Later this month, it will be fifty years since the Battle of Long Tan - Australia’s deadliest engagement in the Vietnam War. I’ve made the trip to Nui Dat and Long Tan many times since first visiting in 1991. Last week I headed back again.
In the early months of 1966, Australia committed to escalating its controversial involvement in the Vietnam War, under Prime Minister Harold Holt. Responding to calls from the US, the 1st Australian Task Force was established and deployed to Nui Dat, in Phuoc Tuy Province (it’s now in Baria-Vung Tau Province). Local villagers were relocated. Villages were destroyed.
The base became the focus of Australian military operations until withdrawal in 1972.
Soon after the establishment of the Nui Dat base in May 1966, local Viet Cong (local guerrilla fighters) and North Vietnamese Army regulars (NVA) began attacking. In August, the attacks escalated - as Ho Chi Minh's forces attempted to dislodge the Australian presence before it became too settled.
Photo: Mark Bowyer The watertower, Baria
Photo: Mark Bowyer Australian bunker near Nui Dat
Photo: Mark Bowyer Australian bunker near Nui Dat
Photo: Mark Bowyer The rubber trees have gone. The Long Tan cross is now in a corn field.
Photo: Mark Bowyer The rubber trees have gone. The Long Tan cross replica is now in a corn field.
Photo: Mark Bowyer The rubber trees have gone. The Long Tan cross is now in a corn field.
Photo: Mark Bowyer The original gates, since removed. Nui Dat
Photo: Mark Bowyer The view across the old base from Nui Dat hill.
Photo: Mark Bowyer Nui Dat hill
Photo: Mark Bowyer Driving lessons on the old Australian airstrip at Nui Dat
Photo: Rusty Compass Mr Tan - Long Phuoc Tunnels
On the nights of 16 and 17 August 1966, the Nui Dat base was hit by Viet Cong mortar and artillery fire. 24 Australians were injured.
Late morning on 18 August, 105 Australian and 3 Kiwi soldiers went on patrol, moving towards a French era rubber plantation at Long Tan. In the late afternoon, a force of between 1500 and 2500 Viet Cong and North Vietnamese regulars began attacking the patrol as heavy rain began to fall.
18 Australians and at least 245 Vietnamese were killed in the Battle of Long Tan. The Australians were encircled and were saved by artillery support and reinforcements.
This was the first and last large-scale engagement nearby Nui Dat. After the Battle of Long Tan, the area was more stable - but it was still frequently deadly for Australian troops.
The video above is made up of clips from a visit last week and another visit couple of years ago.
In 1969, Australian soldiers erected a cross in the Long Tan rubber plantation where the 1966 battle had occurred. The original cross is held at a museum in Bien Hoa. A replica is in place at the original location and a small number of Australian tourists visit the site each week to pay their respects. There are also annual gatherings at the site on ANZAC Day and 18 August.
The old rubber plantation was recently replaced by a corn crop.
If you’d like to read more about the Battle of Long Tan and Australia’s role in the Vietnam War, Paul Ham’s Vietnam, The Australian War, is a great book to have on hand. It’s bulky, so if you’re travelling, a Kindle version is also available.
There are only a handful of remnants of Australia's wartime presence in and around Nui Dat. Visits tend to include the old airstrip, the Long Tan Cross, and the Viet Cong tunnels at Long Phuoc. Some vets and travellers also visit Long Hai and the coast. The former New Zealand position known as The Horseshoe can be seen from the road, but there is no access and the area is now being quarried.
While there are only a few reminders of the Australian presence at Nui Dat, the landscape has not changed significantly. If you're interested in Australia's war-time presence in Vietnam and you've done some reading beforehand, a visit can be very memorable.
If you’d like to visit Long Tan and Nui Dat, you can check out our guide here.
It’s worth noting that independent visits to Long Tan are not permitted. Local tour companies OSC Vung Tau and Vung Tau Tourism seem to have locked up control of the site.
We’re not sure what happens if you try and visit independently, but we don’t suggest you try. It’s pretty gracious that Vietnam allows this commemoration of foreign soldiers on their soil, so it seems right to play by their rules. And the cross is on private property.
Don’t spoil the effort that’s gone into making Long Tan a solemn memorial by flaunting the rules. Remember the local sensitivities - it's quite remarkable that Vietnam allows any commemoration of a battle on their soil in which hundreds of Vietnamese were killed by foreign soldiers.
Around 60,000 Australians served in Vietnam - more than 500 died.
More than 58,000 Americans died.
Between 2 and 4 million Vietnamese died including North Vietnamese soldiers, southern guerrillas (VC) and civilians.
1 comment so far
It is possible to visit independently ~ providing you know how to get there ~ as I've done that 4 times (with visitors) over the past 2 years. Advisable to take incense & leave it there after honouring the fallen; pay respects at the Vietnamese altar also; be mindful that the cross location is still on private property, so don't disturb anything; the rocks the artillery units painted with their regimental colours are now in the front yard of the primary school at the end of Luscombe Field helo strip. That school's construction was largely financed by fundraising efforts from Aussie Vets. The school custodian (who speaks no English) has gone to considerable lengths to ensure all of the kids understand that period of their village's history. I would strongly recommend reading up on it beforehand in order to get a sense of the significance.