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 was a Marine Corps artilleryman, and an NCO instructor in the USMCR. In addition to this book on the Vietnam War, Ed is the author of oral and operational histories of Marine Corps tank units in World War II (Marine Tank Battles In The Pacific) and the Korean War (Marine Corps Tank Battles In Korea). 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