When Metal and Machines Don’t Work — Part One
Vietnam: The Unwinnable War
“More bombs were dropped on Vietnam in one year than on Nazi Germany in the whole of World War Two. American technology turned the country into a vast killing ground… but metal and machines weren’t winning the war.” — Neil Davis, Australian combat cameraman during the Vietnam War.
The Vietnam War stands as a prime example of the limitations of technological power in the face of extreme human persistence and determination.
It was also first war ever known that unfolded not just in the dense, jungled battlefields of Southeast Asia, but also on television screens in American and Australian living rooms, capturing the horrors and futility of a seemingly unwinnable war.
The 1960s and 1970s were the eras of the “Television War,” where unprecedented media coverage brought the stark reality of combat into the horrified public eye. No longer could governments try to ‘pull a swiftie’ and claim they were fighting a ‘just’ and ‘winnable’ war, when the public saw with their own eyes that such a claim was a big, fat lie.
As the bombs rained down on the tiny nation of Vietnam with a ferocity never seen before, it became evident that victory would not be measured by the sheer magnitude of military might alone, a fact echoed in the words of the father of modern Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh:
“Our secret weapon is nationalism… to have nationalism is greater than any weapon in the world.”
This is why the Vietnam War has been described as “The Unwinnable War”.
It was a war that demonstrated how nations with huge technological advantages could be defeated by another tiny, nation willing to do anything and sacrifice almost everything to gain their freedom and their independence.
Vietnam: A Proud Nation Who Prized Independence Above All
To truly grasp the unbelievable spirit of the Vietnamese people during the Vietnam War, it’s important to understand their long history of resisting foreign domination.
Vietnam was a tiny nation, continuously struggling for autonomy against some of the world’s most powerful empires. The roots of this fierce determination trace back to 250 BCE when Nam Viet, nestled in the north of present-day Vietnam, first emerged as a fledgling independent state.
Independence was short-lived, however. By 100 AD, China began a series of invasions, imposing its rule intermittently for over a millennium. Despite the oppressive foreign rule, the Vietnamese absorbed and adapted Chinese customs and culture, blending them into their own unique identity.
Fast forward to 1858, and another foreign power arrived on Vietnamese shores: the Second French Empire. By 1885, the French Third Republic had consolidated its grip not only on Vietnam but also on Laos and Cambodia, creating the colonial territory known as French Indochina. When World War One was declared, Vietnamese soldiers were expected to fight and die in the muddy, pest-infested often freezing trenches of the Western Front for their colonial rulers.
World War Two brought yet another invader: Japan. During this global conflict, Vietnam endured a brutal Japanese occupation, but, with Japan’s defeat in 1945. A determined Communist leader, Ho Chi Minh, seized the moment to declare Vietnam’s independence, echoing a centuries-old yearning for self-rule.
Given this turbulent history, is it any surprise that the Vietnamese would fiercely resist yet another foreign intervention? You can probably guess that the idea of succumbing once more, to any nation, was unthinkable.
For the Vietnamese nationalists, the Vietnam War was more than just another conflict. It was a righteous quest to preserve the hard-won sovereignty for which their ancestors had fought and died for over many generations.
Independence wasn’t just a political goal. It was a deeply ingrained, unyielding and unshakable part of the Vietnamese national identity.
‘Uncle Ho’ — The ‘Bringer of Light’
To understand the tenacity of the Vietnamese people, it is worth getting to know their formidable leader, Ho Chi Minh, affectionately known as ‘Uncle Ho’ by his compatriots.
Born in 1890 in the Nghệ An province of what was then the French protectorate of Annam, Ho Chi Minh had always demonstrated a rebellious spirit against colonial oppression. His early travels across Europe, the United States, and the Soviet Union provided him with a plethora of revolutionary ideas. During his time abroad, particularly in France after World War I, he lobbied tirelessly for Vietnamese civil rights at the Versailles peace talks. Despite his efforts, the plea for justice fell on deaf ears among the Western powers.
The 1920s found Ho Chi Minh in the Soviet Union, where he immersed himself in the study of Marxism and Leninism, drawing inspiration from the newly established Communist regime that had restored the Russian Empire.
This period of ideological exploration armed him with the strategies and philosophies that would later fuel his revolutionary activities. His travels continued to China, where he served as an advisor to the armed Communist forces, gaining crucial experience in guerrilla warfare.
