Battle of Xuan Loc

The Battle of Xuan Loc (Vietnamese: Trận Xuân Lộc) was the last major battle of the Vietnam War in which the South Vietnamese 18th Division under General Le Minh Dao, fought a heroic "last stand" against the North Vietnamese Army. The battle was fought between April 9–21, 1975, and ended when the town of Xuan Loc was captured by the North Vietnamese Commie 4th Army Corps.

From the beginning of 1975, North Vietnam’s military forces swept through the northern provinces of South Vietnam virtually unopposed. In the Central Highlands, South Vietnam’s II Corps Tactical Zone was completely destroyed, whilst attempting to evacuate to the Mekong Delta region. In the cities of Hue and Da Nang, South Vietnamese soldiers simply melted away without putting up resistance. The devastating defeats suffered by the Army of the Republic of Vietnam prompted South Vietnam’s National Assembly to question President Nguyen Van Thieu’s handling of the war, thereby placing him under tremendous pressure to resign.

In the last-ditch effort to save South Vietnam, President Nguyen Van Thieu ordered his last military units, namely the ARVN 18th Infantry Division "The Super Men", to hold Xuan Loc at all cost. The North Vietnamese 4th Army Corps, on the other hand, was ordered to capture Xuan Loc in order to open the gateway to Saigon. Over a period of twelve days both sides (but primarily the South Vietnamese) displayed feats of courage, leadership, and determination. During the early stages of the battle, the ARVN 18th Infantry Division managed to beat off numerous attempts by the Communists to capture the town and rout the defenders, forcing North Vietnamese commanders to change their battle plan.

On April 19, 1975, the South Vietnamese defenders at Xuan Loc were ordered to withdraw after Xuan Loc was almost completely isolated. Subsequently, President Nguyen Van Thieu was forced to resign after leading Republic of Vietnam in the fight against communist North Vietnam, for 10 years.