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Drawn Swords in a Distant Land
A History of South Vietnam
George J. Veith
- 736 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
Drawn Swords in a Distant Land
A History of South Vietnam
George J. Veith
About This Book
Drawn Swords in a Distant Land tracks the rise and fall of South Vietnam. This book highlights the South Vietnamese effort to build and defend their country, while weaving in the policy decisions made in Washington and Hanoi that significantly influenced the course of the war. A huge historical gap exists in understanding the motivations and policies of the Saigon government, mainly due to ideological blinders,misinformation, and outright lies. By providing the South Vietnamese story and perspectives, DrawnSwords sets the record straight and offers the first detailed overview of their successes and failures inthe democratic experiment known as the Republic of Vietnam. Many books have aptly chronicled thepresidency of Ngo Dinh Diem, but few scholars have delved deeply into the years following the coup.This has left a tremendous historical void. Thus, this exploration of the presidency of Nguyen VanThieu, the American withdrawal, and the eventual fall of the Second Republic of Vietnam. Equallyimportant, Drawn Swords provides fascinating new evidence on how the Diem coup was almost halted,the backroom maneuvering that allowed Thieu to run for the president over Nguyen Cao Ky, and the truestory behind the infamous "Anna Chennault Affair," which shows that Richard Nixon was not theinstigator of a plot to win the 1968 election.Even more explosive, Drawn Swords provides the incredible details on the last, great, secret of the Vietnam War: a plot during the last days of the war by France, inconjunction with one of Hanoi's allies, to prevent North Vietnam from conquering Saigon. This previouslyunknown scheme, along with many other fascinating new insights, sheds fresh light on the tumultuousstruggle called the Vietnam War.
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Table of contents
- Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright
- Dedication
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Abbreviations
- Maps
- Introduction
- 1 âThe Best Days of My Lifeâ: The Rise of the Republic of Vietnam
- 2 âIf the Army Was Weak, the Regime Would Become Weakâ: The Struggle for Supremacy
- 3 âEither Diem Changed His Policies, or We Would Change Diemâ: Death of Diem
- 4 âRepresenting All Nationalist Tendenciesâ: Duong Van Minh Charts a New Course
- 5 âThe Earth Is Round. We Will Meet Again One Dayâ: Nguyen Khanhâs Countercoup
- 6 âA Real Military Government Neededâ: Reaping What They Sowed
- 7 âWe Are Fed Up with Coupsâ: The Return to Civilian Rule
- 8 âI Want to Truly Change the Lives of the Peopleâ: New Leadership
- 9 âOnly One Shot for Madness to Followâ: The Long First Year of Nguyen Cao Ky
- 10 âRice Is as Important as Bulletsâ: Building the Country
- 11 âThis Constitution Is Officially Adoptedâ: Showdown with the Directorate
- 12 âFrom the Moment I Take Office, I Belong to Youâ: Birth of the Second Republic
- 13 âThis Is Our Countryâ: Defeating the Tet Offensive
- 14 âA Country that Cannot Organize Itself Is Not a Countryâ: Thieu Breaks His Chains
- 15 âThis Conference Will Decide the Fate of My Nationâ: Searching for Peace
- 16 âWe Who Run This Country Are Not Warlordsâ: Thieu Offers Peace
- 17 âLong Haul, Low Costâ: Thieu Proposes a New Strategy
- 18 âWe Seldom Understood the Financial Costs of Victoryâ: Finding Economic Security
- 19 âThe War Will Fade Awayâ: Fanciful Notions and Other Thoughts
- 20 âThieu Overreached Himselfâ: Laos, the Election, and the Beginning of the End
- 21 âOnly a Step Between Me and Deathâ: The Easter Offensive and the Paris Accords
- 22 âWe Must Keep Our Hands Firmly on Our Gunsâ: In the Shadow of Peace
- 23 âThe War Has Begun Againâ: South Vietnam Starts to Unravel
- 24 âI Will Draw Out My Swordâ: Diplomacyâs Final Dance
- Bibliography
- Notes
- Index