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Tet -1968

Tet had traditionally been a time of truce in the long war and both Hanoi and Saigon had made announcements that this year would be no different - although they disagreed about the duration. US Intelligence had gotten wind that something was brewing through captured documents and an overall analysis of recent events but Westmoreland's staff tended to disregard these generally vague reports. At the request of General Frederick Weyand, the US commander of the Saigon area, however, several battalions were pulled back from their positions near the Cambodian border. General Weyand put his troops on full alert but- due to a standing US policy of leaving the security of major cities to the ARVN -there were only a few hundred American troops on duty in Saigon itself the night before the attack began. Westmoreland later claimed to have anticipated Tet but the evidence suggests that he was not prepared for anything approaching the intensity of the attack that came and that he was still concentrating his attentions on the developing battle at Khe Sanh where he thought Giap would make his chief effort. In the early morning hours of January 31st, the first day of ]the Vietnamese New Year, NLF/NVA troops and commandos attacked virtually every major town and city in South Vietnam as well as most of the important American bases and airfields. There were some earlier attacks around Pleiku, Quang Nam, and Darlac but these were largely misinterpreted as the enemy's main thrust by those who were expecting some activity during Tet Almost everywhere the attacks came as a total surprise. Vast areas of Saigon and Hue suddenly found themselves "liberated" and parades of gun-waving NVA/VC marched through the streets proclaiming the revolution while their grimmer-minded comrades rounded up prepared lists of collaborators and government sympathizers for show trials and quick executions.

In Saigon, nineteen VC commandos blew their way through the outer walls of the US Embassy and overran the five MP's on duty in the early hours of that morning. Two MP's were killed immediately as the action-team tried to blast their way through the main Embassy doors with anti-tank rockets. They failed and found themselves pinned-down by the Marine guards who kept the VC in an intense firefight until a relief force of US lO1st Airborne landed by helicopter. By mid-morning, the battle had turned. All nineteen VC were killed, their bodies scattered around the Embassy courtyard. Five Americans and two Vietnamese civilians were among the other dead. The commandos had been dressed in civilian clothing and had rolled-up to the Embassy in an ancient truck. The security of the Embassy was not in serious danger after the first few minutes and the damage was slight but this attack on 'American soil" captured the imagination of the media and the battle became symbolic of the Tet Offensive throughout the world. Other NVA/VC squads attacked Saigon's Presidential Palace, the radio station, the headquarters of the ARVN Chiefs of Staff, and Westmoreland's own MACV compound as part of a 7O0 man raid on the Tan Son Nhut air-base. During the heavy fighting that followed, things became sufficiently worrying for Westmoreland to order his staff to find weapons and join in the defense of the compound. When the fighting at Tan Son Nhut was over, twenty-three Americans were dead, eighty-five were wounded and up to fifteen aircraft had suffered serious damage. Two NVA/VC battalions attacked the US air-base at Bien Hoa and crippled over twenty aircraft at a cost of nearly 170 casualties. Further fighting at Bien Hoa during the Tet offensive would take the NVA/VC death total in Saigon to nearly 1200. Other VC units made stands in the French cemetery and the Pho Tho race track. The mainly Chinese suburb of Cholon became virtually a NVA/VC operations base and, as it later turned out, had been the main staging area for the attacks in Saigon and its immediate area. President Thieu declared Marshal law on January 31st but it would take over a week of intense fighting to clear-up the various pockets of resistance scattered around Saigon. Sections of the city were reduced to rubble in heavy street by street fighting. Tanks, helicopter gunships, and strike aircraft blasted parts of the city as entrenched guerrillas fought and then slipped off to fight somewhere else. The radio station, various industrial buildings, and a large block of lowcost public housing were leveled along with the homes of countless civilians who were forced to flee. The city dissolved into a chaos which took weeks to begin to put right.

The fighting within Saigon itself was pretty much over by February 5th but it carried on in Cholon until the last week of the month. Cholon was strafed, bombed, and shelled but the NVA/VC held on and even mounted sporadic counter-offensives against US/ARVN positions within the city and against Tan Son Nhut airport. B-52 strikes against communist positions outside Saigon came within a few miles of the city When the NVA/VC were finally driven out of Saigon's suburbs, they retreated into the surrounding government villages and fought there. US and ARVN artillery and strike-aircraft bombed and shelled these supposedly pacified villages before troops moved in to reoccupy them. The NVA/VC repeated this tactic again and again in a clear effort to make the Saigon Government destroy their own fortified villages and, by doing so, further alienate the rural population. A month after the offensive began, US estimates put the number of civilian dead at some 15,000 and the number of new refugees at anything up to two million and still the battles went on.

Elsewhere in South Vietnam, the success of the Tet offensive was erratic. Many of the attacks on the provincial cities and US bases were easily beaten back within the first minutes or hours, but others involved bitter fighting. In the resort city of Dalat, the ARVN put up a spirited defense of the Vietnamese Military Academy against a determined VC battalion. Fighting raged over the Pasteur Institute - which changed hands several times-and the VC dug themselves in the central market Fighting in Dalat went on until mid-February and left over 200 VC dead. In cities like Ban Me Thuot, My Tho, Can Tho, Ben Tre, and Kontum, the VC entrenched themselves in the poorer sections and held out against repeated efforts to push them out The biggest battle, however occurred at Hue.

The Buddhist crisis had left bitter feelings towards the Saigon Government in the ancient Vietnamese capital and, within a few hours of their attack, the disguised insurgents supported by some ten NVA/VC battalions had overrun all of the city except for the headquarters of the ARVN 3rd Division and the garrison of US advisors. The main NVA/VC goal was the Citadel, an ancient imperial palace covering some two square miles with high walls several feet thick. NVA troops assaulted the Citadel and ran up the VC flag on the early morning of January 31st but were unable to displace ARVN holding out in the northeast section. Having overrun the city and found considerable support among sections of Hue's populace, the NVA/VC began an immediate revolutionary "liberation" program. Thousands of prisoners were set free and thousands of "enemies of the state" - government officials, sympathizers, and Catholics were rounded up and many were shot out of hand on orders from the security section of the NLF which had sent in its action squad with a prepared hit-list. Most of the others simply vanished.

After Hue was finally recaptured at the end of February South Vietnamese officials sifting through the rubble found mass graves with over 1200 corpses and-sometime later-other mass burials in the provincial area. The total number of bodies unearthed came to around 2500 but the number of civilians estimated as missing after the Hue battle was nearly 6000. Many of the victims found were Catholics who sought sanctuary in a church but were taken out and later shot Others were apparently being marched off for political "re-education" but were shot when American or ARVN units came too close.

The mass graves within Hue itself were largely of those who had been picked up and executed for various "enemy of the people" offenses. There is some doubt that the NVA/VC had planned all these executions beforehand but unquestionably it was the largest communist purge of the war.

US Marines and ARVN drove into the city and, after nearly two days of heavy fighting, secured the bank of the Perfume river opposite the Citadel. Hue was a sacred city to the Vietnamese and apart from the ancient Citadel held many other precious historical buildings. After much deliberation, it was reluctantly decided to shell and bomb NVA/VC positions. Resistance was heavy and sending the Marines into the city without air and artillery support would have meant an unacceptable cost in lives. To many, the battle for Hue reminded them of the bitter street-by-street fighting that occurred during World War lI. The NVA had blown the main bridge across the Perfume River. US forces crossed in a fleet of assault craft under air and artillery cover which blasted away at the enemy-held Citadel. Its walls were so thick that few were killed but the covering fire made the enemy keep their heads down while the Marines and soldiers hit the bank below.

While the ARVN, with US support, fought its way through the streets of Hue block by block, the Marines prepared to assault the Citadel. On February 2Oth American assault teams went in through clouds of tear gas and the burning debris left over from air and artillery attacks. The NVA/VC were pushed into the southwestern corner of the Citadel and finally overwhelmed on February 23rd. Enemy resistance in Hue was finally reduced to isolated pockets and sniper teams. As the Citadel fell, NVA/VC units began retreating- some of them marching groups of soon to be massacred prisoners before them - into the suburbs while their rear guards fought holding actions with the advancing ARVN. The fight for Hue ended by February 25th at a cost of 119 Americans and 363 ARVN dead compared to about sixteen times that number of NVA/VC dead.

