He was told he could have 19 new Dodge 1.5-ton ambulances, each with crew of driver and litter-bearer trained in first aid. Leclerc was pleased. Then he learned the crews were all women. He would take the ambulances but no women.

Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque.

Becoming the Rochambelles

Florence Conrad was the 50-year-old head of the ambulance group Rochambeau, named after French Count Rochambeau, hero of the American Revolution.

She said to tell Leclerc he gets the ambulances with the women or he doesn’t get them at all. Leclerc figured they wouldn’t last under stress and he could replace them with men. “All right,” he snapped.

In 1940 Conrad was a wealthy, twice-widowed American living in Paris when the Germans invaded France. She had been delivering blankets to troops and helping the wounded, and it was past time to try to escape.

She heard that the Gestapo was searching for her. It took all her courage to leave her beloved France, but in a few weeks she made it to New York.

There she met Frenchwoman Suzanne Torrès, who later was tagged with the name Toto, probably because she was small, feisty and courageous. Conrad had come up with the idea of buying ambulances and recruiting women for the crews.

Persistent as Conrad was, she got the ambulances shipped to Casablanca. Then she took Torrès shopping for uniforms. To a uniform supply store? Not for Conrad.

At Saks Fifth Avenue and Brooks Brothers she had dress uniforms made. Back in Conrad’s apartment they gave themselves ranks. Conrad would be a major and Toto a lieutenant. They sewed rank stripes on the uniforms.

Ultimately, they got 13 Frenchwomen volunteers, so at an army post Conrad purchased GI-issue fatigue uniforms, enough for a full crew. The women then boarded a ship which joined a convoy headed for North Africa, and after a hair-raising journey avoiding German submarines they docked in Casablanca.

In North Africa they soon found a dozen other volunteers and kept adding to them one by one–all French except for one Austrian and a Romanian–until they got to 38.

Then it was training time which included Conrad and Toto – driving, tearing down engines and putting them back together, dismounting and mounting heavy tires, first aid and much more. Somehow they acquired the name Rochambelles.

The insignia of the Rochambelles.

The Rochambelles in World War Two

Anticipation mounted as the division went through battle drills. The women, along with 18,000 men, were pumped up, ready to go.

When it was time for them to board ship they were stopped and told crisply, “No women allowed!” The naval officer stood by the rules until Leclerc intervened, saying,

“They’re not women, they’re ambulance drivers!”

They boarded.

After another fearful trip avoiding marauding submarines, they landed in England amid masses of invasion forces—other French, British, American, Canadian, Polish.

Because of age, during the battles in France and Germany, Conrad asked Toto to take command. For those battle experiences, read Ellen Hampton’s well-researched and written book, Women of Valor, or Suzanne Torrès  first-hand account: Quand j’étais Rochambelle.

The Rochambelles (51 total, accounting for replacements) performed heroically at the cost of one killed, one missing in action, and others wounded, one of them maimed for life.

The Rochambelles in Vietnam

Being too young, I took no part in in that war. I did, however, command a large armoured cavalry task force in the Vietnam War. After the war, researching, I found the performance of the Rochambelles in Vietnam to have been, frankly, astonishing.

The story was contained in part in several French books, booklets, and other sources. The most compelling story is told by—of course–Toto–who once more was the commander of a somewhat smaller but no less impressive group of Rochambelles.

The Japanese unconditionally surrendered on 15 August 1945. De Gaulle appointed Leclerc as commander of the French Expeditionary Corps with mission to enter Indochina and reestablish colonialism.

The Vietnamese were having none of that. They expected full independence and would make any sacrifices and fight for as long as it took to get it.

French Marine commandos wade ashore off the Annam coast during the First Indochina War.

Leclerc had naturally turned to his former command to supply an advance fighting force. He appeared in front of assembled veterans and asked them to raise their hands, all who wanted to go with him.

Hands shot up, among them that of Lieutenant Colonel Jacques Massu. He said, “The idea of leaving such a leader never occurred to me.”

Massu had been one of Leclerc’s finest battalion commanders. Now he commanded a much larger group of 2,200 men. A medical evacuation unit was included, the famous Rochambelles. Among the women, Toto and eight others were veterans of Leclerc’s division in World War Two.

Here are two examples of Rochambelles’ performance:

French troops in Vietnam seeking cover in trenches.

