QLVNCH 10th Infantry Division ARVN

A studio portrait of a 2nd Lieutenant of the 10th Division,
circa 1965-1967, RVNHS Archive.

     Next month will mark the 40th Anniversary of The Battle of Xuan Loc. The brave stand of the Army of The Republic of Vietnam`s 18th Infantry Division in this battle has gone down in history as one of the pivotal events in story of the republic and the Vietnam War. In the lead up to this anniversary, RVNHS would like to post on a little known fact of the 18th Infantry Division. The formation originally began as the "10th" Infantry Division on May 16, 1965. However, the number "10" can have negative connotations in Vietnamese, so after some discussion the name was changed to the "18th" Infantry Division on January 1, 1967. Thus, officially the division existed as the 10th for slightly over a year and a half. Insignia of this "10th" Division is sparse as are photos of it in use. To mark this period of the 18th as the 10th, RVNHS has included an original 10th Infantry Division patch and studio portrait of a 2nd lieutenant in the division during this period (with insignia) from The RVNHS Archive.

10th Infantry Division Patch, RVNHS Collection.