The ceasefire was supposed to last three days. During Tet — the Vietnamese lunar new year — it was customary for both sides to observe a truce. In January 1968, the US military command in Saigon was confident. Progress reports were optimistic. The war was being won.

In the pre-dawn hours of January 31, 1968, approximately 84,000 Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army troops launched coordinated attacks on more than 100 cities and towns across South Vietnam.

The Scope of the Attack

Targets included 36 of 44 provincial capitals, 64 district capitals, and major cities including Saigon, Hue, Da Nang, and Nha Trang. A 19-man Viet Cong sapper team breached the wall of the American Embassy compound in Saigon and fought in the grounds for approximately six hours before being killed. The main embassy building was never penetrated. All 19 sappers were killed. The images were broadcast worldwide within hours, contradicting two years of official statements about the war's progress.

Hue

The fiercest fighting occurred in the former imperial capital of Hue. Approximately 8,000 North Vietnamese and Viet Cong troops seized most of the city. US Marines and South Vietnamese forces fought house by house for 26 days, formally ending March 2, 1968. During the occupation, mass executions of South Vietnamese officials, officers, and teachers occurred. Estimates of those killed range from approximately 2,800 to 6,000 people.

The Military and Political Outcomes

By any conventional measure, Tet was a catastrophic defeat for its attackers. North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces suffered an estimated 45,000 killed. American casualties were approximately 1,100 killed. The US and South Vietnamese forces recaptured virtually every position lost in the initial assault.

The military victory was irrelevant. On February 27, 1968, CBS News anchor Walter Cronkite described the war as 'mired in stalemate.' President Johnson reportedly said: 'If I've lost Cronkite, I've lost Middle America.' On March 31, 1968, Johnson announced he would not seek re-election.

The Long Consequence

The Tet Offensive is the clearest demonstration in modern military history of the difference between tactical and strategic success. North Vietnam understood that the war could not be won militarily against American firepower. The objective was to demonstrate that the American position was untenable — to break political will. In that objective, Tet succeeded completely. American combat forces were progressively withdrawn. In 1975, North Vietnamese forces entered Saigon.