The 4th Marine Battalion
Major Dang Van Hoc
The 4th Marine Battalion was formed at the beginning of 1961. Two rifle companies were trained at Cam Ranh in the 2nd Marine Battalion Camp. On completion of the training in March of 1962, they were moved to Camp Hoang Hoa Tham, in Le Loi Street, Vung Tau. The Battalion base camp was divided into two areas: A and B. The Commander was Captain Bui The Lan, who had been Chief of Staff of the Marine Group. From his many contacts, he was able to gather an impressive staff, and it wasn't long before the 4th Battalion became one of the best fighting battalions.
Battalion Commander:
- Captain Bui The Lan
Executive Officer:
- Captain Nguyen Van Nho
1st Company Commander:
- First Lieutenant Nguyen Thanh Tri
2nd Company Commander:
- First Lieutenant Tran Van Hoan
3rd Company Commander:
- First Lieutenant Truong Van Nhut
4th Company Commander:
- First Lieutenant Ton That Soan.
Command Company:
- Captain Tran Huong Trung.
S1 Officer and Base Camp Commander:
- Warrant Officer Dang Van Hoc.
S2-S5 Officer:
- Second Lieutenant Nguyen Huu Hanh.
S3 Officer:
- First Lieutenant Phan Van Anh.
S4 Officer:
- First Lieutenant Nguyen Duc Hau.
Supply Officer:
- Warrant Officer Le Chi Hieu.
Signal Officer:
- Warrant Officer Vu Dinh Kich.
1st Medical Platoon Leader:
- Dr Chan, First Lieutenant.
Subsequent medical platoon leaders:
- Dr Nguyen Duc Thanh, First Lieutenant
- Dr Pham Cuu, First Lieutenant
- Dr Truong Ba Han, First Lieutenant (killed in action at Binh Gia 31st Dec 1964)
- First Lieutenant Truong Van Nhut, who was also 3rd Company Commander was in charge of the intelligence service.
After settling in Camp Hoang Hoa Tham, the Battalion continued training, specializing in amphibious manoeuvres. The training facilities - ships, boats, amphibious tanks, rubber buoys, speed boats, were all supplied by the US Marines.
On July 1st 1962, the 4th Marine Battalion was initiated. General Le Van Ty - the ARVN Joint General Chief of Staff, was present at the departure ceremony of the troops. The Battalion was set up as a reinforcement to Military Region II in the Phan Thiet Province.
In 1963, the Battalion participated in Operation Song Tinh Thuong along with the Marine Task Force A, in Military Region IV. The objective was to liberate Ca Mau and Chuong Thien.
In 1964, the Battalion fought at Binh Gia, in III Corps. There, they confronted two NVA regiments. Binh Gia was the second battle the NVA had fought in South Vietnam, and the size of their force was of regimental, if not divisision level. The first battle was against the NVA at Dong Xoai. The battalion was described as the boldest unit involved. Most of its men fought until their ammunition ran out, and fought with bayonets till the very end. The entire Battalion Staff was sacrificed. Those that died included: Captain Nguyen Van Nho, the Battalion Commander. The Executive Officer, Captain Tran Van Hoan. Dr Truong Ba Han, and two American Advisors.
At the time, I was studying a course in the Military General Personnels Management School at the headquarters of the Joint General Staff. After Binh Gia, Colonel Le Nguyen Khang requested the Joint General Staff to release me from my obligations, so that I could return to the Battalion to take care of the administration. I returned and took charge of the cases of sound, killed, and missing soldiers. The most complex bureaucratic processes had to do with Birth and Death Certificates. It was a headache deciding who was responsible for the signing of a soldier's Death Certificate. To overcome this problem, the Joint General Staff appointed me as S1 Officer, giving me authority to sign the Death Certificate of those killed in action. On each certificate, I had to write in red: “Sacrificed for the Nation.”
