January 31, 1968
Wednesday - The Fall of Hue
A .50 caliber machine gun is silhouetted against explosions as the Tet Offensive begins
Wikimedia, image is from Da Nang, not Hue
Throughout the afternoon of January 30, 1968, the last day of the Vietnamese Year of the Monkey had seen crowds of people flocking to the Imperial City of Hue for the festivities. The plans for celebration were well under way, with fireworks and traditional religeous and social activities planned, but there were those who had other plans.
All across South Vietnam the forces of the National Liberation Front, or Vietcong, were on the move, their ranks swollen with regular NVA troops, with plans to initiate the single largest attack of the war to date, striking all across the South in what was intended to bring about the collapse of the Saigon Government and a sudden and complete victory for the communists.
“All South Vietnam will simultaneously launch a general offensive-general uprising to seize the reins of government and place it in the hands of the people. Principle of the offensive: simultaneous attacks, simultaneous uprisings, with insurrections being the prime effort and relying primarily on the local forces and forces in the rears... Annihilate or disperse the puppet army and puppet government, liberate the rural countryside, to form a revolutionary government, to kill and wound large numbers of American troops, and to surround and isolate the American forces so that they would be unable to come to the rescue of the puppet army, fight off enemy counterattacks, to inflict heavy losses on the enemy, and to firmly defend and protect the new revolutionary government in order to create favorable conditions to allow us to move forward in gaining total victory”
In some areas of the country, the attacks began on January 30 due to a misunderstanding regarding the slightly different calendars used in the two halves of Vietnam, but in Hue the attack was to begin on schedule for the 31st of January, with forces positioning themselves around the city, as well as smuggling in weapons and supplies. Many of these had been brought in disguised as wrapped gifts, as well as in false bottomed fishing junks on the Perfume River.
The múa lân, or Dragon Dance, is performed in Saigon for the 1967 Tet celebrations
US National Archives, Film Still, Original Color
As the NVA forces moved into their final positions new uniforms and polished medals were distributed, along with new insignia: the khaki uniforms of the NVA would remain, but the solid red backdrops of their badges were replaced with the red and blue of the VC to show solidarity with the southern communists as they march into Hue. They are not entirely unexpected, however, as they have been sighted moving into the city by ARVN units and an Australian advisor at 2200 on January 30, with a report being sent to ARVN 1st Division Headquarters in the Citadel of at least two battalions marching toward Hue. RVN Regional Forces are engaged in a short firefight with this force as well. The same day, US Army SIGINT (Signals Intelligence) stationed at Phu Bai had intercepted NVA radio traffic that suggested a major attack was imminent, but this report had been lost as it moved through the bureaucracy of the MACV.
Vietcong pose for a photo before leaving their jungle camp for the Tet Offensive
“Move forward to final victory! And in compliance with the attack order of the Presidium, Central Committee, South Vietnam Liberation Front, all cadres and combatants of all South Vietnam Liberation Armed Forces should move forward to carry out direct attacks on all the headquarters of the enemy, to disrupt the United States imperialists’ will for aggression and to smash the Puppet government and Puppet Army, the lackeys of the United States, restore power to the people, completely liberate the fourteen million people of South Vietnam, and fulfill out revolutionary task of establishing democracy throughout the country. It will be the greatest battle ever fought throughout the history of our country. It will bring forth worldwide change but will also require many sacrifices. It will decide the fate and survival of our fatherland and will shake the world and cause the most bitter failure of the imperialist ringleaders.”
