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Graduate Colloquium Series: Michael Morris (HIST) 3/5/19

"Waging War in I Corps: III Marine Amphibious Force Headquarters in Vietnam, 1965-1971”

“Waging War in I Corps: III Marine Amphibious Force Headquarters in Vietnam, 1965-1971”

Tuesday, March 5, 2019, 4-5 p.m.
Location: 311 Glasscock Building

Michael Morris
Ph.D. candidate| Department of History, 2018-2019 Glasscock Graduate Research Fellow

Abstract:
Morris’s dissertation examines how III Marine Amphibious Force, a naval corps-level headquarters, managed the war in I Corps, the northern five provinces of South Vietnam, from 1965 to 1971.  This paper is derived from research supporting a chapter on intelligence functions.  The draft article traces a single communist Main Force element, the 1st Viet Cong Regiment, across the first three years of its conflict with the Marines in I Corps.  This enemy unit engaged in a series of costly brawls with ARVN and Marine forces throughout the period.  A veritable phoenix, the 1st VC regiment was destroyed in battle thirteen times in that brief span and yet repeatedly regenerated its battered formations to fight again.  The essay assesses how that was possible, the nature of the communist insurgency in I Corps, and how the Marines understood and responded to its dual political and military perils.  This case study underscores the challenges inherent in hybrid warfare and suggests keys to simultaneously addressing conventional and irregular threats. Morris argues that the 1st VC Regiment’s impressive operational resilience illustrates, in microcosm, how and why the allied counterrevolutionary strategy failed to win in Vietnam.


The Graduate Colloquium offers graduate students an opportunity to discuss a work-in-progress with faculty and graduate students from different disciplines. By long-standing practice, colloquium presenters provide a draft of their current research, which is made available to members of the Glasscock Center listserv. Each colloquium begins with the presenter’s short (10-15 minute) exposition of the project, after which the floor is open for comments and queries. The format is by design informal, conversational, and interdisciplinary.

The Glasscock Center extends a warm invitation to faculty and students to join in a discussion of Michael’s work-in-progress. The paper is available to members of the Center’s listserv, or by contacting the Glasscock Center by phone at (979) 845-8328 or by e-mail at glasscock@tamu.edu.

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