III Marine Amphibious Force was conceived as a division command for a small Marine Corps commitment to Vietnam. Within four years it had grown to a reinforced corps of two divisions, an air wing, and the division-sized Force Logistics Command.

This organization was unique in Marine Corps history in that it merged combat and major logistical functions under a single field command. This book examines the origins and constantly changing organizational structure of III MAF, and demonstrates how it conducted its savage struggle against Viet Cong guerrillas and North Vietnamese Army regular forces in the northern provinces of Vietnam.

Ed Gilbert has written numerous titles in Osprey's Warrior, Battle Orders and Campaign series, with a focus on the history of the US Marine Corps and state militias in the American War of Independence and the War of 1812. The author of a four-volume history of Marine Tank battalions, and co-author of Tanks in Hell: A Marine Corps Tank Company on Tarawa and True for the Cause of Liberty (written with his wife Cathy), Ed sadly passed away in February 2019.

Introduction/Combat mission/Doctrine and training/Unit organization/Logistics/Strategy and tactics/Weapons/Command, control, communications, and intelligence/Combat operations/Lessons learned/Bibliography and further reading/Abbreviations/Index