1. Why was Xuan Loc once called the "steel door" protecting Saigon in 1975?

  • Because of the difficult terrain
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  • Because there are many defensive tanks
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  • Because it is an important defense line east of Saigon
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  • Because it is the place where the main force of the Liberation Army is concentrated.
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Exactly

Xuan Loc is a town of Long Khanh province (currently Long Khanh city, Dong Nai), about 80km east of Saigon, straddling important traffic routes, such as National Highway 1A to Saigon, National Highway 20 connecting Saigon with Da Lat and National Highway 15 connecting Saigon with Ba Ria - Vung Tau .

During the 1975 Spring General Offensive and Uprising, after consecutive failures in the Central Highlands, Hue - Da Nang and the Southeast, the enemy considered Xuan Loc an "important link", the "steel door" east of Saigon. The enemy concentrated a large force to defend Xuan Loc, because losing Xuan Loc meant that Saigon - Gia Dinh was threatened, and the Bien Hoa - Ba Ria - Vung Tau defense line was also shaken.

On our side, properly assessing the importance of the Xuan Loc gateway, on April 2, 1975, thoroughly implementing the guiding ideology of the Politburo and the Central Military Commission, the Regional Command decided to launch an attack to liberate Xuan Loc, break the enemy's fortified defense of Saigon, cut off traffic, and isolate Saigon.

2. Who was assigned to draw the battle map in the 1975 Xuan Loc battle?

  • Le Tien Hat
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  • Dam Duy Thien
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  • Nguyen Van Hieu
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  • Dang Dinh Long
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Exactly

In preparation for the 1975 Xuan Loc battle, Dam Duy Thien was trusted as the only person to draw the map of Xuan Loc.

Entering the army at the end of 1972 before finishing high school, young man Dam Duy Thien was assigned to E266 F341 (abbreviated as Song Lam Division).

When he joined the Division, he was chosen as a map soldier because of his talent for painting.

By early 1974, he and his comrades focused on training, preparing to fight in the South. In early 1975, he and his division marched to the B2 front (Southeast), directly participating in the Ho Chi Minh Campaign in the 4th Corps formation on the eastern wing to liberate Saigon - Gia Dinh at that time.

3. What is the importance of the battle map in the battle of Xuan Loc?

  • Help our troops understand the terrain to move
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  • Help commanders conduct battles effectively
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  • Showing the spirit of determination to win of our army
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  • Help soldiers communicate with each other on the battlefield
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Exactly

According to Nhan Dan newspaper, the Xuan Loc combat map helped commanders have a basis to monitor and assign tasks to subordinates, allowing subordinate commanders to carry out specific tasks and deploy their unit's fighting methods promptly and accurately.

The map of fighting determination demonstrates the entire vision, intelligence, and combat art of the collective leadership and commanders of our troops in combat to ensure complete victory.

4. During the process of drawing the map, what conditions did the soldiers work in?

  • On the command plane
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  • In the dark basement, use a flashlight or hurricane lamp.
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  • On the tank
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  • Isolate yourself in a closed room
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Exactly

To ensure secrecy and safety amid bombs and bullets, Mr. Dam Duy Thien had to work in a shelter, using only the light from a hurricane lamp or flashlight to draw. Every day, he regularly listened to the instructions of the commander to update the situation, using pencil strokes to adjust the map promptly and accurately.

5. How long did it take to complete the Xuan Loc battle map?

  • Half a year
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  • More than a week
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  • One month
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  • One day
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Exactly

In just over a week, the scout soldier, not yet 19 years old, Dam Duy Thien, completed the Xuan Loc battle map.

Later, Mr. Dam Duy Thien himself shared with Nhan Dan newspaper: "In the Xuan Loc battle, when arriving at a new area, I received a lot of information about the enemy from the scouts, I had to try to collect, observe and use my memory to connect all the data. At that time, whatever the commander said, I had to write down immediately. In addition, when the units and departments went to reconnaissance and reported back, they also needed to grasp the information and then display it accurately on the map."

6. What did the Xuan Loc battle map maker dream of doing after the war?

  • Become an artist
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  • Become a bridge engineer
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  • Become a teacher
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  • Become a military doctor
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Exactly

Mr. Dam Duy Thien said that when he was young, he was often sick and had to miss school, but in return he was skillful and passionate about painting. During the years living in the smoke and bullets, seeing his comrades injured with his own eyes, he wished that one day he would work in the medical field to examine and treat his comrades, teammates and the people. During the Xuan Loc campaign, witnessing many teammates being injured, this desire became even more burning.

After the country's reunification, Mr. Dam Duy Thien went to school and then passed the entrance exam to the Military Medical University, fulfilling his old dream.

After graduating, he became a treating physician and surgeon at Military Hospital 103, as well as a lecturer. He continued his studies for a master's and doctorate, specializing in cerebrovascular accidents, and later worked at the Central Health Protection Committee and the Central Party Organization and Personnel Committee until his retirement.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/ai-la-nguoi-ve-ban-do-tac-chien-xuan-loc-1975-sau-nay-tro-thanh-tien-si-y-khoa-2392258.html