectives of the Tet OffensiveChapter 9. Military Intelligence and the Surprise at TetChapter 10. What Happened at Hue? Chapter 11. Why Khe Sanh? Chapter 12. Tet and the MediaChapter 13. Tet and the American Military StrategyNotesPart III
Chronology, 1967-68Part IV
The Tet Offensive A to ZPart V
DocumentsPresident Johnson's "San Antonio Formula" Speech of September 29, 1967Directive on Forthcoming Offensive and Uprisings, Priovincial Party Standing Committee, 1 November 1967Capabilities of the Vietnamese Communists for Fighting in South Vietnam, November 13, 1967 (Extract)Address by Commander of U.S. Forces in Vietnam, General William C. Westmoreland, November 21, 1967 (Extract)"Saigon Under Fire," CBS News Special Report, January 31, 1968Memorandum from Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Earle G. Wheeler for the President, February 12, 1968 (Extract)Walter Cronkite's "We are Mired in Stalemate" CBS News Broadcast, February 27, 1968Report of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Earle G. Wheeler on the Situation in Vietnam and MACV Force Requirements, February 27. 1968 (Extract)Summary of Notes from March 26, 1968, Meeting Between President Lyndon Johnson and the Wise MenPresident Johnson's Address to the Nation Announcing His Decision Not to Seek Reelection, March 31, 1968Part VI
ResourcesGeneral WorksEncyclopedias, Bibliographies, Dictionaries, Guides, and Atlases
General Histories, Anthologies
Biographies
Memoirs
Vietnamese Perspectives
Oral Histories
Document CollectionsLyndon Johnson and the WarThe Tet OffensiveThe Battle of HueThe Siege of Khe SanhThe Hill Fights and Border BattlesPresident Lyndon Johnson and the MediaMilitary Intelligence and TetU.S. Strategy in VietnamCombat After-action Reports and Command HistoriesMicrofilm/MicroficheDocumentary FilmsElectronic ResourcesWeb Sites
CD-ROMsArchives and LibrariesIndex

What People are Saying About This

Spencer C. Tucker

The 1968 Tet Offensive was easily the most important single event of the long Vietnam War, and recognized Vietnam War historian James Willbanks has written the best short analysis of it. His concise study deals effectively with the communist planning for the offensive and the battles themselves, as well as the myths surrounding the offensive and its political and military consequences. Those unfamiliar with the subject will find especially helpful the author's list of abbreviations, maps, chronology, glossary of terms, documents section, and annotated bibliography. This is a first-rate study.

James R. Reckner

James Willbanks provides a virtual vade mecum of one of the most complex and critical events of a long and complex war. His study provides an excellent historical overview, concisely summarizing the principal arguments of Tet-related issues, offering a clear chronology, and providing key documents relating to the Tet Offensive. This book will be essential reading for all serious students of the Tet Offensive and of the Vietnam War in general.

Editorial Reviews

The Tet Offensive will be of great value to military professionals, historians, and Vietnam veterans.

Col. Gordon W. Keiser

[A] well-written, and helpful reference... The Tet Offensive is enjoyable reading and an important new addition.

Military Review - MAJ John M. Hawkins

Without a doubt, this work will become the initial resource that student and historians alike will pull off the shelf to comprehend this seminal military event… Highly recommended.

Choice

Thorough... An excellent work worthy of inclusion in collections of studies on the Vietnam War.

The Journal of Military History - Larry K. Burke

A careful and judicious evaluation... Students especially will find this invaluable.

Foreign Affairs - Lawrence D. Freedman