The dramatic difference in fatalities makes the battle look a one sided affair But it wasn't! The difference in casuaity figures came largely from the heavy use of artillery and aircraft back-up to devastate NVA/VC positions throughout Hue which reduced large sections of the city to body-laden piles of rubble. Had the commanders decided to preserve the ancient and revered city US/ARVN casualties would have been much higher American wounded during the battle for Hue came to just under a thousand compared to slightly over 1,200 ARVN. Nearly 120,000 citizens of Hue were homeless and, of the close to 6,000 civilian dead, many died in the bombing and shell-fire. Contrary to many reports, large sections of Hue escaped relatively undamaged but after the battle they were forced to suffer days of looting by soldiers from the original ARVN garrison who had spent the previous weeks keeping their heads low. Their commander-who had also sat out the city's Buddhist rebellion against Ky-was later accused of having known about the coming attack for days beforehand. His defense was that he had allowed the NVA/VC battalions into Hue in order to spring a trap! In the villages outside Hue, the battle went on for another week or so as the retreating NVA/VC took over the villages just long enough for them to be destroyed by bombing and concentrated artillery shelling. Civilian deaths and refugees increased.

map On February 5th, the fighting died out in Saigon and the Marines prepared for their river assault on the Citadel in Hue. The electronic sensors around the besieged fire-base at Khe Sanh warned of enemy preparations to assault the entrenched positions on Hill 881, which was outside the main camp. Intensive artillery fire broke up the assembling NVA troops but a second planned attack on Hill 881 had gone unnoticed until the Marines found themselves fighting off waves of oncoming North Vietnamese regulars. For half an hour the beleaguered Marines battled the NVA in hand to-hand fighting - even trusting their flak jackets enough to use grenades at close quarters - until the artillery could be brought to bear on the hill and the attackers forced to withdraw.

Two days later, the Green Beret's camp at Lang Vei was attacked by an NVA assault force led by ten Soviet-built, FT-76 light, amphibious tanks. Despite a shortage of anti-tank ammunition three of the armored vehicles were put out of action before the NVA swarmed over the wire. Because of the very real likelihood of an ambush, no relief force was sent and the Lang Vei commander, Captain Frank Willoughby, ordered his men into the jungle, and called down air and artillery strikes directly onto the camp. Of the original force of twenty four Special Forces and 900 Montagnard, only Willoughby and seventy-three others managed to struggle into Khe Sanh. The next day NVA troops overran nearly half of an outer Marine position at Khe Sanh before being blasted back by artillery, aircraft, and armor.

Giap's ambition to win a massive victory against the Americans was thwarted by massive aerial bombardments of NVA positions. B-52's and strike aircraft dropped their loads with pin-point accuracy within a few hundred feet of Khe Sanh's perimeter. During the course of the battle, tons of bombs and napalm were dropped around Khe Sanh. Bad weather and increasing anti-aircraft fire inhibited the steady flow of incoming supplies but the vital cargo planes and helicopters kept coming despite losses. The fortified hills around Khe Sanh were supplied by Sea Knight Helicopters, frequently accompanied by fighter escorts. The battle settled down into a siege. The NVA concentrated on shelling the base and trying to stop the supply planes with anti-aircraft fire while digging in around the camp. Both sides employed teams of snipers to harass each other's movements.

The NVA launched further attacks on February 17th, 1&h, and 29th but massed artillery and air-strikes broke the first up fairly easily while the second involved heavy fighting. In early April, relief forces reached the base. A 1st Cavalry helicopter assault force landed near Khe Sanh as American and ARVN forces hit NVA positions along Rout#9. Khe Sanh was relieved on April 6th and, four days later, Lang Vei was reccu- pied. Fighting continued around Khe Sanh for a time but Giap had long since given up any hope of overrunning the base. The drive to relieve Khe Sanh had gone smoothly and without heavy resistance. From this, many inferred that the whole siege of Khe Sanh had been a feint to cover preparations for the Tet Offensive in the South. And to an extent, this was true but the evidence suggests that Giap's moves on Khe Sanh had a more deadly purpose than simply drawing American attentions away from the South at the critical time. By the middle of February it was obvious that the battle for South Vietnam's cities was failing and that US airpower would deny the NVA another Dien Bien Phu. Seeing the inevitable, Giap seems to have began a slow wind down of the siege before the US counter-attack began.

The After-Effects of Tet

The Tet Offensive and Khe Sanh may well have reminded Johnson and Westmoreland of the Duke of Wellington's dictum: "If there's anything more melancholy than a battle lost, it's a battle won" Giap had been frustrated at Khe Sanh and defeated in South Vietnam's cities. NVA/VC dead totaled some 45,000 anc the number of prisoners nearly 7000. But the shockwave of the battle finished Johnson's willingness to carry on. Westmoreland was pressuring Washington for 206,000 troops to carry on the campaign in the South and to make a limited invasion of North Vietnam just above the DMZ. As the battle for Hue died out, Johnson asked Clark Clifford (who had recently replaced a disillusioned McNamara as Secretary of Defense) to find ways and means of meeting Westmoreland's request.

Clifford and an advisor group looked at the war to date and among others, consulted CIA Director Richard Helms who presented the Agency's gloomy forecasts in great detail. On March 4th Clifford told Johnson that the war was far from won and that more men would make little difference. Johnson then turned to his chief group of informal advisors (which included among others, Generals Omar Bradley, Matthew Ridgway, and Maxwell Taylor; Cyrus Vance, Dean Acheson, and Henry Cabot Lodge). Johnson soon found that they too, like Clifford, had turned against the war. According to Thomas Powers, Johnson's "wise old men" had been told that recent CIA studies showed that the pacification programme was failing in forty of South Vietnam's forty-four provinces and that the N LF's manpower was actually twice the number that had been estimated previously. Not only had Tet shown that the optimism of the previous year had been an illusion but it now seemed that the enemy was far stronger than anybody had thought and that the long efforts to win Vietnamese "hearts and minds" had largely been a disaster

If Tet wasn't a full-scale shock to the American public, it was at the very least, an awakening. The enemy that Johnson and the generals had described as moribund had shown itself to be very alive and, as yet, unbeaten. America and its ARVN ally had suffered over 4,300 killed in action, some 16,000 wounded and over 1,000 missing in action. The fact that the enemy suffered far more and had lost a major gamble mattered little because the war looked like a never ending conflict without any definite, realistic objective. The scenes of desolation in Saigon, Hue, and other cities looked to be war without purpose or end. Perhaps the most quoted US officer of the time was the one who explained the destruction of about one-third of the provincial capital of Ben Tre with unintended black humor: "It became necessary to destroy it," he said, "in order to save it". For many, this oft-quoted statement was not just a classic example of Pentagon double-think but also a symbol of the war's futility. Westmoreland became the parody "General Waste-mor-land" of the anti-war movement.

Being against the war became more-or-less politically respectable for liberal elements. Robert Kennedy spoke of giving up the illusion of victory and Democratic Senator Eugene McCarthy challenged Johnson for the Presidential nomination on a peace platform. He was supported by thousands of students and young Americans opposed to the war. Vocal elements of the extreme right largely supported the war but condemned the Administration for not going all out for victory. The JCS backed Westmoreland but convinced him to settle for half of the over 200,000 additional troops he wanted to take the initiative. The JCS then reported to the White House that the extra men were needed to get things back to normal following the battles of the Tet Offensive.

Johnson's dilemma was complete. He couldn't meet the generals' manpower requests without either depleting Europe of American troops- which was unacceptable- or without calling up the active reserves which would have been a political disaster His most senior advisors had turned against the war and Johnson took another briefing from the CIA analyst whose gloomy reports had soured some of his most hawkish counselors. A few days after this briefing, Johnson went on TV to announce a bombing halt of the North and America's willingness to meet with the North Vietnamese to seek a peace settlement. Johnson then said that he was not a candidate for reelection under any circumstances and would spend the rest of his term in a search for peace in Indochina.

One of those present at the special CIA briefing which convinced Johnson that a change of course was inevitable was General Creighton Abrams, Westmoreland's deputy commander. Shortly after Johnson's turnabout, Abrams replaced Westmoreland as head of US forces in Vietnam. Westmoreland came home to become Army Chief of Staff- a move many saw as a kick upstairs- but, whatever the reasons behind the changeover, Abrams went to Saigon with a mission. He was to institute a program of' Vietnamization" in other words, to take all necessary measures to enable the ARVN to bear the main burden of the fighting and gradually return the chief role of American troops to that of advisors. Vietnamization had always been a feature of America's role in Vietnam but it had been on a back-burner since 1965 when it seemed that Saigon was incapable of doing the job. Now things were to be returned to what they were supposed to have been from the beginning. Vietnamization is usually credited to Nixon but it began in the wake of the Tet Offensive and Johnson's turnabout.