Saviours from Saigon

The first all-French military action was in late October 1945 south of Saigon. Knowing that the French would be coming, the Vietnamese had made deep cuts in the road.

The Vietnamese could use the road on their bicycles or oxcarts simply by taking their time and winding around each cut, staying on the undisturbed surface that remained. Jeeps sometimes could also make the passage.

An ambulance team had been requested to evacuate wounded in the Mekong Delta. The ambulance crew of two young women had set out with a half-track for security, but en route the half-track had a mechanical breakdown.

Knowing how urgent was the need, the women charged ahead alone in their ambulance. They were stopped by a cut in the road and well knew that the rebels ambushed these positions.

They got out of their ambulance and–hearts pounding–(“never mind, it will pass,” one thought) looked around. Luckily, the position was unoccupied and they began gathering tree limbs and rocks and were able to fill in the trench enough so they could pass.

The men attending the wounded were stupefied to see an ambulance pull up and two young women alone get out. The Rochambelles themselves, though, thought it was not much and returned to Saigon with their wounded.

Toto’s heroics

As soon as this operation was completed, another was launched. Massu’s contingent soon encountered a series of ambushes. The first cost them three dead and six wounded.

The enemy would fire from the brush, then disappear into the forest. A subsequent ambush succeeded in killing a truck driver which immobilised his truck and blocked the column behind it.

The medical officer was seriously wounded while aiding others, and a captain was killed. Toto had been promoted, and the new head of the Rochambelles drove her ambulance through the fire to rescue a man who certainly would have died. Then she climbed into the stopped truck and drove it so the column could advance.

Well done in two wars, Rochambelles!

Bill Haponski is an academic, but also an officer who served in Vietnam, enabling him to offer a unique perspective on the war in Vietnam. His book, Autopsy of an Unwinnable War, co-authored by Jerry Burcham, was published in April 2019 by Casemate Publishers.

After growing up in a Jamaican immigrant family in Harlem, Powell led a celebrated career that saw him rise from modest means up the military ranks. He served as a soldier in the Vietnam War and went on to become Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Here are 10 facts about General Colin L. Powell.

1. He grew up in Harlem

Colin Luther Powell was born on 5 April 1937, in Harlem, New York, to Jamaican immigrants of limited means. He was educated in the New York City public school system and went on to join the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps when he was studying to earn a Bachelor of Science in Geology at the City College of New York.

Powell went on to graduate college and became a second lieutenant in the US Army.

2. He served twice in the Vietnam War

In 1962 Powell was stationed at Fort Devens in Massachusetts where he married Alma Johnson, with whom he went on to have 2 daughters and a son. He was sent by President John F. Kennedy to Vietnam and was awarded a Purple Heart the following year.

He returned to Vietnam in 1968 for a second tour, this time as a battalion executive officer somewhat removed from the fighting. However, he was recognised for bravery when he escaped a helicopter crash but repeatedly returned to the burning wreck to rescue a number of his fellow soldiers.

3. Powell switched back and forth between civilian and military roles

In 1972 Powell launched his political career when he earned a prestigious White House Fellowship under the Nixon administration. He also served as an executive assistant under the Democratic Carter administration in the Energy and Defense Departments. Later, in 1987, he served as national security advisor under President Ronald Reagan.

4. Powell spent 35 years in the army and rose to the rank of 4-star general

Alongside his political career, Powell continued to rise in the military ranks, serving as Brigadier General in 1979 and major general in 1983, before eventually becoming a 4-star general, the most senior command ranking in the armed services.

In 1989 President George H. W. Bush named Powell as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

5. Powell oversaw major American military missions during the late 20th century

From October 1989 to September 1993 Powell oversaw 28 crises, including the invasion of Panama in 1989 and Operation Desert Storm in the Persian Gulf War against Iraq.

Powell was initially reluctant to commit US troops when Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, but became one of the administration’s most trusted spokesmen when the assault on Saddam Hussein’s army came. This successful US campaign in the Middle East received rare public praise: the government’s handling of the conflict was applauded and Powell became something of a national hero, earning a parade in his hometown of New York.

Colin Powell, Mrs. Brenda Schwarzkopf and Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf during a parade for the men and women who served in Desert Storm, 10 June 1991.

