Battle Of Khe Sanh Essay

X Corps consisted of the 1st Marine Division, Regimental Combat Team 31(RCT31), and the British 41 Royal Marine Commandos. X Corps positioned the 1st Marine Division along the western side of the Chosin Reservoir mostly aligned along the road between the Chosin Reservoir and Hungdam. The Bulk of 1St Marine Division was concentrated at Yudami-ni.[4] Assuming that only a light UN presence would be at the Chosin reservoir, the Chinese 9th Army was tasked to destroy the UN garrisons at Yudami-ni and Sinhung-ni, and then push towards Hagaru-r.[5] The 9th Army would then envelop and trap the main UN forces on the road between Hagaru-ri and Hungnam. The 9th Army initially committed six divisions for the battle, with most of the forces concentrated at Yudami-ni and Sinhung-ni.[6] The UN forces had an approximate strength of 30,000 during the course of the battle.[7] The Chinese 9th Army was supposed to be composed of 12 divisions with a nominal strength of

The Battle of Chipyong-ni was a decisive battle during the Korean War and the first major victory following the entry of the Chinese into the war. COL Freeman employed the following principles of mission command during the battle of Chipyong-ni: build cohesive teams through mutual trust, use of mission orders, exercise disciplined initiative, and accept prudent risk. He was an outstanding leader who knew the value of good communication with his unit. He led by example, and fostered a climate that allowed his subordinates to excel.

This paper will examine the British and American Southern Loyalist defeat in the Battle of Kings Mountain and discuss the assumptions the British made including loyalist support, logistic support, and terrain advantage.

In 1961 President Kennedy sent a group who’s mission was to report on conditions in the South and assess if the United States should continue to deploy troops to Vietnam -Brigham, 1. In 1962 there was a massive increase of United States troops in Vietnam –MacDonald, 626. The numbers grew so large that they almost tripled. This led for the South Vietnamese to be instructed by advisors, who were attachments in the field -MacDonald, 627. Army recruits in the Special Forces were brought in to train the tribesman in the highlands. They also assisted the South Vietnamese in some of the more remote regions of the country -MacDonald, 627. The Civilian Irregular Defense Groups accompanied the Special Forces advisors, and they were able to disrupt the flow of the North Vietnamese from the country of Laos into South Vietnam -MacDonald, 627. These men were in charge of most parts of the operation, in a country where leadership had never been encouraged -MacDonald, 628. The United States troops also had many problems directing the civilians because of the language barrier. At the same time the Special Force troops were frustrated in directing their tactics -MacDonald, 628.

(INTRODUCTION) In August 1964, Vietnamese DRV torpedo boats attacked two U.S. destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin. President London B. Johnson ordered the retaliatory bombing of military targets in North Vietnam. Shortly after the incident, U.S. congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, giving President Johnson war-making powers, and U.S. planes began regular bombing raids (Reference http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/vietnam-war-history ). In Vietnam, the US enjoyed virtual air supremacy. Nevertheless, Air Defense Artillery (ADA) units were able to distinguish themselves and prove their versatility by providing fire support to ground forces. ADA earned more than 450 medals for valor, receiving more than 1000 Purple Hearts, and one Congressional Medal of Honor awarded to SGT Mitchell Stout (Reference http://www.usc.edu/dept-00/dept/armyrotc/branches/air_defense.html ). Despite there being no confirmed aerial engagements, Air Defense Artillery played a vital role in the Vietnam War, and were at times crucial to battle success, proving their versatility, adaptability, flexibility.

The Battle of Wanat is widely recognized as one of the most organized attacks against U.S forces in the Afghanistan war. This battle produced the most casualties on the American side since the start of the war in 2001. Nine United States soldiers were killed and 27 were wounded; however, between 21- 51 Taliban forces were claimed to have been killed. The Taliban forces knew where to attack the U.S. forces base and focus most of their fire power on the base weak spots. As for the United States, the biggest target was their most casualty producing weapons: a U.S. mortar tube and 50 Cal machine guns. The American forces also put the patrol base in an area that was hard to defend with many blind spots. The Taliban forces outnumbered U.S. forces vastly, attacking with about 300-400 Taliban soldiers to only 45

Throughout American history, a number of battles come to hold iconic positions in the shaping of this great nation: Lexington and Concord, the Battle of Bunker Hill, the Alamo, Gettysburg, Belleau Wood, Pearl Harbor, Guadalcanal, Iwo Jima and the Battle of the Bulge, just to name a few. When the Spanish-American War of is thought of, the Battle of San Juan Hill undoubtedly comes to mind. Americans think of the great sacrifices throughout the fight. They think of Teddy Roosevelt charging up San Juan hill, leading his Rough Riders to a miraculous victory. They remember this all-American combination of valiant cowboys, Ivy Leaguers, Pawnee Scouts, polo players and New York City policemen

The Battle of Takur Ghar, or Roberts Ridge, as it’s more affectionately called by members of the US military, occurred on March 3-4th 2002. Takur Ghar translates from Pashto as “Tall Mountain”. The battle became the most memorable part of a much larger operation called Anaconda.