Giap's gamble had another side effect When the Tet Offensive began, many US officials believed that the NLF had offered the Americans a golden opportunity by fighting a pitched battle where it could be defeated in open combat. In effect, the NLF was "leading with its chin" and the massive losses it suffered bear this out The VC was not broken by the Tet Offensive but it was severely crippled by it and, from then on, the North took on the main burden of the war Further fighting in 1968 and the increasing activity of the Phoenix Program further decimated the NLF's ranks and the role of the North grew even larger. The northern and southern parts of Vietnam had ancient cultural and social differences and while the communist cadres at the center of the N LF had managed largely to suppress these natural antagonisms, there still were basic differences in goals and approach. The N LF had gone into the Tet Offensive in the hope of giving a death-blow to the Saigon Government and, if it couldn't capture power directly, it could at least gain a coalition leading to ultimate authority. The NLF's dream vanished in the rubble of South Vietnam's cities and it would be Hanoi that conquered Saigon.

On This Day In History

Birthdates which occurred on January 30:
1563 Franciscus Gomarus [François Gomaer], Dutch theologist/opera singer
1566 Alessandro Piccinini composer
1609 Wenzel E Fürst von Lobkowitz Austrian chancellor (-1674)
1616 William Sancroft Archbishop (Canterbury)
1624 Arnold Geulincx South Netherlands, philosopher (About Virtue)
1628 George Villiers 2nd duke of Buckingham England
1647 Konrad Hoffler composer
1687 [Johann] Balthasar Neumann German architect, baptized
1694 Joseph Joachim Benedict Munster composer
1697 Johann Joachim Quantz German royal flautist/composer
1708 Georg D Ehret German/English cartoonist
1710 Vigilio Blasio Faitello composer
1719 Magnus G Lichtwer German writer (Äsopischer Fabeln)
1724 Ignaz Franz Xaver Kurzinger composer
1752 Joseph Matthias Kracher composer
1756 Josef Preindl composer
1760 Franz Xaver Partsch composer
1775 Walter Savage Landor Warwick England, critic/writer (Imaginary Conversation)
1781 Adelbert von Chamisso writer
1789 George Augustus Kollmann composer
1797 Edwin Vose Sumner Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1863
1814 Jean-Baptist Capronnier French/Belgian glass painter
1816 Nathaniel Prentiss Banks Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1894
1822 John Basil Turchin [Ivan Turchinoff], Brigadier General (Union volunteers)
1829 Alfred Cummings Georgia, Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1910
1834 Lord Avebury [John Lubbock], British banker/politician
1835 Oliver Edwards Bvt Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1904
1841 Alfred Townsend George Civil War journalist, died in 1914
1844 Moritz F Freiherr von Bissing German General/Governor-General of Belgium (1914-17)
1846 Francis H Bradley British philosopher (neo-idealism)
1853 Leland Hone cricketer (England keeper 1879 without county experience)
1861 Charles Martin Tornow Loeffler Mulhouse Alsace, composer
1862 Walter Johannes Damrosch composer
1865 Samuel Pl'h Naber Dutch rear-Admiral/librarian
1866 Gelett Burgess author (Purple Cow)
1871 Seymour Hicks St Helier Jersey, actor-manager (Scrooge)
1871 Wilfred Lucas actor (Pardon Us, Chump at Oxford)
1873 Rose Melville actress (Sis)
1882 Franklin Delano Roosevelt New Hyde Park NY, 32nd President (D) (1933-1945)
1885 John Henry Towers aviator/naval hero
1892 Charles Trowbridge Haubiel composer
1892 Grigore Gafencu Roman minister of Foreign affairs (1938-39)
1894 Boris III tsar of Bulgaria (1918-43)
1894 Marcel Canneel Flemish painter (Reuzenstoet)
1898 Alfred Schläppi Switzerland, 4 man bobsled (Olympics-gold-1924)
1899 Max Theiler English/US microbiologist (Nobel 1951)
19-- Randy Brooks Bronx, actor (Rituals, Renegades, Brothers & Sisters)
1900 Isaak Iosifovich Dunayevsky composer
1900 Martita Hunt Argentina, actress (Man in Grey, Becket)
1900 Sandy Powell Rotherham England, costume designer (Rob Roy)
1901 Earl of Huntingdon mural painter
1901 H E Nossak writer
1902 Sir Nikolaus Pevsner England, art historian (The Buildings of England)
1902 Elise Cavanna actress (Pharmacist, Dentist, Barber Shop)
1903 G Evelyn Hutchinson British zoologist (Treatise on Limnology)
1906 Greta Nissen actress (Ambassador Bill)
1909 Saul David Alinsky Chicago IL, radical writer (John L Lewis)
1909 Mihaly Hajou composer
1909 Richard Hearne Norwich England, actor (Capt Horatio Hornblower)
1910 Frans Dohmen union leader (Dutch Catholic Mineworker's Union)
1911 Hugh Marlowe Philadelphia PA, actor (Ellery Queen)
1911 Roy Eldridge Pittsburgh PA, jazz trumpeter (Gene Krupa, Artie Shaw)
1911 Alexander George Ogston biochemist
1912 Barbara Tuchman US, historian/author (Pulitzer, Guns of August)
1912 Jadwiga Wajsowna-Marcinkiewicz discus thrower (Olympics-bronze-1932)
1913 Dicky Fuller cricketer (one Test West Indies vs England 1935, 1, 0-12)
1913 Percy Thrower English radio host
1914 David Wayne Traverse City MI, actor (Andromeda Strain, Adams Rib)
1914 John Ireland Vancouver BC, actor (Rawhide, Gunfight at OK Corral)
1914 Louis Osman artist architect goldsmith medallist/craftsman
1915 Dorothy Dell actor (Little Miss Marker, Wharf Angel)
1915 John D Profumo England, politician (C)
1915 Pierre Wissmer Swiss composer/theory (Capitaine Bruno)
1918 David Opatoshu New York City NY, actor (Bonino, Secret Empire, Masada)
1918 Jarl André Bjerke [Bernhard Borge], Norwegian poet/writer
1919 Robert Suter composer
1920 George Skibine Russian/US dancer/choreographer (Tragedy in Verona)
1920 Patrick Heron abstract painter
1921 Bernie Leighton West Haven CT, orchestra leader (Chance of a Lifetime)
1922 Dick Martin Detroit MI, actor/comedian (Laugh-In, Carbon Copy)
1922 Pal Jardanyi composer
1924 Shirley Chisholm (Representative-D-NY)
1924 Margaret Beda Nicholson author (No Medals for the Major)
1925 Dorothy Malone Chicago IL, actress (At Gunpoint, Night & Day, Peyton Place)
1926 Ruth Brown Portsmouth VA, actress (Leona-Hello Larry, Checking In)
1927 Olof Palme Stockholm, PM of Sweden (1969-76, 1982-86) assassinated
1928 Andrew Salkey author editor/broadcaster
1928 Harold Prince US producer/director (West Side Story, Evita, Phantom of Opera)
1928 Mitch Leigh composer
1929 Hugh Tayfield cricketer (celebrated South African off-spinner 1949-60)
1929 Viscount Long
1930 Magnus Adem Malan South African minister of Defense (1980- )
1931 Gene Hackman California, actor (Bonnie & Clyde, Under Fire, Superman)
1931 Jack Bowman Chief Constable (Tayside)
1931 Shirley Hazzard Australian author (Transit of Venus)
1931 Stewart B McKinney (Representative-R-CT, 1971- )
1932 Kazuo Inamori Japanese business executive (Kyocera Ceramics Co)
1933 Louis Rukeyser financial whiz (Wall Street Week, Channel 13)
1933 Richard Dufallo Chicago IL, clarinetist/conductor
1933 Bob Muddimer CEO (Ranks Hovis McDougall)
1934 Tammy Grimes Lynn MA, actress (Can't Stop the Music)
1935 John George Hughes bishop of Kensington
1935 Martin Taylor former vice-chairman, Hanson
1935 Richard Brautigan Tacoma WA, novelist/poet (Trout Fishing...)
1937 Boris Spassky USSR, world chess champion (1969-72)
1937 Vanessa Redgrave London, actress (Blow-Up, Julia, Orient Express)
1938 Marcel P A van Dam Dutch politician/CEO (VARA Radio/TV)
1938 Marlies van Alcmaer [Smal], Dutch actress/director (Bridge too Far)
1939 Eleanor Smeal feminist/president (NOW)
1939 Frank R Wolf (Representative-R-VA, 1981- )
1939 Nick Gaselee racehorse trainer
1940 David Johnson composer
1941 Dick Cheney (Representative-R-WY/George Bush's secretary of defense 1989-93/Vice President 2001- )
1941 Joe Terranoua rocker (Danny & The Juniors)
1942 Marty Balin Cincinnati OH, singer (Jefferson Starship-Miracles)
1942 Andres [Dries Holten], Dutch singer (Sandra & Andres)
1942 Christopher Howes Crown Estate Second Commissioner
1942 Dave Brown cricketer (Warwicks pace bowler, played 26X for England)
1942 Heidi Brühl German actress/singer (Mädels vom Immenhof)
1943 Davy Johnson baseball manager (New York Mets)
1943 Sandy Deane rocker
1944 John Thornton English chocolate factory/multi-millionaire
1944 Lord Westwood
1944 Lynn Harrell New York City NY, cellist
1945 Michael Dorris writer
1945 Robert Wittinger composer
1946 Lord Mackay of Drumadoon British QC
1947 Steve Marriott rock guitarist/vocalist (Humble Pie-Eat It, Faces)
1947 Martin Christoph Redel composer
1948 Earl of Huntingdon
1948 Nicholas Broomfield director/editor (Dark Obsession, Heidi Fleiss)
1949 William King Alabama, soul trumpeteer (Commodores-Easy)
1950 Bruce Howard Lidington actor (Sword of Valiant, Mosses)
1950 Ralph Wilcox Milwaukee WI, actor (Big Eddie, Busting Loose)
1950 Silvia Bertolaccini LPGA golfer
1951 Marv Ross rocker (Quarterflash)
1951 Bobby Stokes footballer
1951 Charles S Dutton Baltimore MD, actor (Alien 3, Crocodile Dundee 2, Roc)
1951 Clifford Leon Anderson rocker (Cure)
1951 Phil Collins England, singer/drummer (Genesis-Against All Odds)
1951 Trevor Laughlin cricketer (Australian all-rounder 1978-79)
1954 Alides Hidding singer/guitarist (Time Bandits)
1955 Curtis Strange Norfolk VA, PGA golfer (1989 US Open)
1955 Judith Tarr US, sci-fi author (Isle of Glass, Ars Magica)
1955 Michael Thompson guitarist (Afterburn, Fresh, Sahara, Gridlock'd)
1957 William Payne Stewart Springfield MO, PGA golfer (1983 Walt Disney)
1958 Brett Butler Montgomery AL, comedienne (Grace-Grace Under Fire)
1958 Rob van Zandvoort Dutch rock vocalist/keyboardist (Jack of Hearts)
1959 Jody Watley Chicago IL, dancer (Solid Gold)/singer (Looking For a New Love)
1960 Tony O'Dell Pasadena CA, actor (Alan Pinkard-Head of the Class)
1961 Ranjit Madurasinghe cricketer (3 Tests for Sri Lanka 1988-92)
1964 Cheryl Akemi Toma Pearl City HI, Miss Hawaii-America (1990)
1965 Julie McCullough Honolulu HI, playmate (Feb 86)/actress (Growing Pains)
1966 Daphne Ashbrook Long Beach CA, actress (Liz-Our Family Honor)
1966 Danielle Goyette ice hockey forward (Canada, Olympics-98)
1967 Bill Leverty Richmond VA, guitarist (Firehouse-Love of a Lifetime)
1968 Bob Nardella hockey defenseman (Team Italy 1998)
1968 Felipe de Borbon Prince of Asturias, heir to Spanish throne
1970 Edwin de Kruyf/Kruijff soccer player (FC Utrecht, FC Groningen)
1970 Hans Spark soccer player (RKC)
1970 Oleg Khmyl NHL defenseman (Belarus, Olympics-98)
1970 Scott Levins Spokane, NHL right wing (Ottawa Senators)
1971 Brent Moss WLAF running back (Amsterdam Admirals)
1971 Chris Slade NFL outside linebacker (New England Patriots)
1971 Derek Allen NFL/WLAF offensive linebacker (New York Giants, Rhein Fire)
1971 Kevin Knox WLAF receiver (Rhein Fire)
1971 Kimo Von Oelhoffen NFL defensive tackle (Cincinnati Bengals)
1971 Milko Pieren Dutch soccer player (Sparta)
1971 Quentin Neujahr NFL center (Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns)
1971 Takeshi Yamanaka hockey defenseman (Team Japan 1998)
1971 Trent Klatt Robbinsdale, NHL right wing (Philadelphia Flyers)
1972 Burt Thornton CFL receiver (Hamilton Tiger Cats)
1972 Chris Simon Wawa, NHL left wing (Colorado Avalanche)
1972 Jill McGill Denver CO, LPGA golfer (1995 British Open-2nd)
1973 Brad Yamaoka CFL running back (BC Lions)
1973 Holly Noelle Roehl Miss Indiana-USA (1996)
1973 Jalen Rose NBA guard (Indiana Pacers)
1973 Jimmy Oliver NFL wide receiver (San Diego Chargers)
1973 Sharone Wright NBA center/forward (Toronto Raptors)
1974 Christian Bale Wales, actor (Empire of the Sun, Little Women)
1974 Martina Jerant Windsor Ontario, basketball center (Olympics-96)
1974 Robert Rollins cricketer (big-hitting Essex wicketkeeper-batsman)
1976 Florian Keller Munchen Germany, hockey player (Team Germany, Rosenheim)
1978 Lnd Girchoukevitch NHL goaltender (Belarus, Olympics-98)
1979 Diva Zappa daughter of Frank
1979 Karen Smith Australian field hockey midfielder/halfback (Olympics-96)

