What was the fighting like in Vietnam?

What was the fighting like in Vietnam?

At times, Vietnam resembled “a hated, dreary struggle” that dragged on and on with no end in sight. Since large-scale warfare was rare, soldiers could go for weeks without encountering enemy forces, but far from being a respite, the quiet only heightened the tension.

What unit saw the most combat in Vietnam?

Activated in 1915, as the 173rd Infantry Brigade, the unit saw service in World War II but is best known for its actions during the Vietnam War.

How long did combat last in Vietnam?

The war, considered a Cold War-era proxy war by some, lasted almost 20 years, with direct U.S. involvement ending in 1973, and included the Laotian Civil War and the Cambodian Civil War, which ended with all three countries becoming communist states in 1975.

How brutal was the Vietnam War?

More than two decades of violent conflict had inflicted a devastating toll on Vietnam’s population: After years of warfare, an estimated 2 million Vietnamese were killed, while 3 million were wounded and another 12 million became refugees.

Why did we fight in the Vietnam War?

The U.S. entered the Vietnam War in an attempt to prevent the spread of communism, but foreign policy, economic interests, national fears, and geopolitical strategies also played major roles. Learn why a country that had been barely known to most Americans came to define an era.

Why did soldiers fight in Vietnam?

At the heart of the conflict was the desire of North Vietnam, which had defeated the French colonial administration of Vietnam in 1954, to unify the entire country under a single communist regime modeled after those of the Soviet Union and China.

What percentage of Vietnam veterans actually saw combat?

Of the 2.6 million, between 1-1.6 million (40-60%) either fought in combat, provided close support or were at least fairly regularly exposed to enemy attack. 7,484 women (6,250 or 83.5% were nurses) served in Vietnam.

How many tunnel rats were killed in Vietnam?

That both sets of men had to endure this life is appalling. There were never more than 100 Tunnel Rats in country at any one time and around 700 in total. There were 36 killed and 200 wounded.

Did any American soldiers stay in Vietnam after the war?

It’s estimated that tens of thousands of veterans have returned to Vietnam since the 1990s, mostly for short visits to the places where they once served. Decades after the fall of Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City) many former soldiers still wonder why they were fighting.

Did they cut off ears in Vietnam?

As the ground troops swept through, in many cases they gunned down men, women and children, sometimes mutilating bodies — cutting off ears to wear on necklaces. They threw hand grenades into dugout shelters, often killing entire families.

Why the US lost the Vietnam War?

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.

Why did the US fail in Vietnam?

Failures for the USA Failure of Operation Rolling Thunder: The bombing campaign failed because the bombs often fell into empty jungle, missing their Vietcong targets. Lack of support back home: As the war dragged on more and more Americans began to oppose the war in Vietnam.

Who were the enemies of the Vietnam War?

Vietnam War. The Vietnam War pitted communist North Vietnam and the Viet Cong against South Vietnam and the United States.

What was the conflict in Vietnam in the 1950s?

Vietnam War (1954–75), conflict that pitted the communist government of North Vietnam and its allies in South Vietnam, the Viet Cong, against South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States. It was part of a larger regional conflict as well as a manifestation of the Cold War.

What were the two sides in the Vietnam War?

The Vietnam War pitted communist North Vietnam and the Viet Cong against South Vietnam and the United States.

When did the Viet Cong start fighting in the Vietnam War?

By 1957, the Viet Cong and other opponents of Diem’s repressive regime began fighting back with attacks on government officials and other targets, and by 1959 they had begun engaging the South Vietnamese army in firefights.