Napalm was among the deadliest of weapons developed during the twentieth century, causing widespread damage in areas of conflict and leading to extensive casualties. Developed by American chemist Louis Fieser during the Second World War, Napalm was most extensively used during the Vietnam War, resulting in horrific consequences.
Warning some viewers may find the following video distressing:
Origins and Composition
As a term, Napalm is often referred to by a French word, namely “portmanteau.” A portmanteau is simply the combination of two separate words, which are then abbreviated in order to form a single term. As such, Napalm is a combination of the words naphthenic and palmitic, both of which are acids.These acids were present in Napalm when this gel-like substance was first invented. Since then, however, Napalm’s composition has been altered to include polystyrene and benzene. On its own, we come into contact with polystyrene on a regular basis, such as when we handle plastic CD cases, or when we use plastic forks and spoons at fast-food restaurants. Benzene, however, is much less innocuous in comparison, and although it once formed a key ingredient of petrol used to fuel cars, its use is now less common, due to fears that exposure to it may cause cancer.
Napalm originally took on the form of a powdered substance, which would often be combined with petrol, thus creating a highly effective weapon. The American military eventually replaced this early, deadly concoction with the use of fuel and a gel-like substance. The goal was to create a weapon which would cling to the area or person being attacked. The fact that napalm took on the form of a jelly meant that when it came into contact with human skin, or with vegetation, it would stick and was almost impossible to remove, allowing it to burn for an extended period of time.
The Early Uses of Napalm
Although Napalm has become synonymous with Vietnam in the minds of most people, this deadly and highly flammable weapon was actually first used by American troops in France, when the Allies attempted to liberate the country from Nazi rule. US pilots dropped the first Napalm bombs over France on 17 July 1944. Napalm was also used during the dramatic fire-bombing of the German city Dresden, which had previously remained largely untouched by the war. Shortly afterwards, American pilots also used napalm in order to subdue Imperial Japan, and similar weapons were employed in the famous World War II Pacific battle on the island of Tinian. In each case, napalm’s effectiveness stemmed from the fact that bombs made with this substance would not only be highly flammable, but they could cause fires to burn for extended periods of time, due to their gel-like nature.
Napalm stoked fear even in the most ferocious warriors. In fact, historians have found that in some cases it was not even necessary for American infantrymen to use napalm flame throwers, or for pilots to drop incendiary bombs while fighting in Japan, because Japanese soldiers would often give up their strategic positions and flee if they got word that the Americans were planning on using napalm. In those cases when napalm was not actually used, it could actually serve as an effective deterrent against enemies and as form of psychological warfare.
Following the Second World War, the Americans also used napalm during the fighting
in Korea, up until in 1953. Archival records suggest that napalm was possibly the most effective weapon at the disposal of American troops, as even its threatened use sometimes led to the surrender of entire regiments of North Korean soldiers. In fact, it is believed that the Americans dropped a staggering 250,000 pounds of napalm every day during the Korean War. This was the weapon of choice when dealing with tanks and military hardware used by the enemy, and also to uncover or kill soldiers hiding in trenches or in foxholes. Later, American troops supplemented the use of napalm dropped from high altitudes with flame throwers. This allowed for a far greater level of precision when zeroing in on a specific target.
Napalm during the Vietnam War
Napalm received an infamous reputation during the Vietnam War, when the suffering and horror experienced by those who came into contact with this substance was presented in the Western media. When someone comes into contact with a napalm-based bomb—especially those coming from a flame thrower—they will almost certainly suffer second or third degree burns. Since napalm is a jelly-like substance, it sticks to human bodies and continues to burn, well after the initial contact. Even by coming into contact with a very modest amount of napalm, the victim will experience excruciatingly painful second degree burns, which are likely to result in permanent scarring and large lesions, often referred to as keloids.
The media played an important role in raising public awareness about the horrific consequences of napalm, when the Associated Press published a photograph of a completely naked Vietnamese girl, who was only nine years old, running after having come into contact with napalm used by South Vietnamese forces. Phan Thị Kim Phúc, the girl in the famous photo—which as become the iconic image of the Vietnam War—is one of the most poignant surviving depictions of a napalm attack. This particular napalm-bombing occurred on 8 June 1972 in Trang Bang, an area where fierce fighting raged between North and South Vietnamese forces. When the young Kim Phúc and a group of other civilians began to flee the area under attack, a South Vietnamese pilot erroneously dropped a napalm-based bomb on the group, causing not only severe burns to the girl’s back, but also resulting in the death of two of her cousins.
As a clear indication of just how deadly napalm really is, doctors were convinced that Kim Phúc would die from her burns, after she was taken to a local hospital by Associated Press photographer Nick Út. Although the nine year old girl managed to survive, doctors had to keep her in the hospital for more than 14 months, in order to provide her with extensive treatment and 17 surgeries. The photo that Út took of Kim Phúc running completely naked and badly burned following the napalm attack caused controversy. Some editors were at first hesitant to publish an image that they deemed to be inappropriate, but when it did make it into the media, it sparked debate and even public outrage over the war.
Recent uses of Napalm
Napalm has remained in use even during the final decades of the twentieth century. In fact, napalm was employed by Serbian forces in 1994, during the Yugoslav Wars of the nineties, and most recently, American troops once again resorted to a form of napalm following the Iraq invasion in 2003, during what became known as "Operation Iraqi Freedom". US government officials first strongly rejected suggestions in the media than napalm had been used and asserted that all remaining canisters of napalm had been disposed of as part of a special program dating back to April 2001. Yet it does appear as though inflammatory weapons—closely resembling napalm—were used in Iraq against former President Saddam Hussein’s troops, while there were also reports by Al-Jazeera television that US soldiers even employed napalm in Afghanistan, in an effort to eliminate Taliban resistance in the Tora Bora area.