Image Credit: MSgt. Wetterman / Public Domain

6. He became the most decorated black man in United States military history

Powell’s efforts during the Gulf War also earned him further military awards, including a Congressional Gold Medal and a Presidential Medal of Freedom.

During Powell’s time in the military, which lasted until 1993, he also received a number of other notable awards, including the Bronze Star and two Purple Hearts. In addition to the military awards, Powell also received the President’s Citizens Medal, the Secretary of State Distinguished Service Medal and the Secretary of Energy Distinguished Service Medal, as well as a second Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Bill Clinton.

7. He might have become America’s first black president

In 1995 Powell seriously considered running for president and was seen as a strong Republican presidential candidate, who at the time would have run against Bill Clinton. If successful, he would have become the first black president in the US. But Powell opted out of the presidential race as he felt increasingly out of step with the Republican party.

Instead, he returned to the White House as President George W. Bush’s secretary of state in 2001, becoming the first black person in US history to fill that role. At the time, Powell said he would help the party in “broadening its appeal” and wanted to find ways during his time in office to heal growing divisions in society.

8. Powell was accused of misleading the public in the lead up to the US invasion of Iraq in 2003

During a controversial presentation to the United Nations Security Council on 5 February 2003, Powell based the administration’s case for war on the claim that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was an imminent danger to the world because of Iraq’s stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons.

Powell later admitted that the presentation was rife with inaccuracies and twisted intelligence provided by others in the Bush administration. He later called his UN speech a “blot” that he regretted would forever be on his record.

9. Powell returned to private life after his political career

He worked as a strategic adviser and speaker and wrote a memoir published in 2012. He also founded the City College of New York’s Colin L. Powell Center for Leadership and Service in 1997.

The City University of New York established the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership in 2013 in his honour.

Colin Powell speaking at a seminar in California, 24 February 2009.

Image Credit: Randy Miramontez / Shutterstock.com

10. In his later years Powell supported Democratic presidential candidates

Though the large majority of Powell’s time as a public servant was spent in Republican administrations, in his later years Powell supported Democratic presidential candidates.

He went on to vote for Hillary Clinton in 2016 over Donald Trump and again snubbed Trump in 2020 during the President’s second campaign, announcing his support for President Joe Biden. The retired general later delivered an address in support of Biden during the Democratic National Convention.

He died on 18 October 2021 from Covid-19 complications.

History of the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum

Founder of the Viet Minh, the Vietnamese Communist Party, Ho Chi Minh went on to fight for Vietnam’s independence from the Japanese. The site on which the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is located was where Ho declared independence from the Japanese in 1945. However, this was followed by a war with the French, after which Vietnam was divided. Ho Chi Minh became the leader of the communist North Vietnam.

Ho Chi Minh was still the President of North Vietnam during the Vietnam War, the notorious conflict between the USA and the North Vietnamese backed Vietcong which aimed to prevent the spread of communism. However, he died in on 2 September 1969, before the end of the war.

Ho Chi Minh expressly stated he only wanted a simple cremation, but between 1973 and 1975, a majestic mausoleum was constructed for his body using materials from all over Vietnam. Ho’s preserved body is on display in a glass sarcophagus for 10 months a year

Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum today

The mausoleum is open today the public on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday mornings, free of charge – hours vary slightly between summer and winter seasons. Ho’s body is normally removed for maintenance between September and early November.

There is almost always a queue to get in, and rules on entry are strict: you’ll need to cover your shoulders and knees, remove headwear, check bags, phones and cameras before entry, and you will be expected to walk round in respectful silence. Guards are on hand to tell you off if you don’t adhere to the rules.

Getting to Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum

Ho Chi Minh’s mausoleum is located in Hanoi, at the south end of the Presidential Palace complex. Enter on Ba Dinh Square: buses 22A, 45, 50, 09A, 09ACT and 18 all stop a short walk away. Any driver in the city should be able to get you here without any problems.

Of particular significance is the way in which the city was integrated within its natural surroundings.

Imperial City of Hue history

Nguyen Anh ascended the throne of a newly unified Vietnam in 1789 and immediately proclaimed himself Emperor Gia Long with Hue. The new ruler consulted divination to decide where a new city should be built, and in 1804 construction began on the Imperial City of Hue with thousands of workers ordered to build the citadel and moat.

