What effect did the geography of Vietnam have on the Vietnam war?

Answer 1

South Vietnam was, "on maps", divided by the US Military into FOUR sections: Military Region I (MR-1), Military Region II (MR-2), Military Region III (MR-3), and Military Region IV (MR-4). They were also referred to as I Corps, II Corps, III Corps, and IV Corps. I Corps was located just south of the DMZ (at the 17th Parallel). Next came the Central Highlands, II Corps. Saigon, the capital was located in III Corps. The bottom of the country, just below Saigon, was IV Corps.

The term "Hot" in Vietnam meant "violent or deadly" NOT the weather! The weather was (almost) always hot in Vietnam anyway, so there was no reason to say it was hot, when everyone already knew that! So, "HOT" meant "Dangerous, deadly, lots of NVA/VC, violence, etc."

With that in mind; I Corps was very hot, and NVA country. II Corps, the Central Highlands could get rough, and was a mixture of NVA and VC. Saigon, the capital, in III Corps was surrounded by more US Army Divisions than any other military region. Most US Army combat divisions were around the capital, III Corps was VC country. The Mekong Delta region, was Viet Cong (VC) country, and IV Corps.

GI's living in I Corps, or the Highlands (II Corps) experienced near United States weather. VERY much like California. III Corps and IV Corps was EXTREMELY HUMID and similar to the US state of Louisiana or Florida.

GI's stationed in the Louisiana/Florida weather conditions wore their uniforms as shown in the movie, "PLATOON", starring Charles Sheen, etc. That unit (the 25th Infantry Division) was in III or IV Corps. The movie, "Hamburger Hill" was II Corps, the Highlands. The cooler the weather, the more the men wore their uniforms according to regulations. The more humid the weather, the more they shed their uniforms, fighting in only their trousers.

Answer 2

it was effected by the ho chi min trail. this ran through Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia and was the vietcongs lifeline. they used it to get soldiers and supplies from to place to place safely Also, Vietnam has many dense forests and jungles. This gave troops good hiding places. The terrain was hilly and mountainous. Many mines were hidden in the ground.

Answer 3

Good question. Unlike Vietnam, Korea was a peninsula, and the US Navy could prevent the North Koreans/Red Chinese from bypassing the Korean DMZ. The Vietnamese DMZ could and was bypassed by the Ho Chi Minh Trail which went through Cambodia and Laos, and it was impossible to close this land route into South Vietnam.

Answer 4

In terms of the jungle, it made the Vietnamese (north Vietnam) very hard to find and kill (from the USA's perspective).

This was one of the reasons for the Vietnamese or 'Vietcong' winning the war - along with their incredible resilience and determination towards the future of Vietnam.

In terms of effects on the war; it was one of the factors for USA losing.