The Vietnam War in Color - Secrets, Shadows, Sacrifice

A nation shaped by war for thousands of years fights to overcome the oppression of foreign powers. Ho Chi Minh embraces the power of communism and the rage of revolution, leading to the historic Battle of Dien Bien Phu. This decisive clash ends the tyranny of French colonial rule and marks the birth of a new Vietnam.

Fighting the growth of fifties' communism has prepared America's new president to face fresh threats around the world. JFK must prevent countries from falling to its influence without going to war. In Vietnam he sends advisors and helicopters to contain Russian and Chinese aggression - unaware that his measured approach is laying the path to deeper U.S. commitment.

The assassination of John F. Kennedy puts a new leader in the driving seat of America's commitment in South Vietnam. After the Gulf of Tonkin incident, Congress grants Lyndon Johnson extraordinary powers to wage war. He escalates U.S. forces overnight, unleashing America's might on land, at sea, and in the skies above Vietnam.

The first major battle of the war takes place at Ia Drang. Colonel Hal Moore leads the 1st Cavalry Division against hardened North Vietnamese regulars. His 450 men quickly find themselves facing nearly 2,000 enemy troops in a fight that becomes the bloodiest since Custer's Last Stand. The lessons of Ia Drang will echo through the rest of the war.

General Westmoreland executes his plan by unleashing America's advanced technology and firepower. Moving through the Vietnamese landscape, they uncover hidden secrets of the Viet Cong--tunnels, traps and supply lines. Weapons like the M16 rifle, the M60 machine gun, and bombing raids prove powerful, but fail to loosen communism's grip in the South or bring the North to the negotiation table.

The war enters its fourth year. U.S. troop numbers and casualty lists spiral upward. At home, the war grows increasingly unpopular, and the government faces protests, riots, and assassinations. Abroad, the siege of Khe Sanh and escalating NVA assaults test America's resolve as leaders struggle to balance sacrifice overseas with chaos at home.

1968's celebration of the Lunar New Year doesn't go as planned. The Tet Offensive explodes across more than 100 towns and cities, including the ancient capital of Hue and even the grounds of the U.S. Embassy in Saigon. The NVA's biggest offensive to date shocks the world - a turning point where America realizes victory may never come.

Lyndon Johnson bows out and Richard Nixon wins big to become America's fourth president to oversee the war. As a well-known political hawk, Nixon preaches peace while widening the fight into Laos and Cambodia. At the same time, 'Vietnamization' begins, and U.S. troops slowly start their long journey home.

While the U.S. supports new fighting on the borders, the long goodbye begins in Vietnam. The Ho Chi Minh Trail keeps fueling the fight, even as American forces depart. With North Vietnamese troops closing in on Saigon, the last U.S. personnel escape by the skin of their teeth. Helicopters lift off from rooftops in iconic images broadcast worldwide, as the war comes to its dramatic close.

Twenty years of war in Vietnam left many nations forever scarred. Although the helicopters were gone, many had not come home. The slow return of U.S. prisoners of war revealed untold stories of endurance and pain. For those who survived, there was redemption - but the secrets, the shadows, and the sacrifice of The Vietnam War will never be forgotten.

South Vietnamese forces begin to shoulder the full weight of the war and struggle against the might of the communist war machine. The Ho Chi Minh Trail fuels the massive NVA Easter Offensive, and Nixon, reeling from the publication of The Pentagon Papers, responds with Operation Linebacker. US troop numbers continue to dwindle toward a declaration of peace and the long goodbye begins...

North Vietnamese troops close in on Saigon. Helicopters lift off from rooftops as the last U.S. personnel escape by the skin of their teeth. Iconic images are broadcast worldwide as the war comes to its dramatic close. After centuries of division the nation at last achieves reunification, and the process of rebuilding can begin.