Youthful achievements

Born in 1946 in Dai Dong commune, Nghe An province, Nguyen Xuan Thu joined the army in 1964 when he was just 18 years old. During his 8 years of fighting, he commanded many major battles, directly participating in the fierce fighting conditions, from Gia Lai, Phu Yen , Dak Lak... to the Southwest region...

In February 1970, he was appointed as Battalion Commander of Battalion 7, Regiment 10, at the age of 24. Entering the dry season of 1971, Regiment 10 continued to be assigned key tasks on the Ca Mau front. On the Western front, he directly commanded a series of attacks from Gia Ngua, Vam Dinh, Thi Tuong, Cai Nuoc sub-regions to Ba Thay, Nong Can... He and his teammates creatively applied the tactic of "blossoming in the enemy's heart", a unique form of special forces that was both secretive, lightning-fast, and effective.

Portrait of martyr Nguyen Xuan Thu (1946-1973).

Within just 2 years and 2 months after arriving at the Ca Mau battlefield, Nguyen Xuan Thu commanded more than 40 large and small battles, many of which destroyed entire enemy battalions, captured many weapons, shot down 1 helicopter... Among them, the 2 victories at Ba Thay and Nong Can became a military "earthquake" in U Minh, praised by the local press as "a shining history". Since being promoted by his superiors to the position of Battalion Commander of Battalion 7, in his command position, Nguyen Xuan Thu has achieved many outstanding achievements, together with the collective to build a strong unit in all aspects, becoming the elite main force of Regiment 10.

With his outstanding achievements, in June 1972, Nguyen Xuan Thu was appointed Deputy Commander of Regiment 10 at the age of 26. That same year, he was elected to attend the Regiment's Emulation Congress. Here, Battalion 7 was awarded the Third Class Liberation Military Exploit Medal, and Nguyen Xuan Thu himself was also awarded the Military Exploit Medal.

The Young Commander's Last Battle

On the night of January 26 to the morning of January 27, 1973, right before the Paris Agreement took effect, Military Region 9 directed Regiment 10 to organize an attack to destroy Long My sub-region, Thien Chuong province (now Can Tho city). The 7th and 8th Battalions of Regiment 10 were mobilized, under the direct command of Major Nguyen Xuan Thu, Deputy Commander of Regiment 10, along with comrade Nguyen Thua, Deputy Political Commissar of Regiment 10 and Battalion Commander of Battalion 7 Nguyen Duc Nhiem.

Throughout the night of January 26, Battalion 7 inflicted heavy damage on Long My sub-region. In the morning of January 27, from 7:30 to 9:00, the enemy mobilized 2 infantry battalions with M113 armored vehicles and 3 groups of F105 aircraft to counterattack fiercely. The command post was hit by bullets, Battalion Commander Nguyen Duc Nhiem was killed, and Deputy Political Commissar Nguyen Thua was seriously injured. The responsibility of commanding the battle was handed over to Nguyen Xuan Thu.

Under heavy fire from armored vehicles and bombs, he bravely passed through the bullets to approach the companies and encourage the soldiers. Nguyen Xuan Thu bravely moved under enemy fire, approached the companies, grasped the situation, commanded, encouraged and motivated the officers and soldiers of Battalion 7. At 4:00 p.m., the enemy could not penetrate our defense line, so they ordered F105 aircraft to continue bombing the battlefield. A series of bombs hit the command position of Deputy Regiment Commander Nguyen Xuan Thu, he sacrificed himself on the spot at the age of 27, leaving deep sorrow in the hearts of his comrades and the people.

After the battle on the night of January 27, 1973 of Battalion 7 in Long My, the body of martyr Nguyen Xuan Thu was not found. It was not until 1975 that his family received a death notice, with only the information that he had died on the southern front. From the day he put on his backpack and went to battle at the age of 18 until he fell in the middle of the battlefield in the Southwest, for nearly 10 years, he only had time to send home a few short letters, not even a portrait photo to be used as a memorial photo for the martyr.

Martyr Nguyen Xuan Thu (standing second from left) with the commander of Regiment 10. Photo provided by veteran Duong Xuan Quang

35 years later, in 2008, thanks to the help of veteran Duong Xuan Quang, a member of the Liaison Committee of Regiment 10, the family was able to get the first photo of martyr Nguyen Xuan Thu to worship. In 2011, with the support of the Liaison Committee of Regiment 10 and his former comrades, the place where he fell in the final battle was identified. Unable to find his remains, his relatives and comrades quietly brought a handful of sacred soil from where he sacrificed to place in the martyr's grave in his hometown cemetery, next to his parents' graves.

“Comrade Nguyen Xuan Thu is a wise, decisive, and dedicated commander. Under his leadership, Battalion 7, Regiment 10 has achieved many outstanding feats, including the Battalion being awarded the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces. With his great contributions to the cause of national liberation, to the unit and the people, we hope that Mr. Thu will soon be posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces, worthy of the great contributions he has made to the Fatherland,” said veteran, Hero of the People's Armed Forces Hoang Dinh Kien (Cat Ngan commune, Nghe An province), a comrade of martyr Nguyen Xuan Thu.

CLOUD

    Source: https://www.qdnd.vn/phong-su-dieu-tra/phong-su/khuc-trang-ca-tuoi-27-cua-liet-si-nguyen-xuan-thu-838879