The 8th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (8 RAR) was an

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (CA), wh ...

Regular

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions a ...

. The battalion was formed in July 1966 as part of an expansion of the Australian Army in the mid-1960s due to the perceived threat of Communism in southeast Asia. Initially the battalion was sent to Malaysia in 1967, before later being sent to South Vietnam as part of Australia's commitment to the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

. Between November 1969 and October 1970 the battalion undertook operations as part of the

1st Australian Task Force The 1st Australian Task Force (1 ATF) was a brigade-sized formation which commanded Australian and New Zealand Army units deployed to South Vietnam between 1966 and 1972. 1 ATF was based in a rubber plantation at Nui Dat, north of Bà Rịa ...

, before being brought back to Australia. In October 1973, after Australia's involvement in Vietnam officially ended, the battalion was amalgamated with 9 RAR to form 8/9 RAR.

History

8 RAR was formed at

Enoggera Barracks Enoggera Barracks (also known as Gallipoli Barracks) is an Australian Army base in the northwestern Brisbane suburb of Enoggera in Queensland, Australia. It was officially established in the early 20th century when the area was used for field ...

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

on 14 July 1966 as part of the expansion of the Army during Australia's involvement in the Vietnam War. On 8 August 1966 it had a strength of 370 men, including 150 experienced soldiers who had been posted across from

1 RAR 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (1 RAR) is a regular motorised infantry battalion of the Australian Army. 1 RAR was first formed as the 65th Australian Infantry Battalion of the 34th Brigade (Australia) on Balikpapan in 1945 and since ...

. The battalion was expanded the next month with both regular soldiers and

conscripts Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day und ...

.Healy 2008, p. 154. Australian soldier with a F1 submachine gun during training in 1967

After a period of training 8 RAR embarked overseas in 1967. In January it was warned that it would relieve 4 RAR in

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

, and this movement gradually took place from 24 August to 6 November. While in Malaysia the battalion formed part of the 28th Independent Commonwealth Infantry Brigade which also included New Zealand Army and

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

units.Healy 2008, p. 165. 8 RAR returned to Enoggera in April 1969 and began intensive training ahead of being deployed to South Vietnam.Healy 2008, p. 163. The battalion arrived in South Vietnam on 17 November 1969 and replaced 9 RAR six days later. Like the other Australian Army units in Vietnam, the battalion formed part of the

and was based in

Phuoc Tuy province Phước ( vi, Phước) is a common gender-neutral name originating from Vietnam. It means "blessing" or "lucky". Notable people with this name include: Given name *Lưu Hữu Phước Lưu Hữu Phước (12 September 1921 in Cần Thơ, Coch ...

. In early 1970 8 RAR took part in

Operation Hammersley Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Ma ...

, a reconnaissance operation in the Long Hải area. This operation began on 10 February and on 18 February it captured a large

bunker A bunker is a defensive military fortification designed to protect people and valued materials from falling bombs, artillery, or other attacks. Bunkers are almost always underground, in contrast to blockhouses which are mostly above ground. T ...

complex after the

Vietcong , , war = the Vietnam War , image = FNL Flag.svg , caption = The flag of the Viet Cong, adopted in 1960, is a variation on the flag of North Vietnam. Sometimes the lower stripe was green. , active ...

(VC) defenders withdrew following air raids. The operation continued until 9 March, with the battalion carrying out patrols and conducting ambushes in order to engage VC troops. These operations were successful, and 8 RAR was awarded the South Vietnamese Government's Meritorious Unit Commendation, including Cross of Gallantry with Palm Unit Citation for its role in the operation. 8 RAR's main task was participating in and supporting pacification operations in Phuoc Tuy. This involved patrolling the province in order to engage VC units and prevent them from making contact with the civilian population. From 12 June 1970 these operations were designated

Operation Cung Chung Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Ma ...

and were intensified. 8 RAR's tour of South Vietnam ended in October 1970, by which time it had lost 18 men killed in action and suffered 108 wounded. As part of the reduction of the Australian force in South Vietnam 8 RAR was not replaced by another battalion when it returned to Enoggera. The reduction in the size of the Army at the end of Australia's involvement in the Vietnam War led to 8 RAR being amalgamated. On the morning after the

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms t ...

won the 1972 Federal Election the battalion, like all others in the Army, was ordered to discharge all conscripts who did not wish to remain. This led to a large reduction in the size of the Army, and in 1973 it was decided to reduce the

Royal Australian Regiment The Royal Australian Regiment (RAR) is the parent administrative regiment for regular infantry battalions of the Australian Army and is the senior infantry regiment of the Royal Australian Infantry Corps. It was originally formed in 1948 as a t ...

from nine to five battalions. This change was implemented by merging ('linking') several battalions, and on 31 October 8 RAR was linked with 9 RAR to form 8/9 RAR.Pederson 2008, pp. 241–245. Members of 8 RAR received the following decorations during its deployment to Vietnam: one

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, ty ...

, three

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC ...

es, two

Military Medal The Military Medal (MM) was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the British Army and other arms of the armed forces, and to personnel of other Commonwealth countries, below commissioned rank, for bravery in battle on land. The award ...

s and 13 Mentions in Despatches.

Battle honours

* Vietnam 1970–71.

Commanding officers

The following officers commanded 8 RAR: * Lieutenant Colonel J.O. Langtry (1966–1969) * Lieutenant Colonel K.J. O'Neill (1969–1970) * Lieutenant Colonel A. Clunies-Ross (1971) * Major I.S.A. Power (1971) * Lieutenant Colonel J.M. Murphy (1971–1973) * Lieutenant Colonel A. Clunies-Ross (1973)

Notes

References

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External links