Vietnam War which was taken place from 1955 to 1975 is a protracted conflict that pitted the communist government of North Vietnam and its allies in South Vietnam, known as the Viet Cong, against the government of South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States. The war – also called War Against the Americans to Save the Nation – is part of a larger regional conflict and a manifestation of the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies.
- Is Vietnam one of countries remaining communism in the world?
- What are the main factor that caused the Vietnam War?
Everything will come to the end, and so did the war, but it left heavy consequences to survivals, families and next generation. Thousands of people fell down, millions of constructions was destroyed. However, you can rebuild constructions but people can not resurrect. How many Vietnamese died in the Vietnam war?
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Total deaths in the Vietnam War
The human costs of the long conflict were harsh for all involved. Not until 1995 did Vietnam release its official estimate of war dead:
- As many as 2 million civilians on both sides and some 1.1 million North Vietnamese and Viet Cong fighters.
- The U.S. military has estimated that between 200,000 and 250,000 South Vietnamese soldiers died in the war.
- In 1982 the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was dedicated in Washington, D.C., inscribed with the names of 57,939 members of U.S. armed forces who had died or were missing as a result of the war.
- Over the following years, additions to the list have brought the total past 58,200.
- Among other countries that fought for South Vietnam on a smaller scale, South Korea suffered more than 4,000 dead, Thailand about 350, Australia more than 500, and New Zealand some three dozen.
Not only Vietnam suffered losing of people but also losing a lot of wealth: its agriculture, business, and industry were disrupted, large parts of its countryside were scarred by bombs and defoliation and laced with land mines, and its cities and towns were heavily.
A mass exodus in 1975 of people loyal to the South Vietnamese cause was followed by another wave in 1978 of “boat people,” refugees fleeing the economic restructuring imposed by the communist regime. Meanwhile, the United States, its military demoralized and its civilian electorate deeply divided, began a process of coming to terms with defeat in what had been its longest and most controversial war. Finally in 1995, the two countries resumed formal diplomatic relations.
Civilian deaths in the Vietnam War
- It is estimated that 40,000 South Vietnamese civilians were assassinated by the People’s Army of Vietnam /Viet Cong
- 250,000 were killed as a result of combat in South Vietnam and 65,000 were killed in North Vietnam.
- Another 222,000 civilians were counted as military deaths by the U.S. in compiling its “body count.”
Deaths caused by North Vietnam/Viet Cong forces
J. Rummel – a professor of political science who taught at the Indiana University, Yale University, and University of Hawaii – estimated that:
- People’s Army of Vietnam /Viet Cong forces killed around 164,000 civilians in democide between 1954 and 1975 in South Vietnam, from a range of between 106,000 and 227,000, plus another 50,000 killed in North Vietnam.
- The Viet Cong killed hundreds of Montagnard civilians at the village during the Battle of Dak Son, 1967
- 17,000 South Vietnamese civil servants killed by People’s Army of Vietnam /Viet Cong.
In addition, at least 36,000 Southern civilians were executed for various reasons in the period 1967–1972, about 130 American and 16,000 South Vietnamese POWs died in captivity.
Thomas Thayer in 1985 estimated that during the 1965 – 1972 period the Viet Cong killed 33,052 South Vietnamese village officials and civil servants.
Deaths caused by South Vietnam
According to RJ Rummel, there are lots of civilians and soldiers killed from the Vietnam War between 1964 and 1975:
- An estimated 1,500 people died during the forced relocations of 1,200,000 civilians, another 5,000 prisoners died from ill-treatment and about 30,000 suspected communists and fighters were executed.
- In Quảng Nam Province 4,700 civilians were killed in 1969.
- This totals, from a range of between 16,000 and 167,000 deaths caused by South Vietnam during the (Diệm-era), and 42,000 and 118,000 deaths caused by South Vietnam in the post Diệm-era), excluding People’s Army of Vietnam forces killed by the Army of the Republic of Vietnam in combat.
Deaths caused by the American military
- RJ Rummel estimated that American forces committed around 5,500 intentional democidal mass-killings between 1960 and 1972, from a range of between 4,000 and 10,000 killed in democide.