The Citadel
At 0340 on the morning of January 31, 1968 rockets began to fall on Hue, signaling the opening of the centerpiece attack of the Tet Offensive. The rockets are fired from the hills west of the city, and are joined by mortars fired by VC batteries already within the city itself, including at the Tu Do Stadium. The ground forces set off as soon as the first rockets began to fall, pushing for the Citadel gates as well as into the Triangle, setting to work on their list of over 300 designated targets immediately. One notable problem occurs at Mang Ca, where the drainage pipe designated as the infiltration point to the ARVN headquarters there was found to be impassible due to new barbed wire. This forced them to launch a direct attack against the Hau Gate, quickly overwhelming the Popular Front troops guarding it and pushing into the garrison, but the need to fight their way through had alerted the ARVN within. The fighting within the Mang Ca compound would reach within sixty feet from General Truong’s office, but an aggressive counterattack led by Lt. Nguyen Ai led to several NVA casualties and pushes them back beyond the perimeter.
At the Chanh Tay Gate on the western wall six VC wearing stolen ARVN uniforms approached the Popular Front guarding it and opened fire, slaughtering them and securing it. The other western gate, Huu, is defended by an ARVN squad who put up a tenacious defense, with only 14 of the VC infiltrators sill standing when their position is finally flanked and reduced. As dawn approaches, only the Tria Gate at Mang Ca remains under ARVN control, but the NVA is pushing hard to take it.
Tay Loc Airfield in the Citadel, looking west. The ARVN HQ at Mang Ca is visible in the upper left
At 0400 as the NVA moved onto the Tay Loc Airfield in the Citadel they were slowed by barricades near the northern end, and as they attempt to bypass them are attacked by ARVN ordinance troops guarding the 1st Division Armory at the northern end of the field. These are soon joined by the thirty men of the elite Hac Bao reconnaissance company, who engage the NVA with barrages of fire from M72 LAW rocket launchers and small arms fire, halting the communist advance.
The commander of the Hac Bao, Cpt. “Harry” Hue, was at home for Tet when the attack began, and rushes to return to his unit, riding a bicycle through the streets wearing his civilian clothes, riding right past NVA squads who are mistake him for just another panicked citizen. He arrives to take command of his company just as they take two prisoners, who are both almost immediately killed by NVA mortars landing around their position. As the communists pull back to regroup, orders come down from General Truong to the Hac Bao, ordering them to withdraw from the airfield to Mang Ca to launch a counterattack against the NVA surrounding the HQ at Mang Ca.
Captain Hue rallies his men, reminding them that their families live in the city, and they are literally defending their own homes before they move out for Mang Ca. Friendly civilians aid them as they move through the streets, helping them avoid the NVA and VC concentrations. As the Hac Bao approaches the ARVN compound, they surprise the NVA as they approach from their rear, breaking the assault on the compound for the time being.
Jeeps lined up inside the MACV Compound
US National Archives
The Triangle
Simultaneous attacks occurred across the Perfume River in the Triangle, moving against the Police buildings and the Prison, as well as occupying the Provincial Administration Building and the adjacent hospital complex. The ARVN tank depot at Tam Thai was rocked by a series of massive explosions, as explosives pre-planted by VC infiltrators detonated, reducing the armored vehicles to smocking wrecks. Some of the vehicles are able to get out of the compound, but are set upon by RPG fire and most are destroyed along Highway 1. Eleven more M41 tanks and some M113s are already out patrolling the Triangle, and as the attacks began they scatter, with some heading for the Truong Tien Bridge while others take shelter with the Americans at the MACV. Still others are simple abandoned in the streets, in some cases with their engines left running.
At the MACV compound, a barrage of 122mm rockets fell onto the Americans just as an Air Force officer drove through the gates, destroying a jeep and collapsing the roof of some parts of the hotel complex that housed the compound. Despite this, most overshot the compound, falling into the streets beyond. Five minutes after the rockets, NVA infantry charged across Highway 1 from the darkened buildings of Hue University and the Joan of Arc Academy, and are met with fire from the US guards. Marines in a pillbox by the gate open fire, as does the M60 machine gun in a guard tower manned by US Army Sp4 Frank Doezema. He suppresses the enemy from his elevated position, but eventually an RPG hits the tower, grievously wounding Doezema in the process.
