The Division was formed in 1974 and trained by North Korea. It was named after a June 1964 incident in the eastern town of Kamanyola. Troops led personally by Mobutu secured a strategic bridge near the town of Kamanyola. In 1993 it consisted of the 11th Infantry Brigade, the 12th Infantry Brigade, and the 14th Infantry Brigade. After the Shaba I incursion, the division, at the time considered the army's best formation, and considered the president's own, was assigned permanently to Shaba.