Instruct: Given a question, retrieve passages that answer the question.
Query: When was the Battle of Suoi Chau Pha fought?
The Battle of Suoi Chau Pha (6 August 1967) was fought during the Vietnam War between Australian troops and the Viet Cong. The battle took place during Operation Ballarat, an Australian search and destroy operation in the eastern Hat Dich area, north-west of Nui Dat in Phuoc Tuy province. Following a covert insertion the day before which had caught a number of Viet Cong sentries by surprise, A Company, 7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (7 RAR) had patrolled forward unaware of the presence of a large Viet Cong main force unit nearby. Clashing with a reinforced company from the Viet Cong 3rd Battalion, 274th Regiment, a classic encounter battle ensued between two forces of roughly equal size. Fought at close quarters in dense jungle amid a heavy monsoon rain, both sides suffered heavy casualties as neither was able to gain an advantage. Finally, after a battle lasting several hours, the Australian artillery proved decisive and the Viet Cong were forced to withdraw, dragging many of their dead from the battlefield after having suffered crippling losses.
1968 marked a decisive turning point in the history of the Vietnam War. Towards the end of January, regular units of the PAVN and the VC initiated large-scale attacks on Saigon and all 34 provincial cities of South Vietnam. Several major towns, villages, and allied military installations throughout the country were also attacked during the same period. In doing so, the PAVN and VC violated the Tết holiday truce, which had enabled South Vietnamese military personnel to go on leave. The combined PAVN/VC forces were able to achieve the element of surprise, but despite some early victories, they could only sustain their offensive for a few days, or in the case of the Battle of Huế several weeks, before being ejected with heavy losses.
The Sui Dynasty united China in AD 589, defeating the Chen Dynasty and ending the division of the country that spanned almost 300 years. After the unification of China, Sui asserted its position as an overlord of neighbouring countries. However, in Goguryeo, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, Pyeongwon and his successor Yeongyang insisted on maintaining an equal relationship with the Sui Dynasty.
After Liu Qi died in 208, Liu Bei became the Governor of Jing Province. Zhou Yu died in 210 and his successor Lu Su convinced Sun Quan to lend Liu Bei Nan Commandery. In 211 Liu Zhang invited Liu Bei to Yi Province as an ally. In 212 Liu Bei betrayed Liu Zhang and attacked him, waging a two-year war that ended in Liu Zhang's surrender and Liu Bei's conquest of Yi Province. In 215 Sun Quan demanded the return of Nan Commandery as well as the rest of Jing Province. When Liu Bei denied him, Sun Quan sent an invasion force commanded by Lü Meng and Lu Su. A settlement was reached, dividing Jing Province along the Xiang River. In 217 Liu Bei invaded Hanzhong Commandery, which was then under the control of Cao Cao, and solidified his gains in 219 by achieving a decisive victory over the Cao army and killing Xiahou Yuan.
The Ptolemaic army was the army of the Ptolemaic Macedonian kings that ruled Egypt from 305 to 30 BC. Like most of the other armies of the Diadochi, it was very much Macedonian in style, with the use of the long pike ("sarissa") in a deep phalanx formation. Despite the strength of the Ptolemaic army, evinced in 217 BC with the victory over the Seleucids at the Battle of Raphia, the Ptolemaic kingdom itself fell into decline and by the time of Julius Caesar, it was but a mere client-kingdom of the Roman Republic. The army by the time of Caesar’s campaigns in the eastern Mediterranean was a mere shadow of its former self: generally, a highly disorganized assemblage of mercenaries and other foreign troops.
The Battle of Ravenna in 729 was fought between the troops of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Exarchate of Ravenna and a force of Italians. This was in response to Emperor Leo III the Isaurian outlawing the veneration of holy icons, which Pope Gregory II was against. After a fierce battle, the Eastern Roman Army was overcome and thousands of Byzantines were killed.