By 1930, Ho Chi Minh’s vision began to crystallize with the founding of the Communist Party of Vietnam. But it wasn’t until 1941, when he returned to Vietnam, that his revolutionary mission gained significant momentum.
Establishing the Viet Minh independence movement, he led the “men in black,” a formidable 10,000-man strong guerrilla force, in their fight against the Vichy French and Japanese occupiers during World War II. (Ironically, his efforts received covert support from the US government, as their interests briefly aligned in order to defeat the Japanese.)
In a historic moment on September 2, 1945, following Emperor Bảo Đại’s abdication, Ho Chi Minh stood before a crowd in Hanoi and read the Declaration of Independence, proclaiming the birth of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
However, the end of World War II did not bring peace to Vietnam.
French politicians were determined to reclaim their colonial holdings and returned in 1946 where they met fierce resistance from Ho Chi Minh and his followers.
Reconciliation talks failed, largely due to the French refusal to accept a government with Communists. Tensions erupted into open conflict, beginning in Haiphong and quickly spreading south.
And thus began the first Vietnam War.
The Battle of Dien Bien Phu
The culmination of the first Vietnam War, or the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, in 1954, marked a decisive and humbling defeat for the French, forcing them to abandon Vietnam for good. They never returned, not even to support their ally, the United States, in the subsequent conflict of the 1960s.
Unlike the later, protracted guerrilla war, the Battle of Dien Bien Phu was a conventional battle, fought openly. Despite facing an opponent with superior firepower, the Vietnamese soldiers demonstrated unparalleled resilience and ingenuity.
After nine years of both open and covert skirmishes, General Vo Nguyen Giap launched a massive assault on March 13, 1954, catching the French off guard at their mountain stronghold of Dien Bien Phu.
The Vietnamese soldiers, lacking aircraft and tanks, displayed extraordinary determination. Wearing sandals made from car tyres, they transported artillery, piece by piece, over rugged mountains, managing to encircle the French army’s nine fortified strongholds: Gabrielle, Anne-Marie, Beatrice, Huguette, Claudine, Dominique, Isabelle, Francoise, and Elaine.
In an almost unbelievable display of courage, wave upon wave of Viet Minh assault troops charged into a barrage of French machine gun, mortar, and rifle fire.
In the skies above, French pilots faced relentless anti-aircraft fire from the Viet Minh. Even French supply drops were sabotaged; the Viet Minh’s relentless shelling had rendered the French airfield unusable, forcing supplies to be dropped from the sky, often landing in Viet Minh-controlled territory.
By April 23, the Viet Minh had advanced to within a few hundred metres of the center of Dien Bien Phu. On May 1, they finally overran the French command bunker. The French suffered significant losses, with 2,300 dead and 5,100 wounded. However, the Viet Minh paid a much higher price, with 23,000 casualties, including over 8,000 dead.
The grit, fortitude and sacrifice of the Viet Minh troops showed that even overwhelming firepower could not crush their spirit.
This battle also epitomized Ho Chi Minh’s assertion: “You can kill ten of my men for every one of yours, but even at those odds, I will win, and you will lose.”
General Vo Nguyen Giap, the architect of Dien Bien Phu and one of the greatest military strategists in modern warfare, had this to say: “Any forces that would impose their will on other nations will certainly face defeat.”
Nicknamed “The Red Napoleon”, Giap further highlighted the extraordinary resolve of the Vietnamese people: “Never before had there been so many foreign troops on the soil of Vietnam. But never before either had the Vietnamese people been so determined to rise up in combat to defend their country.”
Vietnam Divided
Following the French defeat, negotiations in Geneva decreed an immediate ceasefire and the division of Vietnam along the 17th Parallel into a communist North Vietnam and a non-communist South.
Thus, the stage was set for the second Vietnam War and the involvement of the United States of America.
The Battle of Dien Bien Phu was a stark reminder of the utter futility of foreign intervention in Vietnam. The French learned this the hard way in 1954, but the United States refused to heed the lesson.
I suppose, logically, why would they be concerned?
Less than ten years before, the USA had virtually won World War Two over two powerful enemies Imperial and Nazi Germany with overwhelming technological might. Surely defeating Communism in a tiny nation with a rag-tag army would be a proverbial piece of cake!
Part 2 coming soon…