Deaths which occurred on January 30:
1156 Herman van Horn bishop of Utrecht (1151/52-56), dies
1384 Louis van Male count of Flanders/Nevers/Réthel, dies
1393 Aimery Poitiers French nobleman, burned at royal ball
1393 Yvain son of Earl of Foix, burned at royal ball
1584 Jonker Wigbold van Ewsum mister of Nienoord, dies in battle
1584 Pieter Jansz Pourbus Flemish painter, dies
1644 William Chillingworth English theologian, Cambridge Platonist, dies
1649 Charles I King of Great Britain (1625-49), beheaded for treason
1730 Peter II Alekseyevitch emperor of Russia (1727-30), dies at 14
1774 Frantisek Ignac Antonin Tuma composer, dies at 69
1774 Jean-Pierre Guignon composer, dies at 71
1797 Johann Abraham Sixt composer, dies at 40
1816 Reinier Vinkeles Dutch engraver/cartoonist/art collector, dies at 74
1827 Johann Philipp Christian Schulz composer, dies at 53
1838 Osceola chief of Seminole Indians, dies in jail
1860 Francesco Antonio Norberto Pinto composer, dies at 44
1881 Jaak Nikolaas Lemmens Flemish composer, dies at 58
1888 Asa Gray US botanist (Flora of North America), dies at 77
1890 Karl Merz composer, dies at 53
1897 John Cottam cricket (Test for Australia 1897, no Sheffield matches), dies
1900 Vittorio Bersezio [Carlo Nugelli], Italian playwright, dies at 71
1925 Jakab Gyula Major composer, dies at 66
1925 John F Mellaerts Flemish social founder (Boerenbond), dies at 79
1927 Friedrich Ernst Koch composer, dies at 64
1928 Douglas Haig British field marshal (Sudan/Boer war/WWI), dies at 66
1942 Vasily Pavovlich Kalafati composer, dies at 72
1945 Gottlieb J Haberlandt Hungarian/German botanist, dies at 90
1945 William Busch composer, dies at 43
1947 Frederick F Blackman English botanist, dies at 80
1948 Mahatma Gandhi India spiritual and political leader, assassinated by Hindu extremists in New Delhi, at age 78
1948 Herb Pennock pitcher (New York Yankees)/GM (Phillies), dies
1948 Orville Wright US aviation pioneer, dies at 76
1951 Ferdinand Porsche German car inventor (Porsche), dies at 75
1953 Louis H N Bosch van Rosenthal Dutch resistance fighter, dies at 68
1956 Jane Seymour actress (Young Mr Bobbin), dies at 56
1956 Gerrit Mannoury mathematician/philosopher, dies at 88
1957 Grigore Gafencu Romanian minister of Foreign Affairs (1938-39), dies at 65
1958 Earnest H Heinkel German airplane builder (WWII), dies at 70
1963 Francis Poulenc French composer (Litanies à la Vierge Noire), dies at 74
1963 P F "Plum" Warner cricketer (England manager during Bodyline tour), dies
1964 Berthold Altaner German church historian, dies at 80
1965 Vic Jackson cricketer (New South Wales/Leicerstershire off-spinner), dies in car
1967 Lee Morgan actor (Dungeons of Harrow, Last Rebel), dies
1968 Tsugouharu T Foujita Japanese/French painter, dies at 81
1969 Allan Welsh Dulles US diplomat/director (CIA 1953-61), dies at 75
1969 Dominique G Pire clergyman, (Europe village Nobel 1958), dies at 58
1970 Malcolm Keen English actor (Uncle Chris-Mama), dies at 82
1972 Karel Boleslav Jirak composer, dies at 81
1973 Jack McGowan actor (On Our Selection), dies at 54
1974 Bill Whitty cricketer (37 wickets vs South Africa 1910-11 series), dies
1975 Boris Blacher German composer (Purloined Letter), dies at 72
1976 Jesse "Lone Cat" Fuller San Francisco Blues Great, dies at 80
1976 Mance Lipscomb rocker, dies at 80
1976 Percy Tyson "Plum" Lewis cricketer (pair in only Test for South Africa), dies
1980 Lil Dagover actress (Destiny, Spiders), dies at 82
1980 Professor Longhair king of New Orleans music, dies at 61
1982 Félix L V L J Labisse French painter (libidoscaphes), dies at 76
1982 Lightning Hopkins rocker, dies of cancer at 69
1982 Riccardo Nielsen composer, dies at 73
1982 Stanley Holloway comedian (My Fair Lady, Our Man Higgins), dies at 91
1983 Joan Valerie actress (Pier 13), dies of pneumonia
1983 [Dallas] Mack/McCord Reynolds sci-fi author (Earth War), dies at 65
1985 Ken Mayers actor (Robbie Robertson-Space Patrol), dies at 67
1986 Ticker Freeman pianist (Dinah Shore Show), dies at 74
1987 Angelo Rutherford actor (Willie-Gentle Ben), dies at 32
1987 Ken Drake actor (Crime & Punishment USA), dies
1988 Cornelia D "Corry" Spark Dutch cabaret performer, dies at 85
1991 John McIntire actor (Virginian, Psycho), dies of emphysema at 83
1993 Taikichiro Mori Japanese real estate developer, dies at 88
1994 Bahjat Talhouni PM of Jordan (1960-62, 64-65, 67-69, 69-70), dies
1994 Byron "Wild Child" Gipson blues Singer, dies at 64
1994 Ernestine "Tiny" Davis jazz vocalist/trumpeter, dies at 86
1994 Jan L N Schaefer Dutch undersecretary of Housing (PvdA), dies at 53
1995 George H Poyser English soccer player (Manchester City), dies at 84
1995 George Richard James saxophonist, dies at 88
1995 Gerald M Durrell British zoologist/author (Mockery Bird), dies at 70
1996 Bob Thiele record producer, dies at 73
1996 Guy Doleman actor (Deadly Bees, Idol, Thunderball), dies at 72
1998 Ricky Sanderson stabbed 16-year old girl in NC, executed at 38

