Item Description
Original Items: Only One Lot of 6 Available. The Viet Cong were a guerilla force that fought against the United States and South Vietnam during the Vietnam conflict. Viet Cong could be a farmer, a woman, or a child and they were indistinguishable from the United States' South Vietnam allies. They used makeshift weapons, had a variety of uniforms, and avoided traditional combat, making it difficult to know who exactly the enemy was. Their orders came from the North Vietnam Communist party.
For Vietnamese peasants, wearing black clothing while working in the field was perfectly normal since it would hide all the inevitable dirt that came with working in a rice field. For a guerilla soldier that wanted to blend in with the population, wearing the most common outfit was a natural choice. Along with these “black pajamas” they would wear a black and white checkered scarf and some sort of ammunition chest rig.
During the early stages of their insurgency, the Viet Cong mainly sustained itself with captured arms (often of American manufacture) or crude, self-made weapons (e.g. copies of the US Thompson submachine gun and shotguns made of galvanized pipes). Most arms were captured from poorly defended ARVN militia outposts.
Communist forces were principally armed with Chinese and Soviet weaponry though some VC guerrilla units were equipped with Western infantry weapons either captured from French stocks during the first Indochina war, such as the MAT-49, or from ARVN units or requisitioned through illicit purchase.
In the summer and fall of 1967, all VietCong battalions were reequipped with arms of Soviet design such as the AK-47 assault rifle and the RPG-2 anti-tank weapon. Their weapons were principally of Chinese or Soviet manufacture.
The Grouping Consists of the Following:
- ChiCom Stick Grenade pouch: The pouch is in lovely condition and originally held 4 grenades. There is no significant damage and only light fading. All straps and components appear to be present and are still functioning.
- ChiCom Type 56 SKS Chest Rig: The rig is in lovely condition and is a ten pouch example, complete with all wood closure toggles. The back still retains solid Chinese markings which identifies this as being a Type 56, 7.6mm Semi-Automatic Rifles, East Police (China Issue) and is dated 1968.
- Vietnamese Made Chest Rig: It is a fact that Hanoi made some of its own field gear. This was documented in various issues of the MACV’s Combined Material Exploitation Center (CMEC) circular entitled ST66-24. This publication, sent monthly to various field commands in Vietnam, documented recently captured NVA and VC equipment. On occasion CMEC would identify that a particular item was made in North Vietnam. The publication had a picture on one page opposite a short synopsis of the material with a conclusion about its construction and quality. The rig is in excellent condition and does appear to be complete without any significant damage.
- Vietnamese Made Rifle Grenade Pouch: We believe this to be Vietnamese made and meant for rifle grenades after comparing it to other known examples. It appears to be complete and still in functional condition.
Medic Bag: This appears to be Vietnamese made and is unmarked. The white circle and red cross does appear to be period applied and is in great condition. A guerilla force is most times always outnumbered, surrounded and unable to evacuate wounded men, so the medic was a valued asset to these small teams. They trained their own medics, relied upon their own resources and upon the technical support of nations sympathetic to them. The Vietcong overcame their shortages of medics by establishing a 12 month long school for “medical officers” in safe, hidden areas of the jungle. In the school they are taught the structure and function of the organ systems, basic diagnosis and treatment and traumatic surgery.
This is a lovely assortment of items that comes more than ready for display.
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