Marine Captain Jim Coolican, an advisor to the 1st ARVN Division that was spending the Tet holiday at MACV and a friend of Doezema, who had served as his radioman, climbed the tower under NVA fire to rescue the fallen gunner. Doezema was badly wounded, and Coolican was forced to finish severing his leg with his knife before he could carry him from the tower and bring him to the MACV dispensary, where an aid station was being set up. Immediately after Coolican grabbed an M79 grenade launcher and climbed back into the tower, using the launcher and M60 to continue to suppress the NVA attacks. As he did so the NVA was able to get a grenade into the pillbox at the gate, killing the Marines inside it and rushed the gate, but were repelled.
The NVA had also hit the National Police building next to the MACV, and stray fire from it wounded some of the personnel at MACV, including an Australian officer. The building was quickly cleared from as the suprised policemen were overwhelmed by the charging enemy troops.
An ARVN M41 light tank in Saigon
The Morning
“Compatriots, the hour to wash away our national dishonor and to liberate ourselves has come. Everybody must rise up and launch attacks against the hideouts of the Thieu-Ky Clique and topple the traitorous and sell-out government in various areas. We must set up at once a revolutionary government, build various revolutionary armed forces and patriotic organizations. Punish and arrest all the cruel lackeys of the Thieu-Ky Clique and foreign nations, and help the revolutionary armed forces fulfill their duties. We exhort the officers, soldiers, and the police forces of the Saigon Regime to side with the ranks of the people and give their arms and ammunition to the revolutionary armed forces. We exhort all those who have been going astray to quickly wake up. Those who recognize their faults and are willing to accomplish an exploit will be forgiven by the revolution. Those who willingly resist the revolution will be duly punished. Compatriots, we want to be delivered from slavery and from the dictatorial ruthless regime. We do not want our national aspirations to be thwarted. We are determined to achieve our goals at any cost. Let’s go forward together! The revolution will certainly be crowned with success! Long live an independent, democratic, peaceful and neutral South Vietnam!”
At 0500, with the Hac Bao now within the Mang Ca HQ compound, General Truong ordered the remaining ARVN troops at the Tay Loc Airfield armory to abandon the position, allowing the defense of Mang Ca to be strengthened. They had been holding through the night, including when a US Huey helicopter had been shot down in the area, its crew aiding them until they were extracted by another Huey. The chopper was so badly damaged by NVA fire as it attempted to extract them that when it crash-landed at Phu Bai it was written off.
With the situation in Hue as well as across South Vietnam, ARVN command in Saigon grants a request from General Truong to transfer the 1st ARVN Airborne Task Force to 1st Division command, and they are subsequently ordered to move into the city at best speed, with the 7th ARVN Airborne Battalion running into NVA entrenched in the suburbs, engaging in house-to-house fighting. A similar result is had by the 7th ARVN Airborne Battalion and the already attached 7th Armored Cavalry Regiment, both of which attempt to drive south from their encampment at PK17 on Highway 1.
West of the city, the 3rd ARVN Regiment awakes to find its position in the eastern suburbs surrounded, and engages in a desperate fight. One battalion is able to break out and head for the coat of the South China Sea, but the rest of the regiment remains besieged. Some air support would come in the morning, with VNAF A1 Skyraiders attacking targets in the Citadel, and A4s of USMC Squadron 311 flying out of Chu Cai. The aircraft drop 500 pound bombs and napalm on NVA positions, flying below the heavy overcast clouds.
A VNAF A1 Skyraider at Bien Hoa Airbase near Saigon, with damage from enemy fire in the Tet attack
US National Archives, Film Still, Original Color
Within an hour all major targets in the Triangle had fallen to the NVA, with the exception of the MACV Compound and the Prison. VC sappers had also attempted to destroy the bridges into the city as well as the Nguyen Hoang Bridge across the Perfume on Highway 1, meeting with limited success. The Americans at the MACV Compound were initially under the impression that only a limited attack had taken place on their position, but as the sun rose and the massive VC flag over the citadel became visible, it became quite apparent that the city was under enemy control. Plans were made to evacuate the seriously wounded by air, using the nearby Doc Lap Park as a landing zone, but for the time being there was not sufficient men in the compound to clear a path to the LZ and hold it.
