Graham Martin

Graham Anderson Martin (September 22, 1912 – March 13, 1990) succeeded Ellsworth Bunker as United States Ambassador to South Vietnam in 1973. He would be the last person to hold that position. Martin previously served as ambassador to Thailand and as U.S. representative to SEATO.

Early life
Martin was born and raised in the small town of Mars Hill, North Carolina, in the state's western mountains. His father was an ordained Baptist minister. He graduated from Wake Forest College in 1932. During World War II, he was a U.S. Army Intelligence Officer, and was aboard the USS Missouri for the Japanese Surrender in 1945

Diplomatic career
Martin first worked in the diplomatic field at the U.S. Embassy in Paris, France, from 1947 to 1955. His abilities as an administrative counselor and deputy Chief of Mission gained him attention from the State Department, which rapidly advanced his career. President Eisenhower appointed Martin as the Representative of the United States to the European Office of the United Nations in Geneva, and he served in that office 1960–62.

Ambassador to Thailand
Martin was appointed on 10 September 1963 and left this post on 9 September 1967.

While serving as ambassador to Thailand, Martin came to the attention of Richard Nixon during a banquet for the Thai King at the Embassy. Former VP Nixon was in Thailand acting as a corporate attorney; accompanying Vice-President Hubert Humphrey. When the King toasted President Johnson, Humphrey tried to return the toast with a toast to the King. Martin interceded and gave the toast himself, explaining later to both Humphrey and Nixon that as the Ambassador, he was the President's personal representative. He finished his explanation by saying "If you become President yourself someday, Mr. Vice President, you can be sure that I will guard your interests as closely as I did President Johnson's tonight".

During Ambassador Martin's tenure in Thailand, he forged close bonds with the local government and the Thai Royal family. President Johnson and Secretary of Defense McNamara heeded the Joint Chief's request to escalate bombing runs over North Vietnam; and to provide close air support cover for covert missions in the highlands of South Vietnam; the secret war in Laos; and Cambodian excursions. The U.S. military needed more air bases for staging, and to launch B-52 bomber missions. Using his personal relations with Thai royals and government leaders, Martin convinced Thailand to allow more U.S. troops and materiel to be stationed at bases on Thai soil. Ambassador Martin advised that if Thai commanders were "in charge", these would remain "Thai bases"...and avoid embarrassment or public support for the escalating U.S. war. The U.S. military worked to expand existing bases and build new ones; including Udorn Royal Thai Air Force Base; and the U-Tapao Royal Thai Navy Airfield in October 1965. From 1966-1975, U-Tapao became the most important strategic air base for U.S. bombing and cover missions of the entire war.

Ambassador to Italy
Martin was appointed on 30 October 1969 and left this post on 10 February 1973.

Ambassador to South Vietnam
Martin was appointed as Ambassador to South Vietnam on 21 June 1973. (In 1965 his foster son died in combat in Vietnam. )

Martin was a controversial U.S. Ambassador to South Vietnam. He was ill-prepared to act as an ambassador in a country fighting for its survival. In 1975, he ignored intelligence and field reports that the North Vietnamese invasion was achieving great success with the fall of provincial capitals. He continued to believe that the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) would hold Saigon and the Mekong Delta area after observing ARVN's tenacious 12 days of fighting in the Battle of Xuyen Loc under the command of General Le Minh Dao. His delays in initiating an evacuation cost thousands of lives as the options of travel out of the country dwindled down to the final option – Marine helicopters to Navy ships.

In fact, in the NSA history The Secret Sentry, the author says: "In Saigon, Ambassador Graham Martin refused to believe the SIGINT (signals intelligence) reporting that detailed the massive North Vietnamese military buildup taking place all around (Saigon) ... and repeatedly refused to allow NSA's station chief, Tom Glenn, to evacuate his forty-three man staff and their twenty-two dependents from Saigon." Because of Martin's refusal to believe the SIGINT, and his refusal to allow the evacuation of the intelligence staff from the embassy, "The North Vietnamese captured the entire 2,700 man (South Vietnamese SIGINT) organization intact as well as their equipment." (ibid)

Martin was evacuated by helicopter from the US Embassy, Saigon on the morning of 30 April 1975 as Communist forces overran the city. Though he didn't know it, the helicopter’s crew had orders to arrest him and bring him on board by force if he'd refused to go. (The helicopter used was a USMC CH-46 Sea Knight call sign Lady Ace 09 of HMM-165 serial number 154803. Ambassador Martin's wife, Dorothy, had already been evacuated by previous flights, and left behind her personal suitcase so a South Vietnamese woman might be able to squeeze on board with her.)

Death
Martin died in March 1990 and is buried in Section 3 at Arlington National Cemetery.

Family
While Martin was serving as Ambassador to Thailand, his adopted nephew, Marine 1st Lt Glenn Dill Mann, was killed near Chu Lai, South Vietnam, in November 1965, while attacking enemy positions at Thach Tru with his UH-1 helicopter gunship. 1st Lt Mann is buried in Section 3 at Arlington National Cemetery.

Exhibits
The helicopter that evacuated the ambassador out of Saigon, on the same day the Vietnam War ended, is on display at the Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum in San Diego, California.