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Triumph Regained: The Vietnam War, 1965-1968 Kindle Edition

4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 108 ratings

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Triumph Regained: The Vietnam War, 1965–1968 is the long-awaited sequel to the immensely influential Triumph Forsaken: The Vietnam War, 1954–1965. Like its predecessor, this book overturns the conventional wisdom using a treasure trove of new sources, many of them from the North Vietnamese side. Rejecting the standard depiction of U.S. military intervention as a hopeless folly, it shows America’s war to have been a strategic necessity that could have ended victoriously had President Lyndon Johnson heeded the advice of his generals. In light of Johnson’s refusal to use American ground forces beyond South Vietnam, General William Westmoreland employed the best military strategy available. Once the White House loosened the restraints on Operation Rolling Thunder, American bombing inflicted far greater damage on the North Vietnamese supply system than has been previously understood, and it nearly compelled North Vietnam to capitulate. 

The book demonstrates that American military operations enabled the South Vietnamese government to recover from the massive instability that followed the assassination of President Ngo Dinh Diem. American culture sustained public support for the war through the end of 1968, giving South Vietnam realistic hopes for long-term survival. America’s defense of South Vietnam averted the imminent fall of key Asian nations to Communism and sowed strife inside the Communist camp, to the long-term detriment of America’s great-power rivals, China and the Soviet Union.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

THE LONG-AWAITED SEQUEL TO TRIUMPH FORSAKEN: THE VIETNAM WAR, 1954–1965

 

“This second book in what will be a seminal trilogy is impeccably researched and elegantly written. Mark Moyar availed himself of newly available materials to shed fresh light and understanding on a crucial period of the Vietnam War. Triumph Regained poses a compelling reinterpretation that is bound to make uncomfortable those who contributed to or accepted the conventional wisdom on the war that emerged across the past half century.”

—H. R. McMaster, author of Dereliction of Duty and Battlegrounds: The Fight to Defend the Free World

 

Triumph Regained expertly chronicles the grit, courage, and sacrifice of the American fighting man during the Vietnam War and provides clear-eyed analysis of the strategic and political imperatives that motivated both sides of the conflict. Mark Moyar is reclaiming the honorable legacy of a generation of American warriors and proving the truth of Ronald Reagan’s belief that Vietnam was a ‘noble cause.’ We should be proud of the patriotic Americans who served in Vietnam and never forget that politicians in Washington squandered their sacrifices.”

—Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR)

 

“No serious scholar has done more in recent years to challenge the entrenched consensus on the Vietnam War than historian Mark Moyar. In Triumph Regained, he presents bold new insights that compel us to question the conventional wisdom on the war from the onset of its Americanization in 1965 to the Tet Offensive of 1968. Captivating from start to finish, the book is as audacious as it is thought-provoking—and necessary.”

—Pierre Asselin, professor of history and Dwight E. Stanford Chair in American Foreign Relations, San Diego State University 


“Using newly available documents and re-interpreting old, Moyar invites us to revisit the 1970s clichéd narratives of strategy and policy in the early years of America's war in Vietnam.”

—Jeffrey Race, author of War Comes to Long An: Revolutionary Conflict in a Vietnamese Province


“In a crowded field, Moyar’s book stands apart for the abundance of research and original source material he brings to bear in support of his argument. When it comes to scholarly diligence, he has no equal, and no review can do him full justice. His bold reinterpretation of the war is so meticulously documented that even those who adhere to the orthodox view must take it seriously.”

Mackubin T. Owens, Claremont Review of Books

 

“Well-argued, meticulously researched, engaging to read… anathema to the all too often orthodox view of an imperialistic American meeting its destined comeuppance through the folly of trying to save Vietnam.”

Victor Davis Hanson, American Greatness

 

Triumph Forsaken held the position as the point volume in the revisionist challenge to the so-called orthodox view of the Vietnam War for sixteen years. It now will share that place with Triumph Regained, Moyar’s second installment in his proposed three-volume history of that long-finished but still bitterly divisive war.”

Michael Kort, H-Diplo

 

“Moyar is the most well-known and widely debated revisionist historian in the field…. Triumph Regained is an important contribution to the existing literature. Like its predecessors, Triumph Regained is an unapologetic revisionist critique that will likely generate fresh rounds of historical debate and disagreement in future years.”

Martin Clemis, Journal of Military History

 

“[a] groundbreaking study of the war, one that should spark a renewed debate among Vietnam War historians.”

George J. Veith, H-Diplo

 

“The author’s use of new sources — including those of the North Vietnamese — offers a perspective that is decidedly refreshing as he challenges many of the canards accepted as a dominant narrative about the war.”

Richard R. Burgess, Seapower

 

“Moyar has come to closest to explaining what actually happened in the Vietnam War and why during this period—based on an unusually even-handed perspective, written in an accessible manner, and enhanced by consultation of Vietnamese sources. It is a substantial achievement to produce a fresh take on a complicated subject while challenging much of the widely accepted orthodox perspective.”

