Tuesday-Thursday, 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM
break from 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM each day
8/10, 8/11, and 8/12 (3 sessions total)
Instructors: Al Gaspar and Taliesin Knol
The Vietnam War (1954–75) was a long, costly, and divisive conflict that pitted the communist government of North Vietnam against South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States—and was intensified by the ongoing Cold War between America and the Soviet Union. On January 1, 1966, the 173rd Airborne Brigade started out with a major strike into the Plain of Reeds in the Mekong Delta. Operation Marauder, as the mission was dubbed, soon found its quarry, the Viet Cong 267th Main Force Battalion, and a three-day battle ensued. They penetrated an area held by the Viet Cong and succeeded in rooting the enemy out of beehive bunkers built into the ground along canals.
Each session includes four hours of live online instruction with Al Gaspar and Taliesin Knol: two focused on the history of the described battle, and two of facilitated diorama construction in which participants make their own terrain boards and lead troops of 1/72-scale soldiers in war games that offer vivid insights into the military strategies and conflicts that have shaped the world.
Registration for this Adventure will close two weeks prior to the first session date. If you are trying to register after that point, please email us at SummerCamp@si.edu and we will do our best to accommodate your request if space is still available.
Materials
- A diorama kit, included in the cost of the program, is mailed to participants 2 weeks prior to the Adventure beginning
- If a kit needs to be mailed to an address other than the one on file (purchaser's address), please email us at SummerCamp@si.edu
- International shipping can be arranged for an additional fee. Be sure to provide us with ample notice to ensure the kit arrives on time.
- If you do not receive your kit within one week prior to your Adventure beginning, please email us at SummerCamp@si.edu
- A detailed list of additional supplies that participants must provide can be found at the top of this page, in the section labeled "Materials for this program." Please have all these materials on hand before the first session.
