Vietnam War

The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from November 1st, 1955 to the Fall of Saigon on April 30th, 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of South Vietnam, supported by the United States and other anti-communist nations. The Viet Cong, a lightly armed South Vietnamese communist-controlled common front, largely fought a guerrilla war against anti-communist forces in the region. The Vietnam People's Army engaged in a more conventional war, at times committing large units into battle. U.S. and South Vietnamese forces relied on air superiority and overwhelming firepower to conduct search and destroy operations, involving ground forces, artillery and airstrikes.

Background
The U.S. government viewed involvement in the war as a way to prevent a communist takeover of South Vietnam as part of their wider strategy of containment. The North Vietnamese government viewed the war as a colonial war, fought initially against France, backed by the U.S., and later against South Vietnam, which it regarded as a U.S. puppet state. U.S. military advisors arrived beginning in 1950. U.S. involvement escalated in the early 1960s, with U.S. troop levels tripling in 1961 and tripling again in 1962. U.S. combat units were deployed beginning in 1965. Operations spanned borders, with Laos and Cambodia heavily bombed. Involvement peaked in 1968 at the time of the Tet Offensive. After this, U.S. ground forces were withdrawn as part of a policy called Vietnamization. Despite the Paris Peace Accords, signed by all parties in January 1973, fighting continued.

Escalation of the war
February 7th, 1965

After attacks on U.S. bases, President Lyndon B. Johnson orders airstrikes against barracks near Đồng Hới. Operation Flaming Dart I and Flaming Dart II were meant as a message to the North to cease hostilities in the South. In February of 1965, the U.S. Airforce and the Vietnam Air Force dropped massive amounts of bombs and on the first day alone, dropped 25 tons in 30 minutes.

The Battle of Ia Drang
November 14th – 18th, 1965

The Battle of Ia Drang Valley was the first true battle of the Vietnam War. Until this point in time, altercations and hostilities were launched in secrecy from either side with the enemy having little chance for defense.

Landing Zone X-Ray
November 14th, 1965 The 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment would land at Landing Zone X-Ray and engage the North Vietnamese Army 66th Regiment, the 1/7 Battalion would eventually take and secure LZ X-Ray on the 16th of November, the third day of the battle.

Landing Zone Albany
November 17th, 1965 The remaining battalions abandoned LZ X-Ray on the 17th of November and began a tactical march to new landing zones, 2nd/5th under Lt. Col. Bob Tully to LZ Columbus about 4 km to the northeast, and 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment under Lt. Col. Robert McDade to Landing Zone Albany about 4 km to the north-northeast, close to the Ia Drang.

Operation Game Warden
December 18, 1965

Operation Game Warden and other operations like it were a part of early attempts by the United States to help the South Vietnamese combat the movement of supplies along the Mekong Delta. The operation was undertaken by elements of the United States Navy Riverine Patrol Force, Task Force 116.

Battle of Bong Son
January 28th - February 12th, 1966

The Battle of Bong Son, also known as Operation Irving was a combined operation meant to locate and eradicate Viet Cong pockets in the villages of the south. Elements of the 1st Cavalry Division, including the 5th Cavalry Regiment would take part in the battle, going up against the 2nd Viet Cong Regiment.

Operation Hastings
July 15th – August 3rd, 1966

Operation Hastings was the largest combined operation in the war to date. Elements of the United States Marine Corps 5th Marine Regiment, the South Vietnamese, and the Republic of Vietnam participated in one of the first "Search and Destroy" missions of the war.

Operation Cedar Falls
January 8th – 26th, 1967

Operation Cedar Falls was a massive operation by the United States to eliminate a Viet Cong tunnel network north of Saigon known as the 'Iron Triangle', an area bordered by Chu Chi, Ben Suc and Ben Cat. Due to it's proximity to Saigon, many U.S combat units were called in to clear them out, one of them being the United States Marine Corps 1st Combat Engineer Battalion.

Defense of Cồn Tiên
March 19th, 1967 - February 28th, 1968

While defending Con Thien, suffering from months of constant shelling and probing attacks from hastily constructed NVA bases just north of the Demilitarized Zone, the 26th Marine Regiment and other Marine Corps units are ready to mount a quick strike to destroy the offending artillery positions and raze the surrounding bases. The Marines would go up against the North Vietnamese Army 325th C Division.

The Tet Offensive
January 30th - August 30th, 1968

The Tet Offensive was a massive, multi-pronged assault involved NVA units and Vietn Cong guerilla fighters attacking targets throughout South Vietnam. Major cities such as Hue and Saigon were hit hard by the Viet Cong, catching the American defenders totally off guard.

The First Battle of Saigon
January 31, 1968 Although Saigon was the focal point of the offensive, the communists did not seek a total takeover of the city.Rather, they had six primary targets to strike in The First Battle of Saigon : the headquarters of the ARVN General Staff at Tan Son Nhut Air Base, the Independence Palace, the US Embassy, Saigon, the Long Binh Naval Headquarters, and the National Radio Station. The attacks were undertaken by elements of the local Viet Cong C-10 Sapper Battalion. Many ARVN and American units fought back the Viet Cong, one of the units being the 101st Airborne Division, who defended a bridge leading into Saigon.

The Battle of Quảng Trị
January 30th, 1968

The city of Quảng Trịhad the misfortune of being positioned just south of the all important Demilitarized Zone. The "DMZ" as it was known was a barrier between the north and south where no military action was to take place. However, this was seldom the case. With the weather working against them, the North attacked Quảng Trị in the attempt to control the DMZ. The 1st ARVN Division attempts to defend the city from the 812th North Vietnamese Army Regiment in the battle.

The Battle of Huế
January 31st – March 3rd, 1968

The Battle of Huế during 1968, was one of the bloodiest and longest battles of the Vietnam War. The Army of the Republic of Vietnam and three understrength U.S. Marine Corps battalions attacked and defeated more than 10,000 entrenched NVA and Viet Cong guerrilla forces.

Huế is taken by the North
The city of Huế was one of the North's targets on the Tet Offensive. The 1st ARVN Division stationed in the city, due to the South Vietnamese viewing it as poor public relations to station U.S forces in the ancient city, had very little U.S support. The North believed that without the U.S forces supporting them, the ARVN would be weak.

Reclaiming Huế
The South did everything they could to repel the attacks of Tet. Despite the earlier lost of Hue, the ARVN were determined to reclaim Hue, ARVN reinforcements had arrived, one of the reinforcing units being the 3rd Regiment of the ARVN Rangers.

Battle of Khe Sanh
21 January 1968 – 8 April 1968 (US claim)

21 January 1968 – 9 July 1968 (North Vietnamese claim)

-To Be Completed