On this day...
1077 Pope Gregory VII pardons German emperor Henry IV
1349 Jews of Freilsburg Germany are massacred
1349 Günther of Schwarzburg chosen German anti-king
1467 Battle at Velke Kostolany Hung king Mátyás Corvinus beats Bratríci
1487 Bell chimes invented
1522 Duke of Albany takes captured French back to Scotland
1544 Adrian van Goes becomes land advocate of Holland
1592 Ippolito Aldobrandini elected Pope Clement VIII
1647 Scots agree to sell King Charles I to English Parliament for £400,
1648 Spain & Netherlands sign Peace of Münster, ending Tachtigjarige War
1667 Treaty of Andrussovo Russia & Poland sign peace treaty
1713 England & Netherlands sign 2nd anti-French boundary treaty
1774 Captain Cook reaches 71º 10' S, 1820 km from S pole (record)
1781 Articles of Confederation ratified by 13th state, Maryland
1790 Lifeboat 1st tested at sea, by Mr Greathead, the inventor
1797 Congress refuses to accept 1st petitions from American blacks
1798 Representative Matthew Lyon (Vermont) spits in face of Representative Roger Griswold (Connecticut) in US House of Representatives, after an argument
1800 US population 5,308,483; Black population 1,002,037 (18.9%)
1804 Mungo Park leaves England seeking source of Niger River
1806 Prussia takes possession of Hanover
1815 Burned Library of Congress reestablished with Jefferson's 6500 volumes
1818 Keats composes his sonnet, "When I Have Fears"
1820 Edward Bransfield aboard Williams discovers Antarctica (UK claim)
1835 Richard Lawrence misfires at President Andrew Jackson in Washington DC
1847 Yerba Buena renamed San Francisco
1853 Emperor Napoleon III marries Eugénie Maria de Montijo y de Guzman
1854 1st election in Washington Territory; 1,682 votes cast
1858 Charles Hallé founds Hallé Orchestra in Manchester
1858 William Wells Brown published 1st Black drama, "Leap to Freedom"
1862 US Navy's 1st ironclad warship (Monitor) launched
1877 Storm flood ravages Dutch coastal provinces
1879 French President MacMahon resigns
1883 England team presented with ashes of a bail after Sydney Test
1888 Harry Moses 297 not out for New South Wales against Victoria
1889 John Herschel uses camera obscura to photograph 48" (120cm) telescope
1889 Victoria beat New South Wales after following on (New South Wales all out 63 needed 76)
1892 Bobby Abel carries his bat for 132* for England in SCG Test
1892 Captain Lugard occupies Uganda's King Mwanga's hide out
1894 Pneumatic hammer patented by Charles King of Detroit
1894 US flag fired on in Rio; prompt satisfaction exacted by Admiral Benham
1895 C J Eady (Tasmania) 1st Australian to score twin centuries (vs Victoria)
1895 SS Elbe sinks after collision in North Sea, 332 killed
1895 Tasmania beat Victoria for 1st F-C victory in 41 years
1911 1st rescue of an air passenger by a ship, near Havana, Cuba
1913 House of Lords rejects Irish Home Rule Bill
1915 German submarine attack on Le Havre
1915 No 10 batsman F W Hyett scores century on debut, Victoria vs Tasmania
1917 1st jazz record recorded (Dark Town Strutters Ball)
1919 Reds hire Pat Moran as manager as Christy Mathewson, is still in France with US Army
1920 Québec's Joe Malone sets NHL record of 7 goals in a game
1921 French rapist-murderer Henri-Désiré Landru sentenced to death
1922 World Law Day, 1st celebrated
1922 Ted McDonald takes 8-58 in big Victorian win over New South Wales
1924 Ponsford scores second 110 of the game in Victoria win over New South Wales
1925 Turkish government throws out Constantine VI of Constantinople
1927 Left wins national election in Thüringen
1928 1st radio telephone connection between Netherlands & US
1928 Bradman scores 134 not out (225 minutes, 13 fours) New South Wales vs Victoria
1928 Eugene O'Neill's "Strange Interlude" premieres in New York City NY
1930 Vladimir Mayakovsky's "Banya" premieres in Leningrad
1931 Charlie Chaplin's "City Lights" premieres at Los Angeles Theater
1932 Grimmett 7-116 in South Africa 1st innings at Adelaide Oval
1933 "The Lone Ranger" premieres on ABC radio
1933 German President von Hindenburg appoints Hitler chancellor, Hitler forms government with Von Papen
1933 Grimmett takes 7-86 for South Africa in Queensland 2nd inn, 13-135 for match
1934 1st theatrical presentation sponsored by the US government, New York City NY
1934 Bert Ironmonger ends Sheffield Shield career age 51 years 298 days
1934 Hitler proclamation on German unified states
1935 Ezra Pound meets Mussolini, reads from a draft of "Cantos"
1936 Fans asked to pick a new name for Boston Braves; they choose "The Bees" it doesn't catch on & is scrapped by 1940 season
1936 Victoria need 442 to win against New South Wales, but lose, all out for 415
1937 2nd of Stalin's purge trials; Pyatakov & 16 others sentenced to death
1939 Hitler calls for the extermination of Jews
1939 Heavy after shocks destroy some of Chile
1940 Benjamin Britten's "Lesson Illuminations" premieres in London
1940 Cor Jongert wins 6th Dutch 11 Cities Skating Race
1940 Hassett's second 122 of the game for Victoria can't stop a New South Wales win
1941 Australian troops conquer Derna Libya
1942 Japanese troops land on Ambon
1943 6 British Mosquito's daylight bomb Berlin
1943 German assault on French in Tunisia
1943 German under officers shot down in Haarlem Netherlands
1943 Hitler promotes Friedrich von Paul to General - field marshal
1943 Illegal opposition newspaper Loyal begins publishing
1943 USS Chicago sinks in Pacific Ocean
1944 US invades Majuro, Marshall Islands
1945 German ship "Wilhelm Gustloff" torpedoed off Danzig by Soviet sub-c 7,700 die
1946 1st issue of Franklin Roosevelt dime
1948 5th Winter Olympic games open in St Moritz, Switzerland
1950 "Robert Montgomery Presents" dramatic anthology premieres on NBC TV
1951 Belgium refuses to allow communists to make speeches on radio
1952 Lehmer verifies 2^521-1 & 2^607-1 (183 ciphers) Mersenne-prime #
1952 Paul Creston's 4th Symphony, premieres
1954 Belgium ends trade agreement with USSR
1954 Italy's Fanfani government resigns
1956 Martin Luther King Jr's home bombed
1956 Elvis Presley records his version of "Blue Suede Shoes"
1956 KRMA TV channel 6 in Denver CO (PBS) begins broadcasting
1956 KTXS TV channel 12 in Sweetwater-Abilene TX (ABC) begins broadcasting
1957 US Congress accepts "Eisenhower-doctrine"
1958 1st 2-way moving sidewalk in service, Dallas TX
1958 House of Lords passes bill allowing women in
1958 Baseball announces players & coaches rather than fans pick all stars
1958 Dore Schary's "Sunrise at Campobello" premieres in New York City NY
1959 Australia 1-200 1st day 4th Test vs England, Adelaide Oval
1959 Paul Hindemith's symphony "Pittsburgh" premieres
1960 CIA oks Lockheed to produce a new U-2 aircraft (Oxcart)
1960 Dutch communist trade union EVC'58 disbands
1960 Riot curtails third day's play at Port-Of-Spain West Indies vs England
1960 US female Figure Skating championship won by Carol Heiss
1960 US male Figure Skating championship won by David Jenkins
1961 Bobby Darin is youngest performer to headline a TV special on NBC
1961 JFK asks for an Alliance for Progress & Peace Corps
1961 KAET TV channel 8 in Phoenix AZ (PBS) begins broadcasting
1961 Lance Gibbs takes hat-trick (Mackay, Grout, Misson) at Adelaide
1962 UN General Assembly censures Portugal (because of Angola)
1962 2 members of Flying Wallendas' high-wire act killed when their 7-person pyramid collapsed during a performance in Detroit
1962 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1964 Ranger 6 launched; makes perfect flight to Moon, but cameras fail
1964 Military coup of General Nguyen Khanh in South Vietnam
1965 "The Name Game" by Shirley Ellis hits #3
1965 State funeral of Winston Churchill
1966 -19ºF (-28ºC), Corinth MS (state record)
1966 -27ºF (-33ºC), New Market AL (state record)
1966 Ard Schenk skates world record 1500m (2 05.2)
1966 Dmitri Shostakovich completes his 11th string quartet
1968 Bobby Goldsboro records his biggest hit, "Honey"
1968 Vietcong launch Tet-offensive on US embassy in Saigon
1969 Beatles perform their last gig together, a 42-minute free concert on the roof of Apple HQs
1969 US/Canada ISIS 1 launched to study ionosphere
1971 "Ari" closes at Mark Hellinger Theater New York City NY after 19 performances
1971 Dennis Lillee takes 5-84 in his 1st Test bowl, vs England
1971 UCLA starts 88 basketball game win streak
1972 Pakistan withdraws from the Commonwealth
1972 Bloody Sunday British soldiers shoot on catholics in Londonderry, 13 die
1973 Jury finds Watergate defendants Liddy & McCord guilty on all counts
1973 26th NHL All-Star Game East beat West 5-4 at New York Rangers
1973 KISS plays their 1st show (Coventry Club in Queens NY)
1974 USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakstan/Semipalatinsk USSR
1976 1st-class debut of Dav Whatmore, in Johannesburg
1976 George Bush becomes 11th director of CIA (until 1977)
1976 William E Colby, ends term as 10th director of CIA
1977 8th (final) part of "Roots" is most-watched entertainment show ever
1977 Allan Border scores 36 in his 1st-class innings (New South Wales vs Queesland)
1977 Edward W Stack replaces Paul Kerr president of Hall of Fame
1978 Addie Joss & Larry MacPhail elected to Baseball Hall of Fame
1978 Mutual Broadcasting Network begins airing Larry King Show on radio
1979 Rhodesia agrees to new constitution
1980 Edward Albee's "Lady from Dubuque" premieres in New York City NY
1981 8th American Music Award Kenny Rogers wins
1982 US female Figure Skating championship won by Rosalynn Sumners
1983 Hilbert van Thumb becomes European skating champ
1983 Pat Bradley wins LPGA Mazda of Deer Creek Golf Classic
1983 Super Bowl XVII Washington Redskins beat Miami Dolphins, 27-17 in Pasadena; Super Bowl MVP John Riggins, Washington, Running Back
1988 Hansie Cronje gets a pair in 2nd 1st-class game (OFS vs N Tvl)
1989 Joel Steinberg found guilty of 1st degree manslaughter of daughter
1989 Olympian, Bruce Kimball, is sentenced to 17 years in prison for killing 2 teenagers in a drunk driving accident
1989 16th American Music Award Randy Travis & George Michael win
1989 5 pharoah sculptures from 1470 BC found at temple of Luxor
1989 Last day of 1st class cricket for Dav Whatmore
1991 Battle for Khafji in Saudi Arabia (2nd day)
1992 Space Shuttle STS-42 (Discovery 15) lands
1993 100,000n Europeans demonstrate against fascism & racism
1993 67th Australian Open Women's Tennis Monica Seles beat Graf (46 63 62)
1994 68th Australian Open Women's Tennis Steffi Graf beats Arantxa Sanchez Vicario (60 62)
1994 82nd Australian Open Men's Tennis Pete Sampras beats Todd Martin (76 64 64)
1994 Dan Jansen skates world record 500m (35.76)
1994 Kapil Dev equals Richard Hadlee's world record of 431 Test wickets
1994 Super Bowl XXVIII Dallas Cowboys beat Buffalo Bills, 30-13 in Atlanta; Super Bowl MVP Emmitt Smith, Dallas, Running Back
1995 22nd American Music Award Boyz II Men & Ace of Base win
1995 Belgium's TV channel 2 in Flanders goes on the air
1995 Car bomb explodes in Algiers, 42 killed/296 injured
1995 Kevin Eubanks officially becomes band leader of "Tonight Show"
1997 Minuteman III launches
1998 All-Star Florida Marlin catcher Darren Daulton, retires
1998 Howard Stern Radio Show premieres in Indianapolis IN on WNAP 93.1 FM
1998 Paul Simon's "The Capeman" premieres
2000 NFL Pro Bowl

