Westmoreland's War

General William C. Westmoreland has long been derided for his failed strategy of "attrition" in the Vietnam War. Historians have argued that Westmoreland's strategy placed a premium on high "body counts" through a "big unit war" that relied almost solely on search and destroy missions. Many believe the U.S. Army failed in Vietnam because of Westmoreland's misguided and narrow strategy

Gregory Daddis is Colonel and Professor of History, United States Military Academy.

- Preface
- Introduction: A Word on War and Strategy
- 1. Conceiving Strategy for the Cold War Era
- 2. From Advice to Support to War
- 3. The Myth of Attrition in Vietnam
- 4. On Bewildering Battlefields: Implementing Westmoreland's Strategy
- 5. The Parallel War
- 6. Training an Uncertain Army
- Conclusion: When Strategy May Not Matter