The division was formed on 23 October 1965 from the 4th "Đồng Nai" Regiment and the newly formed 5th Regiment, which was drawn from local forces. The division later comprised the
274th Regiment (Vietnamese: 4th "Đồng Nai" Regiment) and
275th Regiment (Vietnamese: "Cá Gô" 55 Regiment) plus supporting units. The VC 5th Division's headquarters were located in northeast
Phước Tuy, in the
Mây Tào Mountains; the 274th Regiment's headquarters were located in the
Hát Dịch area and the 275th Regiment's headquarters were located somewhere in the Mây Tào Mountains, generally known as the
May Tao Secret Zone, although the precise locations are unknown. The division operated in the
Bien Hoa,
Đồng Nai, Phước Tuy and
Long Khánh provinces. North Vietnamese
regulars reïnforced the division during operations. As part of the campaign against Saigon, the division was tasked with isolating the eastern provinces by interdicting the main roads and highways, including Highways
1 and 15 and provincial routes 2 and 23. It this role it proved a major challenge to the
Army of the Republic of Vietnam, with the 275th Regiment successfully ambushing a Republic battalion near Binh Gia on 11 November 1965. The PAVN claim that the Division's 4th and 5th Regiments attacked the U.S. base at Vung Tau on 12 March 1966 "killing 300 enemy and destroying 30 helicopters." During the 1968
Tet Offensive the Division
attacked Bien Hoa Air Base and Long Binh Post. The attacks were a failure and total PAVN/VC losses were 567 dead and 47 captured and 11 U.S. killed. Following the Tet Offensive the 174th Regiment was assigned to reinforce the division. In early 1975 in preparation for the
1975 Spring Offensive the PAVN command formed the 232nd Group comprising the division and the
3rd Division. In early April the division attacked ARVN outposts at
Thủ Thừa and
Bến Lức but were repulsed. In late April the division cut Route 4 near Bến Lức blocking the movement of ARVN units from the southwest towards Saigon. On 30 April the division advanced up Route 4 and attacked
Tân An and Thủ Thừa forcing the surrender of the ARVN
22nd Division and
6th Ranger Group. Presently, the 5th Division is under the
7th Military Region. ==Notable members==