Battle of Thượng Đức

Last updated
Battle of Thượng Ðức
Part of the Vietnam War
Date18 July – 3 November 1974
Location 15°51′07″N107°56′53″E / 15.852°N 107.948°E / 15.852; 107.948 Coordinates: 15°51′07″N107°56′53″E / 15.852°N 107.948°E / 15.852; 107.948
Quảng Nam Province, South Vietnam
Result South Vietnamese Pyrrhic victory [1] [2] :277
Belligerents
Flag of North Vietnam.svg  North Vietnam Flag of South Vietnam.svg  South Vietnam
Commanders and leaders
Hoàng Đan Ngô Quang Trưởng
Nguyễn Duy Hinh
Strength

NVA 324th Division

  • one regiment
NVA 304th Division

1st ARVN Division

  • one regiment

3rd ARVN Division elements
ARVN Airborne Division

  • 1st Brigade
  • 3rd Brigade
ARVN Rangers
Casualties and losses

North Vietnam claims: 921 dead and 2,000+ wounded [3]

Contents

South Vietnam claims: 7,000+ dead and wounded
7,200 dead and wounded

The Battle of Thượng Ðức was a decisive battle of the Vietnam War which began on 18 July and concluded on 3 November 1974.

Vietnam War 1955–1975 conflict in Vietnam

The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, and in Vietnam as the Resistance War Against America or simply the American War, was an undeclared war in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam and South Vietnam. North Vietnam was supported by the Soviet Union, China, and other communist allies; South Vietnam was supported by the United States, South Korea, the Philippines, Australia, Thailand and other anti-communist allies. The war is considered a Cold War-era proxy war from some US perspectives. It lasted some 19 years with direct U.S. involvement ending in 1973 following the Paris Peace Accords, and included the Laotian Civil War and the Cambodian Civil War, resulting in all three countries becoming communist states in 1975.

Battle

On 18 July 1974, a regiment of the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) 324th Division overran the An Hoa Industrial Complex and then attacked the town of Thượng Ðức 40 km southwest of Danang, which was defended by Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) Rangers. [2]

Peoples Army of Vietnam Combined military forces of Vietnam

The People's Army of Vietnam, also known as the Vietnamese People's Army (VPA), is the military force of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. The PAVN is a part of the Vietnam People's Armed Forces and includes: Ground Force, Navy, Air Force, Border Defence Force, and Coast Guard. However, Vietnam does not have a separate Ground Force or Army branch. All ground troops, army corps, military districts and specialised arms belong to the Ministry of Defence, directly under the command of the Central Military Commission, the Minister of Defence, and the General Staff of the Vietnam People's Army. The military flag of the PAVN is the flag of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, with the words Quyết thắng added in yellow at the top left.

The 324th Division is an infantry division of the 4th Military Region.

An Hoa Combat Base

An Hoa Combat Base is a former U.S. Marine Corps and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) base west of Hội An in Quảng Nam Province, Vietnam.

The Rangers held out against the initial attack, but the PAVN renewed their attack in early August using 37mm anti-aircraft guns as direct fire weapons against the Rangers' positions. Given Thường Ðức's strategic location on the south-western approach to Danang, the I Corps commander General Ngô Quang Trưởng released a Ranger group and a Regiment from the 1st Division from his reserve forces to supplement units from the 3rd Division to push the PAVN out, but the PAVN had also sent an additional Regiment to support their attack and dug in on the western approaches to Thượng Ðức. Losses on both sides were heavy with the ARVN losing more than 4,700 killed and wounded. [2] :96

I Corps (South Vietnam) Corps of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam

The I Corps Tactical Zone was a corps of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN), the army of the nation state of South Vietnam that existed from 1955 to 1975. It was one of four corps of the ARVN. This was the northernmost region of South Vietnam, bordering North Vietnam. These five provinces are Quảng Trị Province,, Thừa Thiên-Huế Province,, Quảng Nam Province,, Quảng Tín Province, and Quảng Ngãi Province,. The region included the DMZ area where 3rd Marine Division intelligence estimated the combat strength of NVA and VC forces in January 1968 was 40,943 troops.

1st Division (South Vietnam) division of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam

The 1st Division of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN)—the army of the nation state of South Vietnam that existed from 1955 to 1975—was part of the I Corps that oversaw the northernmost region of South Vietnam, the centre of Vietnam.

3rd Division (South Vietnam) 1955-1975 Army of the Republic of Vietnam infantry division

The 3rd Division of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN)—the army of the nation state of South Vietnam that existed from 1955 to 1975—was part of the I Corps that oversaw the northernmost region of South Vietnam, the centre of Vietnam.