Modern historians' dates for the war have been hotly debated, with no clear consensus. It is generally accepted that the war lasted 10 years, and ended in summer 346 BC (one of the few firm dates), which yields a date of 356 BC for the beginning of the war, with Philomelos's seizure of Delphi. Diodorus's chronology for the sacred war is very confused—he dates the start and end of the war a year too late, variously says the war lasted 9, 10 or 11 years, and included the siege of Methone twice under different dates—and his dates cannot therefore be relied upon.
In China, the Jin dynasty, which had united the nation prior in 280, began to quickly face troubles by the start of the century due to political infighting, which led to the opportunistic insurrections of the northern barbarian tribes (starting the Sixteen Kingdoms period), which quickly overwhelmed the empire, forcing the Jin court to retreat and entrench itself in the south past the Yangtze river, starting what is known as the Eastern Jin dynasty around 317. 
Towards the end of the century, Emperor of the Former Qin, Fu Jiān, united the north under his banner, and planned to conquer the Jin dynasty in the south, so as to finally reunite the land, but was decisively defeated at the Battle of Fei River in 383, causing massive unrest and civil war in his empire, thereby leading to the fall of the Former Qin, and the continued existence of the Eastern Jin dynasty.
In 304 BC, King Zhaoxiang met with King Huai of Chu in Huangqi (黃棘) to negotiate an alliance, ceding Shangyong (上庸) as a gesture. In 303 BC, the states of Qi, Wei and Han broke off their previous alliance with Chu and invaded Chu, forcing Chu to send its crown prince Xiong Heng to Qin as a hostage in exchange for Qin assistance. King Zhaoxiang sent troops to attack Wei and Han, capturing Puban (蒲阪), Yangchun (陽春) and Fengling (封陵) from Wei, and re-capturing Wusui from Han. In 302 BC, King Zhaoxiang met with King Xiang of Wei and Crown Prince Yin of Han (韓太子嬰) in Linjin (臨晉), and agreed to return the seized lands in exchange for the two states denouncing their previous anti-Qin alliance. At the same time, the Chu crown prince secretly fled from Qin back to Chu.
The Eastern Han (), also known as the Later Han (), formally began on 5 August 25, when Liu Xiu became Emperor Guangwu of Han. During the widespread rebellion against Wang Mang, the state of Goguryeo was free to raid Han's Korean commanderies; Han did not reaffirm its control over the region until AD 30. The Trưng Sisters of Vietnam rebelled against Han in AD 40. Their rebellion was crushed by Han general Ma Yuan (d. AD 49) in a campaign from AD 42–43. Wang Mang renewed hostilities against the Xiongnu, who were estranged from Han until their leader Bi (比), a rival claimant to the throne against his cousin Punu (蒲奴), submitted to Han as a tributary vassal in AD 50. This created two rival Xiongnu states: the Southern Xiongnu led by Bi, an ally of Han, and the Northern Xiongnu led by Punu, an enemy of Han.
Discontent among the subjugated Gauls prompted a major uprising in the winter of 54–53 BC, when the Eburones of north-eastern Gaul rose in arms under their leader Ambiorix. Fifteen Roman cohorts were wiped out at Atuatuca Tungrorum (modern Tongeren in Belgium) and a garrison commanded by Quintus Tullius Cicero narrowly survived after being relieved by Caesar in the nick of time. The rest of 53 BC was occupied with a punitive campaign against the Eburones and their allies, who were said to have been all but exterminated by the Romans.
The end of the Han dynasty refers to the period of Chinese history from 189 to 220 AD, which roughly coincides with the tumultuous reign of the Han dynasty's last ruler, Emperor Xian. During this period, the country was thrown into turmoil by the Yellow Turban Rebellion (184–205). Meanwhile, the Han Empire's institutions were destroyed by the warlord Dong Zhuo, and fractured into regional regimes ruled by various warlords, some of whom were nobles and officials of the Han imperial court. Eventually, one of those warlords, Cao Cao, was able to gradually reunify the empire, ostensibly under Emperor Xian's rule, but the empire was actually controlled by Cao Cao himself. Cao Cao's efforts to completely reunite the Han empire were rebuffed at the Battle of Red Cliffs in 208 / 209, when his armies were defeated by the allied forces of Sun Quan and Liu Bei. The Han dynasty formally ended in 220 when Cao Cao's son and heir, Cao Pi, pressured Emperor Xian into abdicating in his favour. Cao Pi became the emperor of a new state, Cao Wei. A year later, in response to Cao Pi's usurpation of the Han throne, Liu Bei declared himself emperor of Shu Han; and in 229, Sun Quan followed suit, declaring himself emperor of Eastern Wu. The period from Emperor Xian's abdication in 220 to the partial reunification of China under the Jin dynasty in 265 was known as the Three Kingdoms era in Chinese history.
