5 generals defeated by General Vo Nguyen Giap

(Baonghean.vn) - Throughout the long struggle for independence of the Vietnamese nation in the 20th century, French colonialism and American imperialism, with the most modern and powerful army in the world, had to fall at the feet of the peasant soldiers in "rubber sandals" commanded by General and Commander-in-Chief Vo Nguyen Giap.

1. General Philippe Leclerc

The first French general to be defeated by General Vo Nguyen Giap.

Four-star General Philippe Leclerc was the first to suffer a defeat. General Philippe Leclerc took office in Vietnam in August 1945, but was recalled in June 1946 due to the failure of the "quick victory" strategy.

During this period, under the guise of the British army, the French launched attacks in Southern Vietnam and then advanced to Hai Phong and Lang Son, breaking the agreements and provisional treaties signed with our government, determined to capture the headquarters of the fledgling state. However, this plan was quickly thwarted because our armed forces held them back, preventing them from rapidly advancing and carrying out their intentions.

2. General Henri Navarre

Foreign press once praised Navarre as a general who could "reshape the situation in Indochina..."

Henri Eugène Navarre (July 31, 1898 - September 26, 1983) was a French army general who fought in World War I and World War II, and served as Commander-in-Chief of the French army at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. On May 7, 1953, General Henri Navarre was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the French army in Indochina.

Navarre's overconfidence and underestimation of the Viet Minh's capabilities led to his defeat. In 1956, Navarre retired and published the book "Dying Indochina," blaming his failure in Indochina on the nature of the French political system, intellectuals, politicians, journalists, and communist activists.

3. General De Castries

On the afternoon of May 7, 1954, General de Castries (center) and the French High Command at the Dien Bien Phu battlefield surrendered, ending the French colonialists' dream of dominating Indochina.

General De Castries (1902-1991) was the commander-in-chief of the Dien Bien Phu fortified complex and the highest-ranking commander of the French army during the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. His capture in his bunker on May 7, 1954, marked a devastating defeat for the French in the war.

Referring to the defeat at Dien Bien Phu, General De Castries expressed his admiration for General Vo Nguyen Giap's military leadership. "General Giap was intelligent, courageous, and a skilled guerrilla commander. He was also adept at politics and communism. We saw that clearly. Now, through the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, I see that General Giap was not only skilled in commanding guerrilla warfare, but also in commanding positional warfare, combined arms operations, and even in deception to mislead enemy intelligence," General De Castries shared.

4. General William Westmoreland

General William Westmoreland - Commander-in-Chief of the US military during the Vietnam War (1964-1968).

William Westmoreland, born in 1914 and died in 2005, was a distinguished general in World War II and the Korean War (1950-1953) before participating in the war in South Vietnam. Westmoreland began his participation in the war in South Vietnam in July 1963. At that time, Westmoreland was a lieutenant general serving as Deputy Commander of the U.S. Military Assistance Command, under General Paul Harkins.

By August 1964, he replaced General Paul Harkins and became the highest-ranking commander of the U.S. military in Vietnam. Until his death, the four-star general of the U.S. Army could not believe he had ever failed in Vietnam, where he commanded the largest force of soldiers in the entire Indochina War.

5. General McNamara

Former US Secretary of DefenseRobert Strange McNamaraShaking hands with General Giap during a meeting in Hanoi in 1995.

Robert Strange McNamara is considered the "chief architect" of the Vietnam War. He was born in 1916 in San Francisco, California, and died in 2009 in Washington, D.C., USA. After his first visit to Vietnam in April 1962, McNamara stated: "All quantitative calculations show that we are winning." McNamara also declared that victory in Vietnam could be achieved within another three to four years.

In 1965, in addition to deploying tens of thousands of troops to South Vietnam, fighter jets carried out 55,000 sorties, dropping 33,000 tons of bombs on North Vietnam. The following year, the number of bombing raids increased to 148,000, with 128,000 tons of bombs. However, the results were not as the US had hoped, and in 1966, McNamara expressed his frustration: "No amount of bombs can end the war" in Vietnam.

Peace

(Synthetic)