III Corps (South Vietnam)

{{Short description|Corps of the South Vietnamese Army}}

{{Infobox military unit

| unit_name = III Corps

| native_name = Quân đoàn III

| image = Insignia of ARVN III Corps.svg

| image_size = 150px

| caption =

| dates = 1959–1975

| country = {{Flag|South Vietnam}}

| allegiance =

| branch = {{flagicon image|Flag of the Republic of Vietnam Military Forces.svg}} ARVN

| type = Corps

| role =

| size =

| command_structure =

| garrison = Saigon

| garrison_label =

| nickname =

| patron =

| motto = Chiến Thắng và Xây Dựng (Victory and Rebuilding)

| colors =

| colors_label =

| march =

| mascot =

| equipment =

| equipment_label =

| battles = Vietnam War

• Fall of Saigon

| anniversaries =

| decorations =

| battle_honours =

| battle_honours_label =

| disbanded =

| flying_hours =

| website =

| commander1 =

| commander1_label =

| commander2 =

| commander2_label =

| commander3 =

| commander3_label =

| commander4 =

| commander4_label =

| notable_commanders = Đỗ Cao Trí
Nguyễn Văn Minh
Nguyễn Văn Toàn
Dư Quốc Đống
Trần Quang Khôi
Thái Quang Hoàng
Lê Nguyên Khang

| identification_symbol =

| identification_symbol_label = Distinctive unit insignia

| identification_symbol_2 = File:Flag of the ARVN III Corps.svg

| identification_symbol_2_label = Division flag

}}

III Corps ({{vie|v=Quân đoàn III}}) was a corps of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN), the army of the nation state of South Vietnam that existed from 1955 to 1975. It was one of four corps in the ARVN, and oversaw the region of the country surrounding the capital Saigon.

III Corps was activated in September 1959 and controlled the country south of Phan Thiet excluding Saigon which was controlled by the Capital Military District (CMD).{{cite book|last=Spector|first=Ronald|title=The U.S. Army in Vietnam Advice and Support: The Early Years, 1941-1960|publisher=U.S. Army Center of Military History|year=1993|url=https://history.army.mil/html/books/091/91-1/CMH_Pub_91-1-B.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120926064301/http://www.history.army.mil/html/books/091/91-1/CMH_Pub_91-1-B.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 26, 2012|isbn=978-0160015915|page=300}}{{PD-notice}} In 1962, President Ngô Đình Diệm decided to split the Corps into two, the former III Corps area being reduced in size to cover the area northeast of Saigon and the newly created IV Corps taking over the west and southwest.{{cite book|last=Halberstam|first=David|title=The Making of a Quagmire: America and Vietnam during the Kennedy Era|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers|year=2008|isbn=9780742560079|page=80}}

The Fifth Division based in Bien Hoa on the northern outskirts of Saigon was a part of III Corps, and due to the division's close proximity to the capital was a key factor in the success or failure of the various coup attempts in the nation's history.{{cite book|title=Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War|first=Spencer C.|last=Tucker |year=2000 |publisher=ABC-CLIO| isbn=1-57607-040-9 |location=Santa Barbara, California |pages=526–533}}

As from 7 June 1966 the CMD became a subordinate command of III Corps.{{cite book|last=Clarke|first=Jeffrey|title=The U.S. Army in Vietnam Advice and Support: The Final Years, 1965-1973 |publisher=U.S. Army Center of Military History|year=1998|url=https://history.army.mil/banner_images/focus/dr_clarke_ret_comm/the_final_years.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170125225653/http://www.history.army.mil/banner_images/focus/dr_clarke_ret_comm/the_final_years.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 25, 2017|isbn=978-1518612619|page=24}}{{PD-notice}}

File:Map of III CTZ.jpg