Luke Nichter, H-Diplo

About the Author

Mark Moyar holds the William P. Harris Chair in Military History at Hillsdale College. His past academic appointments include the Kim T. Adamson Chair of Insurgency and Terrorism at the U.S. Marine Corps University and fellowships at the Joint Special Operations University and Texas A&M University. During the Trump administration, he served in the U.S. Agency for International Development as the Director of the Office of Civilian-Military Cooperation. The author of six previous books on military history, diplomatic history, grand strategy, leadership, and international development, he has also written articles for the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, and many other publications. The first volume of his Vietnam War trilogy, Triumph Forsaken: The Vietnam War, 1954-1965, was published in 2006, and it became the subject of an essay collection entitled Triumph Revisited: Historians Battle for the Vietnam War. He received a B.A. summa cum laude from Harvard and a Ph.D. from Cambridge.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09SM45G94
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Encounter Books (January 10, 2023)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 10, 2023
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 21414 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 732 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 1641772972
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 108 ratings

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Customer reviews

4.8 out of 5 stars
108 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the writing style well-written, deep researched, and provocative. They also describe the book as magnificent, excellent, and a great read. Readers also mention the history of the Vietnam War is excellent.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

9 customers mention "Documentation"9 positive0 negative

Customers find the book beautifully written, deeply researched, and well-argued. They also appreciate the intellectual courage, insight, and corrects many myths. Readers also mention that the author has impeccable academic credentials and is fearless in challenging the party lines.

"This book covers 1995-1998 and provides hundreds of source documents from U.S. to North Vietnam . Outstanding academic work." Read more

"...This is a well-researched & highly readable, though lengthy book, covering the middle war period. I found it to be both informative & a page-tuner...." Read more

"...It is beautifully written, deeply researched, and cogently presented, just like his first book, Triumph Foresaken...." Read more

"...The 15-year project has birthed a provocative, well-argued book that will continue to stimulate discussion of the Vietnam War and how collective..." Read more

6 customers mention "History"6 positive0 negative

Customers find the book an excellent history of the Vietnam War. They also appreciate the well-sourced, well-written, and deft narrative arch.

"...Through exhaustive research and its deft narrative arch, Triumph Regained makes a compelling case for questioning America’s understanding of its..." Read more

"...It truly represents the definitive gold standard historical account of that period. Revisionist it is not - very accurate and well-balanced it is!..." Read more

"This book is a well sourced and well written history of Vietnam and the US involvement in the war...." Read more

"Am in process of reading. The author provides a credible and detailed history of the Washington and Vietnamese politics during the Vietnam War...." Read more

6 customers mention "Reading experience"6 positive0 negative

Customers find the book magnificent, worth the wait, and highly readable. They also say it's a lengthy book covering the middle war period.

"Great read! This book is well written & well footnoted, using more recently declassified US sources as well as Vietnamese sources...." Read more

"...This is a well-researched & highly readable, though lengthy book, covering the middle war period. I found it to be both informative & a page-tuner...." Read more

"...the dozens of books I've read about the Vietnam War, this is one of the very best, definitely in the top three...." Read more

"Read Triumph Forsaken and now Triumph Regained, both are excellent accounts of the Vietnam War. Can't wait for the next book" Read more

6 customers mention "Writing style"6 positive0 negative

Customers find the writing style well-written and well-footnoted. They also mention that it's a rebuttal to standard defeatist narratives.

"Great read! This book is well written & well footnoted, using more recently declassified US sources as well as Vietnamese sources...." Read more

"...This is a well-researched & highly readable, though lengthy book, covering the middle war period. I found it to be both informative & a page-tuner...." Read more

"...It is beautifully written, deeply researched, and cogently presented, just like his first book, Triumph Foresaken...." Read more

