Steel My Soldiers' Hearts by David Hackworth.

[wartimecollectables.com]

Steel My Soldiers' Hearts: The Hopeless to Hardcore Transformation of U.S. Army, 4th Battalion, 39th Infantry, Vietnam. by David Hackworth.

 

William Shakespeare Henry V, Act 4, Scene 1; King Henry “O God of battles, steel my soldiers' hearts. Possess them not with fear.”

 

I knew a little of Col. David Hackworth, a career Army officer with a distinguished record whose name is often in sentences with phrases something like ‘America’s most decorated soldier’. But I really know little about him. I’ve been on a reading path of late that has followed a course through Vietnam that lead me to the story of the 4/39 9^th Division, and to learning a bit more about Col. Hackworth. This is NOT a review of Col. Hackworth as tempting as that is!
The book details how Hackworth, a combat seasoned veteran officer with prior experience in Vietnam, came to command the 4^th Battalion of the 39^th Infantry Regiment, 9^th Infantry Division. He found them a poorly prepared unit whose previous commander had set them up in the midst of a large NVA/VC minefield, strategically placed an ammo dump in the middle of the Firebase next to his Command Post and personal portapotty! Patrols of the perimeter lead to a staggering casualty rate due to mines and booby traps with little actual contact and few if any successes. He transformed the unit into one of the finest in Vietnam with an excellent combat record. Battalion Surgeon Byron Holley wrote “Under Hack's leadership our KIA's and WIA's plummeted to record low numbers and many of my infantry brothers feel, as I do, that we are alive today because of his shrewd understanding of the battlefield. Our previous CO clearly lacked the experience and knack for getting it done without lots of unnecessary casualties.”
In his book, Hackworth, who became a journalist after the war and has several publications to his name, is very critical of the command structure and openly critical of the commanding officer’s he served with. He has little good to say about General Julian Ewell, 9^th Division Commander, or most of Ewell’s staff officers who in his eyes were plainly ‘in-country’ as a career stepping stone with the only concern being body counts and decorations.
Likewise he has overwhelming disdain for his South Vietnamese counterparts. No mention of the well trained VNAF aviators or heroic CIDG, LLDB and ‘Yard’ troops found in other accounts. Certainly they were a minority within the ARVN forces however only the traitors, Kit Carson Scouts, and profiteers exist in his text.
The book is a good read, filled with action and combat lessons to be learned. It is as ‘honest’ as any in telling of the story but remains a heavily bias personal narrative. Hackworth’s criticism, albeit likely justified, of the US Army command structure and the South Vietnamese armed forces is the thread that ties the book together. There is no positive side to this account with the exception of the high praise for his enlisted men and for their courage and service. I recommend it for your library of Vietnam history or combat narratives but ‘steel your heart’ for the words of a critical and angry man.

 

[warroom1]

Great book, much insight