This paper will examine how a unwavering adversary and difficult terrain combined to negate the effects of American technology. The Battle of Hamburger Hill was a battle of the Vietnam War which was fought by the United States and South Vietnam against North Vietnamese Forces from May 10–20, 1969. The battle took place on Ap Bia Mountain in the rugged, jungle-shrouded mountains along the Laotian border of South Vietnam. Ap Bia Mountain anchors the northwest corner of South Viet Nam's A Shau Valley. The valley has been a major infiltration route for Communist Forces from the Ho Chi Minh Trail in Laos to the coastal cities of Northern I Corps since1966. Ap Bia Mountain dominates the northern valley, towering some 937 meters. Official

The Battle of Khe Sanh was located in northwest South Vietnam near the Laotian border. Marines built a garrison next to the Army camp in 1966. In the fall of 1967, the

The Battle of the Ia Drang Valley was the first major battle of the Vietnam War that engaged regular forces of the United States Army ushering in a new era of combat. Air Assault of Artillery and Close Air Support used together for the first time in Vietnam allowed an agile small force to be successful against a much larger enemy contingency. Operation Silver Bayonet pitted the Third Brigade of the First Cavalry Division: 1st Battalion and 2nd Battalion of the 7th Cavalry Regiment, and the 2nd Battalion of the 5th Cavalry Regiment, against a much larger Vietnamese force to include the People’s Army of Vietnam (PAVN) and the Viet Cong guerilla fighters. The fighting lasted from 14 November to 18 November 1965.

The Battle of Ia Drang was the first major battle between regulars of the United States Army and regulars of the People 's Army of Vietnam of North Vietnam during the Vietnam Conflict. The two-part battle took place between November 14 and November 18, 1965, at two landing zones West of Plei Me in the Central Highlands of South Vietnam, precisely at the footstep of Chu Pong massif, 25 kilometers west of Plei Me as part of the U.S. airmobile offensive codenamed Operation Silver Bayonet I (November 9–18, 1965). The battle derives its name from the Drang River which runs through the valley west of Plei Me, where the engagement took place (Ia means "river" in the local Montagnard language). Representing the American forces were elements of the 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division: the 1/7 AC Battalion, 2/7 AC Battalion and the 2/5 AC Battalion of the 2nd Air Cavalry Brigade of the United States Army, facing elements of the B3 Front of the PAVN (including the 304th Division) and Viet Cong). The battle involved close air support by U.S. Army helicopter gunships and U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy tactical jet aircraft, and a bombing attack by USAF B-52s. The initial North Vietnamese assault against the landing 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry at LZ X-Ray was repulsed after two days and nights of heavy fighting on November 14–16, with the

Operation Niagara resupplied the marines as Khe Sanh via aerial means. Carrying out the operation wasn’t easy; the aircrafts of the operation fought through bad weather and heavy defenses by the NVA, so heavy that they “could no longer land on the airstrip” and had to “discharge their cargo in low-flying parachute drops” (Caputo). Though the operation had good intentions, a part of it showed how badly the morale of most US leaders became—on January 23, one of the resupply planes unloaded four large crates addressed to ‘Fifth Graves Registration Team, Khe Sanh’ and inside which were 4,000 pounds of body bags.

As the Vietnam War progressed, People’s Army of Vietnam (PAVN) generals led by General Giap reassessed and adapted their strategy to fit the circumstances. This enabled the VC revolutionaries, supported by North Vietnamese regular forces, to achieve success without ever defeating US forces on the battlefield. For instance, the Tet Offensive in 1968 represented an operational failure in Stage Three of the Dau Tranh strategy but was considered a success for the North since it weakened American public support for the war. As a result the defeat on the battlefield, Giap adapted Dau Tranh to avoid concentration of forces and the effects of superior US firepower by transitioning back to Stage Two. The return to guerilla operations ensured sustained US casualties and the continued erosion of public support between 1968 and 1971. At the same time, main force units that were decimated during Tet could withdrawal and reconstitute. (Pike, 229)

Krulak's telling of the Corps' history is among the sections which retains its relevance. At all points, Krulak's historical reporting is clear, straightforward and in the cases of World War II, Korea and Vietnam, strengthened by the author's firsthand and experience-driven accounts. Certainly, Krulak's experience is among the text's most important virtues. Indeed, this also informs the sense of protectiveness and resentment that sometimes emerges in the text as a product of what Krulak characterizes as a sort of relegation and isolation within the broader American defense scheme. In a sequence