Cost of the Vietnam War

What was the cost of the Vietnam War?

The cost of the Vietnam War went beyond the $167 billion spent - it also involved human and social costs.

What was the human cost of the Vietnam War?

In human terms, the statistics were overwhelming:

• ❖ An estimated total of 4,204,364 killed.
• ❖ An estimated total of 1,944,200 wounded soldiers.
• ❖ An estimated 850,000 people left with severe psychological problems.

What was the cost of the Vietnam War in terms of the amount of US deaths?

The total number of American dead was 58,318.

What was the cost of the Vietnam War in terms of the amount of US wounded?

The total number of American wounded was 303,644.

What was the cost of the Vietnam War in terms of the amount of Vietnamese deaths?

The total number of Vietnamese dead was between 966,000 and 3,812,000.

What was the cost of the Vietnam War in terms of the amount of South Vietnamese deaths?

The total number of South Vietnamese dead was between 449,256 and 743,000.

What was the cost of the Vietnam War in terms of the amount of South Vietnamese wounded?

The total number of South Vietnamese wounded was 1,170,000.

What was the cost of the Vietnam War in terms of the amount of North Vietnamese deaths?

The total number of North Vietnamese dead was between 667,130 and 951,895.

What was the cost of the Vietnam War in terms of North Vietnamese wounded?

Total number of North Vietnamese wounded was 604,200.

What was the cost of the Vietnam War in the impact on society?

President Johnson had made plans for solving many of the social problems in America, but the funding went to the war instead. This, largely unrealised, plan was known as the 'Great Society'.

What was the cost of the Vietnam War in the impact on people?

There were three significant ways in which the war impacted the American people.

• ❖ American pride had been hurt, as the nation had lost a war to a much less industrialised and wealthy country.
• ❖ There was a lack of trust between the people and the government.
• ❖ There was a social divide between those who supported the war, and those who opposed it.

What was the cost of the Vietnam War on the returning soldiers?

There were two major ways in which the war had an impact on the returning soldiers.

• ❖ They faced a lot of hostility by both anti-war protestors and by veterans of previous wars - many were beaten up and faced discrimination.
• ❖ There was little understanding of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and the rate of suicides among veterans was nearly double that of men of a similar age who had not fought.