The city suffered in 1947 when the Viet Minh seized the citadel. A French counter attack besieged the city and a 6-week battle destroyed many major buildings and the Imperial Palace was burned. Later, during the Battle of Hue in 1968, US troops were ordered to hold shelling on the city because of its heritage. However, these restrictions were gradually lifted.

Imperial City of Hue today

Listed as a World Heritage Site since 1993, the site of the Imperial City of Hue is actually a vast complex of monuments spread over 4 kilometres and encompassing some 140 constructions of varying sizes including temples, pavilions, a library and even a theatre. This was all protected by three circles of impressive ramparts reinforced by 24 bastions and pierced by 10 intricately decorated gates.

Many sources refer to the city as the citadel, but the Hue Citadel is just one aspect of its remains, within which are set the Imperial Residence, the Imperial City or Hoang Thanh and the Forbidden Purple City or Tu Cam Thanh as well as administrative and military structures.

Beyond its Citadel, the Imperial City of Hue has an array of sites, including fortresses such as Tran Hai Thanh and Tran Binh Dai. Further out, one can find its spiritual quarter with its temples and tombs.

Getting to the Imperial City of Hue

Located in Thanh pho, Hue, the Imperial City sits opposite the river from the new buildings and accommodation and therefore is an easy walk away. Otherwise you can use the Grab app to hop into a taxi there.

Ho Chi Minh Museum history

Ho Chi Minh was the President of North Vietnam from 1945-69, and through his role as the leader of the Vietnamese nationalist movement is largely considered the founder of modern Vietnam.

Renowned as a hero by many in his country and beyond, following his death on 2 September 1969 plans were put in place by the Communist Party of Vietnam’s Politburo for a museum to be founded in his memory.

After 20 years of preparation, the Ho Chi Minh Museum was inaugurated on the anniversary of his death in 1990.

Ho Chi Minh Museum today

From the biographical to the almost existential, the Ho Chi Minh Museum looks at the President’s life and ideals in 8 chronological exhibitions. These include exhibits on his upbringing, time spent travelling abroad, the influences of Marxism and Leninism, and his later life and death.

It also explores Vietnam’s international conflicts and its struggle for independence, and features a host of artefacts, miniatures, and memorabilia gathered worldwide.

Fittingly, the museum is located near to the famous Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, his final resting place.

Getting to the Ho Chi Minh Museum

The Ho Chi Minh Museum is located in the centre of Hanoi in Vietnam. Hanoi Railway Station is a 25-minute walk away, while the 09A and 09ACT bus services stop on Doi Can, a 5-minute walk away.

History of The Vietnam Veterans Memorial

The Vietnam War was a conflict in which South Vietnam was supported by the US in fighting against the North Vietnamese communist state. US involvement in the war, which started in the late 1950s and would continue until the mid-1970s, would be one of the most controversial military campaigns in the country’s history. Much of this was due to the massive loss of American lives in the course of the war. It would end in defeat for the US, marked in 1975 by the North Vietnamese capture of the city of Saigon.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Today

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is comprised of three parts, the main one being a mirrored wall listing over 58,000 names (58,261 names at the time of writing) of those who died in the conflict, in chronological order based on the date of casualty, and within each day, names are shown in alphabetical order. Names can be added by the Department of Veterans Affairs, and looked up on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund’s Virtual Wall.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial also has a bronze statue, known as The Three Soldiers, as well as the Vietnam Women’s Memorial which is a statue of women tending to a wounded soldier, and which commemorates the 265,000 women who served in the war, many as nurses.

The memorial is free and open to the public for 24 hours a day, with rangers on duty to answer questions from 9.30am to 10pm every day. Interpretive programs are provided throughout the day and upon request.

Getting to The Vietnam Veterans Memorial

You’ll find the memorial located near Constitution Gardens on the National Mall. The closest Metro stops are Foggy Bottom or Federal Triangle on the Orange, Blue and Silver lines. Visitors can also get to the memorial via the DC Circulator’s National Mall route and Metrobus routes 32, 34 and 36.

In its long history, the prison place became a significant place for the Vietnamese resistance movement, and later on became the main holding camp for American Prisoners of War that were captured during the war. During its active years, the conditions in this prison deteriorated as the number of prisoners increased, and in the years of the Vietnam War American POW were held there in a truly horrific environment, although Vietnam’s government denies those claims to this day.

