In continued efforts to disrupt an anticipated communist offensive, a contingent of more than 10,000 South Vietnamese troops begin a sweep 45 miles northwest of Saigon to find and destroy enemy forces. There was much speculation that the North Vietnamese would launch such an offensive around the Tet (Chinese New Year) holiday. Although the communists did not attack during the Tet holiday in early February, in March they launched a massive invasion involving more than 150,000 main force troops and large amounts of tanks and artillery pieces. The battles raged throughout South Vietnam into the fall and resulted in some of the fiercest fighting of the war.
Also on This Day
- Lead Story
- Iran Hostage Crisis ends, 1981
- American Revolution
- Battle of Millstone, New Jersey, 1777
- Automotive
- GM takes an interest in Oakland Motor Car Corp., 1909
- Civil War
- Union General Burnside's troops get bogged down in mud, 1863
- Cold War
- Truman announces Point Four program, 1949
- Crime
- Football player-turned-murderer born, 1974
- Disaster
- Bullfight spectators die when bleachers collapse, 1980
- General Interest
- Hong Kong ceded to the British, 1841
- FDR inaugurated to fourth term, 1945
- John F. Kennedy inaugurated, 1961
- Terry Waite disappears, 1987
- Arafat elected leader of Palestine, 1996
- Hollywood
- Actress Audrey Hepburn dies, 1993
- Literary
- Robert Frost reads at JFK's inauguration, 1961
- Music
- Country star Jerry Lee Lewis rocks the Grand Ole Opry, 1973
- Old West
- Ronald Reagan becomes president, 1981
- Presidential
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt is sworn in as president, 1937
- Sports
- President Carter calls for Olympics to be moved from Moscow, 1980
- Vietnam War
- Richard Nixon takes office, 1969
- New communist offensive anticipated, 1972
- World War I
- Goeben and Breslau battle the Allies in the Aegean, 1918
- World War II
- The Wannsee Conference, 1942
Jan 20, 1972:
New communist offensive anticipated
Fact Check We strive for accuracy and fairness. But if you see something that doesn't look right, contact us!
This Week in History, Jan 20 - Jan 26
- Jan 20, 1969
- Richard Nixon takes office
- Jan 20, 1972
- New communist offensive anticipated
- Jan 21, 1968
- Battle for Khe Sanh begins
- Jan 22, 1964
- U.S. Joint Chiefs foresee larger U.S. commitment
- Jan 22, 1968
- Operations Jeb Stuart and Pershing II kick off
- Jan 23, 1973
- Nixon announces peace settlement reached in Paris
- Jan 24, 1966
- Operation Masher/White Wing/Thang Phong II launched
- Jan 24, 1973
- Truce is expected in Laos and Cambodia
- Jan 25, 1969
- First plenary session of the formal Paris Peace talks is held
- Jan 25, 1972
- Nixon reveals information about secret negotiations
- Jan 26, 1970
- POW spends 2,000th day in captivity
- Jan 26, 1972
- North Vietnam rejects U.S. peace proposal
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