The Battle of Ravenna, fought on 11 April 1512, by forces of the Holy League, France and Ferrara was a major battle of the War of the League of Cambrai in the Italian Wars. Although the French and the Ferrarese drove the Spanish-Papal army from the field, their victory failed to help them secure northern Italy, and they would be forced to withdraw from the region entirely by August 1512.
Liu Bei (; ; 161 – 10 June 223), courtesy name Xuande, was a warlord in the late Eastern Han dynasty who founded the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period and became its first ruler. Despite early failings compared to his rivals and lacking both the material resources and social status they commanded, he gathered support among disheartened Han loyalists who opposed Cao Cao, the warlord who controlled the Han central government and the figurehead Emperor Xian, and led a popular movement to restore the Han dynasty through this support. Liu Bei overcame his many defeats to carve out his own realm, which at its peak spanned present-day Sichuan, Chongqing, Guizhou, Hunan, and parts of Hubei and Gansu.
The Battle of Dorylaeum took place during the First Crusade on July 1, 1097, between the crusaders and the Seljuk Turks, near the city of Dorylaeum in Anatolia. It was won by the crusaders.
In this way, the French were able between 1891 and 1896 to reduce the final centres of resistance in Tonkin. In November 1891 they finally secured control of the Dong Trieu massif, a thorn in their side since 1884, and dispersed the Chinese guerrillas who had operated there for so long. Trouble in the region subsided immediately on the death of the insurgent leader Luu Ky a few months later. In March 1892 the French destroyed the last bandit concentrations in the Yen The region. This remote, wooded, mountain fastness between Tuyên Quang and Thái Nguyên had been colonised by guerrilla bands during the war with China and held against the French ever since by the bandit chiefs Ba Phuc, De Nam and De Tham. Although French troops continued to skirmish with bandits in the Yen The until De Tham's death in 1913, they were no longer a serious threat to law and order. With the removal of these two running sores, the French were able to scale down their military operations in Tonkin between 1892 and 1896 to a very low level. The insurgents, once so formidable, were now reduced to kidnapping isolated French and Vietnamese officials and demanding ransoms for their safe return. They had become a nuisance rather than a threat. Routine sweeps and patrols by single companies now sufficed to police both the Delta and the mountain regions, and in 1896 it became possible for French politicians to speak of the 'pacification' of Tonkin with genuine conviction.
Group C
In 221 BC, the Qin state unified China by conquering the other six major states and established the Qin dynasty. However, the oppressive and extremely unpopular dynasty lasted only 14 years. In 209 BC, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang started the Dazexiang Uprising to overthrow the Qin dynasty.
After the collapse of a united China under the Han dynasty in 220 due in large part to the Yellow Turban and the Five Pecks of Rice rebellions, China eventually coalesced into the Three Kingdoms. Of these, Cao Wei was the strongest, followed by Eastern Wu and Shu Han, but they were initially in a relatively stable formation. After a 249 coup by Sima Yi, the Sima family essentially controlled Cao Wei and the conquest of Shu by Wei rapidly followed.
The Battle of the Imjin River began on 22 April 1951 with the goal of taking Seoul. By 25 April 1951, the Brigade was ordered to withdraw as the Communist forces were threatening to encircle it. With virtually no cover and seriously outnumbered, the Royal Ulster Rifles came under heavy fire as they withdrew to a blocking position. The Brigade was able to hold its position, despite fierce fighting, and neutralized the effectiveness of the Sixty-fourth Chinese Communist Army. Although the enemy's offensive had come within 5 miles of Seoul, the capital had been saved. At the time, the Times reported the Battle of Imjin River concluding with: "The fighting 5th wearing St George and the Dragon and the Irish Giants with the Harp and Crown have histories that they would exchange with no one. As pride, sobered by mourning for fallen observes how well these young men have acquitted themselves in remotest Asia. The parts taken by the regiments may be seen as a whole. The motto of the Royal Ulster Rifles may have the last word Quis Separabit" (who shall separate us).
