During the Vietnam War, on January 30, 1968, North Vietnamese communist troops, with the help of the Viet Cong, launched a series of attacks against the forces of the South and the United States. known as the famous “Têt Offensive”. The name “Tet Offensive” comes from the most important holiday in the Vietnamese calendar. It is a celebration of the Lunar New Year. General Vo Nguyen Giap, along with the northern forces, decided to attack that day because it is supposed to be a "truce period" between the north and the south. That day, the ARVN (Army of the Republic of Vietnam) was at its lowest level of vigilance. (Dunn, 2005) The offensive took place in three phases. The first phase took place on January 31 and lasted until March 28. During this phase, North Vietnamese forces wanted to withdraw Allied forces from densely populated cities and plains and then launch attacks on those cities. (Staff, 2014) This was a major surprise. The second phase, also known as "mini-tet", took place on May 5 and lasted until June 15. This phase consisted of massive attacks on villages and towns aimed at hitting 119 targets. (Staff, 2014) This phase was a complete failure. The last and final phase of the offensive took place from August 17 to September 23. This attack consisted of several attacks on villages and towns and was carried out solely by North Vietnamese soldiers, without assistance from the Viet Cong, ending in another failure. (Staff, 2014) The Tet Offensive was a highly publicized attack thanks to the daily media coverage it received. It has also been considered one of the turning points of the Vietnam War. After the failed attacks by the Northern forces, the Viet Cong was ruined as a military force. (Dunn, 2005) Vo Nguyen Giap uses...... middle of paper...... the announcement that an attack was coming, but if we had more intelligence in the North, then we would have may have been better prepared. The offensive seemed to indicate to most observers that the three years of "large unit warfare" that followed the deployment of American forces in 1965 had produced only a steady stream of casualties on all sides. (Wirtz, 1991) Lessons learned from the Tet Offensive include: “If the enemy has quantity and quality, don't attack,” “superior firepower almost wins.” always on ideological commitment", "guerrillas rarely win well-regulated battles against good enemies". “armed regular soldiers with access to an unlimited supply of ammunition” and “do not assume that civilians will accept a revolution imposed on them at gunpoint.” (Dudley, 2001) The Tet Offensive assuaged the crusading spirit that characterized America's postwar rush to intervene in Third World conflicts. (Wirtz, 1991)