"...of the Vietnam War is a triumph of Moyar’s extensive research, clear writing, and intellectual courage...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2024
This book covers 1995-1998 and provides hundreds of source documents from U.S. to North Vietnam . Outstanding academic work.
Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2024
Great read! This book is well written & well footnoted, using more recently declassified US sources as well as Vietnamese sources. The author dispels many of the long accepted myths about the war. A refreshing alternative to the standard Vietnam War history.
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Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2023
Mark Moyar’s excellent work, a so-called “revisionist” history, serves as a corrective for the prevailing views of Vietnam set forth by Stanley Karnow & Ken Burns and elsewhere in the media & academia. This is a well-researched & highly readable, though lengthy book, covering the middle war period. I found it to be both informative & a page-tuner. The political impediments to the war’s conduct are fleshed out, the scope (local & global) of the conflict is clarified & the appalling cost in lives, most memorably given in “body counts,” is driven home. I found the author changed some of my previously held negative views to the positive (Domino Theory, General Westmoreland, Pacification), while I gained greater insight into others (Rolling Thunder, Tet, Military Tactics). I just read the earlier “Triumph Forsaken (2007),” which I also would highly recommend, in preparation & to gain context for the entire conflict, which will be concluded in a 3rd volume. Note: The Kindle version does not have the photos shown in “Look Inside.”
9 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on February 2, 2023
Dr. Moyar is in my opinion the foremost historian of the Vietnam War and this, his second book on that war, confirms my opinion. It is beautifully written, deeply researched, and cogently presented, just like his first book, Triumph Foresaken. He lays bare the many myths and falsehoods so commonly accepted by academics and journalists, especially those who wrote about the war during and shortly after the end of American involvement. He uses newly developed sources from declassified US records, along with archive information from the North Vietnamese and other Asian sources to reinforce and expand on his brilliant analysis. Of particular value is his explanation of the fatal mistake the Americans made when they supported the coup against President Diem, an act of heinous duplicity that resulted in years of political instability that only helped the communist cause. He also describes another fatal mistake by the Americans - the failure of the Americans to invade Laos to cut the Ho Chi Minh Trail after the defeat of the communists in their 1968 TET Offensive. All in all, this a another triumph by Dr. Moyar and I predict this book will be considered the final word on the events that transpired during the tragedy of the Vietnam War for the years 1965 to 1968. No serious student of the Vietnam War can afford not to have this valuable and historically accurate work in their library. I look forward to his third and final book on the war.
19 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on May 29, 2024
Mark Moyar is a historian looking for a fight.

The massive collection of books on the Vietnam War written over the years has cemented its mythology. But Moyar takes a far different tack, leading a school of thought that contends the Vietnam War was a worthy endeavor but hindered by its clumsy execution. Triumph Regained: The Vietnam War, 1965-1968, the second book in Moyer’s planned trilogy on the Vietnam War, continues to challenge long-held beliefs about the war. Through exhaustive research and its deft narrative arch, Triumph Regained makes a compelling case for questioning America’s understanding of its involvement in Vietnam from 1965 to 1968. In the process, Moyar’s work offers a roadmap for questioning historical orthodoxy on a conflict.

Triumph Regained challenges some of the deepest-held beliefs about the war in Vietnam, including the importance of Laos and Cambodia, The Tet Offensive, and the American public’s support of the war following Tet. President Lyndon Johnson ignored advice from senior military leaders to send ground forces into Cambodia and Laos. At the behest of Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara and Secretary of State Dean Rusk, Johnson directed the bombing of Cambodia and Laos, rather than deploying American ground forces, to avoid provoking China. Sources discovered after the war showed North Vietnamese leadership feared the presence of US ground troops in Laos and Cambodia, which would cripple the Viet Cong’s ability to infiltrate the South. Moyar discovers that the Chinese showed no interest in fighting Americans in Laos, Cambodia, or Vietnam.

Moyar reappraises the Tet offensive and its aftermath, casting the surprise attack as a massive tactical victory for America. Frustrated by the war’s slow progress, the North Vietnamese launched attacks during the Tet holiday to destabilize the South Vietnamese government. The attacks had the opposite effect, however, galvanizing South Vietnamese citizens against the communists. After Tet, President Johnson may have lost Walter Cronkite, but America did not lose the war. The anti-war movement distorted America’s collective memory of the public support of the war in Vietnam. Even after the Tet Offensive and the demonstrations in Chicago during the 1968 Democratic National Convention, most Americans supported America’s involvement in Vietnam, even if their support for Johnson’s handling of the war had waned.

The revisionist histories of Vietnam raise questions on how the mythology of war forms, codifies, and crystallizes. Unlike historians, military professionals must conduct autopsies of conflict close to their coda. The need for the Department of Defense to initiate a frank, clinical study of America’s war in Afghanistan grows more urgent with each passing day as memories fade, documents disappear, and willingness wanes. Moyar’s intellectual courage and rigor exemplifies how to reassess a war that did not achieve its stated end.

The recent events surrounding Moyar’s employment at USAID, the suspension of his security clearance, and his personal policy preferences ought not to obscure his work. During the Trump Administration, USAID terminated Moyar following accusations concerning his use of classified materials in his book on special forces. This past year Moyar accepted a position at Hillsdale College, a conservative college in Michigan. The reader should judge the merits of Moyar’s work on Vietnam based on his insight, not his politics. Placing himself outside the mainstream of academia, Moyar frees himself to continue to challenge, question, and debate the deepest-held beliefs about America’s most contentious war.

The ongoing reappraisal of the Vietnam War is a triumph of Moyar’s extensive research, clear writing, and intellectual courage. The 15-year project has birthed a provocative, well-argued book that will continue to stimulate discussion of the Vietnam War and how collective memories of conflicts form.
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