Con Thien: The Hill of Angels PDF
Preview Con Thien: The Hill of Angels
CON THIEN CON THIEN THE HILL OF ANGELS James P. Coan The University of Alabama Press • Tuscaloosa Copyright © 2004 The University of Alabama Press Tuscaloosa, Alabama 35487-0380 All rights reserved Manufactured in the United States of America Designer: Michele Myatt Quinn Typeface: ACaslon ∞ The paper on which this book is printed meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Science–Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48–1984. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Coan, James P. Con Thien : the Hill of Angels / James P. Coan. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-8173-1414-8 (cloth : alk. paper) 1. Vietnamese Con®ict, 1961–1975—Vietnam—Con Thien Mountain Region. 2. Vietnamese Con®ict, 1961–1975—Personal narratives, American. 3. Con Thien Mountain Region (Vietnam)—History. I. Title. DS559.9.C66C63 2004 959.704′342—dc22 2004004302 To the U.S. Marines and Navy Corpsmen who sacri¤ced all of their tomorrows at Con Thien. They shall grow not old, as we who are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning We will remember them. —Laurence Binyon, “For the Fallen” C ontents List of Illustrations and Maps xi Preface xv Acknowledgments xix Prologue 1 Part One Roots of Con®ict 1 Before the Americans Came 9 2 The Generals 16 3 McNamara’s Wall 24 Part Two The DMZ War Unfolds 4 Nguyen of the North versus PFC Jones 33 5 Setting the Stage 39 Part Three The Bloody Month of May 6 Battle for Con Thien 63 7 DMZ Invasion 86 viii Contents Part Four Summer in Hell 8 Buffalo 109 9 Running the Gauntlet 137 Part Five General Offensive, Phase I 10 The “Thundering Third” 165 11 Into the Valley of Death 182 Part Six The Siege 12 3/9’s Turn in the Barrel 215 13 Monsoon Misery 226 14 Living in the “V” Ring 239 15 The “Magni¤cent Bastards” 259 Part Seven Kentucky 16 Winter Battles: 1967–68 277 17 After Tet 293 18 Parting Shots 312 Requiem 316 Appendix A Medal of Honor and Navy Cross Recipients in the Con Thien Area of Operations, 1966–68 321 Appendix B Con Thien/Leatherneck Square Area Casualties, March 19, 1967–February 28, 1969 323 Contents ix Appendix C Organization of U.S. Marine Corps Infantry Units—Vietnam 325 Notes 327 Glossary 339 Bibliography 347 Index 351
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