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Chinese Vietnam War Propaganda Map.

This is a truly fascinating Chinese-language propaganda map showing the state of the war the year that US ground troops were first deployed to Vietnam. The map seeks to paint a picture of Vietnam as all but ready to fall to the Viet Cong, which, at the time, was not far from the truth.

Made in China, this was published as a supplement 14 to the Chinese magazine 世界知識 ["World Affairs"]. The map paints a picture of the war as an imperialist action, portraying it as not being fought against the South Vietnamese government, but rather against the US Army. The country is subdivided into three regions on the map. Blue areas are "Liberated," red areas are "Enemy occupied", and white areas are "Guerilla". In addition, throughout the map are notes describing the amount of US casualties and destroyed equipment. These focus on select landslide victories.

Painting the war as an act of imperialist aggression drew upon a long and successful history of reframing civil wars as not being fought against countrymen, but rather against an imperial aggressor. Radical anti-imperialism was a central tenet of both Mao's and Ho's views of the war and was very useful in the recruitment of more Viet Cong troops as American involvement increased. Reframing a war according to this paradigm continues into the 21st century, though rarely is this philosophy so well presented on a propaganda map.

The war had entered a new phase in 1965 with the arrival of US ground troops. The US decision to escalate was made as the Army believed that South Vietnam was all but ready to collapse. Ground troops landed in March and by May and June Communist offensives were launched all over the country, likely what is shown on the map. US involvement would be successful in as much as it severely rattled the strength of the Viet Cong and prevent the imminent fall of Saigon, however, it would also serve to stir up anti-American feelings. American involvement would last for another eight years after 1965.

The explanatory notes give the date and locations of victories. One reference is made to the bombing of the American "Advisory Group" headquarters where 55 military officers were killed in January 1969, but we have been unable to find additional evidence on this event.

Rarity

We find no other examples of this map having been on the market.