Due to the chaotic state of affairs, the garrison at MACV in Hue could not send a coherent report of their situation out to other US forces, despite their communications being intact for the time being. The main communications center, just down Highway 1 from the compound, remained unmolested, although the VC had cut the telephone lines inb the city, blocking direct communications with the ARVN in the citadel. Despite this, it was obvious that something was afoot, and in the morning Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment (Alpha/1/1) was ordered to depart the Phu Bai Combat Base south of the city to investigate. The company was loaded into trucks, with a couple of US Army quad .50s mounted on trucks for escort. As they rode north on Highway 1 the Marines noted the lack of the usual civilian traffic on the road, indeed the countryside itself was oddly quiet.
The wreck of an ARVN M41 light tank in Hue
As the convoy approached the An Cuu Bridge over the Phu Cam Canal, essentially the southern edge of the city, they encountered a group of USMC M48 Patton tanks, parked on the road alongside the smoldering wrecks of several ARVN M41 Walker-Bulldog light tanks. The burned corpse of one ARVN tanker, sprawled from his hatch, is a ghastly sight that is referenced by most accounts of the Marines who were sent into the city that day.
The Pattons were from a USMC unit, and were en route to Hue for a routine transfer, intending to be loaded onto LCUs at the Hue ramp for transport up the Perfume River to Da Nang, but had halted upon sighting the wrecked ARVN tanks and the plumes of smoke coming from the city. After a quick conference with the Alpha/1/1 commander, Captain Gordon Batcheller, the tanks agree to move out with infantry support, and the Marines are dismounted for this purpose. Despite this, they soon began to take sniper fire, and it was decided to remount on the trucks and tanks and make best speed into the city. At 1030 they proceed again over the An Cuu Bridge, which although damaged by VC sappers still holds the convoy, driving into the seemingly empty suburbs. Passing through, they are hit from all sides by enemy fire, and they increase speed and roar through firing at everything that they can, taking several casualties. As they exit the first built up area the Marines enter a roundabout at the intersection with Nguyen Hue Street, with Highway 1 continuing onto an elevated causeway running through a large, open sugar field. Wrecked ARVN tanks and M113 APCs litter the area. As the Marines move up onto the causeway the NVA opens fire from the tall buildings across the field.
Quad .50 trucks at Khe Sahn, similar to those sent into Hue
US National Archives
In the ensuing melee the Marines are pinned at the roundabout, and eventually Batcheller is badly wounded by an enemy DShK machine gun, which blasts him into a roll of concertina wire on the side of the highway. Bleeding and tangled in the wire, he bellows orders for his men to stay back, as a corpsman is killed in the open on the causeway near him. Sergeant Alfredo Gonzales, leading Alpha/1/1’s 3rd Platoon, takes his men along the side of the causeway, running along a muddy, waterlogged ditch to flank a machine gun nest. By the time the guns are silences almost half of the company has fallen. The tanks had been attempting to fire at enemy positions during this time, but with wounded Marines scattered around the area they could not move in any direction without running any of them over, and were thus effectively stuck in place. In one ghastly scene, a corpsman is shot through the head, remaining in an upright kneeling position in the roundabout, dead.