- Benjamin Valentino attributes possibly 110,000–310,000 “counter guerrilla mass killings” to U.S. and South Vietnamese forces during the war.
- Estimates for the number of North Vietnamese civilian deaths resulting from US bombing range from 30,000–65,000.
- Higher estimates place the number of civilian deaths caused by American bombing of North Vietnam in Operation Rolling Thunder at 182,000.
- American bombing in Cambodia is estimated to have killed between 30,000 and 150,000 civilians and combatants.
- Burial of 300 unidentified victims from the Huế Massacre, killed by communist forces and found after the Army of the Republic of Vietnam and U.S. Marines retook the area in March, 1968. U.S. Military photo.
- 2 million gallons of Agent Orange, some of which was contaminated with Dioxin, was sprayed by the U.S. military over more than 10% of Southern Vietnam, as part of the U.S. herbicidal warfare program, Operation Ranch Hand, during the Vietnam War from 1961 to 1971. Vietnam’s government claimed that 400,000 people were killed or maimed as a result of after effects, and that 500,000 children were born with birth defects. However, the United States government has challenged these figures as being unreliable.
- Guenter Lewy estimates that around 220,000 civilians in South Vietnam were killed in US, Army of the Republic of Vietnam and other allied land operations.
- Seven massacres officially confirmed by the American side and in five other places altogether about 100 civilians were executed.
- Two further massacres were reported by soldiers who had taken part in them, one north of Đức Pho in Quảng Ngãi Province in the summer of 1968 (14 victims), another in Bình Định Province on 20 July 1969 (25 victims).
- Tiger Force, a special operations force, murdered hundreds, possibly over a thousand, civilians.
- In the course of large-scale operations an unknown number of non-combatants were killed either accidentally or deliberately – with the Army Inspector General estimating that more than 5,000 died in the course of Operation Speedy Express.
- According to the Information Bureau of the Provisional Revolutionary Government of South Vietnam (PRG), between April 1968 and the end of 1970 American ground troops killed about 6,500 civilians in the course of twenty-one operations either on their own or alongside their allies. Three of the massacres reported on the American side were not mentioned on the PRG list.
Deaths caused by the South Korean military
- United States Marine recovered victims bodies who were killed by South Korean Marines in Phong Nhi and Phong Nhat hamlets on February 12, 1968.
- The ROK Capital Division purportedly conducted the Bình An/Tây Vinh massacre in February/March 1966. The 2nd Marine Brigade purportedly conducted the Binh Tai Massacre on 9 October 1966.
- In December 1966, the Blue Dragon Brigade purportedly conducted the Bình Hòa massacre. The Second Marine Brigade conducted the Phong Nhị and Phong Nhất massacre on 12 February 1968. South Korean Marines purportedly conducted the Hà My massacre on 25 February 1968.
- According to a study conducted in 1968 by a Quaker-funded Vietnamese-speaking American couple, Diane and Michael Jones, there were at least 12 mass-killings conducted by South Korean forces which approached the scale of the My Lai Massacre with reports of thousands of routine murders on civilians primarily the elderly, women and children.
Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about the Vietnam War:
What caused the Vietnam War?
The Vietnam War was rooted in a long history of conflict between Vietnam and its foreign rulers. In the 19th century, Vietnam became a French colony. After World War II, Vietnam declared its independence from France, but the country was soon divided into two separate states: North Vietnam, which was communist, and South Vietnam, which was capitalist. The United States supported South Vietnam, while the Soviet Union supported North Vietnam.
Why did the United States get involved in the Vietnam War?
The United States feared that if South Vietnam fell to communism, it would lead to a domino effect, with other countries in Southeast Asia following suit. The United States also wanted to contain the spread of communism during the Cold War.
How did the United States fight the Vietnam War?
The United States used a variety of tactics in the Vietnam War, including conventional warfare, air strikes, and special forces operations. The United States also supported the South Vietnamese army.
What were the major turning points in the Vietnam War?
