1965 Vietnamese Map of the Ho Chi Minh Trail During the Vietnam War

This is a 1965 Phạm Thăng map of the Ho Chi Minh Trail during the Vietnam War. The map depicts the region from Thailand and Cambodia to the South China Sea and from North Vietnam and Hainan, China to Nha Trang in South Vietnam. Originally published in TIME Magazine, the Ho Chi Minh Trail, illustrated here by thick black arrows, connected North Vietnam and South Vietnam via Laos and Cambodia, allowing the North Vietnamese to ferry troops and supplies into South Vietnam while circumventing the demilitarized zone along the 17th parallel. North Vietnam is colored red here, not surprising since red is a color associated with communism, and South Vietnam is shaded yellow. U.S. air bases at Da Nang, Chu Lai, Qui Nhon, and Nha Trang are marked by airplanes, while an attack at Khe Sanh by the U.S. Seventh Fleet is highlighted by a red explosion.

Outside of Vietnam, Laos is split between light green, territory held by the Royal Lao Government, and brown, the area controlled by the Pathet Lao, a communist political movement that was ultimately victorious in the Laotian Civil War, which raged from 1959 - 1975. The Ho Chi Minh Trail passed through Pathet Lao territory, while the CIA maintained a base at Pakse. Thailand is shaded dark green, while Cambodia is a dark purple. Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base, one of the bases used by the U.S. Air Force throughout the Vietnam War, is labeled. About 80% of all U.S. Air Force operations against North Vietnam during the Vietnam War originated in Thailand

Ho Chi Minh Trail

The Ho Chi Minh Trail served both the Viet Minh during the First Indochina War and the Viet Cong during the Vietnam War. Mainly a supply route, the Ho Chi Minh Trail is considered to be 'one of the great achievements of military engineering of the 20th century' by the United States National Security Agency. The Trail proved to be an incredible military accomplishment, considering that it was the site of the single most intense bombing campaign in history, with bombs dropping on average every seven minutes.

Publication History

This map was created by Phạm Thăng and published in South Vietnam c. 1965.