“Do you want to go into Hue City for an afternoon of street fighting”
Salvation arrives soon after, as Golf/2/5 arrives from Phu Bai, having been sent to reinforce MACV under the command of Lt. Col. Mark Gravel. He was the commanding officer of 1/1, and was moving to reinforce Alpha/1/1 with Golf/2/5, under the command of Captain Chuck Meadows, traveling in a jeep at the lead of the convoy. Expecting only a short engagement, they have not even taken their packs. As the NVA opened fire on them, Gravel’s jeep swerved to block the road as the battalion commander and his radioman dove for cover, and Golf/2/5’s Marines dismounted and returned fire. As they move up they also notice men in khaki uniforms running into the city from across the sugar field, signifying that even more NVA units were entering Hue even as the Marines attempted to do so. Ducking into a Texaco station on the roundabout, Captain Meadows takes a tourist map of the city to get his bearings as they move into the city, noting that it even has some semblance of grid markings on it, which will be of great use if any air or artillery support becomes available.
An M48 drives into Hue
US National Archives
Under heavy enemy fire, Gravel spots Batcheller snarled into the wire on the side of the road, and the jeep is rolled up to cover as corpsmen cut the captain free and splint his leg with an entrenching tool. One of the corpsmen is wounded in the process. He and the other wounded are loaded into the back of a truck, which Gravel orders to make top speed back to Phu Bai. Blood pours from the rear as it drives off.
As the Marines remaining at the causeway begin to push northwards, Gravel, seeing that his jeep must be abandoned, orders one of the M48 tanks to blast it, thus depriving the NVA of the vehicle and its powerful radio equipment. Clearing the causeway does not mean safety either, as an NVA machine gun nest controls the first intersection beyond it. This is neutralized when Sgt. Gonzalez and Gunny J. L. Canley crawl up close enough to get a grenade into the nest, following it by jumping in and finishing the NVA. An NVA spotter in a church on another corner of the intersection is also neutralized when an M48 blasts the steeple he is using. This occurs despite a ban on the use of the tanks’ 90mm main guns in the city, and Eddie Daily, the commander of the offending vehicle, radios to ask for permission to destroy the steeple after the fact. Permission is denied, much to the Marines’ amusement.
At about 1300 the men at the MACV compound noticed an increase in gunfire to the south, and shortly afterward the first units arrived at the compound in the form of 2 M48s, which had driven ahead of the main force to get help. A volunteer force is assembled at MACV, with some commandeered civilian vehicles, to move south down the highway to where Gravel and his Marines were pinned by NVA in the surrounding buildings. This they were able to do, with the entire surviving force arrive in the MACV compound by 1500. One of the Army quad .50s had expended 10,000 rounds of ammunition during the drive from Phu Bai.
Marines fire at NVA across the Perfume River from Doc Lap Park
US National Archives, Film Still, Original Color
After getting their bearings, the Marines at MACV are set to work, first moving to the secure the area around the Nguyen Hoang Bridge, including the planned helicopter landing zone in the adjacent Doc Lap Park. Despite taking fire from the NVA inside the Hue University complex on the western side of Highway 1, the Marines reach the bridge and the park with two M48s without suffering major difficulty. They also encounter 2 ARVN M41 thanks on the bridge approach, still running with their crews buttoned up inside of them, refusing to respond the hammering of the Americans on their hatches.
The wounded are quickly prepared for moving to the park, and the first Marine CH46 Sea Knight helicopter arrives shortly after at the park to begin the evacuation, and is immediately set upon with heavy fire from NVA across the river, including in elevated positions atop the citadel wall. The Marines return fire with tanks and small arms, with some also climbing onto the ARVN tanks to use the hatch mounted .50 caliber machine guns as well. Recoilless rifles begin to fire at the M48s, driving them back from the open spaces, but the evacuation is saved when US Navy PBRs from the nearby LCU ramp speed out onto the river, passing up and down while firing their machine guns on the NVA on the north side of the river. Among those evacuated is Spc4. Frank Doezema, who dies in the air en route to Phu Bai.
A casualty is treated aboard a CH46 headed for Phu Bai
US Navy Medical Corps
Despite finally reaching the MACV compound, the day’s fighting was not yet over. Orders came down from Task Force X-Ray in Phu Bai: the original mission to press on into the citadel was still on. Having observed firsthand the situation in the city, including the hail of NVA fire from the Walled City, Gravel was not overly enthusiastic about the plan, but General LaHue’s orders stood.
