Republic_of_Vietnam_Marine_Corps

Republic of Vietnam Marine Corps

The Republic of Vietnam Marine Corps (VNMC) (Vietnamese: "Thủy Quân Lục Chiến",(TQLC)) was established by President Ngo Dinh Diem.

History

The Vietnamese Marine Corps had it origins during French rule of Indochina.The 1949 Franco-Vietnamese Agreement stated that the Vietnamese Armed Forces were to include naval forces whose organization and training would be provided by the French Navy. In March 1952, the Navy of Vietnam was established. In 1953, the French and Vietnamese governments agreed to increase the Vietnamese Army, an increase in the size of the Vietnamese Navy was also deemed necessary. As they decide whether the Army or Navy would control the river flotillas, French Vice Admiral Auboyneau proposed for the first time the organization of a Vietnamese Marine Corps. When the French withdraw from Vietnam in 1954, the Vietnamese Marine Corps was a component of the Vietnamese Navy. The Marine Corp consisted of a headquarters, four river companies, and one battalion landing force.On October 13, 1954, President Ngo Dinh Diem signed a government decree formally creating within the naval establishment a corps of infantry to be designated as the Marine Corps (VNMC).

References

Pham, Chung Van. History of the Vietnamese Marine Corps, Army of the Republic of Viet Nam ISBN 0-646-31188-3

Footnotes

Pham Van Lieu, Tra ta song nui, 3 vols. Houston, TX: Van Hoa, 2002-(2003?). Vol. 1, 1928-1963. 2002. 472 pp. Vol. 2, 1963-1975. 2003. 544 pp. Vol. 3, 1975-1985. 2003?