Were there British forces in Vietnam?

[Mr Crowley]

For example, does knowing that Britain did not fight in Vietnam make a poster some soet of snob

I found this website after reading the above post. Here is the website's mission statement:

I am an ex-soldier, now working with an independent TV production company and researching the issue of whether any British servicemen took part in the Vietnam war. I have read the emails in the adjacent panel - Rumour Control - and like all items on this site, find them fascinating.

I am in the process of making contact with many of the people who have replied to Rumour Control but would appreciate hearing from anybody who has information - or even better, experience - of British participation in the Vietnam War. If you have already replied to Rumour Control and are prepared to elaborate on your email, I would be very interested in hearing from you. My apologies to anybody I have not got round to contacting yet - it is a big job!

If we discover evidence of British participation in Vietnam, we would like to interview anybody who can contribute credible information to that end. We appreciate this is a subject with many "wrinkles" - not least the precise status of any British personnel who were in Vietnam in the 1960s and 1970s - and while looking for credible information, we know that some people may prefer to talk off the record. That is fine. At this stage, we are simply trying to ascertain whether there is sufficient reliable evidence to make a documentary on this subject.

I would add that the TV company I am working with has an honourable track record of working in this area and that any programme which emerges would give full credit to this remarkable website.

For the purpose of establishing authenticity, I have attached links to my autobiography and to a motivational speaking website that carries an extract from a TV programme I made on my experience in The Falklands War. I have also attached a direct email address.

Best Wishes,
Phil Stant

The site offers an interesting insight into this question and considering Britain's involvement in arming and training the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia it is not unlikely that they had forces in Vietnam in some capacity.

[sandar]

I always thought they had didnt know it was new information, but I am not an expert and could be wrong

[Catalpa]

The Anzacs were there and lost a couple of thousand men dead and wounded IIRC.

The British were there in South Vietnam in 1945, holding the fort until the French could return.

BTW they used the large Japanese forces there to back them up against the Vietnamese!

[Mr Crowley]

I always thought they had didnt know it was new information, but I am not an expert and could be wrong

I don't think there has ever been any official acknowledgement of a presence but then again they denied that the SAS were in Ireland in the same time period when they very much were.
The creator of the website is attempting to investigate the matter and the information on the site is a useful resource for anyone who is interested and open-minded about the topic.

[PhoenixIreland]

3m deaths, and they all died for nothing...

[toxic avenger]

To the OP, no there weren't, the producers are obviously looking for British people who served in other armies.

Wilson kept the British out of it, but there were indeed Anzacs there, plus some British and Irish-born in the US Army and probably with the Anzacs too.

[Mr Crowley]

To the OP, no there weren't, the producers are obviously looking for British people who served in other armies.

Wilson kept the British out of it, but there were indeed Anzacs there, plus some British and Irish-born in the US Army and probably with the Anzacs too.

There may have been British forces there on secondment with Americans or Anzacs. It is very likely infact.
It isn't well known but there were American personnel in the 6 on secondment with the British. I spoke with one who spent several months there and who spent time in Sidney St barracks at Aughnacloy and in the fortified border crossing there.
By the same token there were British officers and NCOs on secondment to American units in garrison and in Iraq.

[shutuplaura]

A british expert in counter insurgancy who honed his skills during the Malaya Emergancy (think it was Frank kitson but just checked wikipedia and it doesn't mention it) worked with the US in a civilian capacity as an expert. This was after the person in question had left the British army. As for individual british soldiers on the ground, it doesn't seem unlikely through the Australian and New Zealand connection but I doubt it even numbered more than a few individuals.

During the 1980's however, the British Special Forces did indeed hellp train Khymer Rouge guerrillas (along with several other countries esp thailand and the united states). At the time the KR were seem as an ideal proxy to help ensure the Vietnamese didn't come to dominate Cambodia. I might add that this was after the full horrors of the killing fields had become known.

[PaulMeyer]

This question has been covered extensively on another site to which I subscribe and it seems pretty certain that the answer is no. Having said that there were a very small number of Army clerks attached to the British Embassy in Saigon as was usual then, probably no more than a WO1 Chief Clerk and one or two NCO's all from the Royal Army Ordnance Corps. Lyndon Johnson badgered Harold Wilson for a British committment but it was repeatedly refused, Wilson thought Vietnam was a loser from the outset and a British military contribution would have given him severe problems with the left wing of his party, he had a very small majority I seem to recall. A Royal Engineer squadron was deployed to Thailand in the mid-60's however, they assisted the Thai Army in a construction project, I think the deployment was caalled Operation Crown. A request was made in 1962 for an SAS observer to be attached to the US Special Forces but even this was refused by HMG apparently. Anyway, for much of the period British forces were pretty well tied up in the Brunei Revolt, Indonesian Confrontation, South Arabia and Aden. After that we had NI of course!

[Big Bobo]

3m deaths, and they all died for nothing...

They fought to drive western imperialism out of their country. However the victors now work 12 hours shifts in sweat shops for $1. Their slave labour lines the pockets of western businessmen. "Free" trade has alot to answer for.