Farewell to 'Gray Tiger of Route 4' Dang Van Viet
According to information from his family, Mr. Dang Van Viet, a pre-uprising cadre, passed away at 0:55 on September 25, 2021 (ie August 19, Tan Suu year) at Friendship Hospital, Hanoi, at the age of 102.
Mr. Dang Van Viet was born in 1920 in Dien Chau, Nghe An in a family of noble birth, with his grandfather being Dinh Nguyen Hoang Giap Dang Van Thuy, who was the Rector of the Imperial Academy. His father was Pho Bang Dang Van Huong, Deputy Minister of Justice of the Nguyen Dynasty, Governor of Nghe An province under the Tran Trong Kim government. Since 1947, Mr. Huong has been a Minister without a Ministry in charge of work in the three provinces of Thanh - Nghe - Tinh.
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| Mr. Dang Van Viet when he was young. |
Early awakening to the revolution, in March 1945 Dang Van Viet joined the force.Viet MinhOn August 21, 1945, he was assigned to hang the Viet Minh flag on the flagpole in front of Ngo Mon Gate, marking the successful uprising led by the Viet Minh Front to seize power in Hue.
During the resistance war against the French, Dang Van Viet participated in holding many important positions in the army. He was the first Regiment Commander of the 174th Main Infantry Regiment, Cao Bac Lang (established in August 1949), directly participating in commanding many victorious battles such as Bong Lau - Lung Phay in 1949, the Border Campaign in 1950, the Northwest Campaign in 1952... During this period, the French colonialists nicknamed Regiment Commander Dang Van Viet "Gray Tiger of Route 4".
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| Lieutenant Colonel Dang Van Viet has just passed away at the age of 102. Photo: Pham Van |
In 1954, Dang Van Viet was assigned to teach at the Vietnam Army School (now Army Officer School 1 - Tran Quoc Tuan University). In 1958, Mr. Dang Van Viet was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. In 1960, he was discharged from the army and transferred to work as Deputy Director of the Department of Construction Materials, then Deputy Director of the Department of Basic Construction under the Fisheries sector until his retirement.
Since 1985, he began his literary career. In particular, with his memoir The Fiery Route 4, he was awarded the highest award by the National Committee of the Vietnam Union of Literature and Arts in 1999. The memoir had the preface personally written by General Vo Nguyen Giap and the introduction by General Hoang Van Thai. In addition, he also had a number of works translated into French or English to introduce internationally.
Mr. Dang Viet Hung, son of Mr. Dang Van Viet, said that the visitation and memorial service will take place from 7:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. on September 27, 2021 at the Ministry of National Defense Funeral Home, No. 5 Tran Thanh Tong, Hanoi.