Early in his reign, Servius warred against Veii and the Etruscans. He is said to have shown valour in the campaign, and to have routed a great army of the enemy. His success helped him to cement his position at Rome. According to the "Fasti Triumphales", Servius celebrated three triumphs over the Etruscans, including on 25 November 571 BC and 25 May 567 BC (the date of the third triumph is not legible on the "Fasti").
A classic encounter battle, the action had been fought between two forces of roughly equal size in the heavy monsoon rain at close quarters. Both companies had deployed to the high ground at around the same time in a bid to outflank the other, with the Australian infantry skilfully using their supporting artillery while the Viet Cong had attempted to nullify the Australian tactics by remaining in close contact. Ultimately, the artillery had decided the outcome in favour of the Australians however, and the Viet Cong had been forced to withdraw with heavy casualties. In this way the fighting bore many similarities to the victory twelve months earlier at Long Tan, yet it remained largely unheralded in Australia. Eight Australian soldiers received gallantry awards for their actions, including Military Crosses to O'Donnell, Ross and Clark, while Sutherland was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal. A number of awards were also made to the RAAF pilots and aircrew, including Cox who was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Meanwhile, the bravery evident by the Viet Cong during the battle had also made an impression on the Australians, who later acknowledged their tight fire discipline and the skilfulness of their battle drills and tactics which they found to be similar to those used by the Australians themselves.
By 14:30 the Viet Cong commander finally made the decision to withdraw, with the artillery deciding the battle in favour of the Australians. O'Donnell had commanded the battle with cool resolve under constant fire throughout, setting the standard for his men and on one occasion he had run through heavy fire to drag a wounded medic to safety. Withdrawing through the barrage and a number of airstrikes called in to pursue them, the Viet Cong proceeded to drag their dead from the battlefield, having suffered crippling casualties. B Company, 7 RAR was subsequently inserted by helicopter into blocking positions to the north, however they made no contact and were unable to prevent the withdrawal. Numerous blood trails were later found as the Australians attempted to follow up the Viet Cong.
By the second half of 1967 the Viet Cong seemed to have melted away in Phuoc Tuy province, abandoning many of their bunker systems and avoiding the main roads and towns. The Battle of Long Tan and Operation Bribie had weakened the communist forces in the province, while further operations had restricted their movement and logistics. This prompted the commander of the 1st Australian Task Force (1 ATF)—Brigadier Stuart Graham—to speculate that the Viet Cong may have fled to the border, perhaps leaving the province altogether. Graham reasoned that a succession of operations in the south-east of the province and the completion of the barrier minefield at Dat Do meant that no single, sizable threat remained to the populated areas of Phuoc Tuy.
In 1967, 2 and 7 RAR assumed responsibility in Phuoc Tuy from their predecessors and continued the extensive patrolling, and cordon and searches characteristic of this conflict. In August 1967, 7 RAR fought elements of the Viet Cong 3rd Battalion, 274th Regiment in the largely unheralded Battle of Suoi Chau Pha, where extensive artillery support again proved decisive. A third infantry battalion arrived in December 1967 as part of a significant expansion of 1 ATF. By the time of the Tet Offensive in 1968, 1 and 3 RAR were serving in theatre. During actions at Fire Support Base (FSB) Coral by 1 RAR and at FSB Balmoral by 3 RAR in May and June 1968, later known as the Battle of Coral–Balmoral, these two battalions of the regiment would fight battles with conventional attributes not seen since Kapyong. In June 1969, an infantry company from 5 RAR, then on its second tour, and supported by a troop of tanks and another of APCs fought a significant combined arms action against a battalion-sized force of North Vietnamese regulars and Viet Cong local force troops during the Battle of Binh Ba.