Alpha/1/1 had been badly mauled in the push to the compound, and it was out of the question for them to attempt an offensive, and thus Captain Meadows’ Golf/2/5 was ordered to advance across the Nguyen Hoang Bridge and push into the citadel via the Thuong Tu Gate before advancing two kilometers down the narrow streets within to reach the ARVN headquarters at Mang Ca.
As initially planned, the Marines of Golf/2/5 were to cross the bridge with M48 tanks in support, but a quick inspection revealed that although the VC had not managed to drop the span, it was no longer stable enough to handle the weight of the tanks. An attempt was made to get the two static ARVN tanks to join the operation, but their crews remained adamant on their intention not to cross the river. Thus the Marines are forced to cross the bridge on their own, carefully moving toward the central crest of the span, which prevented them from seeing anything on the opposite side.
The Nguyen Hoang Bridge (also known as the Truong Tien Bridge)
Modern Photograph, Original Color, Image from Wikimedia
Just after 1600 the point of Golf/2/5 cross the crest without incident, and the opposite bank seems quiet, until most of the Marines are on the northern half of the bridge, at which point NVA in the buildings as well as an MG nest near the Thua Thein Provincial Information Office just beyond it, quickly pinning the Americans. The Marines attempt to suppress the nest with their own M60, but the gunner is quickly killed. With the situation looking dire, Cpl. Lester Tully managed to move forward along the bridge, getting close enough to the nest to knock it out with a hand grenade, thereby allowing the rest of the company to reach the north bank, securing a bridgehead. A request was sent by Gravel as soon as he arrived back to MACV for vehicles to evacuate the wounded, but Col. Adkisson denies the request, leading to a furious Gravel went on foot back across the bridge to round up some volunteer drivers and trucks. He is able to round up a Marine truck, a navy truck, several civilian cars driven by MACV personnel, as well as one of the Army quad .50 trucks to provide cover fire.
As the wounded are loaded onto the vehicles, an explosion occurs amongst the casualties, although whether this was an NVA RPG or a dropped hand grenade from a dead Marine remains unclear. The quad .50 immediately opens fire on the suspected source, shredding the buildings. Marine truck driver Pfc. Nolan Lala jumps onto the unoccupied .50 caliber machine gun on his truck, and when he was told his truck was full he drove his truck back across the bridge in reverse to protect the wounded in the back.
The Thượng Tứ Gate, with the moat visible
Modern Photograph, Original Color, Image from Wikimedia
Despite the maelstrom of fire, the Marines were able to push a block down to turn north onto Dinh Bo Linh Street, which passed over a narrow bridge over the moat to enter the Citadel via the Thong Tu Gate. As soon as the Americans turned down the street they were met with withering fire from the NVA in the gate building. The portal itself was closed, and to make matters worse the NVA had sealed the doors and windows along the street, extending the narrow path made by the moat bridge to create a long killing zone approaching the gate running all the way down to Tran Hung Dao Street, some 525 feet. The Marines were at a further disadvantage, as without the tanks there was no armor to assist them, and orders had come down from Phu Bai barring the use of mortars, artillery or air support in the city for fear of damaging cultural sites. With many Marines down and the situation considered untenable, as the NVA poured fire down on them, all while the massive VC flag flapped from the flag tower, only now in clear view to the Marines through the thick fog that blanketed the city.
As the Marines remained pinned along the street, Captain Meadows was left with a difficult choice, and elected to order a retreat under his own authority. Shortly after radioing his decision to headquarters he received authorization to do so from Gravel. The Marines gathered their casualties and loaded them onto a civilian flatbed truck, and began to pull back toward the bridge. As they assembled at their bridgehead to complete the withdrawal, a uniformed Vietnamese man emerged from a building, identifying himself as Dr. Doan Van Ba, a Lieutenant in the ARVN and a surgeon. He volunteered his services at the MACV Dispensary after joining the Marines in retreating back across the bridge.