Hoa Lo Prison history

The prison was built in stages between 1886 and 1901 in downtown Hanoi by the French (when Vietnam was still French Indochina), Hỏa Lò Prison – translated as ‘fiery furnace’ or ‘Hell’s hole’ – was a place of incomprehensible brutality. Originally intended for 450 inmates (but by the 1950s was home to over 2,000), Hỏa Lò went through three distinct periods.

During the colonial French era, it was known, as all urban French prisons were, as ‘Maison Centrale’ – Central House – and was intended to hold Vietnamese political prisoners who were agitating for independence, many of whom were subsequently tortured and executed. Inmates were kept in what has been described as ‘subhuman conditions’ but because of the central location, street peddlers could make extra money by tossing opium and tobacco as well as messages over the walls.

After the French suffered their unexpected defeat at Dien Bien Phu in May 1954, Vietnam was divided into North and South at the 17th Parallel and Hỏa Lò served as an education centre for revolutionary doctrine and activity. Then came the Vietnam War.

The first US prisoner arrived at Hỏa Lò in August 1964 and until 1973, almost 600 American POWs were interred here, including future Republican presidential nominee John McCain. The nickname ‘Hanoi Hilton’ was sarcastically coined, their treatment was horrific and brutal and breached the Geneva Convention to which Vietnam was a signatory, although North Vietnamese propaganda suggested they were treated excellently and the Hanoi Hilton nickname was because it was like a hotel. It wasn’t.

By the early 1980s when the Americans had left, the prison’s usefulness was coming to an end and it was demolished in 1990. The government decided in 1993, to satisfy the development of the capital, part of Hoa Lo Prison would be used to build “Tower centre” with a hotel and offices and another part of prison next to Hoa Lo Street would be preserved to mark the site of Hoa Lo Prison.

In 1997 Hoa Lo Prison was recognised as a historical monument by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism.

Hoa Lo Prison today

Save for the small southern section, the prison was demolished in the mid-1990s and today a museum about the prison stands on the site. The museum is divided into several sections relating to different periods of the site’s history.

Hoa Lo Prison today portrays a different side of the horror stories told by former inmates despite the prominently displayed shackles hanging on the walls. Much of the emphasis is on the French colonial era, with less of a focus on the experiences of the American POW who were detained there.

Getting to Hoa Lo Prison

The prison is located at the corner of Hai Ba Trung Street, in the south of Hoan Kiem Lake. The easiest way to get to Hoa Lo Prison is by taxi.

Photographs, information boards, medals, weapons, and aircraft are just some of the information and objects that the National Museum of the Marine Corps uses to tell the story of the Marines and their accomplishments. The galleries at the National Museum of the Marine Corps are well organized and are dedicated to to the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and World Wars I and II.

History of US National Museum of the Marine Corps

The museum is located in Triangle, Virginia, on a 135-acre site adjacent to Marine Corps Base Quantico.

It opened in 2006, and replaces both the Marine Corps Air-Ground Museum in Quantico, Virginia, which closed in 2002, and the Marine Corps Historical Centre in the Washington Navy Yard, which closed in 2005.

The museum is designed to be the centerpiece of a complex of facilities called the Marina Corps Heritage Center. It is, as a jointly public-private venture, a cooperative effort between the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation, which was established in 1979, and the United States Marine Corps.

The exterior design of the museum is designed to look like the famous image of the flag raisers of Iwo Jima. Inside, the museum covers 100,000 square feet of space and is made up of a number of exhibitions and other attractions.

US National Museum of the Marine Corps Today

Today, visitors can enjoy a number of permanent exhibits. They include the Leatherneck Gallery, the Legacy Walk, Making Marines, and exhibitions about the Second World, Korean, and Vietnam Wars.

Sections of the museum are designed to be interactive and immersive, with the Korean War Gallery featuring a section that simulates the cold temperature and sounds of the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir in 1951.

As of 2010, three new exhibits were opened – ‘Defending a New Nation (1775–1865)’ ‘Age of Expansion (1866-1916)‘, and World War I (1917-1918)’.

The museum also focuses on community outreach and education, with classrooms, a theatre, a gift shop, a bar, a restaurant, a rifle range laser simulator, and two play areas for children adding to the museum’s appeal.

Getting to US National Museum of the Marine Corps

The closest city to the museum is Washington. From the centre, it is a 50 minute drive via the l-95 S road. A number of connecting bus services also run from the city, and take a little under two hours.

