The bicycles of three famous generals

Few people can imagine that this Mercier bicycle with worn tires and rusty paint is a precious keepsake, which once followed the three generals on the rugged mountain passes of the battlefields.

This was also the means of transporting important documents that three generals of the Vietnam People's Army used during the resistance war against the French. They were General Nguyen Chi Thanh, Lieutenant General Doan Chuong and Lieutenant General Van Cuong.

In 1950, General Nguyen Chi Thanh from Tri Thien was mobilized into the army by the Party Central Committee and assigned the important responsibility of Chief of the General Political Department and Deputy Secretary of the General Military Commission. In the Viet Bac resistance zone, because the headquarters of the agencies were far apart, the General was equipped by his superiors with a Mercier bicycle made in France. This was also the only means of transport used by the General to transport important revolutionary documents to the Central Committee and the General Command, located in the provinces of Thai Nguyen, Tuyen Quang, and Cao Bang.

The special bicycle of three generals

Later, General Nguyen Chi Thanh gave this bicycle to his subordinate, Lieutenant General Doan Chuong. In 1956, this bicycle was given to Lieutenant General Van Cuong.

In addition to the bicycle - a valuable artifact associated with a heroic period in the military career of General Nguyen Chi Thanh, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the General's birth, the Vietnam Military History Museum also displays hundreds of photos, artifacts, and valuable documents about the life and career of this talented general. Among them, many artifacts are being revealed to the public for the first time.

General Nguyen Chi Thanh (right) and General Vo Nguyen Giap

A special souvenir displayed at the exhibition is an American radio captured by our army and people during the victory in Hoai Duc (Binh Thuan province) in the Spring and Summer of 1965. In order to serve the combat mission at that time, General Nguyen Chi Thanh gave it to Mr. Nguyen Trung Hieu, a staff member of the Regional Command, to use to transmit the General's orders and instructions, to encourage and motivate officers and soldiers to dare to fight and be determined to defeat the American invaders.

The exhibition also displays many artifacts associated with the General’s daily life, from rubber sandals, a pith helmet, a checkered scarf… to noble medals. All of them have a special appeal to many people.

According to dantri