One of the major turning points in the Vietnam War was the Tet Offensive of 1968. The Tet Offensive was a coordinated attack by North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces on major cities and towns in South Vietnam. The offensive was a military failure for the communists, but it had a significant impact on public opinion in the United States. Many Americans began to question the wisdom of the war, and domestic support for the war began to decline.
Another major turning point in the war was the Paris Peace Accords of 1973. The Paris Peace Accords were a ceasefire agreement that called for the withdrawal of US troops from Vietnam. The agreement also called for the creation of a National Council of National Reconciliation and Concord, which would have paved the way for a new government in South Vietnam. However, the Paris Peace Accords were never fully implemented, and the war continued for two more years.
How did the Vietnam War end?
The Vietnam War ended with the fall of Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, to North Vietnamese forces in 1975. The fall of Saigon marked the reunification of Vietnam under communist rule.
What were the consequences of the Vietnam War?
The Vietnam War had a profound impact on Vietnam and the United States. The war resulted in the deaths of millions of people and caused widespread destruction. The war also had a significant impact on the political and social landscape of both countries.
In the aftermath of the war, Vietnam struggled to rebuild. The country’s economy was in ruins, and its people were traumatized by the war. The United States also struggled to come to terms with the war. The war divided the country and led to a period of political and social unrest.
How many people died in Vietnam war?
The Vietnam War was a long, costly, and brutal conflict that lasted from 1954 to 1975. The war resulted in the deaths of millions of people, both Vietnamese and American.
The exact number of Vietnamese civilians killed in the war is unknown, but estimates range from 2 to 3 million. The war also caused widespread displacement, with millions of Vietnamese people forced to flee their homes.
The number of American soldiers killed in the war was 58,220. In addition, 303,644 American soldiers were wounded in the war.
The Vietnam War was a tragedy that had a profound impact on both Vietnam and the United States. The war’s legacy continues to be felt today.
By the early 19, the American war effort in Vietnam was winding down, as the Nixon administration continued its Vietnamization policy, including the withdrawal of troops and the transfer of control over ground operations to the South Vietnamese.
I see the statistics are terrible. The number of people who died during the Vietnam War was close to that of a small country, more than the population of Singapore.
You’re right about that. Communism which flourished in the Soviet Union had spread to China which has a border with Russia, and then spread from China to North Viet Nam which has a border with China. South Viet Nam was under attack and was in danger of falling to communism, and the United States was concerned about all of southeast Asia becoming communist. America may not have enjoyed the victory they wanted, but the war attained it’s goal of STOPPING THE SPREAD OF COMMUNISM.
Execpt for Laos & Cambodia, but you just go right ahead with your alternative facts.
The US left SE Asia in 1975. Communism was already in place in Laos and Cambodia, and those countries fell to the communists in 1975 about the same time we left. There were zero countries that became communist after 1975, and there are only four countries in the world today that are communist including Laos. The Viet Nam war stopped cold the spread of communism.
But Viet Nam is still well and truly under a communist regime – I was there earlier this year
The goal of the war was to secure the election of Richard Nixon. We learned this from the tapes which were declassified recently. The war did not stop the spread of communism, and it was not intended to.
James Forrest, you lie. The Vietnam War started long before Nixon was elected President. It is jack-asinine to say that the war was started before Nixon was President in order to help Nixon get RE-elected. Nixon may have refused to cut and run in order to avoid defeat in the elections, but WHY DO YOU THINK CRAPPING OUT WOULD HAVE RUINED HIS CHANCES, STUPID? ISN’T IT BECAUSE THAT WOULD HAVE OUTRAGED THE AMERICAN PEOPLE TO SEE SO MANY OF THEIR YOUNG MEN DIE FOR NOTHING?
You also lie that it was not intended to stop the spread of Communism. Laos and Cambodia fell, but Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines all stood firm. You think Communism couldn’t have spread there? What was stopping it? The man in the moon?
Bullshit. It was caused by the turnover to the Americans in the 1950s of French colony of SE Asia. Your information was pushed as a reason for war in the 1960s and was disproven. Propaganda. Nixon and LBJ both knew the war was unwinnable yet escalated.
And our young men Did die for Nothing. Just because they died does not make the war “noble.”
