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KEEPING THE FISH OUT OF THE WATER: UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS COMBINED ACTION PLATOONS IN THE VIETNAM WAR

Easterling, Ted,
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1470338869

Abstract Details

2016, Doctor of Philosophy, University of Akron, History.
The United States is often criticized for using ineffective strategies and tactics to fight the Vietnam War, but the United States Marine Corps attempted to use strategies and tactics it considered appropriate for a counterinsurgency war in Vietnam. As part of its counterinsurgency plan, the Marine Corps used Combined Action Platoons, and whether or not these units were effective as a counterinsurgency tactic in the war is the topic of this study. This study concludes that Combined Action Platoons were not a successful counterinsurgency tactic in the Vietnam War. To the extent the Combined Action concept might have been well-conceived and successful, it was overwhelmed by a number of problems. The conflict over strategy between the Marine Corps and the US Army hampered the development and the performance of the Combined Action Platoons. Other critical problems for the Combined Action Platoons resulted from the weakness of the government of the Republic of South Vietnam and the strategic ability of the North Vietnamese Army. The primary problem was that Vietnam was a poorly chosen battlefield , and the war was unwinnable. This study of the US Marine Corps Combined Action Platoons is a qualitative study based on research in a variety of primary and secondary sources. Research at the US Marine Corps Archives at Quantico, Virginia was especially useful for acquiring original information related to the Combined Action Platoons (CAP) in the Vietnam War. Primary sources for the study included books written by participants in the war, and veterans of the CAP. A collection of the private letters of a CAP veteran was also used. Among the secondary sources for the study were books by historians who studied the war, and books by counterinsurgency theorists who study counterinsurgency warfare.
Walter Hixson, Dr. (Committee Chair)
304 p.
History; Military History; Military Studies
Vietnam War; counterinsurgency; guerrilla warfare; combined action platoon

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Easterling, , T. (2016). KEEPING THE FISH OUT OF THE WATER: UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS COMBINED ACTION PLATOONS IN THE VIETNAM WAR [Doctoral dissertation, University of Akron]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1470338869

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Easterling, , Ted. KEEPING THE FISH OUT OF THE WATER: UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS COMBINED ACTION PLATOONS IN THE VIETNAM WAR. 2016. University of Akron, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1470338869.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Easterling, , Ted. "KEEPING THE FISH OUT OF THE WATER: UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS COMBINED ACTION PLATOONS IN THE VIETNAM WAR." Doctoral dissertation, University of Akron, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1470338869

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

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This open access ETD is published by University of Akron and OhioLINK.