Ambassador David Bruce and “LBJ's War”: Vietnam Viewed from London, 1963–1968

Young, John W.

Abstract

Recent decades have seen growing historical interest in “second rank” officials who, whilst they do not play a leading role in government or political movements, can influence the way decisions are shaped and executed. At the same time, the interest of scholars in American policy during the Vietnam War shows no signs of abating. This article investigates the experience of one second rank official during the war, David Bruce, who was Ambassador to London during 1961–1969. Making particular use of Bruce's extensive diaries, it traces his shifting views on the war, looks at the extent to which he shared the outlook of other official,s and asks what influence, if any, he had on events. It argues that, whilst he always remained loyal to his own government and often mirrored the outlook of the Johnson Administration, Bruce had his own perspective on events, was consistently critical of American tactics on the ground, and, in Spring 1967, influenced by Robert McNamara, became an early advocate of retrenchment.

Citation

Young, J. W. (2011). Ambassador David Bruce and “LBJ's War”: Vietnam Viewed from London, 1963–1968. Diplomacy and Statecraft, 22(1), 81-100. https://doi.org/10.1080/09592296.2011.549741

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Mar 15, 2011
• Deposit Date: Aug 23, 2019
• Publicly Available Date: Aug 23, 2019
• Journal: Diplomacy & Statecraft
• Print ISSN: 0959-2296
• Electronic ISSN: 1557-301X
• Publisher: Routledge
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 22
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 81-100
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09592296.2011.549741
• Keywords: Political Science and International Relations; Sociology and Political Science; History
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/2482531
• Publisher URL: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09592296.2011.549741
• Additional Information: This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Diplomacy & Statecraft on 15 Mar 2011, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/09592296.2011.549741
• Contract Date: Aug 23, 2019