South Vietnam didn’t need or want our help. Most South Vietnamese civilians and soldiers wanted communism. And even if he was a communist, Ho Chi Minh would’ve treated his people better than Diem or any of our other puppet leaders.
So it was worth the death of millions of people? Would things have been any different today if the US did not invade the country with overwhelming military force? It is ridiculous rationalization like yours that continues to cause endless wars around the globe.
I think you need to dig a little deeper into your history. The communists are responsible for approximately 100,000,000 deaths in the 20th century, and your blaming the US for stopping it?
War for political beliefs are just sad and who gives a shit about communism or any other ism . Oh wait Hitler did . Always need a boogie man and then the soldiers and civilians behind the lines or on them pay the price . Maybe one day we can start killing the people starting the wars. Or possibly someone will create the greatest weapon of all the empathy gun. War is just plain stupid and anyone who thinks otherwise has never seen any real death or combat .
Hitler was trying to re-build German Empire that fell in WW1. It had to sue with obsession with the past like Russia does to this day. War is horrible,but facist and communist are a problem,they only respond to violence. Facist and Communist are the ones who start all the wars in the post WW1 world. It’s necessary to stop the spread of those ideals- according to you we just sit back and let them gain ground- China is a huge threat to US and the world because we let thier Communist government become way too powerful and they state they want to dominate the world.. the Soviet Communist on the world is still felt in Russia,China and North Korea especially-now they have nuclear weapons and lust for power.
Again,according to you it’s a good thing.. luckily Russia has proven to be big talk because of war in Ukraine,but China is the real threat to the entire world- they have concentration camps the whole deal..so we should let them in act thier plan of world domination? The communist virus did get too strong and because of Vietnam it didn’t get stronger..I hate war,but in WW2 we should have wiped out the Soviet’s after the Nazi and we wouldn’t have these problems.
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How many American civillians died in the Veitnam War
Only a few who volunteered for relief efforts. Big surprise. The US civilian population was thousands of miles away. Duh.
You are obviously an idiot. “Only a few who volunteered for relief efforts.”??? Check your facts before you post. 58,200 is the official number of Americans who died for a country that wasn’t worth dying for. You know, all of your postings are inaccurate- so besides being a total incompetent idiot- you are a liar on top of that. Rainouart- ngậm miệng nói dối ngu ngốc của bạn. Bạn làm cho mình trông cực kỳ ngu ngốc trước tất cả những người bạn thua cuộc!
Chen Li Sung, do you know the definition of the word “civilians”?
In American english – civilian specifically means someone who is NOT in the military. Easily confused with citizen.
It was actually a lot more than that. You forget the fact that our allies were drug czars, who were responsible for the heroin influx in the US from 65-75. This isn’t a conspiracy theory, just ask veterans that actually fought in the war, not assholes who pretend to care. When you actually ask the veterans, they have a much different view than the people who think they know about how we saved communist sympathizers from spreading death. But what did we do about Mao? Stalin? Well when we figured out Germany was about to invade Russia, we would go through with the lend-lease program, which would help Russia (in the most minor way) defeat Germany. Yes, the US supported a communist country that ended up decimating an enemy we ‘beat’. If that didn’t happen, we wouldn’t have been able to make shitty War movies about how we won.
Every citizen soldier was a civilian conscripted.
It was a good time to be born female.
What was the total body count of the Vietnamese?
A lot of these statistics are highly questionable guesstimates. At least the Vietnamese embassy has the decency to indicated that, unlike the “American” Leftist fellow travellers of Communism, who are like Mao in their war on reality and human nature.
Watch the Netflix documentary on the Vietnam War….The war casualties in Vietnamese lives was stated as 3-5 million the us military complex fueled economic growth at home LBJ Nixon and Eisenhower were Cold War war hawks the US is responsible for the overthrow of dozens of governments that put the people first just view Oliver Stones Hidden American History on Netflix 4% of world pop 50% of the worlds wealth 50% of worlds wealth its all about maintaining US way of living
I guess the real measure of the truth is whether or not the nation of Viet Nam is one of free speech, the ability to travel freely and the ability to be an individual without the government telling you where you can or cannot go. If you get up each morning with a joy and hope that you can be your best without being smitten down by an autocratic government then you have achieved true freedom.
