| Camp Lê Văn Duyệt | |
|---|---|
| District 10,Saigon,Vietnam | |
| Site information | |
| Type | Army Base |
| Owner | People's Army of Vietnam |
| Location | |
 | |
| Coordinates | 10°46′37″N106°40′34″E / 10.777°N 106.676°E /10.777; 106.676 (Camp Lê Văn Duyệt) |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1860s |
| In use | 1860s–present |
| Battles/wars |  Vietnam War |
Camp Lê Văn Duyệt (also known asCapital Military District Headquarters,Capital Military Assistance Command orCMAC andCamp Goodman ) was aFrench Army,Army of the Republic of Vietnam andUnited States Army base located inDistrict 10,Saigon,Vietnam. It remains in use today by thePeople's Army of Vietnam (PAVN).
The base was originally built during theFrench colonial period as theNouvelles Casernes d'Artillerie Coloniale (new barracks of the Colonial Artillery).[1]
With the departure of the French fromSouth Vietnam in 1954-6 the base was handed over to theArmy of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) and named afterLê Văn Duyệt, an 18th-century military commander. The base was the headquarters of theCapital Military District (CMD) responsible for the defense of Saigon.[1]
On 5 October 1963CIA officerLucien Conein met with GeneralDương Văn Minh at the base to discuss the plannedcoup againstPresidentNgo Dinh Diem.[2] In preparation for the coup one of the coup leaders GeneralTôn Thất Đính moved 20 tanks to the base to ensure that the coup supporters enjoyed overwhelming strength against forces loyal to Diem.[3]
In 1964 the ARVN political warfare training center moved to the base but the facilities at the new location were so inadequate that they were moved to theDalat Military Academy in 1966.[4]
The ARVN1st Airborne Battalion was headquartered at the base.[5]: 325
On the morning of 31 January 1968 at the start of theTet Offensive, USII Field Force commanderLieutenant generalFrederick C. Weyand directed his deputy,Major generalKeith L. Ware, to establish a tactical command post at the base next to the CMD headquarters. Once operational, this headquarters known asHurricane Forward would assume tactical control over all US units entering the Saigon–Gia Định Province zone.[5]: 336
On the morning of 5 May 1968 at the start of theMay Offensive Weyand directed his deputy, Major generalJohn H. Hay, to re-establishHurricane Forward at the base to perform the same function as in the Tet Offensive.[5]: 564–5
On 27 June 1968 Weyand published orders establishing Headquarters, Capital Military Assistance Command (CMAC) (Provisional) at the base under the command of Hay, with an effective date of 4 June 1968. In this post, Hay exercised operational control over all US units and advisers in Saigon–Gia Định, with himself serving as adviser to GeneralNguyễn Văn Minh, the commander of the CMD and military governor of Saigon.[5]: 593 [1] Weyand assigned two US brigades, the199th Infantry Brigade and the 2nd Brigade,25th Infantry Division to CMAC control to protect Saigon against furtherVietcong attacks.[5]: 626
The US5th Special Forces Group's Camp Goodman was located within the camp until late 1968 when it was handed over to CMAC.[6]
In late 1969 II Field Force commander Lieutenant generalJulian Ewell transformed CMAC into an advisory organization for the CMD, and charged it with transferring local American sensor and ground radar installations to the South Vietnamese.[7]
The base remains in use by the PAVN as the headquarters of the Ho Chi Minh City Command (Vietnamese:Bộ Tư lệnh TP.HCM), which forms part of the7th Military Region (Vietnam People's Army). The street address is 291 Hẻm 285 Cách Mạng Tháng Tám, Phường 12, Quận 10, Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.