Vietnam (1:42)
Whether they volunteered or were drafted, 1 out of 10 soldiers did not survive Vietnam.
Related Videos (10)
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Vietnam
VietnamVideo Clip (1:42)
Video Clip (1:42)
Whether they volunteered or were drafted, 1 out of 10 soldiers did not survive Vietnam.
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Interacting with the Vietnamese
Interacting with the VietnameseVideo Clip (3:42)
Video Clip (3:42)
For U.S. soldiers, the Vietnamese people could be their most important allies. But when communist fighters blended in with civilians, it became hard to tell friend from foe.
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Remembering Vietnam: A Premonition
Remembering Vietnam: A PremonitionVideo Clip (1:31)
Video Clip (1:31)
Air Force Pilot Keith Connolly recalls a story about a fellow pilot and friend who had a premonition that he would not return from the war.
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Remembering Vietnam: Flamethrowers
Remembering Vietnam: FlamethrowersVideo Clip (1:50)
Video Clip (1:50)
Platoon Sergeant Charles Brown recalls a vivid story of losing a fellow soldier during a firefight with flamethrowers during the Vietnam War.
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Remembering Vietnam: Tiger Encounter
Remembering Vietnam: Tiger EncounterVideo Clip (1:44)
Video Clip (1:44)
Navy Medic, Ray Torres, describes his nighttime encounter with a tiger.
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Barry Romo
Barry RomoVideo Clip (3:24)
Video Clip (3:24)
Fresh out of high school, Barry Romo enlisted in the U.S. Army to serve in Vietnam. Romo was awarded a bronze star for his efforts but grew disillusioned with the war and later joined a controversial group called Vietnam Veterans Against the War.
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Arthur Wiknik
Arthur WiknikVideo Clip (3:42)
Video Clip (3:42)
As an 18-year-old draftee, Arthur Wiknik was rushed through officer candidate's school. After one month in Vietnam he found himself in the middle of the battle of "Hamburger Hill"--one of the most notorious battles of the war.
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Bob Clewell
Bob ClewellVideo Clip (3:35)
Video Clip (3:35)
Bob Clewell dropped out of college to join the Army, and arrive in Vietnam just weeks after the Gulf of Tonkin incident in 1964. During his third tour, he was trained as a helicopter pilot, providing air support for ground troops during the Lam Son 719 offensive.
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Raymond Torres
Raymond TorresVideo Clip (2:52)
Video Clip (2:52)
Navy medic Raymond Torres joined the Navy to attend medical school and was assigned to a Marine Corps company. While tending to wounded Marines during the Khe Sanh battle, Torres was critically injured when a grenade exploded near him.
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Keith Connolly
Keith ConnollyVideo Clip (4:31)
Video Clip (4:31)
Air Force pilot Keith Connolly was among the first USAF units to be stationed within South Vietnam. During his second tour, he flew F-4 Phantoms targeting the Ho Chi Minh Trail and witnessed two of his men go missing after his plane had been hit.
Related Speeches & Audio (10)
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North Vietnam Disregards Ceasefire Agreement
North Vietnam Disregards Ceasefire AgreementAudio Clip (4:44)
Audio Clip (4:44)
In an October 12, 1973, interview, Col. Le Gran, U.S. deputy director of intelligence, discusses the discovery that North Vietnam installed SA-2 missiles in the southern city of Khe Sanh shortly after a ceasefire agreement prohibiting military incursion in South Vietnam was signed on January 27 of that year.
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Nixon Orders Invasion of Cambodia
Nixon Orders Invasion of CambodiaAudio Clip (1:02)
Audio Clip (1:02)
On April 30, 1970, President Richard Nixon asks the American people to support his decision to send troops into Cambodia in response to North Vietnam’s invasion of the country.
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Nixon on Vietnam War
Nixon on Vietnam WarAudio Clip (3:34)
Audio Clip (3:34)
On March 26, 1971, President Richard Nixon holds a meeting in the Oval Office with his National Security Council to discuss the war in Vietnam. The meeting is secretly recorded. Among the many topics he raises, Nixon recounts a prior conversation with House majority leader Hale Boggs on setting a date for the final withdrawal of U.S. forces.