Despite the stubborn defense of the MACV compound and the ARVN headquarters, by dawn the rest of Hue had fallen the to NVA. Civilians mostly kept to their homes, but some ventured out, reporting back to their families seeing VC flags flying around the city, and propaganda companies setting up loudspeakers. Power and water supplies had failed to most of the city, and armed VC were patrolling the streets and guarding intersections, as well as blocking bridges and roads in an attempt to prevent civilians from fleeing the city. Atop the massive flagpole of the Citadel, visible from all across the city, the gold and red flag of the RVN had been replaced by an equally massive red and blue Vietcong banner. The banner had gone up at 0800, after the NVA shredded the RVN flag, found in a heap at the base of the pole, with their knives. Only a small ARVN squad had been in the Imperial Palace, which was quickly dispatched. According to Le Tu Minh, commander of the communist forces in Hue, the city had fallen in three hours.
After pulling back across the Perfume the US forces subsequently set about digging in to secure a strong perimeter around the MACV compound and the landing zone at Doc Lap Park. Orders came down at dusk for the Marines to evacuate a group of Americans from the CORDS building, but this only makes it a few hundred yards before being stopped cold. Even tanks can’t break the deadlock, and the Marines retreat. Calls also continued to come over the radio from the ARVN in the Prison, desperately asking for help as the NVA besieged them, but the Americans were unable to make any headway from the MACV in the night. A total of 80 casualties were sustained today by the Americans, who had only 360 men in the MACV area.
The VC Political Commissars quickly set about their planned purges, moving first against designated targets considered loyal to Saigon. The mayor, Pham Van Khoa, had already fled his home when the VC bombed it, although he left behind his wife and children, who were killed. Many civilians are marched from their homes and gathered in public areas, where the women and children are sent home, followed by the men some time later. The Tu Dam Pagoda was selected for the headquarters of the VC political forces in the Triangle. In the citadel, the same is done in the Imperial Palace. At the Ben Ngu Market the head of their Revolutionary Security Service, Nguyen Dinh Bay, addresses the citizens gathered there, extolling the virtues of communism and announcing the liberation of Hue from the American imperial invaders. It receives a lackluster response. Meanwhile, VNAF planes fly low over the city broadcasting their own propaganda from loudspeakers.
At the power plant complex in the western area of the Triangle, US diplomat Jim Bullington had been staying at the guest house of a friend for the Tet holiday. he awoke to the sounds of gunfire, and his friend eventually braved the street to inform him that the NVA had taken control of the city. Bullington is eventually smuggled out of the guest house to the home of two French Catholic priests, who allow the American to borrow a robe and stay with them, claiming to be a visiting Canadian to keep him safe from the VC. In another area, American volunteers Dr. Marjorie Nelson and Sandra Johnson are arrested, but offer aid to the wounded communist soldiers, as well as providing statements to North Vietnam’s propaganda. They are later taken to a jungle camp, and eventually released by the communists as “friends of the revolution”. Another group of Americans captured were force marched to Hanoi.
Outside the city, the NVA moved a large force into the hamlet of Thon La Chu, where an American built three story concrete bunker was to become the headquarters of the Thua Thien Hue Front for the duration of the battle, with a significant NVA force digging in around the town.
At MACV headquarters in Saigon, General Westmoreland confidently proclaims that the NVA had only around 500 men in Hue, and that the city would soon be completely secured by US and RVN forces. The real number was closer to 10,000 NVA in the city, vastly outnumbering the small US and ARVN presence. Also in Saigon, President Thieu issued a proclamation of martial law throughout the Republic of Vietnam for the duration of the crisis, but his government also remained only vaguely aware of the extent of the NVA gains in far off Hue. A report from the CIA was sent to President Johnson in Washington, but despite its general accuracy it was mostly ignored by both the White House and the military, who simply cannot believe the NVA is capable of such a massive operation.
