page_title: Embassy of the United States, Saigon
section_title: Tet Offensive
hierarchical_section_title: Embassy of the United States, Saigon / Second embassy / Tet Offensive
caption_attribution_description: The hole blasted in the US embassy wall that allowed Viet Cong (VC) forces access to the embassy compound. For a period of time they laid siege to the embassy inflicting considerable damage and loss of life until US forces destroyed the enemy force (Original caption)
context_page_description: The United States Embassy in Saigon was first established in June 1952, and moved into a new building in 1967 and eventually closed in 1975. The embassy was the scene of a number of significant events of the Vietnam War, most notably the Viet Cong attack during the Tet Offensive which helped turn American public opinion against the war, and the helicopter evacuation during the Fall of Saigon after which the embassy closed permanently.
  In 1995, the U.S. and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam formally established relations and the embassy grounds and building were handed back to the United States. The former embassy was subsequently demolished in 1998 and is currently a park inside of the U.S. Consulate General's compound in what is now called Ho Chi Minh City.
context_section_description: On the early morning of 31 January 1968, as part of the Tet Offensive, 19 Viet Cong sappers from the elite C-10 Sapper Battalion attacked the embassy. The VC were engaged by two military policemen from the 716th Military Police Battalion part of the 18th Military Police Brigade at the vehicle entrance on Mac Dinh Chi Street who raised the alarm. Inside the chancery building U.S. Marines of the Marine Security Guard sealed the building.
  Minutes later at 02:47, the VC blew a small hole in the perimeter wall on Thong Nhut Boulevard and gained access to the embassy compound. The first two VC that crawled through the hole and into the grounds were shot and killed by the two MPs in their guard post at the Mac Dinh Chi Street entrance. The MPs radioed for help before being killed by VC fire. An MP Jeep patrol responded to the calls for help from the embassy but as they approached the embassy they were met by automatic weapons fire from the VC that were outside the wall, killing both MPs.
  In addition to three marines, there were two Vietnamese and six American civilians inside the chancery building at the time of the attack. The Americans armed themselves with .38 revolvers, Beretta M12 submachine guns and a shotgun and waited for the VC to come inside. Outside in the embassy grounds, the VC were unsure of their next move as both their leaders had both been killed after they entered the embassy grounds. The VC could easily have blasted their way into the chancery had they been ordered to do so; instead they took positions in or near the circular planters around the chancery and returned fire at the growing numbers of Americans shooting at them.
  The remaining marines of the Marine Security Guard detachment were organised into quick reaction teams and headed to the embassy where they laid fire on the embassy gardens.
  At 04:20, General William Westmoreland ordered the 716th MP Battalion to clear the embassy as their first priority. Lacking armored vehicles and helicopters, the MPs moved in more troops to cordon off the embassy. The tactical situation was confused by darkness and the poor communications within the chancery and between the chancery and the MPs and marines outside the embassy compound.
  As dawn broke on the morning of 31 January, MPs and marines entered the embassy grounds and within a few minutes, they easily killed all of the few surviving VC for most of them by then were already dead or dying in the embassy garden from the prolonged firefight. At the same time, a helicopter carrying troops from the 101st Airborne Division landed on the roof and proceeded to sweep the chancery building, finding no VC inside.
  By 09:00, the embassy was declared secure. Of the 19 VC that attacked the building, 18 had been killed and one wounded VC was captured. US losses were 4 MPs and 1 marine killed.
  The first news reports of the embassy attack were sent by the Associated Press at 03:15 based on fragmentary information, a later report stated that three VC had entered the embassy grounds. The news reports from the embassy reflected the confused tactical situation. At 07:25, the Associated Press carried a story stating that the VC had seized part of the first floor of the embassy building and that U.S. forces were being held back by fire from the embassy building. This report was picked up by NBC news who, on the 18:30 EST (06:30 ICT) Huntley–Brinkley Report, broadcast that the VC occupied the first floor of the embassy building and that U.S. forces were in the embassy grounds exchanging fire with them. Later news reports corrected the facts of the attack, but the initial reports had shocked the American public.
  While the embassy attack (like much of the Tet Offensive) was tactically insignificant, it had a profound political and psychological impact. The United States had been fighting in Vietnam for over two-and-a-half years, 20,000 Americans had been killed and despite the presence of nearly 500,000 U.S. troops in Vietnam, the VC had managed to penetrate the U.S. Embassy.
caption: Hole blown in embassy perimeter wall through which the Viet Cong entered the embassy grounds
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