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U.S. Army Prepares South Vietnam for American Withdrawal
U.S. Army Prepares South Vietnam for American WithdrawalAudio Clip (2:04)
Audio Clip (2:04)
From his station in Saigon, Vietnam, on October 25, 1973, Col. Gerald M. Steinberg reflects on the difficulties encountered as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers prepared to transfer jurisdiction to ARVN, Army of the Republic of Vietnam, following the Vietnam War ceasefire signed on January 27.
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Impact of U.S. Withdrawal on South Vietnam
Impact of U.S. Withdrawal on South VietnamAudio Clip (2:47)
Audio Clip (2:47)
Following the January 27, 1973 signing of a ceasefire agreement to end the Vietnam War and the subsequent departure of U.S. troops, the U.S. military prepared the South Vietnamese to take over operations. A U.S. officer who remained in Vietnam to help with the transition is interviewed on October 11, 1973, about the process of bolstering South Vietnam's economy and self-sufficiency.
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U.S. Troops Leave Vietnam
U.S. Troops Leave VietnamAudio Clip (1:13)
Audio Clip (1:13)
After the Vietnam War ceasefire was signed on January 27, 1973, the United States had 60 days to withdraw its troops from Vietnam. In an interview on October 9, 1973, Col. Frago, chief of the Army Division of the Defense Attaché, comments on the problems encountered while drawing down the U.S. forces.
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Lyndon Johnson and Robert McNamara Plan Airstrikes in Vietnam
Lyndon Johnson and Robert McNamara Plan Airstrikes in VietnamAudio Clip (3:30)
Audio Clip (3:30)
In a recorded phone call on February 26, 1965, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara and President Lyndon B. Johnson discuss possible airstrikes in Vietnam.
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Lyndon Johnson Considers Troop Increase in Vietnam
Lyndon Johnson Considers Troop Increase in VietnamAudio Clip (5:02)
Audio Clip (5:02)
In June 1965, shortly after a coup in South Vietnam led to the 10th change of government in the war torn country, an attack by the North Vietnamese destroyed three U.S. aircraft at Danang. During a recorded telephone conversation with Defense Secretary Robert McNamara on July 2, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson contemplates whether the war can be won.
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John F. Kennedy on Coup in South Vietnam
John F. Kennedy on Coup in South VietnamAudio Clip (6:06)
Audio Clip (6:06)
On October 29, 1963, President John F. Kennedy meets with the National Security Council to discuss whether to support the overthrow of South Vietnam's President Ngo Dinh Diem. During the secretly recorded conversation, Secretary of State Dean Rusk and the president craft a detailed plan involving Henry Cabot Lodge, ambassador to South Vietnam, Gen. Paul D. Harkins and the general of the South Vietnamese military, hoping to avoid setting off a civil war in the country.
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Ford Offers Clemency to Draft Evaders
Ford Offers Clemency to Draft EvadersAudio Clip (1:20)
Audio Clip (1:20)
On September 16, 1974, President Gerald Ford signed a proclamation that would offer Vietnam War draft evaders the chance to earn clemency by performing alternative service for their country. In a speech to the American people, Ford defends his decision as one that's best for the nation.
Related Photo Galleries (5)
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Vietnam War: Leaders
Vietnam War: Leaders(15 Photos)
15 Photos
View images of the Presidents, politicians, and military leaders who influenced American involvement in the Vietnam War.
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Civil War: Artifacts
Civil War: Artifacts(9 Photos)
9 Photos
Explore Civil War artifacts, from medical kits and personal hygiene items, to carbines and currency.
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Memorial Day
Memorial Day(17 Photos)
17 Photos
Images of memorials and celebrations of the Memorial Day holiday.
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Faces of the Civil War
Faces of the Civil War(28 Photos)
28 Photos
The Library of Congress recently acquired a rare collection of nearly 700 Civil War-era ambrotype and tintype photographs, donated by the Liljenquist family.
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Vietnam War
Vietnam War(14 Photos)
14 Photos
The Vietnam War lasted longer than any other war in U.S. history and cost 58,000 American lives
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