21st Division (South Vietnam)
21st Infantry Division | |
---|---|
Sư đoàn 21 | |
Active | 1959-1975 |
Country | South Vietnam |
Branch | Army of the Republic of Vietnam |
Part of | IV Corps |
Garrison/HQ | Chương Thiện |
March | "Sư Đoàn 21 Bộ Binh Hành Khúc" ⓘ |
Engagements | Vietnam War
|
Commanders | |
Notable commanders | Nguyễn Văn Minh Nguyễn Vĩnh Nghi Lê Văn Hưng |
The 21st Division (
History
The 21st Infantry Division was formed in 1960 from the disbanded 11th and 13th Light Divisions and their personnel and equipment assigned to the new Division; the commander and staff of the 11th Light Division became the commanding general and headquarters elements of the new unit. The old headquarters of the 13th Light Division in Tây Ninh became the rear headquarters of the Division.[1]: 298
The Division was responsible for the southwestern delta with an area of operations including Phong Dinh, Ba Xuyen,
On 24 April 1962 the Division, supported by 16 Marine helicopters from
By the end of 1965 the US advisers to the Division regarded Division commander General Nguyễn Văn Minh highly, and they reported that the Division was "getting more aggressive" and had "a good potential not yet fully realized."[4]: 116
By 1967 Brig. Gen.
On 5 March 1968 the Division together with
On 19 October 1969 the 32nd Regiment supported by helicopter gunships from the U.S.
In January 1970 John Paul Vann at the request of Ambassador Ellsworth Bunker produced his own evaluations of IV Corps' commanders which differed markedly from the official judgments of MACV. Vann recommended all three division commanders and the special zone commander for relief, however only the 7th Division commander was replaced.[4]: 366
During 1971 the Division focused on destruction of the PAVN/VC Base Area 483 in the U Minh Forest.[7]: 141
On 7 April 1972 at the start of the Easter Offensive the Division was alerted for movement to III Corps to support units of that Corps fighting in the Battle of An Lộc. On 10 April the first elements of this division were already deployed to Lai Khê.[7]: 146 On 12 April a relief force of the 32nd Regiment departed Lai Khê to reopen Route 13 to Chơn Thành Camp 30 km (19 mi) south of An Lộc. After making slow progress, on 22 April the 32nd Regiment encountered a roadblock of the PAVN 101st Regiment 15 km (9.3 mi) north of Lai Khê. From 24 April the Division engaged the PAVN in a two-pronged attack to clear the road with the 32nd Regiment attacking from the north and the 33rd Regiment attacking from the south. These attacks eventually forced the 101st Regiment to withdraw west on 27 April leaving one battalion to cover the withdrawal for a further 2 days. The 31st Regiment was then lifted by helicopters 6 km (3.7 mi) north of Chơn Thành where it fought the PAVN 165th Regiment, 7th Division, later reinforced by the 209th Regiment, for the next 13 days. Eventually on 13 May with intensive air support the 31st Regiment overran the PAVN positions and extended ARVN control to 8 km (5.0 mi) north of Chơn Thành. The 32nd Regiment then deployed into the Tau O area (11°30′50″N 106°36′50″E / 11.514°N 106.614°E) a further 5 km (3.1 mi) north where they ran into the 209th Regiment's well-prepared blocking positions which stopped the Division's advance for 38 days despite extensive artillery and air support including B-52 strikes. This stalemate would continue until the PAVN withdrew from An Lộc.[7]: 131–3 In mid-July the Division was replaced by the 25th Division and they completed the destruction of the remaining PAVN strongpoints by 20 July.[7]: 135 Following the battle General Nguyễn Vĩnh Nghi was replaced as Division commander by an Airborne officer.[4]: 486
In June 1973, the Division was given a new commander, Brig. Gen.
In April 1975, while the PAVN
Organisation
Component units:
- 31st Infantry Regiment
- 32nd Infantry Regiment
- 33rd Infantry Regiment
- 210th, 211st, 212nd and 213rd Artillery Battalions
- 9th Armored Cavalry Squadron
- US Advisory Team 51
References
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- ^ "Headquarters MACV Monthly Summary March 1968" (PDF). Headquarters United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam. 25 May 1968. p. 22. Retrieved 14 May 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "Headquarters MACV Monthly Summary October 1969" (PDF). Headquarters United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam. 1 January 1970. p. 37. Retrieved 25 March 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ a b c d Ngo, Quang Truong (1980). The Easter Offensive of 1972 (PDF). U.S. Army Center of Military History. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 13, 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ ISBN 978-1591149194.