The Paris Peace Accords were signed 53 years ago this week. Known officially as the Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Viet-Nam, the agreement marked the end of the war—at least for the United States. It called for a cease fire starting on January 28, 1973, and the withdrawal of all US and allied forces within 60 days. The cease fire was violated immediately and repeatedly by both North and South Vietnam, but the United States, which had already reduced ground forces significantly over the previous two and a half years, sent its remaining combat troops back home that spring.

The war ended for the Vietnamese two years later, when a North Vietnamese offensive led to the fall of Saigon and the collapse of the South Vietnamese government.

In the search for explanations, some blamed Congress. The late AUSA author Maj. Gen. Ira A. Hunt, Jr. faulted America’s lack of financial support as the primary factor in Losing Vietnam: How America Abandoned Southeast Asia.

Others claimed that the war was lost even before American involvement. Col. William C. Haponski, also sadly departed, analyzed the 30-year conflict in Autopsy of an Unwinnable War: Vietnam and concluded that it was Vietnamese ideas of nationhood that ultimately drove battlefield results.

Whatever the reason, the war’s ending cast a shadow on military affairs for decades. Col. Bryan N. Groves explores its effect at the highest levels in When Presidents Fight the Last War: The Oval Office, Sunk Costs, and Wartime Decision-Making since Vietnam. Groves shows how the twin events of Vietnam and the 9/11 attacks have driven presidential decisions to escalate or cut losses in military conflicts abroad.

We must, however, remember that US soldiers usually found success on the battlefield, even when facing overwhelming odds. Kenneth P. White details one of the earliest American actions in The Battle of Bong Son: Operation Masher/White Wing, 1966, an early example of tactical victory without a high-level strategy. At the other end of the war, after most US troops had already been withdrawn, Thomas P. McKenna offers a first-hand account of how a South Vietnam division and their American advisors thwarted the North Vietnamese Easter Offensive of 1972 in Kontum: The Battle to Save South Vietnam.

Battlefield valor has its highest expression in the Medal of Honor. No Greater Love: The Story of Michael Crescenz, Philadelphia’s Only Medal of Honor Recipient of the Vietnam War by John A. Seigfried and Kevin Ferris tells the story of a young private who made the ultimate sacrifice fighting enemy forces near the border of Laos. In Standing Tall: Leadership Lessons in the Life of a Soldier, Lt. Gen. (ret.) Robert F. Foley touches on his actions in Vietnam that were recognized with the medal, but he emphasizes the broader picture in his long career of service to fellow soldiers, the Army, and the nation.

Finally, it is important to recognize the allied nations that fought with the United States in defense of South Vietnam. Six other nations provided combat troops, with South Korea alone sending more than 300,000 soldiers over the course of the conflict. Team 19 in Vietnam: An Australian Solider at War by David Millie offers one glimpse into the allied perspective of the war.

Please visit www.ausa.org/books to order these and other titles in the AUSA Book Program. Use the promo code W26AUSA for select member discounts when purchasing directly through the publisher links.