U.S . MARINES IN VIETNAM

U .S . MARINES IN VIETNA M

THE DEFINING YEA R

196 8

by

Jack Shulimso n

Lieutenant Colonel Leonard A . Blasiol, U .S . Marine Corp s

Charles R . Smit h

and

Captain David A . Dawson, U.S . Marine Corp s

HISTORY AND MUSEUMS DIVISION

HEADQUARTERS, U .S. MARINE CORP S

WASHINGTON, D .C.

1997

Volumes in the Marine Corp s

Vietnam Serie s

Operational Histories Serie s

U .S. Marines in Vietnam, 1954¡ª1964, The Advisory and Combat Assistance Era,

U .S. Marines in Vietnam, 1965, The Landing and the Buildup,

U .S . Marines in Vietnam, 1966, An Expanding War,

197 8

198 2

1984

U.S . Marines in Vietnam, 1969, High Mobility and Standdown, 1988

U.S . Marines in Vietnam, 1967, Fighting the North Vietnamese,

1986

U .S. Marines in Vietnam, 1971¡ª1973, The War that Would Not End, 199 1

U .S. Marines in Vietnam, 1973¡ª1975, The Bitter End, 1990

U .S . Marines in Vietnam, 1970¡ª1971, Vietnamization and Redeployment,

Functional Histories Series

Chaplains with Marines in Vietnam, 1962¡ª1971, 198 5

Marines and Military Law in Vietnam : Trial By Fire, 1989

Anthology and Bibliograph y

The Marines in Vietnam, 1954¡ª1973, An Anthology and Annotated Bibliography ,

1974 ; reprinted 1983 ; revised second edition, 198 5

Library of Congress Card No . 77¡ª60477 6

PCN 190 0031 380 0

For sale by the U.S . Government Printing Offic e

Superintendent of Documents, Mail Stop: SSOP, Washington, DC 20402-9328

ISBN 0-16-049125- 8

ii

1977

Foreword

This is the last volume, although published out of chronological sequence, in the nine volume operational history series covering the Marine Corps' participation in the Vietna m

War. A separate functional series complements the operational histories . This book is the

capstone volume of the entire series in that 1968, as the title indicates, was the defining yea r

of the war. While originally designed to be two volumes, it was decided that unity and cohe sion required one book .

The year 1968 was the year of the Tet Offensive including Khe Sanh and Hue City . These

were momentous events in the course of the war and they occurred in the first three month s

of the year . This book, however, documents that 1968 was more than just the Tet Offensive .

The bloodiest month of the war for the U .S . forces was not January nor February 1968, bu t

May 1968 when the Communists launched what was called their "Mini-Tet" offensive . This

was followed by a second "Mini-Tet" offensive during the late summer which also wa s

repulsed at heavy cost to both sides . By the end of the year, the U .S . forces in South Vietnam's I Corps, under the III Marine Amphibious Force (III MAF), had regained the offensive. By December, enemy-initiated attacks had fallen to their lowest level in two years .

Still, there was no talk of victory . The Communist forces remained a formidable foe and a

limit had been drawn on the level of American participation in the war .

Although largely written from the perspective of III MAF and the ground war in I Corps ,

the volume also treats the activities of Marines with the Seventh Fleet Special Landing Force ,

activities of Marine advisors to South Vietnamese forces, and other Marine involvement i n

the war. Separate chapters cover Marine aviation and the single manager controversy ,

artillery, logistics, manpower, and pacification .

Like most of the volumes in this series, this has been a cumulative history . Lieutenan t

Colonel Leonard A . Blasiol researched and wrote the initial drafts of the chapters on Kh e

Sanh as well as Chapters 17, 19, and 21 and the account of Operation Thor in Chapter 26 .

Mr . Charles R . Smith researched and drafted Chapters 16, 18, 20, and 22 . Captain Davi d

A . Dawson researched and wrote Chapter 27 . Dr. Jack Shulimson researched and wrote th e

remaining chapters, edited and revised the entire text, and incorporated the comments o f

the various reviewers .

Dr. Shulimson heads the History Writing Unit and is a graduate of the University o f

Buffalo, now the State University of New York at Buffalo . He earned his master's degree i n

history at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; Michigan and his doctorate from th e

University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland in American studies . Mr. Smith is a senio r

historian in the Division and served in Vietnam as an artilleryman and then as a historian

with the U .S . Army. He is a graduate of the University of California, Santa Barbara, an d

received his master's degree in history from San Diego State University . Lieutenant Colonel

Blasiol is an experienced artilleryman and a graduate of Tulane University, New Orleans ,

Louisiana, with a degree in history, and of the Marine Corps Command and Staff College .

Captain Dawson is an infantry officer now stationed at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina . He

holds a bachelor of arts degree in history from Cornell University, Ithaca, New York and a

master's degree in history from Kansas State University, Lawrence, Kansas .

E . H . SIMMON S

Brigadier General, U .S . Marine Corps (Retired)

Director Emeritus of Marine Corps History and Museums

iii

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