From the centre of Triangle, Virginia, the museum is a 15 minute walk and 2 minutes by car via the US-1 S road.

The conflict in Vietnam from French occupation to US involvement and evacuation raged on for over 20 years. Across this timespan, several nations allied themselves with South Vietnam in order to defeat the Communist forces.

Within Vietnam itself, there were also numerous factions – with a clear division on the Communist side between the North Vietnamese Army, who fought a conventional war, and the Vietcong, which fought a guerrilla campaign against the south. This article describes the equipment of the different combatants.

Anti-Communist forces

The anti-Communist forces in Vietnam included the South Vietnamese (Army of the Republic of Vietnam, ARVN), French, American and Australian. The ARVN were often compared unfavourably with the North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong, but the ARVN fought well when led well. The French fought in Indochina from 1946 to 1954, losing 94,581 killed and missing, with 78,127 wounded.

The US infantrymen bore the brunt of the Second Vietnam War effort; there were more than 500,000 US troops in Southeast Asia in 1968-69. Between 1964 and 1973 45,790 had been killed, making the war increasingly unpopular in the United States. The Australians had 7,672 men committed in 1969.

The Australian

This Australian infantryman carries his squad’s 7.62mm light machine gun and two spare ammunition belts. The weight of his web equipment is taken by the belt; the front of his body is clear so that he can lie comfortably in the prone firing position. The Australians were heirs to two generations of jungle warfare, and this experience is shown by his extra waterbottles, the value of which more than offsetting the extra weight involved.

The American

This private in the US Marine Corps during the battle for Hue, February 1968, wears standard olive-drab combat dress and a flak jacket. The bayonet on his M16A1 5.56mm rifle is fixed for house-to-house fighting, and slung around his body is a belt of 7.62mm ammunition for his squad’s M60 light machine gun. His pack contains spare clothing and equipment.

The French Soldier

This corporal of a line regiment from Metropolitan France (above) carries the compact, reliable 9mm MAT-49 sub-machine gun. He wears a jungle-green uniform and canvas and rubber jungle boots like those worn by the British in Malaya. His pack is the French canvas and leather pattern; his web equipment and steel helmet are of American manufacture.

The South Vietnamese soldier

This soldier of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam is equipped with US weapon, uniform, webbing, and radio pack. He carries the M16A1 Armalite rifle, which the small-statured Vietnamese found ideally suited to their needs.

While his allies came, fought, and left, the ARVN soldier had to live with his successes and failures. When well led he was fully the equal of his enemies: during the Communists’ Tet offensive of 1968, for example, despite being caught badly off-balance the men of the ARVN stood firm and defeated the Viet Cong.

The Communist forces

The Communist forces included the Viet Cong, which was the indigenous national liberation movement of South Vietnam, and the North Vietnamese Army, of which it was nominally independent. There were regular VC units of up to regimental strength and many small, part-time units in villages under Communist control.

The North Vietnamese Army at first supplemented and then took over from the VC. The Communist victory in 1975 was the result of a conventional invasion by North Vietnamese armour and infantry.

The Viet Cong soldier

This Viet Cong soldier wears the “black pyjamas”, which have come to characterize the guerrilla fighter, and a soft khaki hat and web equipment produced in jungle workshops. His light, open sandals are probably cut from an old truck tire. He carries a Soviet Kalashnikov AK-47 rifle.

The North Vietnamese soldier

This soldier of the North Vietnamese Army wears a green uniform and a cool, practical helmet resembling the pith helmet of earlier European colonizers. The basic personal weapon of the NVA was the AK-47, but this man carries a Soviet-supplied RPG-7 anti-tank missile launcher. His food-tube contains sufficient dry rations and rice to last seven days.

The “People’s Porter”

This Communist porter can carry some 551b (25kg) on his back for an average 15 miles (24km) per day in flat country or 9 miles (14.5km) in hills. With the modified bicycle seen here the payload is some 150lb (68kg). The bamboos attached to handlebar and seat column enable him to control his machine even on rough ground.

Vietnam had been a colony of France since 1858. The French had extracted large amounts of Vietnam’s raw materials, exploited local labour and suppressed civil and political rights, which had given rise to strong anti-French resistance by the 1930s.

