On April 23, the Institute of Military History (under the General Staff of the Vietnam People’s Army, Ministry of National Defense) coordinated with Military Region 7, Army Corps 4, Division 341 and Dong Nai province to organize a scientific conference on the topic. “The victory of Trang Bom in the Ho Chi Minh Campaign – Meaning and lessons learned”. The conference was held on the occasion of the 49th anniversary of the Trang Bom Victory (April 27, 1975 – April 27, 2024) and towards the 50th anniversary of the country’s reunification (April 30, 1975 – April 30, 2025).
Attending were Senior General Phung Si Tan, Deputy Chief of General Staff of the Vietnam People’s Army; Lieutenant General Nguyen Truong Thang, Commander of Military Region 7; Mr. Ho Thanh Son, Permanent Deputy Secretary of Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee; Major General Le Van Huong, Commander of the 4th Army Corps, along with leaders of the Institute of Military History, the Vietnam Historical Science Association, historical witnesses…
The conference received 70 papers, including articles from leaders of the Ministry of National Defense, the General Staff, the General Department of Politics (Ministry of National Defense), leaders of Dong Nai province, a number of military regions, army corps, military branches, academies, universities, historical witnesses are veterans of Division 341 who directly participated in the battle of Trang Bom (Dong Nai).
Scientific conference on Trang Bom victory was held in Bien Hoa City, Dong Nai
The essays were gathered, edited, and compiled by the Institute of Military History and published by the People’s Army Publishing House into a 700-page book titled “The Trang Bom Victory in the Ho Chi Minh Campaign – Meaning and Lessons Learned”.
The presentations presented at the conference focused on affirming historical facts that: 49 years ago, at 4:05 a.m. on April 27, 1975, Division 341 (under the 4th Army Corps) was under the command of Colonel Tran Van Tran, Commander of Division 341, opened fire to attack Trang Bom military base, a very important military base of the Republic of Vietnam army before 1975.
Destroy a strong military base
Before 1975, Trang Bom military base was always considered a military branch by the Saigon army, along with Xuan Loc military base as an extremely important blocking outpost at the eastern gateway of Bien Hoa City and capital city Saigon.
Therefore, the enemy gathered in Trang Bom a skilled, elite force with all kinds of weapons and equipment to block our army’s path to Saigon.
In April 1975, Trang Bom base was arranged with the entire 18th Division fleeing from Xuan Loc with Task Groups 48, 43, 52; The 5th Armored Regiment, the 1st and 3rd Armored Tank Battalions, the 3rd Cavalry Brigade, and 7 artillery units were established into 7 artillery positions.
Delegates attending the conference
Enemy forces in Trang Bom also had special forces from military region 3 concentrated here to defend themselves. The enemy stationed his troops in a concentrated, dense cluster. It is truly a large military force with diverse and modern weapons and equipment that exceeds the scale of a military region like Trang Bom.
In addition, there is also unlimited long-range artillery support from Ho Nai and Bien Hoa bases and air support from Bien Hoa, Saigon and Can Tho airports when Trang Bom hits. being attacked.
With the spirit of determination to win, with the determination to fight the opening battle of the Ho Chi Minh Campaign with complete victory, after less than 5 hours of fierce fighting, by 10:30 a.m. on April 27, 1975, Division 341 was completely defeated. owns Trang Bom and the entire 15 km long road on Highway 1 from Hung Nghia hamlet to Trang Bom.
With the battle of Trang Bom, Division 341 achieved a great victory in the opening battle of the historic Ho Chi Minh Campaign. The attack of Division 341 severely damaged 2 enemy regiments, eliminated 2,000 soldiers from combat, and captured and destroyed nearly 100 motor vehicles of all types (half were tanks and armored vehicles). .
The conference affirmed the great contributions of Division 341, the unit that successfully completed the Trang Bom battle 49 years ago
The scientific conference affirmed the great and important contributions and contributions of Division 341, the unit that successfully completed the Trang Bom battle, making an important contribution to the victory of the Ho Chi Minh Campaign (April 30. 1975).
The conference also contributed to affirming the development of military art, drawing valuable lessons to apply to the training and combat readiness of our army, and was also a tribute and honor. the merits of previous generations.
The conference is also a tribute and honor to the contributions of previous generations, the soldiers of Division 341 from 49 years ago who did not hesitate to sacrifice, endure hardship, fight bravely and win. The glorious battle of Trang Bom had historical significance, opening the victorious Ho Chi Minh Campaign.
From this workshop, the current class of officers and soldiers of Division 341 have more motivation and spirit to build an increasingly stronger Division; arousing the pride of Uncle Ho’s soldiers; contributing to the work of educating revolutionary traditions, building and promoting the noble qualities of soldiers in the new era.