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

England : Women Peerage Day (1958)
Kentucky, Virgin Islands : Franklin D Roosevelt Day
Australia : Australia Day (1788 - 1993) - - - - - ( Monday )

Religious Observances
Christian : Feast of St Charles
Eastern Orthodox : Holiday of 3 Hierachs (Basil, Gregory & Chrysostom)
Roman Catholic : Feast of St Bathilde
Roman Catholic : Commemoration of St Martina, virgin/martyr
Roman Catholic : Feast of St Hippolytus of Rome (Orthodox)
Roman Catholic : Feast of St Felix IV, Roman Catholic pope (526-30)
Moslem : 'Id al-Fitr; end of Ramadan fast (Shawwal 1, 1418 AH)

Religious History
435 Rome recognized the Vandal territories in Northwest Africa as "federati," in an effort to stave off their invasion of Italy. (The invasion was successfully postponed for 20 years.)
1750 In Colonial America, Rev. Jonathan Mayhew of Boston delivered a sermon entitled, "Discourse Concerning Unlimited Submission." The sermon attacked both the divine right of kings and ecclesiastical absolutism.
1788 Pioneer American Methodist bishop Francis Asbury wrote in his journal: 'Alas for the rich! They are so soon offended.'
1839 Scottish clergyman Robert Murray McCheyne wrote in a letter: 'God feeds the wild flowers on the lonely mountain side without the help of man.... So God can feed his own planted ones without the help of man, by the sweetly falling dew of his Spirit.'
1867 The American branch of the Evangelical Alliance was organized at the Bible House in New York City, with William E. Dodge elected president.

Thought for the day :
"Nobody talks so constantly about God as those who insist that there is no God."

Tet Medal of Honor Recipients

*ASHLEY, EUGENE, JR.
Rank and organization: Sergeant First Class, U.S. Army, Company C, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), 1st Special Forces. Place and date: Near Lang Vei, Republic of Vietnam, 6th and 7th February 1968. Entered service at: New York, N.Y. Born: 12 October 1931, Wilmington, N.C. Citation: Sfc. Ashley, distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity while serving with Detachment A-101, Company C. Sfc. Ashley was the senior special forces Advisor of a hastily organized assault force whose mission was to rescue entrapped U.S. special forces advisors at Camp Lang Vei. During the initial attack on the special forces camp by North Vietnamese army forces, Sfc. Ashley supported the camp with high explosive and illumination mortar rounds. When communications were lost with the main camp, he assumed the additional responsibility of directing air strikes and artillery support. Sfc. Ashley organized and equipped a small assault force composed of local friendly personnel. During the ensuing battle, Sfc. Ashley led a total of 5 vigorous assaults against the enemy, continuously exposing himself to a voluminous hail of enemy grenades, machine gun and automatic weapons fire. Throughout these assaults, he was plagued by numerous booby-trapped satchel charges in all bunkers on his avenue of approach. During his fifth and final assault, he adjusted air strikes nearly on top of his assault element, forcing the enemy to withdraw and resulting in friendly control of the summit of the hill. While exposing himself to intense enemy fire, he was seriously wounded by machine gun fire but continued his mission without regard for his personal safety. After the fifth assault he lost consciousness and was carried from the summit by his comrades only to suffer a fatal wound when an enemy artillery round landed in the area. Sfc. Ashley displayed extraordinary heroism in risking his life in an attempt to save the lives of his entrapped comrades and commanding officer. His total disregard for his personal safety while exposed to enemy observation and automatic weapons fire was an inspiration to all men committed to the assault. The resolute valor with which he led 5 gallant charges placed critical diversionary pressure on the attacking enemy and his valiant efforts carved a channel in the overpowering enemy forces and weapons positions through which the survivors of Camp Lang Vei eventually escaped to freedom. Sfc. Ashley's bravery at the cost of his life was in the highest traditions of the military service, and reflects great credit upon himself, his unit, and the U.S. Army.

