The OSS and Ho Chi Minh: Unexpected Allies in the War against Japan

by Dixee Bartholomew-Feis

Overview

Some will be shocked to find out that the United States and Ho Chi Minh, our nemesis for much of the Vietnam War, were once allies. Indeed, during the last year of World War II, American spies in Indochina found themselves working closely with Ho Chi Minh and other anti-colonial factions—compelled by circumstances to fight together against the Japanese. Dixee Bartholomew-Feis reveals how this relationship emerged and operated and how it impacted Vietnam's struggle for independence.

The men of General William Donovan's newly-formed Office of Strategic Services closely collaborated with communist groups in both Europe and Asia against the Axis enemies. In Vietnam, this meant that OSS officers worked with Ho Chi Minh and the Viet Minh, whose ultimate aim was to rid the region of all imperialist powers, not just the Japanese. Ho, for his part, did whatever he could to encourage the OSS's negative view of the French, who were desperate to regain their colony. Revealing details not previously known about their covert operations, Bartholomew-Feis chronicles the exploits of these allies as they developed their network of informants, sabotaged the Japanese occupation's infrastructure, conducted guerrilla operations, and searched for downed American fliers and Allied POWs.

Although the OSS did not bring Ho Chi Minh to power, Bartholomew-Feis shows that its apparent support for the Viet Minh played a significant symbolic role in helping them fill the power vacuum left in the wake of Japan's surrender. Her study also hints that, had America continued to champion the anti-colonials and their quest for independence, rather than caving in to the French, we might have been spared our long and very lethal war in Vietnam.

Based partly on interviews with surviving OSS agents who served in Vietnam, Bartholomew-Feis's engaging narrative and compelling insights speak to the yearnings of an oppressed people—and remind us that history does indeed make strange bedfellows.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780700616527
Publisher:	University Press of Kansas
Publication date:	05/12/2006
Series:	Modern War Studies
Pages:	446
Sales rank:	702,717
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.90(d)

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

1. The Situation on the Ground: Vietnam

2. The Situation on the Ground: The United States

3. The First on the Ground: Miles, Meynier, and the GBT

4. The Chameleon: Charles Fenn

5. Endings and Beginnings

6. After the Coup de Main: March and April 1945

7. The Relationship Deepens: Ho Chi Minh and the Americans

8. On to Hanoi

9. “Cochina Is Burning . . .”

Epilogue

Notes

Bibliography

Index

Editorial Reviews

An engagingly written book on the OSS in Vietnam that is likely to become the standard account of this complex moment in the American engagement with the postcolonial world.”—Journal of American History

“By telling the story of these men with a sense of objectivity and with a judicious eye for detail, Bartholomew-Feis has brought a fascinating chapter in U.S.-Vietnamese relations to life.”—Army History

“Bartholomew-Feis frequently lets historical figures speak for themselves and interweaves their words with her elegant narrative and careful analysis.”—Journal of Asian Studies

“The questions the author raises in examining the Viet Minh’s war against the Japanese and the French hold their relevance for the modern era as U.S. forces find themselves increasingly working with allies who share a common enemy but not a common end state.”—Military Review

“Specialists as well as general readers interested in intelligence in the Second World War, modern Vietnamese history, and the roots of U.S. involvement in thirty years of subsequent conflict in Indochina will find this book of particular interest. . . . Highly recommended.”—Journal of Military History

“A gripping and insightful account of America’s first foray into the quagmire of Vietnam. Highly recommended for the specialist and the lay reader alike.”—William J. Duiker, author of Ho Chi Minh: A Life

“Vividly brings to life a small group of Americans who intersected with Vietnam’s history at its most important moment in the twentieth century.”—David G. Marr, author of Vietnam 1945: The Quest for Power

“Should become the point of departure for understanding the ultimately tragic American role in Vietnam in the decades after 1945.”—Michael Schaller, author of Douglas MacArthur: Far Eastern General, The U.S. Crusade in China, 1938–1945

“Indispensable reading for a complete understanding of America’s longest war.”—Dale Andradé, author of America’s Last Vietnam Battle

From the Publisher

Likely to become the standard account of this complex moment in the American engagement with the postcolonial world.

Journal of American History

Bartholomew-Feis frequently lets historical figures speak for themselves and interweaves their words with her elegant narrative and careful analysis.

Journal of Asian Studies

Bartholomew-Feis has brought a fascinating chapter in U.S.-Vietnamese relations to life.

Army History

Highly recommended.

Journal of Military History