1969 Vietnamese Manuscript Map of a Village

This is a c. 1969 Vietnam War (1955 - 1975) Era South Vietnamese manuscript map of a Vietnamese village. Although the village is unknown, the map illustrates the activities of the South Vietnamese Regional Forces, an internal security force instrumental in opposing Viet Cong incursions into South Vietnam.

A Closer Look

This map illustrates a fortified South Vietnamese village. Huts line the road. A handful of buildings are illustrated in blue manuscript. Barbed wire surrounds the central village. The only text references the Commander and Deputy Commander of the 549th Regional Force Company, 2nd Lieutenant Cường and 2nd Lieutenant Thái, respectively. We have been unable to trace either of these officers or the 549th Regional Force Company

South Vietnamese Regional Forces

During the Vietnam War, South Vietnamese Regional Force Units (RFU) were organized to counter localized Viet Cong units. RFUs were recruited from the areas they defended and equipped for guerrilla warfare. Despite being poorly equipped, trained, and paid, their local knowledge and connections made them capable of holding civilian areas and detecting Viet Cong infiltration. Over the course of the war, RFUs accounted for roughly 30% of Viet Cong casualties.

The South Vietnamese Regional Forces were created as the Civil Guard by President Ngo Dinh Diem in April 1955. The Civil Guard was an internal security force intended to suppress insurgent elements within the country. While initially under the President's direct control, the Civil Guard was transferred to the Ministry of Defense in September 1958. After the 1963 South Vietnamese coup, the Civil Guard was reorganized into the Regional Forces, and other paramilitary organizations (including the Self-Defense Corps) became the Popular Forces. These two groups became known as the Territorial Forces, or RF/PF (in American jargon). The Regional Forces expanded in 1965 to roughly 85,000 soldiers with 959 rifle companies. By 1967, over 155,000 men were in the Regional Forces. However, the increase in strength exacerbated problems concerning training, equipping, and desertion. By 1972, the Regional Forces had over 300,000 men.

Dating This Piece

Since this piece is undated, we have extrapolated the c. 1969 date from context and provenance, Major General Ira A. Hunt. General Hunt served in Vietnam from May 1968 until June 1969 with the 9th Infantry Division as Chief of Staff and Commanding Officer of its 1st Brigade. The map must have been drawn during those 13 months since it was part of Hunt's papers.

Provenance: Major General Ira A. Hunt

This archive was part of the papers of Major General Ira Augustus Hunt Jr. (1924 - 2022), an American Army officer, historian, and author. During the Battle of South Saigon, Hunt was Chief of Staff of the participating 9th Infantry Division and as Commanding Officer of its 1st Brigade. After the war, Hunt was an Investigating Officer for the U.S. v. Henderson court-martial. Born in Lincoln, Nebraska, Hunt entered the United States Military Academy at West Point, graduating in 1945, when he became a second lieutenant in the Corps of Engineers. He was sent overseas, where he served in several post-war engineer assignments in Europe. A distinguished military and academic career followed, including multiple prestigious degrees and service in Korea. During the Vietnam War (1955 - 1975), he served as Chief of Staff of the 9th Infantry Division and as Commanding Officer of its 1st Brigade. After Vietnam, he was made Assistant Commandant of the Engineer School at Fort Belvoir, then Deputy Chief of Staff for Training and Schools at Headquarters TRADOC, Fort Monroe, Virginia. He retired in 1978, after which he wrote three books: The 9th Infantry Division in Vietnam: Unparalleled and Unequaled, Losing Vietnam: How America Abandoned Southeast Asia, and My Lai Cover-Up: Deceit and Incompetence.