The Battle of Hue began with the
Tet Offensive on January 31st 1968 when
North Vietnamese Army (NVA) and Viet Cong (VC) soldiers swept into the city.
A major target was the 1st ARVN Division (South Vietnamese Army) stationed
within the fortress walls of the Imperial Citadel, the Vietnamese equivalent
of Beijing's Forbidden City.
North Vietnamese forces managed to infiltrate the
Citadel and one of the
bloodiest battles of the war ensued.
In the counter-attack, US Marines entered the fray and A-4 Skyhawks
dropped bombs and napalm on the Citadel and Imperial Palace.
The Battle of Hue resulted in the estimated death of over 8780 combatants
and 844 civilians.
The bullet ridden and burnt out building in the attached image sits atop
the north-west inner wall over looking the moat and bears testimony to the
intensity of the conflict.
The next image will show something with
Construction in it -