page_title: Sacred Sword of the Patriots League
hierarchical_section_title: Sacred Sword of the Patriots League
caption_attribution_description: Italiano: Lo stemma ufficioso del MACVSOG English: The official emblem of MACVSOG (Military Assistance Command Vietnam Studies and Observation Group)
context_page_description: The Sacred Sword of the Patriots League was a sustained black operation that originated in the Central Intelligence Agency and was carried out by the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam – Studies and Observations Group during the Vietnam War. It involved a combination of psychological warfare and psychological operations, today known as military information support operations.
  The SSPL was "planned and implemented beginning in April 1963," though it continued to develop through 1968. It formed the centerpiece of various PSYOP directed against North Vietnam, which were codenamed Humidor. It attempted to convince the people—and sometimes the government—of North Vietnam of the existence of an autonomous, non-communist society within North Vietnam. Creating and promulgating the "legend" of the SSPL required U.S. Special Forces to build on PSYWAR techniques established by the Office of Strategic Services during World War II. Some historians believe the SSPL managed to divert the attention of North Vietnamese officials enough to justify its expenses and manpower.
context_section_description: The Sacred Sword of the Patriots League (SSPL) (Mặt trận gươm thiêng ái quốc) was a sustained black operation that originated in the Central Intelligence Agency and was carried out by the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam – Studies and Observations Group (MACV-SOG) during the Vietnam War. It involved a combination of psychological warfare (PSYWAR) and psychological operations (PSYOP), today known as military information support operations (MISO).
  The SSPL was "planned and implemented beginning in April 1963," though it continued to develop through 1968. It formed the centerpiece of various PSYOP directed against North Vietnam, which were codenamed Humidor. It attempted to convince the people—and sometimes the government—of North Vietnam of the existence of an autonomous, non-communist society within North Vietnam. Creating and promulgating the "legend" of the SSPL required U.S. Special Forces to build on PSYWAR techniques established by the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) during World War II. Some historians believe the SSPL managed to divert the attention of North Vietnamese officials enough to justify its expenses and manpower. However, the program is not known for any particularly noteworthy successes and it suffered from a lack of direction regarding its ultimate goals. Recurring disagreements between some military leaders in Vietnam and policymakers in Washington kept the program from ever becoming an actual counterrevolutionary force within North Vietnam. It was mostly disbanded in 1968 following an early round of negotiations in what became the Paris Peace Accords of 1973.
caption: MACV-SOG forces wore nondescript uniforms, but this was their unofficial insignia
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