Creighton Abrams

Creighton Williams Abrams Jr. (1914-1974) was a four-star United States Army general who, after serving as Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, was the key ground commander in the Vietnam War, 1968-72. He commanded the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MAC-V), and supervised the final U.S. fighting and departure of troops. He then became Chief of Staff of the Army, but died of cancer while in that office.

I'm supposed to be the best tank commander in the Army but I have one peer - Abe Abrams. He's the world champion. — George S. Patton

Abrams was highly respected as a leader who cared for his troops, and as an excellent combat commander. The current main battle tank, the M1 Abrams, is named for him. He was insistent that Army equipment be rugged:

Give a soldier an anvil, just a hunk of metal, and drive him out into the desert and leave him. In two weeks - when you go to get him, the anvil will be broken.

Abrams had a reputation as an exceptionally ethical leader, the man who, in a difficult situation, to whom people would turn to ask "what's the right thing to do?"

It is soldiers who pay most of the human cost. In war it is extraordinary how it all comes down to the character of one man

World War II

Graduating from West Point in the class of 1936, he moved from Cavalry to Armor as soon as it was a branch, first serving in staff roles, then commanding a battalion and a Combat Command (brigade equivalent) of the 4th Armored Division. He received the Distinguished Service Cross, the second highest U.S. decoration for valor, on two occasions.

Postwar

After the war, he had General Staff and instructor assignments, then graduated from Command and General Staff School. Following command of the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment, he graduated from the Army War College. By 1960, he was a major general commanding the 2nd Armored Division, moved to the Pentagon as Army Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations (DCSOPS), and then, as a lieutenant general, commanded the V Corps in Europe.

Vietnam

In May 1967, he came to Vietnam as deputy commander, and in spring 1968, after the Tet Offensive, took command of the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam, replacing GEN William Westmoreland. Abrams, with a superb reputation as a conventional tank soldier, took a broader view of the war than Westmoreland.

One-war model

Where Westmoreland had seen a conventional military war to be won, with politics the job of others, Abrams conceived it was one war. Westmoreland's successor, Creighton Abrams, paid much more attention to political warfare. When Abrams arrived in May 1967, he saw the American-designed system as wasteful defensive installations, of base camps for large conventional forces and static border camps, while the Vietcong continued to build shadow government in the villages. Many villagers believed, rightly or wrongly, that the VC were more responsive than Republic of Vietnam officials and absentee landlords.

Abrams did not believe the war was purely military, but had to address the political, cultural, economic, religious and security aspects. He argued to consider the “object beyond the war,” not solely on the current military situation with the NVA. This object focused on the people and their ability for self-defense and governance. An effective strategy would require focusing on winning the hearts and minds of the populace under a legitimate government vice attrition of the enemy.

Abrams formulated the one-war concept, which put political-military relations, disruption of the shadow government, and information operations on an equal priority with combat. He insisted that the grievances of the population, especially in the villages, must be heard and addressed if the true war were to be won. He endorset the recommendations of the Pacification and Long Term Development of Vietnam (PROVN) which found “the underlying objective [must be] ‘the restoration of stability with the minimum of destruction, so that society and lawful government may proceed in an atmosphere of justice and order.’ ”

Abrams changed from "search and destroy" attrition of enemy forces to "clear and hold".

Clear and hold

In the new strategy, regular military forces would suppress the main enemy troops, but then turn local control over to Popular Forces (PF) and Regional Forces (RF) to provide selfdefense and hold these areas, with "Strategic Hamlets" taking responsibility for their local defense.

Bibliography

• Sorley, Lewis. Thunderbolt: General Creighton Abrams and the Army of His Times (1992), the main biography
• Abrams, Creighton. Vietnam Chronicles: The Abrams Tapes, 1968-1972 (2004), 917pp; edited by Lewis Sorley; primary source; transcripts of briefings and meetings of Abrams as in Vietnam from 1968-72, especially the Weekly Intelligence Estimate Update. excerpt and text search