Of the 112 killed in action, the families of 18 of them requested private burial. The rest were buried behind the Van Kiep military Training Centre. I organized for stones and cement to be carted in to build the tombstones. We also set up a fence and a plaque that read: “Here lies 94 heroes of the 4th Marine Battalion, who sacrificed their lives for the Nation in the Battle of Binh Gia on 31-12-1964.”
As I was in charge of signing the Death Certificate, I got approval from Lieutenant Colonel Khang to manipulate the date of death to help the families of the soldiers. I documented that they had died on January 1st 1965 so that each family could receive an extra month of wages in addition to the twelve month benefits to which dead Marines were entitled.
The inhabitants of Binh Gia, led by their catholic father, helped reduce the death toll greatly. They nursed many a sick and injured Marine back to health. They had admirable anti-Communist sentiments, and bore a deep hatred towards the NVA.
The manpower of the Battalion fluctuated over the years, depending on the battles its men were involved in. Sometimes, there was a surplus of recruits. Officers, underofficers and privates were all volunteers. They were not from the draft list. At one stage, the minimum acceptable height for a recruit was 170cm. Unfortunately, the average male Vietnamese was 160cm.
After Binh Gia the 4th Battalion performed many operations. In Tet Mau Than 1968: The battalion defeated one NVA regiment in Camp Co loa and surrounding camps in Go Vap. From Saigon the Battalion moved to Hue and participated in the liberation of Hue.
In 1970, they liberated Prey Veng City during the Incursion into Cambodia 1970, returning order and security to the area.
In Operation Lamson 719, in 1971, the Battalion suffered greatly from the fiasco organized by the Allies.
In the Battle of Quang Tri 1972, the Battalion took part in recapturing Quang Tri City. They were also involved in the battle of Cua Viet in 1973.
The 4th Battalion was honoured four times by the ARVN with “Palm Leaf” medals for bravery.
During Major Vo Kinh's time as commander, I organized for an artist to create an emblem for the 4th Battalion. Two pictures were drawn: that of a Shark, and that of a Dinosaur. They were sent to G3 Marine Headquarters for inspection. As its base camp was by the sea, it was decided that we would be called the “Killer Sharks”.
The Commanders of the Battalion from the beginning right up until April 30th 1975:
- Captain Bui The Lan 1961-1963.
- Captain Le Hang Minh 1963
- Major Nguyen Kien Hung 1963-1964
- Captain Nguyen Van Nho 1964.
- Captain Nguyen Thanh Tri 1965.
- Major Do Dinh Vuong 1968
- Major Vo Kinh 1969 - 1971
- Lt. Colonel Tran Xuan Quang 1972
- Lt. Colonel Nguyen Dang Tong 1973
- Major Tran Ngoc Toan 1974 - 1975.
- Major Dang Van Hoc
Headquarters Battalion
Major Dang Van Hoc
Our duties were:
Provide security to Marine Division Headquarters- Manage manpower and supply and including foods (to Marine Division Artillery Staff, Brigade Staff and Subordinate Companies).- Movement of Marine 202 Military Police Company, Long Range Reconnaissance Companies, Administrative and Financial Company, and the Antitank Company were under direct command of Marine Division Headquarters.
The Headquarters Battalion was formed on the day the Marine Brigade was upgraded to Marine Division in 1969. It was positioned at No. 7 Le Thanh Ton Street Saigon and the Base Camp was also called Le Thanh Ton Camp.
Commanders were:
- Major Bui Van Pham 1969-1970
- Major Nguyen Duc An 1970
- Lieutenant Colonel Vo Kinh 1971
- Lieutenant Colonel Pham Nha 1972-1973
- Major Dang Van Hoc 1973-1974
- Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Van Phan 1975.
The manpower and equipment were different from Fighting Battalions. Equipment depended on the individual special companies. There were no American Advisers, although the battalion also protected American Advisers who were stationed or who worked closely with the Marine Headquarters.
Major Dang Van Hoc
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