Vietnam War legacies topic of Distinguished Speaker Series event

The CGSC Foundation and its Simons Center hosted the second lecture of the 2024 Distinguished Speaker Series at the Riverfront Community Center in downtown Leavenworth, Kansas on May 9, 2024. In this installment of the series, Dr. James H. Willbanks, Professor Emeritus and former General of the Army George C. Marshall Chair of Military History at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, discussed 50 years since the fall of Saigon and examined the legacy of the “American War” for Vietnam.

The evening began with a reception, followed by Simons Center Deputy Director John Nelson welcoming the attendees. Toward the end of the dinner period Nelson introduced Willbanks to the gathered audience of more than 80 from the Fort Leavenworth, Leavenworth and Kansas City metro.

(Top photo and above) Dr. James H. Willbanks, professor emeritus of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, delivers a lecture on the legacies of the “American War” in Vietnam during the Distinguished Speaker Series event hosted by the CGSC Foundation and its Simons Center at the Riverfront Community Center in downtown Leavenworth, Kansas on May 9, 2024.

Willbanks reviewed in detail the five decades since the end of the Vietnam War and how they have been a dynamic period in Southeast Asia that saw one of the world’s poorest and most isolated countries eventually emerge as a rising power in the heart of the Indo-Pacific region and an increasingly important U.S. partner. He spoke about the newly reunified Vietnam after the war and the struggles to enact a one-party government and neutralize former South Vietnamese loyalists, the issues with land reform and converting to collectivism, and how for the first decade of its new existence it suffered from trade sanctions. Willbanks explained how over time the country began to emerge from isolation, enacting economic reforms and becoming a member of international organizations such as the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the International Monetary Fund. In 1995, Willbanks said the U.S. normalized relations with Vietnam, which eventually led to the U.S. beginning to work with Vietnam to recover remains of missing U.S. service members from the war. He also discussed his own personal travels back to the country and how improved relations with the country have also resulted in Vietnamese Army officers attending the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College in recent years.

After the presentation and a Q&A period, CGSC Foundation President/CEO Lora Morgan presented Willbanks with a gift in appreciation for his participation in the Distinguished Speaker Series.

This lecture was the second of four in the 2024 Distinguished Speaker Series presented by the CGSC Foundation’s Simons Center for Ethical Leadership and Interagency Cooperation. The final two lectures will be conducted in fall 2024. Details will be published at a later date.

For more photos see the CGSC Foundation Flickr album

Dr. James H. Willbanks retired from the faculty of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College in 2018, after 26 years of service following more than 23 years of active-duty service as an infantry officer in various assignments, to include a tour as an advisor with a South Vietnamese infantry regiment during the 1972 North Vietnamese Easter Offensive. While a member of the CGSC faculty, Willbanks served as the Director of the Department of Military History, the General of the Army George C. Marshall Chair of Military History, and also taught national security policy and counterinsurgency.

Willbanks is an honor graduate of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College and a graduate of the inaugural class of the School of Advanced Military Studies. He holds a B.A. in History from Texas A&M University, and a M.A. and Ph.D. in History from the University of Kansas. He is the author or editor of 22 books on the Vietnam War and other topics in military history and serves on several editorial boards. Dr. Willbanks also served as a consultant to Ken Burns in the preparation of his 10- part documentary on the Vietnam War which aired on PBS in 2017.

His military awards and decorations include the Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star with “V” and Oak Leaf Cluster, two Purple Hearts, and Republic of Vietnam Cross of Gallantry with two Silver Stars. He and his wife Diana now reside in Georgetown, Texas.

The CGSC Foundation through its Simons Center conducts the Distinguished Speaker Series (DSS) program to offer extracurricular, educational lectures intended to help enrich the Command and General Staff School curriculum and provide opportunities for outreach to the public. Topics covered in the Distinguished Speaker Series of lectures span the gamut of leadership and ethics, organizational effectiveness, collaboration, as well as current events and issues in business, government and the military.  

~ Thank you to our 2024 DSS Sponsors ~

Five Stars
Col. (Ret.) Tim and Karen Carlin
(The Tim and Karen Carlin Family Foundation)

Four Stars
Col. (Ret.) Bill and Marge Eckhardt
Mr. John Ferguson (Ferguson Properties)
Maj. Gen. (Ret.) George Harris (First Command)
Ms. Jody Kaaz (Kaaz Construction)
Mr. Jerry Reilly (Reilly Holding Company)
Col. (Ret.) Bob and Terri Ulin

Three Stars
Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Rich and Mary Ann Keller

Two Stars
Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Stan Cherrie
Ms. Sherry DeMaranville (DeMaranville and Associates)
Col. (Ret.) Tom and Candy Dials
Mr. Art Fillmore
Mr. Bill Geiger (Geiger Ready Mix Foundation)
Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Bill West

One Star
Lt. Col. (Ret.) William and Kathleen Connor, Sr.
Ms. Tina Farr (Armed Forces Bank)
Mr. Curt Gilfert (Advantage Printing)
Mr. Rick Schneider (Exchange Bank)