Despite ARVN efforts, Thuong Duc finally fell to the PAVN on 7 August. [4] With the situation at Thuong Duc apparently stabilised, General Trưởng withdrew his reserve units to counter a PAVN buildup in the mountains southeast of Huế, however this redeployment allowed the PAVN to capture Hill 1062 ( 15°54′14″N107°59′02″E / 15.904°N 107.984°E / 15.904; 107.984 ) 5 km northeast of Thượng Ðức putting Danang within range of PAVN artillery. To counter this new threat General Trưởng ordered his elite 1st and 3rd Airborne Brigades to retake Hill 1062. [2] :96 On 18 September the ARVN Airborne captured Hill 1062, but they were driven off by a PAVN counterattack the next day. The battered Regiment of the 324th Division was soon replaced by a fresh Regiment from the 304th Division. On 2 October the ARVN Airborne launched a new attack recapturing the hill and killing over 400 PAVN soldiers. The PAVN was then reinforced with a second and later a third Regiment of the 304th Division in an increasingly gruelling effort to retake the hill. On 1 November following a two-day artillery barrage the PAVN recaptured the hill only to be pushed off again by the Airborne two days later. This marked the end of the battle, Hill 1062 remained in ARVN hands while the PAVN controlled Thượng Ðức. The airborne had lost 500 dead and more than 2,000 wounded, while PAVN casualties were estimated to exceed 7,000. [2] :97 However, PAVN claimed only 921 deaths and more than 2,000 wounded. [3]

Huế City in Thừa Thiên–Huế, Vietnam

Huế (Vietnamese: [hwě] is a city in central Vietnam that was the capital of the Nguyễn Dynasty from 1802 to 1945, and of the protectorate of Annam. A major attraction is its vast, 19th-century citadel, surrounded by a moat and thick stone walls. It encompasses the Imperial City, with palaces and shrines; the Forbidden Purple City, once the emperor's home; and a replica of the Royal Theater. The city was also the battleground for the Battle of Huế, which was one of the longest and bloodiest battles of the Vietnam War.

Republic of Vietnam Airborne Division

The Vietnamese Airborne Division was one of the earliest components of the Republic of Vietnam Military Forces. The Vietnamese Airborne Division began as companies organised in 1948, prior to any agreement over armed forces in Vietnam. After the partition of Vietnam, it became a part of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. This division had its distinct origins in French-trained paratrooper battalions, with predecessor battalions participating in major battles including Dien Bien Phu and retained distinct uniforms and regalia. With the formation of an independent republic, the colonial paratroopers were dissolved, however regalia and aesthetics alongside the nickname "Bawouans" would be retained.

The 304 Division is an infantry division of the People's Army of Vietnam. It was established in January 1950 at Thanh Hoa.

Aftermath

The Battle of Thượng Ðức was costly for both sides. Despite successfully stalling the PAVN advance, the ARVN failed to recapture the town due to shortages of supplies and replacement troops. [2] :96 In the opinion of one ARVN commander, the PAVN goal had been to secure the left flank of I Corps to continue the building of the eastern corridor of the Ho Chi Minh Trail, [1] while another believed that had it not been for the actions of the Airborne, Danang would have fallen in 1974. [5] Moreover, the ARVN had suffered irreplaceable losses among its elite forces and expended large amounts of ordinance which could not be replaced due to decreased U.S. aid. The 304th Division was rendered combat ineffective and would play only a marginal role in the 1975 Spring Offensive, however ARVN intelligence did not appreciate the 304th's weakness and so General Trưởng maintained substantial forces west of Danang to counter any thrust by the 304th from Thường Ðức. [2] :277

The 1975 Spring Offensive or officially known as The General Offensive and Uprising of the Spring 1975 was the final North Vietnamese campaign in the Vietnam War that led to the capitulation of South Vietnam. After the initial success capturing Phước Long Province, the North Vietnamese leadership increased the scope of the People's Army of Vietnam's (PAVN) offensive and captured and held the key Central Highlands city of Buôn Ma Thuột between March 10 and 18. These operations were intended to be preparatory to launching a general offensive in 1976.

The PAVN and Vietcong were subsequently able to overrun ARVN camps at Hòn Chiêng, Núi Gai, Động Mông, Lạc Sơn and Đá Hàm and forced the ARVN to withdraw to Cấm Dơi and Quế Sơn. [6]

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References

  1. 1 2 Van Nguyen, Duong (2008). The Tragedy of the Vietnam War: A South Vietnamese Officer's Analysis. McFarland. pp. 183–184. ISBN   9780786432851.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Veith, George (2012). Black April The Fall of South Vietnam 1973–75. Encounter Books. p. 95. ISBN   9781594035722.
  3. 1 2 "Chiến thắng Thượng Đức: Bước phát triển vượt bậc về khả năng tác chiến". vov.vn. 21 April 2015. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  4. "Thuong Duc Victory monument inaugurated in Quang Nam". Nhân Dân Online. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
  5. Lâm, Quang Thi (2001). The Twenty-five Year Century: A South Vietnamese General Remembers the Indochina War to the Fall of Saigon. University of North Texas Press. p. 328. ISBN   9781574411430.
  6. "Ý nghĩa lịch sử của chiến thắng Thượng Đức". baodanang.vn. Retrieved 11 October 2016.