“1. The friendly position in the city has apparently deteriorated seriously during 31 January.
2. According to a US official who made a flight over the area late on the afternoon of 31 January and received information relayed from US military officials in Hue, the city appears to be largely under the control of the communists.
3. During the flight, the official reported that a major market place on the north side of the Song Huong River in flames, with other smaller fires burning on the south side of the river. A firefight was In progress along the river road on the south side. Ground fire was also coming up from the vicinity of the air strip inside the citadel area.
4. The official was able to raise several local elements by radio and was told that a provincial reconnaissance headquarters inside the city had been overrun, and that many VC were present throughout the area. The official was unable to make contact with the MACV headquarters, or the CORDS headquarters. He observed an ARVN battalion approaching Hue from the northwest, firing artillery to clear the way.
5. A message from the C-2 advisor’s office in the MACV compound at Hue, received at I-Corps headquarters in Da Nang, stated that the MACV compound and the 1st Division headquarters in the citadel at Hue were the only “known” places still holding out against the VC. Reportedly a Marine company had tried to cross the highway bridge into the northern sector of the city, but had been driven back with heavy casualties.
6. There is no other information currently available here to confirm the above report.”
As the first day of the Battle for Hue came to a close, the city remained firmly in communist hands, with the American and RVN forces limited to small enclaves in which they were beseiged by significant enemy forces. Despite the confidence of Westmoreland, the fight for the Imperial City had only just begun.
The American Forces Vietnam Network news broadcasts for today. While the fighting in Saigon dominates the coverage of events in country, Hue is only notable in its absence
The Citadel: 1-31-1968
Mang Ca, ARVN 1st Division headquarters - The NVA is unable to capture it today
Tay Loc Airfield and Armory - The Hac Bao and ARVN Ordinance Co. hold the airfield until morning, when they are ordered to retreat to bolster the defense of Mang Ca
Thuong Tu Gate - In the afternoon US Marines of Golf/2/5 attempt to enter the citadel through this gate, but are repulsed and retreat back over the river to the MACV
The VC flag was hoisted on the massive flag tower of the Imperial Palace at 0800
The NVA has set up a major headquarters within the Imperial Palace
The Triangle: 1-31-1968
MACV Compound - Despite an assault by the NVA, the compound holds throughout the day
LCU Ramp - The US Navy LCU ramp is ignored by the VC, allowing PBRs based here to be of great use later
An Cuu Bridge - As US Marine reinforcement of Alpha/1/1 approach the Thu Cam Canal they rendezvous with Marine M48 Patton tanks, which join them as they press on into the city
Traffic Circle - Alpha/1/1 is pinned down by enemy fire until reinforced by Marines from Golf/2/5. They are eventually able to press forward across the open causeway
Doc Lap Park - The Americans secure a landing zone here after the Marines reach the MACV
USAF Communications Post - Several US Air Force personnel are trapped within a small communications post here. Attempts by the Marines to rescue them are unsuccessful.
AFVN Detachment 5 - The Americans at Detachment 5 are also isolated in their villa near the US Consul’s residence. They take sporadic mortar and sniper fire.
Thua Thien Provincial Prison - The ARVN guards at the prison are still holding come morning, thanks to the thick stone walls and guard towers of the facility. Desperate radio calls for help have been unanswered, as the US Marines have been unable to push out of the MACV area
Nguyen Hoang Bridge - Golf/2/5 Marines crossed the bridge with some difficulty in the afternoon after reaching MACV, setting up a bridgehead in order to push into the citadel and relieve the ARVN in Mang Ca
Thuong Tu Gate - Golf/2/5 was stalled in front of the citadel gate. Unable to advance and taking casualties, the Marines were forced to retreat back over the bridge to MACV
Waving flag indicates possession of the flag tower