DIX, DREW DENNIS
Rank and Organization: Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army, U.S. Senior Advisor Group, IV Corps, Military Assistance Command. Place and date: Chau Doc Province, Republic of Vietnam, 31 January and 1 February 1968. Entered service at: Denver, Colo. Born: 14 December 1944, West Point, N.Y. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. S/Sgt. Dix distinguished himself by exceptional heroism while serving as a unit adviser. Two heavily armed Viet Cong battalions attacked the Province capital city of Chau Phu resulting in the complete breakdown and fragmentation of the defenses of the city. S/Sgt. Dix, with a patrol of Vietnamese soldiers, was recalled to assist in the defense of Chau Phu. Learning that a nurse was trapped in a house near the center of the city, S/Sgt. Dix organized a relief force, successfully rescued the nurse, and returned her to the safety of the Tactical Operations Center. Being informed of other trapped civilians within the city, S/Sgt. Dix voluntarily led another force to rescue 8 civilian employees located in a building which was under heavy mortar and small-arms fire. S/Sgt. Dix then returned to the center of the city. Upon approaching a building, he was subjected to intense automatic rifle and machine gun fire from an unknown number of Viet Cong. He personally assaulted the building, killing 6 Viet Cong, and rescuing 2 Filipinos. The following day S/Sgt. Dix, still on his own volition, assembled a 20-man force and though under intense enemy fire cleared the Viet Cong out of the hotel, theater, and other adjacent buildings within the city. During this portion of the attack, Army Republic of Vietnam soldiers inspired by the heroism and success of S/Sgt. Dix, rallied and commenced firing upon the Viet Cong. S/Sgt. Dix captured 20 prisoners, including a high ranking Viet Cong official. He then attacked enemy troops who had entered the residence of the Deputy Province Chief and was successful in rescuing the official's wife and chldren. S/Sgt. Dix's personal heroic actions resulted in 14 confirmed Viet Cong killed in action and possibly 25 more, the capture of 20 prisoners, 15 weapons, and the rescue of the 14 United States and free world civilians. The heroism of S/Sgt. Dix was in the highest tradition and reflects great credit upon the U.S. Army.

FERGUSON, FREDERICK EDGAR
Rank and organization: Chief Warrant Officer, U.S. Army, Company C, 227th Aviation Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile). Place and date: Hue, Republic of Vietnam, 31 January 1968. Entered service at: Phoenix, Ariz. Born: 18 August 1939, Pilot Point, Tex. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. CWO Ferguson, U.S. Army distinguished himself while serving with Company C. CWO Ferguson, commander of a resupply helicopter monitoring an emergency call from wounded passengers and crewmen of a downed helicopter under heavy attack within the enemy controlled city of Hue, unhesitatingly volunteered to attempt evacuation. Despite warnings from all aircraft to stay clear of the area due to heavy antiaircraft fire, CWO Ferguson began a low-level night at maximum airspeed along the Perfume River toward the tiny, isolated South Vietnamese Army compound in which the crash survivors had taken refuge. Coolly and skillfully maintaining his course in the face of intense, short range fire from enemy occupied buildings and boats, he displayed superior flying skill and tenacity of purpose by landing his aircraft in an extremely confined area in a blinding dust cloud under heavy mortar and small-arms fire. Although the helicopter was severely damaged by mortar fragments during the loading of the wounded, CWO Ferguson disregarded the damage and, taking off through the continuing hail of mortar fire, he flew his crippled aircraft on the return route through the rain of fire that he had experienced earlier and safely returned his wounded passengers to friendly control. CWO Ferguson's extraordinary determination saved the lives of 5 of his comrades. His actions are in the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit on himself and the U.S. Army .

*GONZALEZ, ALFREDO
Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Marine Corps, Company A, 1st Battalion, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division (Rein), FMF. Place and date: Near Thua Thien, Republic of Vietnam, 4 February 1968. Entered service at: San Antonio, Tex. Born: 23 May 1946, Edinburg Tex. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as platoon commander, 3d Platoon, Company A. On 31 January 1968, during the initial phase of Operation Hue City, Sgt. Gonzalez' unit was formed as a reaction force and deployed to Hue to relieve the pressure on the beleaguered city. While moving by truck convoy along Route No. 1, near the village of Lang Van Lrong, the marines received a heavy volume of enemy fire. Sgt. Gonzalez aggressively maneuvered the marines in his platoon, and directed their fire until the area was cleared of snipers. Immediately after crossing a river south of Hue, the column was again hit by intense enemy fire. One of the marines on top of a tank was wounded and fell to the ground in an exposed position. With complete disregard for his safety, Sgt. Gonzalez ran through the fire-swept area to the assistance of his injured comrade. He lifted him up and though receiving fragmentation wounds during the rescue, he carried the wounded marine to a covered position for treatment. Due to the increased volume and accuracy of enemy fire from a fortified machine gun bunker on the side of the road, the company was temporarily halted. Realizing the gravity of the situation, Sgt. Gonzalez exposed himself to the enemy fire and moved his platoon along the east side of a bordering rice paddy to a dike directly across from the bunker. Though fully aware of the danger involved, he moved to the fire-swept road and destroyed the hostile position with hand grenades. Although seriously wounded again on 3 February, he steadfastly refused medical treatment and continued to supervise his men and lead the attack. On 4 February, the enemy had again pinned the company down, inflicting heavy casualties with automatic weapons and rocket fire. Sgt. Gonzalez, utilizing a number of light antitank assault weapons, fearlessly moved from position to position firing numerous rounds at the heavily fortified enemy emplacements. He successfully knocked out a rocket position and suppressed much of the enemy fire before falling mortally wounded. The heroism, courage, and dynamic leadership displayed by Sgt. Gonzalez reflected great credit upon himself and the Marine Corps, and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.

*GRAVES, TERRENCE COLLINSON
Rank and organization: Second Lieutenant, U.S. Marine Corps, 3d Force Reconnaissance Company, 3d Reconnaissance Battalion, 3d Marine Division (Rein), FMF. Place and date: Quang Tri Province, Republic of Vietnam, 16 February 1968. Entered service at: New York Born: 6 July 1945, Corpus Christi, Tex. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as a platoon commander with the 3d Force Reconnaissance Company. While on a long-range reconnaissance mission, 2d Lt. Graves' 8-man patrol observed 7 enemy soldiers approaching their position. Reacting instantly, he deployed his men and directed their fire on the approaching enemy. After the fire had ceased, he and 2 patrol members commenced a search of the area, and suddenly came under a heavy volume of hostile small arms and automatic weapons fire from a numerically superior enemy force. When 1 of his men was hit by the enemy fire, 2d Lt. Graves moved through the fire-swept area to his radio and, while directing suppressive fire from his men, requested air support and adjusted a heavy volume of artillery and helicopter gunship fire upon the enemy. After attending the wounded, 2d Lt. Graves, accompanied by another marine, moved from his relatively safe position to confirm the results of the earlier engagement. Observing that several of the enemy were still alive, he launched a determined assault, eliminating the remaining enemy troops. He then began moving the patrol to a landing zone for extraction, when the unit again came under intense fire which wounded 2 more marines and 2d Lt. Graves. Refusing medical attention, he once more adjusted air strikes and artillery fire upon the enemy while directing the fire of his men. He led his men to a new landing site into which he skillfully guided the incoming aircraft and boarded his men while remaining exposed to the hostile fire. Realizing that 1 of the wounded had not em barked, he directed the aircraft to depart and, along with another marine, moved to the side of the casualty. Confronted with a shortage of ammunition, 2d Lt. Graves utilized supporting arms and directed fire until a second helicopter arrived. At this point, the volume of enemy fire intensified, hitting the helicopter and causing it to crash shortly after liftoff. All aboard were killed. 2d Lt. Graves' outstanding courage, superb leadership and indomitable fighting spirit throughout the day were in keeping with the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country .