Japan’s invasion and occupation of Vietnam in 1940 later made Vietnam a target of US foreign policy following the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbour in 1941.

To fight off both Japanese occupiers and its Vichy French colonial administration, Vietnamese revolutionary Ho Chi Minh – inspired by Chinese and Soviet communism – formed the Viet Minh in 1941, a communist resistance movement. Their opposition to the Japanese meant they received support from the US, China and the Soviet Union.

The principle of a country’s right to self-determination (i.e. to freely choose their sovereignty and international political status with no interference) had originally been laid out in Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points in 1918, and had been recognised as an international legal right in the 1941 Atlantic Charter.

After Japan surrendered leaving the French-educated Emperor Bao Dai in control, Ho Chi Minh persuaded him to abdicate and declared an independent Vietnamese state. However, despite the Atlantic Charter, the US remained keen for Vietnam to reinstall French rule, paving the way for the First Indochina War.

Left – không rõ / Dongsonvh. Right – uknown. (Both images Public Domain).

1945

9 March – An “independent” Vietnam with Emperor Bao Dai as nominal ruler is proclaimed by Japanese occupation authorities.

2 September 2 – The Communist-dominated Viet Minh Independence League seizes power. Ho Chi Minh establishes Government of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (GRDV) in Hanoi.

22 September – French troops return to Vietnam and lash with Communist and Nationalist forces.

1946

6 March – France recognizes the Democratic Republic of Vietnam as a free state within the Indochinese Federation and French Union.

19 December – The Viet Minh initiate the eight-year Indochina War with an attack on French troops in the north.

1949

8 March – France recognizes an “independent” state of Vietnam, Bao Dai becomes its leader in June.

19 July – Laos is recognized as an independent state with ties to France.

8 November – Cambodia is recognized as an independent state with no ties to France.

1950

January – The newly-established People’s Republic of China, followed by the Soviet Union, recognizes the Democratic Republic of Vietnam led by Ho Chi Minh.

8 May – US announces military and economic aid to the pro-French regimes of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia.

1954

7 May – The remnants of the French garrison at Dien Bien Phu surrender.

7 July – Ngo Dinh Diem, newly-chosen Premier of South Vietnam, completes the organization of his cabinet.

20-21 July – The Geneva Agreements are signed, partitioning Vietnam along the 17^th Parallel and setting up an International Control Commission to supervise compliance with the Agreements

8 September – An agreement is signed at Manila establishing a Southeast Asia Treaty Organization, aimed at checking Communist expansion.

5 October – The last French troops leave Hanoi.

11 October – The Viet Minh formally assume control over North Vietnam.

24 October – President Dwight, D. Eisenhower advises Diem that the US will provide assistance directly to South Vietnam, instead of channeling it through French authorities.

US Escalation

The French left in 1954 and Dwight Eisenhower’s pledge of assistance takes hold. 

Victory in the anti-colonial war (fought against the French between 1945 and 1954, and supported by US aid) saw Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia granted independence. Vietnam was split North and South, and by 1958 the communist north (Vietcong) were conducting military operations across the border. President Eisenhower dispatched 2,000 military advisors to coordinate the anti-communist effort in South Vietnam. From 1960 to 1963 President Kennedy gradually increased the advisory force in SV to 16,300.

1955

29 March – Diem launches his successful campaign against the Binh Xuyen and the religious sects.

10 May – South Vietnam formally requests US instructors for armed forces.

16 May – The United States agrees to furnish military aid to Cambodia, which becomes an independent state on 25 September.

20 July – South Vietnam refuses to take part in the all-Vietnam elections called for by the Geneva Agreements, charging that free elections are impossible in the Communist North.

23 October – A national referendum deposes Bao Dai in favour of Diem, who proclaims the Republic of Vietnam.

1956

18 February – While visiting Peking, Cambodia’s Prince Norodom Sihanouk renounces SEATO protection for his nation.

31 March – Prince Souvanna Phouma becomes Prime Minister in Laos.

28 April – An American Military Assistance Advisory Group, (MAAG) takes over the training of South Vietnamese forces, the French Military High Command disbands and French troops leave South Vietnam.

5 August – Souvanna Phouma and the Communist Prince Souphanouvong agree to a coalition government in Laos.

1957

3 January – The International control Commission declares that neither North Vietnam nor South Vietnam has carried out the Geneva Agreements.

