Battle of Hamburger Hill
ELEPHANT GRASS by Roger A. Blum, CAT I, 1966, Courtesy of the National Museum of the U.S. Army
GI Says underground newspaper published by U.S. Army soldier at Camp Evans in South Vietnam in 1969. It offered a $10,000 reward for a hit on their commanding officer who led them into a disastrous battle on Hamburger Hill.
Battle of Hamburger Hill, 11-17 May 1969
Battle of Hamburger Hill, 20 May 1969
Hamburger Hill, depuis la route de A Lưới, avril 2011,
Former Army Spc. Joe Leber, with 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, poses with the American flag on "Hamburger Hill" in Vietnam - the site of a 10-day battle in the A Shau Valley.
A U. S. Army Photographer and assistant climbing through the devastated landscape on Dong Ap Bia after the battle. (Melvin Zais Photograph Collection). (Photo Credit: USAMHI)
Impact of War! This image shows Troopers inspecting the damage in the surrounding area of Dong Ap Bia during Operation Apache Snow, May 1969. (Melvin Zais Photograph Collection). (Photo Credit: USAMHI)
Historical Overview
The Battle of Hamburger Hill was fought by United States Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) forces against People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) forces during Operation Apache Snow of the Vietnam War. Though the heavily fortified Hill 937, a ridge of the mountain Dong Ap Bia in central Vietnam near its western border with Laos, had little strategic value, US command ordered its capture by a frontal assault, only to abandon it soon thereafter. The action caused a controversy among both the US armed services and the public back home, and marked a turning point in the US involvement.
Quick Facts
USA (7th Cavalry)
- Commander: Weldon Honeycutt
- Strength: 1.800 Mann
- Casualties: 72
N. Vietnam (PAVN)
- Commander: unbekannt
- Strength: 1.500 Mann
- Casualties: 630
Strategic Context
Peak of criticism against US attrition strategy.
Related Literature
Historical Locations
Exact location not recorded in historical records