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From: Andi Wolos & Bob Necci

(POW-MIA InterNetwork)

Re: Book Review: Glory Denied

Date: June 01, 2001

"Vietnam War To Hell and Back 'Glory Denied:
The Saga of Jim Thompson, America's Longest-Held Prisoner of War'
by Tom Philpott

Reviewed by William J. Duiker Sunday, May 27, 2001; Page BW04

GLORY DENIED The Saga of Jim Thompson, America's Longest-Held Prisoner of War By Tom Philpott Norton. 457 pp. $26.95

For most Americans, the return of the POWs from North Vietnam after the signing of the 1973 Paris Agreement was a joyous occasion. Although the final end of the Vietnam War two years later brought a humiliating climax to the ill-fated U.S. enterprise there, in the public mind the release of the prisoners provided a measure of consolation to the country, while reuniting the POWs themselves with their loved ones.

For the most part, the American prisoners held in enemy captivity during the Vietnam War seemed to emerge from their experience in surprisingly good physical and mental condition and were able to resume their private lives with few visible consequences. Several, including John McCain, Jim Stockdale and Douglas "Pete" Peterson, now serving as U.S. ambassador to Vietnam, entered public life, while others penned uplifting memoirs that underlined the exemplary behavior of their fellow captives and their success in making the difficult transition to life back in the United States.

For other POWs, however, the end of captivity resulted in bitterness and disappointment. Returning to a country that had been profoundly changed by the war, many felt alienated from American society. A number of marriages ended in divorce. Although many other Vietnam veterans encountered readjustment problems, the frequency of such problems among returned POWs who had suffered through years of separation from home and family was noteworthy.

One of these was Jim Thompson, whose tragic story has been ably recounted here by Tom Philpott, a syndicated columnist who writes frequently on military subjects. Thompson, a U.S. military officer assigned to a Special Forces camp just south of the demilitarized zone, was seized by a Viet Cong unit in March 1964 and remained in enemy hands until his release nearly nine years later, longer than any other U.S. prisoner held captive during the war.

Thompson's experience was somewhat different from that of most other U.S. POWs in Vietnam. He had been captured in South Vietnam and remained under the control of Viet Cong forces for several years before being transferred to the North in July 1968. Although virtually all POWs reported that their captors had treated them brutally, living conditions for those held in the South were even worse than in North Vietnam. Thompson suffered severely from mistreatment, disease and malnutrition, and when he was eventually shifted to a camp near Hanoi, other American prisoners were shocked at his poor physical condition and amazed that he was still alive.

To make things worse, whereas U.S. pilots shot down while flying missions over North Vietnam often drew strength from knowing that they had comrades nearby, Thompson suffered in total isolation from other Americans for several years. Eventually he was moved to a prison compound containing civilian prisoners, but several of the latter harbored serious doubts about the wisdom of the U.S. involvement in Vietnam. Some refused to accept Thompson's authority as the highest-ranking U.S. military officer in the camp. While no one doubted his courage and endurance, his overbearing manner was a serious hindrance in his relationship with his fellow prisoners.

After release from captivity, Thompson was reunited with his wife and four children, and resumed his military career. Although he had not been given wide recognition as the longest-held U.S. prisoner during the Vietnam War, the oversight did not appear to bother him, and he spoke effectively on the POW issue to audiences around the country. In fact, however, he was having difficulties adjusting to life in postwar America. His marriage, which had apparently been in trouble even before his departure for Vietnam, soon came apart. His relationship with his children became strained. Disturbed by changing mores in the United States and a failure to receive promotion to higher rank, he turned to drink and neglected his military duties. After a heart attack, an attempted suicide and a severe stroke, he was eventually forced to retire from the Army; he moved to Florida.

In this poignant account, Philpott has opted for the oral-history method, hoping that it would throw new light on the topic by revealing the feelings of Thompson's friends, colleagues and family. The choice was fortuitous. Although some prospective readers might be tempted to ascribe Thompson's postwar collapse entirely to his experience in prison, evidence from the interviews suggests that many of his problems, both in his personal life and in his army career, predated his capture in 1964. In Glory Denied,the author has performed a distinct service in demonstrating that although captivity can often ennoble a man, it can also exacerbate existing emotional difficulties and lay the groundwork for severe personal problems after release from prison. In such cases, the pain and hardship resulting from captivity do not end on return to the United States. ï

William J. Duiker, the author of several books on the Vietnam War, is Liberal Arts Professor Emeritus of East Asian Studies at Pennsylvania State University.
© 2001 The Washington Post Company"