Lorraine- you speak the truth, sister!
oh by the way you know Saigon is Ho Chi Minh City that according to the airlines that would freak people out there want to go there here it was a democratic City when we went through I lost my squad there January 9th 1970 and now it’s a communist City with Yuppie stores yeah it was worth it not
Vietnam wasn’t worth it 60,000 guys for nothing including my squad
Losing so many because LBJ and Nixon wanted to play GI Joe after JFK had already determined that the war was heinous. And we didn’t just lose 60,000. We murdered about 2 million Vietnamese, Cambodians, & Laotians. Well, you did. I can’t really blame conscripted men though; you were basically slaves. The Dems cut off funding about when the fragging picked up- the conscripts killing their racially “superior” officers who would be pushing for maximum body count because that was Nixon’s measuring stick for success. The worry was that race riots would start in VN and come home to roost. The USA lost all moral credibility in that war- especially after the Pinkville Massacre cover-up hit the news. Also at some point we learned that Nixon had kept the Menu bombings secret- thats when we dropped more pounds of ordinance on the neutral Buddhists of Cambodia than had been dropped on ALL the Axis Powers during WWII. They were having a hard enough time already with their Civil War. The bombings served as a great recruitment tool for the Khmer, who the US Gov’t actually supported for decades after the war.
Personally, I believe that Uncle Ho was a far more ethical and principled man than George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and the rest of our founding fathers combined. Vietnam was a slave colony of Vichy (Nazi) France. Washington was essentially royalty to begin with- he had a nickname that he himself used proudly, given to him by the natives. The name was “Conotocaurious”, and translates to “Devourer of Villages” or “Burner of Towns”. Not to mention the fact that he started WWI. (Or what Churchill called the *real* first world-war, eg the 7 year war.) The fact that he was a “dandy” and hired a drillmaster who was a convicted sodomite would anger the right. I couldn’t care less about that. The fact that he had over 40 villages burnt and was remarkably two-faced about the natives doesn’t even compute for most on the right. At least he let his slaves go after he died; it was part of his will. That was better than Jefferson did.
The Philippines is about to suffer the same faith of Vietnam during the early 70’s when President Marcos government decided to declare martial law that resulting the death of 35,000 during the fighting against the communist. 35,000 fatalities is way below 2 millions fatalities during Vietnam war. President Marcos being a visionary made an excellent decision that saves millions of lives.
I actually had two uncle’s that stayed with the OSS (pre-CIA), in SE Asia around 1955. Communism was being taught in small villages then, and because the French treated the Vietnamese as their slaves, the Vietnamese people disliked all foreigners.
They wanted Vietnam to themselves, rightfully so.
I remember my uncle’s telling me when I was 12 (1962), we’ll be at war there. When I was of Military age, Dad would only let me enlist in the Navy. I would tell my parents later, I flew in Nam.
Getting legitimate answers requires asking legitimate questions. Given the tremendous loss of life and suffering, why the wars (1946 – 1975)?
And ask that question using the context of present-day, 2020 ( reference the web sites: vietnamgolf.co & vietnamgolfvacation.com)
I remember how the media would lie to the Americans at home during that time. I remember in 1967 when I was 11 on how they were saying that we were winning the war by using statistics to try to prove their point (” Look here–230,000 Viet Cong killed so far versus 9000 Americans dead”) Surely no comfort to the 9000 American families who’d lost their sons over there. It was in 1968 that Walter Cronkite drove the point home and showed that as long as the politicians in Washington were calling the shots that the war was unwinnable and a bottomless blood bath.
Flash forward to today and a prez trump would have either had the VN not tried anything or been soundly beaten very quickly, however a putz like Biden would have us completely beaten while we accept 5 million VM, give them cash, insurance, a new electric vehicle and a new home. 2024 can’t come soon enough. Almost forgot, free college education at whatever institution they would desire to attend.
kill the leaders who want war SIMPLE