HOOPER, JOE R.
Rank and organization: Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company D, 2d Battalion (Airborne), 501st Infantry, 101st Airborne Division. Place and date: Near Hue, Republic of Vietnam, 21 February 1968. Entered service at: Los Angeles, Calif. Born: 8 August 1938, Piedmont, S.C. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Staff Sergeant (then Sgt.) Hooper, U.S. Army, distinguished himself while serving as squad leader with Company D. Company D was assaulting a heavily defended enemy position along a river bank when it encountered a withering hail of fire from rockets, machine guns and automatic weapons. S/Sgt. Hooper rallied several men and stormed across the river, overrunning several bunkers on the opposite shore. Thus inspired, the rest of the company moved to the attack. With utter disregard for his own safety, he moved out under the intense fire again and pulled back the wounded, moving them to safety. During this act S/Sgt. Hooper was seriously wounded, but he refused medical aid and returned to his men. With the relentless enemy fire disrupting the attack, he single-handedly stormed 3 enemy bunkers, destroying them with hand grenade and rifle fire, and shot 2 enemy soldiers who had attacked and wounded the Chaplain. Leading his men forward in a sweep of the area, S/Sgt. Hooper destroyed 3 buildings housing enemy riflemen. At this point he was attacked by a North Vietnamese officer whom he fatally wounded with his bayonet. Finding his men under heavy fire from a house to the front, he proceeded alone to the building, killing its occupants with rifle fire and grenades. By now his initial body wound had been compounded by grenade fragments, yet despite the multiple wounds and loss of blood, he continued to lead his men against the intense enemy fire. As his squad reached the final line of enemy resistance, it received devastating fire from 4 bunkers in line on its left flank. S/Sgt. Hooper gathered several hand grenades and raced down a small trench which ran the length of the bunker line, tossing grenades into each bunker as he passed by, killing all but 2 of the occupants. With these positions destroyed, he concentrated on the last bunkers facing his men, destroying the first with an incendiary grenade and neutralizing 2 more by rifle fire. He then raced across an open field, still under enemy fire, to rescue a wounded man who was trapped in a trench. Upon reaching the man, he was faced by an armed enemy soldier whom he killed with a pistol. Moving his comrade to safety and returning to his men, he neutralized the final pocket of enemy resistance by fatally wounding 3 North Vietnamese officers with rifle fire. S/Sgt. Hooper then established a final line and reorganized his men, not accepting treatment until this was accomplished and not consenting to evacuation until the following morning. His supreme valor, inspiring leadership and heroic self-sacrifice were directly responsible for the company's success and provided a lasting example in personal courage for every man on the field. S/Sgt. Hooper's actions were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself and the U.S. Army .

*MAXAM, LARRY LEONARD
Rank and organization: Corporal, U.S. Marine Corps, Company D, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines, 3d Marine Division (Rein), FMF. place and date: Cam Lo District, Quang Tri province, Republic of Vietnam, 2 February 1968. Entered service at: Los Angeles, Calif. Born: 9 January 1948, Glendale, Calif. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a fire team leader with Company D. The Cam Lo District Headquarters came under extremely heavy rocket, artillery, mortar, and recoilless rifle fire from a numerically superior enemy force, destroying a portion of the defensive perimeter. Cpl. Maxam, observing the enemy massing for an assault into the compound across the remaining defensive wire, instructed his assistant fire team leader to take charge of the fire team, and unhesitatingly proceeded to the weakened section of the perimeter. Completely exposed to the concentrated enemy fire, he sustained multiple fragmentation wounds from exploding grenades as he ran to an abandoned machine gun position. Reaching the emplacement, he grasped the machine gun and commenced to deliver effective fire on the advancing enemy. As the enemy directed maximum firepower against the determined marine, Cpl. Maxam's position received a direct hit from a rocket propelled grenade, knocking him backwards and inflicting severe fragmentation wounds to his face and right eye. Although momentarily stunned and in intense pain, Cpl. Maxam courageously resumed his firing position and subsequently was struck again by small-arms fire. With resolute determination, he gallantly continued to deliver intense machine gun fire, causing the enemy to retreat through the defensive wire to positions of cover. In a desperate attempt to silence his weapon, the North Vietnamese threw hand grenades and directed recoilless rifle fire against him inflicting 2 additional wounds. Too weak to reload his machine gun, Cpl. Maxam fell to a prone position and valiantly continued to deliver effective fire with his rifle. After 11/2 hours, during which he was hit repeatedly by fragments from exploding grenades and concentrated small-arms fire, he succumbed to his wounds, having successfully defended nearly half of the perimeter single-handedly. Cpl. Maxam's aggressive fighting spirit, inspiring valor and selfless devotion to duty reflected great credit upon himself and the Marine Corps and upheld the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.

*SIMS, CLIFFORD CHESTER
Rank and organization: Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company D, 2d Battalion (Airborne), 501st Infantry, 101st Airborne Division. Place and date: Near Hue, Republic of Vietnam, 21 February 1968. Entered service at: Jacksonville, Fla. Born: 18 June 1942, Port St. Joe, Fla. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. S/Sgt. Sims distinguished himself while serving as a squad leader with Company D. Company D was assaulting a heavily fortified enemy position concealed within a dense wooded area when it encountered strong enemy defensive fire. Once within the woodline, S/Sgt. Sims led his squad in a furious attack against an enemy force which had pinned down the 1st Platoon and threatened to overrun it. His skillful leadership provided the platoon with freedom of movement and enabled it to regain the initiative. S/Sgt. Sims was then ordered to move his squad to a position where he could provide covering fire for the company command group and to link up with the 3d Platoon, which was under heavy enemy pressure. After moving no more than 30 meters S/Sgt. Sims noticed that a brick structure in which ammunition was stocked was on fire. Realizing the danger, S/Sgt. Sims took immediate action to move his squad from this position. Though in the process of leaving the area 2 members of his squad were injured by the subsequent explosion of the ammunition, S/Sgt. Sims' prompt actions undoubtedly prevented more serious casualties from occurring. While continuing through the dense woods amidst heavy enemy fire, S/Sgt. Sims and his squad were approaching a bunker when they heard the unmistakable noise of a concealed booby trap being triggered immediately to their front. S/Sgt. Sims warned his comrades of the danger and unhesitatingly hurled himself upon the device as it exploded, taking the full impact of the blast. In so protecting his fellow soldiers, he willingly sacrificed his life. S/Sgt. Sims' extraordinary heroism at the cost of his life is in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflects great credit upon himself and the U.S. Army.

ZABITOSKY, FRED WILLIAM
Rank and organization: Sergeant First Class (then S/Sgt.), U.S. Army, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne). Place and date: Republic of Vietnam, 19 February 1968. Entered service at: Trenton, N.J. Born: 27 October 1942, Trenton, N.J. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Sfc. Zabitosky, U.S. Army, distinguished himself while serving as an assistant team leader of a 9-man Special Forces long-range reconnaissance patrol. Sfc. Zabitosky's patrol was operating deep within enemy-controlled territory when they were attacked by a numerically superior North Vietnamese Army unit. Sfc. Zabitosky rallied his team members, deployed them into defensive positions, and, exposing himself to concentrated enemy automatic weapons fire, directed their return fire. Realizing the gravity of the situation, Sfc. Zabitosky ordered his patrol to move to a landing zone for helicopter extraction while he covered their withdrawal with rifle fire and grenades. Rejoining the patrol under increasing enemy pressure, he positioned each man in a tight perimeter defense and continually moved from man to man, encouraging them and controlling their defensive fire. Mainly due to his example, the outnumbered patrol maintained its precarious position until the arrival of tactical air support and a helicopter extraction team. As the rescue helicopters arrived, the determined North Vietnamese pressed their attack. Sfc. Zabitosky repeatedly exposed himself to their fire to adjust suppressive helicopter gunship fire around the landing zone. After boarding 1 of the rescue helicopters, he positioned himself in the door delivering fire on the enemy as the ship took off. The helicopter was engulfed in a hail of bullets and Sfc. Zabitosky was thrown from the craft as it spun out of control and crashed. Recovering consciousness, he ignored his extremely painful injuries and moved to the flaming wreckage. Heedless of the danger of exploding ordnance and fuel, he pulled the severely wounded pilot from the searing blaze and made repeated attempts to rescue his patrol members but was driven back by the intense heat. Despite his serious burns and crushed ribs, he carried and dragged the unconscious pilot through a curtain of enemy fire to within 10 feet of a hovering rescue helicopter before collapsing. Sfc. Zabitosky's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the U.S. Army.