29 May – Communist Pathet Lao attempt to seize power in Laos.

June – The last French training missions leave South Vietnam.

September – Diem is successful in South Vietnamese general election.

Department of Defense. Department of the Air Force. NAIL Control Number: NWDNS-342-AF-18302USAF / Public Domain

1958

January – Communist guerrillas attack a plantation north of Saigon.

1959

April – A branch of the Lao Dong (Worker’s Party of Vietnam), of which Ho Chi Minh became Secretary General in 1956, is formed in the South, and Communist underground activity increases.

May – The US Commander in Chief, Pacific, begins sending the military advisers requested by the South Vietnamese government.

June-July – Communist Pathet Lao forces attempt to gain control over northern Laos, receiving some Vietnamese Communist assistance.

8 July – Communist South Vietnamese wound American advisers during an attack on Bien Hoa.

31 December – General Phourni Nosavan seizes control in Laos.

1960

5 May – MAAAG strength is increased from 327 to 685 members.

9 August – Captain Kong Le occupies Vientiane and urges restoration of a neutral Laos under Prince Souvanna Phourna.

11-12 November – A military coup against Diem fails.

December – The Communist National Liberation Front (NLF) of South Vietnam is formed.

16 December – The forces of Phoumi Nosavan capture Vientiane.

1961

4 January – Prince Boun Oum organizes a pro-Western government in Laos, North Vietnam and the USSR Send aid to the Communist insurgents.

11-13 May – Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson visits South Vietnam.

16 May – A 14-nation conference on Laos meets at Geneva.

1-4 September – Viet Cong forces carry out a series of attacks in Kontum province, South Vietnam.

18 September – A Viet Cong battalion seizes the provincial capital of Phuoc Vinh, some 55 miles (89km) from Saigon.

8 October – The Lao factions agree to form a neutral coalition headed by Souvanna Phouma, but fail to agree on the apportionment of cabinet posts.

11 October – President John F, Kennedy announces that his principal military adviser, General Maxwell D. Taylor, USA, will go to South Vietnam to investigate the situation.

16 November – As a result of the Taylor mission, President Kennedy decides to increase military aid to South Vietnam, without committing US combat troops.

President Kennedy in 1961 with CIA map of Vietnam (Image Credit: Central Intelligence Agency / Public Domain).

1962

3 February – The “Strategic Hamlet” program begins in South Vietnam.

7 February – American military strength in South Vietnam reaches 4,000, with the arrival of two additional Army aviation units.

8 February – The US MAAG is reorganized as the US Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV), under General Paul D. Harkins, USA.

27 February – President Diem escapes injury when two South Vietnamese aircraft attack the Presidential Palace.

6-27 May – Phoumi Nosavan’s forces are routed, paving the way for a settlement in Laos.

August – First Australian Aid Forces (MAF) Vietnam.

1963

2 January – Battle of Ap Bac ARVN with US advisers is defeated.

April – Inception of the Chieu Hoi (“Open Arms”) amnesty program, aimed at rallying VC to support of the government.

8 May – Riots in Hue, South Vietnam, when government troops try to prevent the celebration of Buddha’s birthday, country-wide Buddhist demonstrations continue into August.
11 June – The first of seven Buddhist monks to commit suicide by fire in protest against repression dies in Saigon.

October – President Kennedy supported the South Vietnam’s military’s overthrow of President Diem and his regime. Ngo Dinh Diem had operated a regime that favoured the Catholic minority at the expense of the Buddhist majority, de-stabilising the country and threatening to enable a Communist takeover. Diem was murdered in the process of the coup, and although JFK did not support this – in fact the news is said to have infuriated him – his assassination means one can never know whether he would have escalated the conflict as President Johnson would do.

1-2 November – A military coup overthrows Diem, he and his brother Ngo Dinh Nhu are murdered.

6 November – General Duong Van Minh, leading the Revolutionary Military Committee, takes over leadership of South Vietnam.

15 November – Following a prediction by Defence Secretary McNamara that the US military role will end by 1965, the US government announces that 1,000 of the 15,000 American advisers in South Vietnam will be withdrawn early in December.

22 November – President Kennedy is assassinated as he rides in a motorcade through Dealey Plaza in downtown Dallas, Texas. In the final weeks of his life, President Kennedy had wrestled with the future of America’s commitment in Vietnam.