Warning some viewers may find the following video distressing:
Origins and Composition
As a term, Napalm is often referred to by a French word, namely “portmanteau.” A portmanteau is simply the combination of two separate words, which are then abbreviated in order to form a single term. As such, Napalm is a combination of the words naphthenic and palmitic, both of which are acids.These acids were present in Napalm when this gel-like substance was first invented. Since then, however, Napalm’s composition has been altered to include polystyrene and benzene. On its own, we come into contact with polystyrene on a regular basis, such as when we handle plastic CD cases, or when we use plastic forks and spoons at fast-food restaurants. Benzene, however, is much less innocuous in comparison, and although it once formed a key ingredient of petrol used to fuel cars, its use is now less common, due to fears that exposure to it may cause cancer.
Napalm originally took on the form of a powdered substance, which would often be combined with petrol, thus creating a highly effective weapon. The American military eventually replaced this early, deadly concoction with the use of fuel and a gel-like substance. The goal was to create a weapon which would cling to the area or person being attacked. The fact that napalm took on the form of a jelly meant that when it came into contact with human skin, or with vegetation, it would stick and was almost impossible to remove, allowing it to burn for an extended period of time.
The Early Uses of Napalm
Although Napalm has become synonymous with Vietnam in the minds of most people, this deadly and highly flammable weapon was actually first used by American troops in France, when the Allies attempted to liberate the country from Nazi rule. US pilots dropped the first Napalm bombs over France on 17 July 1944. Napalm was also used during the dramatic fire-bombing of the German city Dresden, which had previously remained largely untouched by the war. Shortly afterwards, American pilots also used napalm in order to subdue Imperial Japan, and similar weapons were employed in the famous World War II Pacific battle on the island of Tinian. In each case, napalm’s effectiveness stemmed from the fact that bombs made with this substance would not only be highly flammable, but they could cause fires to burn for extended periods of time, due to their gel-like nature.
Napalm stoked fear even in the most ferocious warriors. In fact, historians have found that in some cases it was not even necessary for American infantrymen to use napalm flame throwers, or for pilots to drop incendiary bombs while fighting in Japan, because Japanese soldiers would often give up their strategic positions and flee if they got word that the Americans were planning on using napalm. In those cases when napalm was not actually used, it could actually serve as an effective deterrent against enemies and as form of psychological warfare.
Following the Second World War, the Americans also used napalm during the fighting
in Korea, up until in 1953. Archival records suggest that napalm was possibly the most effective weapon at the disposal of American troops, as even its threatened use sometimes led to the surrender of entire regiments of North Korean soldiers. In fact, it is believed that the Americans dropped a staggering 250,000 pounds of napalm every day during the Korean War. This was the weapon of choice when dealing with tanks and military hardware used by the enemy, and also to uncover or kill soldiers hiding in trenches or in foxholes. Later, American troops supplemented the use of napalm dropped from high altitudes with flame throwers. This allowed for a far greater level of precision when zeroing in on a specific target.
Napalm during the Vietnam War
Napalm received an infamous reputation during the Vietnam War, when the suffering and horror experienced by those who came into contact with this substance was presented in the Western media. When someone comes into contact with a napalm-based bomb—especially those coming from a flame thrower—they will almost certainly suffer second or third degree burns. Since napalm is a jelly-like substance, it sticks to human bodies and continues to burn, well after the initial contact. Even by coming into contact with a very modest amount of napalm, the victim will experience excruciatingly painful second degree burns, which are likely to result in permanent scarring and large lesions, often referred to as keloids.
The media played an important role in raising public awareness about the horrific consequences of napalm, when the Associated Press published a photograph of a completely naked Vietnamese girl, who was only nine years old, running after having come into contact with napalm used by South Vietnamese forces. Phan Thị Kim Phúc, the girl in the famous photo—which as become the iconic image of the Vietnam War—is one of the most poignant surviving depictions of a napalm attack. This particular napalm-bombing occurred on 8 June 1972 in Trang Bang, an area where fierce fighting raged between North and South Vietnamese forces. When the young Kim Phúc and a group of other civilians began to flee the area under attack, a South Vietnamese pilot erroneously dropped a napalm-based bomb on the group, causing not only severe burns to the girl’s back, but also resulting in the death of two of her cousins.
As a clear indication of just how deadly napalm really is, doctors were convinced that Kim Phúc would die from her burns, after she was taken to a local hospital by Associated Press photographer Nick Út. Although the nine year old girl managed to survive, doctors had to keep her in the hospital for more than 14 months, in order to provide her with extensive treatment and 17 surgeries. The photo that Út took of Kim Phúc running completely naked and badly burned following the napalm attack caused controversy. Some editors were at first hesitant to publish an image that they deemed to be inappropriate, but when it did make it into the media, it sparked debate and even public outrage over the war.
Recent uses of Napalm
Napalm has remained in use even during the final decades of the twentieth century. In fact, napalm was employed by Serbian forces in 1994, during the Yugoslav Wars of the nineties, and most recently, American troops once again resorted to a form of napalm following the Iraq invasion in 2003, during what became known as "Operation Iraqi Freedom". US government officials first strongly rejected suggestions in the media than napalm had been used and asserted that all remaining canisters of napalm had been disposed of as part of a special program dating back to April 2001. Yet it does appear as though inflammatory weapons—closely resembling napalm—were used in Iraq against former President Saddam Hussein’s troops, while there were also reports by Al-Jazeera television that US soldiers even employed napalm in Afghanistan, in an effort to eliminate Taliban resistance in the Tora Bora area.
