Original Item: Only One Available. Now this is an incredible piece of history! This untouched, great uniform set belonged to the famed General William “Westy” Westmoreland. For those that do not know this name, he was most notably Commander of United States forces during the Vietnam War from 1964 to 1968. He served as Chief of Staff of the United States Army from 1968 to 1972.

The uniform came to us from the American Armoured Foundation, Inc. Tank and Ordnance Memorial Museum. The AAF Tank Museum was a living memorial dedicated to the Tank and Cavalry soldiers of the world. Before 1981 some of the artifacts that make up the AAF Tank Museum was a private collection belonging to Mr. William Gasser. Mr. Gasser felt that his collection would be beneficial in educating present and future generations to the sacrifices made and the technologies gained during war. Therefore, in 1981 the AAF Tank Museum was established as a non-profit charitable organization, and Mr. Gasser's donated his private collection to the Tank Museum. Mr. Gasser is still active as Volunteer Director and Curator of the Tank Museum and his knowledge of military history has been a great asset to the museum. Unfortunately after 20 years of operation it had to close its doors, which is when this uniform was acquired.

The uniform itself is a Vietnam made SECOND MODEL "TYPE II" short sleeved set. The back collar of the fatigue top bears a Quang Chau Saigon base tailor tag. The Second Model OG-107's were specified for production in April of 1963 and had several slight variations from the First Model. The only change of any real significance is the alteration of the pocket flaps on the coat. The corners of the pocket flaps were "clipped" so that they no longer appeared rectangular. As with the First Model, the shirt and pants were also sized in groups such as Small, Medium, Large, etc. Due to the limited production time before the Third Model was specified, these are not seen nearly as often as the First Model or Third Model.

Insignia Present on Uniform:

- Military Assistance Command, Vietnam MACV Shoulder Sleeve Insignia (Left Shoulder): MACV was created on 8 February 1962, in response to the increase in United States military assistance to South Vietnam. MACV was first implemented to assist the Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG) Vietnam, controlling every advisory and assistance effort in Vietnam. It was reorganized on 15 May 1964 and absorbed MAAG Vietnam to its command when combat unit deployment became too large for advisory group control.

- Combat Infantryman Badge (Direct Embroidered): The Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) is a United States Army military decoration. The badge is awarded to infantrymen and Special Forces soldiers in the rank of colonel and below, who fought in active ground combat while assigned as members of either an Infantry or Special Forces unit of brigade size or smaller at any time after 6 December 1941. For those soldiers who are not members of an infantry, or Special Forces unit, the Combat Action Badge (CAB) is awarded instead. For soldiers with an MOS in the medical field they would, with the exception of a Special Forces Medical Sergeant (18D), receive the Combat Medical Badge. 18D Special Forces Medics would receive the Combat Infantryman badge instead.

- Master Parachutist Badge (Direct Embroidered): The Parachutist Badge, also commonly referred to as "Jump Wings", is a military badge of the United States Armed Forces. Some services, such as the Marine Corps, officially refer to it as an insignia instead of a badge. The United States Space Force and United States Coast Guard are the only branches that do not award the Parachutist Badge, but their members are authorized to receive the Parachutist Badges of other services in accordance with their prescribed requirements. The DoD military services are all awarded the same Military Parachutist Badge. The U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force issue the same Senior and Master Parachutist Badges while the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps issue the Navy and Marine Corps Parachutist Insignia to advanced parachutists. The majority of the services earn their Military Parachutist Badge through the U.S. Army Airborne School.

- ARVN Master Parachutist Badge: The ARVN or Army of the Republic of Vietnam got its parachute badge design from the French and adopted a smaller version of their basic jump wings. Having three levels of proficiency was an adaptation of American military practice. The Basic wings have just the single star at the bottom like the French basic wings. The Senior wings have an additional star added in the suspension lines and the Master parachutist has a palm frond added instead of a star. The Vietnamese also had gold instructor wings with the three rings at the bottom also in three levels of proficiency. Many US Advisors and Special Forces soldiers were awarded ARVN parachute wings for their service with South Vietnamese Airborne and Special Forces units.

- 4 Stars For Rank of General (Direct Embroidered): In the United States military, a general is the most senior general-grade officer; it is the highest achievable commissioned officer rank (or echelon) that may be attained in the United States Armed Forces, with exception of the Navy and Coast Guard, which have the equivalent rank of admiral instead. The official and formal insignia of "general" is defined by its four stars (commonly silver and in a row).

All three items; top, trousers and cap, are presented in fantastic moderately used condition. There is no extensive damage present with the only “real” issues being that it is missing the top button with one of the lower buttons being broken in half.

This is an incredibly fantastic piece of history, perfect for the diehard Vietnam War era collectors! Comes more than ready for further research and display.

William Westmoreland
William Childs Westmoreland (26 March 1914 – 18 July 2005) was a United States Army general, most notably commander of United States forces during the Vietnam War from 1964 to 1968. He served as Chief of Staff of the United States Army from 1968 to 1972.

Westmoreland adopted a strategy of attrition against the Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese Army, attempting to drain them of manpower and supplies. He also made use of the United States' edge in artillery and air power, both in tactical confrontations and in relentless strategic bombing of North Vietnam. Nevertheless, public support for the war eventually diminished, especially after the Battle of Khe Sanh and the Tet Offensive in 1968. By the time he was re-assigned as Army Chief of Staff, United States military forces in Vietnam had reached a peak of 535,000 personnel.

Westmoreland's strategy was ultimately politically and militarily unsuccessful. Growing United States casualties and the draft undermined United States support for the war, while large-scale casualties among non-combatants weakened South Vietnamese support.