Farewell to Lieutenant General Le Nam Phong - the legend of a Nghe An warrior remains forever

Lieutenant General Le Nam Phong. Photo courtesy

Lieutenant General Le Nam Phong was born in 1927, his real name is Le Hoang Thong, from Quynh Hoa commune, Quynh Luu district. He participated in revolutionary activities when he was not yet 17 years old as a "traffic and communication" soldier of Quynh Luu District Party Committee. In February 1948, he was admitted to the Party and enlisted in Division 308 (Vanguard Army).

Le Nam Phong was a general who spent 44 years on all battlefields in the country and other countries in the three resistance wars against France, the US and to protect the northern border; participating in almost all major campaigns that decided the victory of our Army.

In 1954, he was the Captain of Company 225, Regiment 88, Division 308. This was the Company that used suicide explosives to attack Hill A1 at Dien Bien Phu and participated in capturing General De Castries.

The Dien Bien Phu campaign was victorious on May 7, 1954. Photo courtesy

During the resistance war against the American imperialists, he was a brave regimental commander in the Southeast battlefield. He was revered by his officers and soldiers: The regimental commander won every battle. The enemy fearfully called him "The Gray Tiger of the Southeast". In 1975, he was the Commander of the 7th Division - the main division that smashed the "Xuan Loc steel door" for the army to enter Saigon, creating the legend of the Ho Chi Minh Campaign.

Liberation Army entered and smashed the gate of Xuan Loc during the Ho Chi Minh Campaign in 1975. Photo archive

In 1979, he was the Commander of the 1st Corps protecting the Northern Border. In 1980, he was the Deputy Chief of Staff of Front 719 of the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defense, fighting side by side with the Cambodian army and people to defeat the Pol Pot and Ieng Sary cliques, liberate Phnom Penh, and save the Cambodian people from genocide.

In 1984, he became the Principal of the Army Officer School 2 of the Ministry of National Defense. He was a general with many nicknames, each nickname associated with many military achievements.

During the days of "continuous rain, rice balls, blood mixed with mud" on the Dien Bien Phu battlefield, seeing soldiers' heads always covered in mud, he shaved his hair and encouraged his comrades to shave their heads too. Knowing the story, one time when meeting him in the trenches, General Vo Nguyen Giap asked why he shaved the whole company's heads? He replied: - Shaved to show determination to defeat the French! The General smiled happily: - From now on I will call you "Scalp Phong", don't be angry! And from then on, the name "Scalp Phong" was known to everyone on the front.

The Southeast battlefield during the resistance war against the US was extremely arduous and fierce, but Regiment Commander Le Nam Phong always carried a tong flask on his side. The combat officers around him reminded each other: When they saw the Regiment Commander take a sip, they would charge, it was time to go! For some reason, the story reached General Nguyen Chi Thanh. During a visit to the Regiment, the General gave him a tong flask of wine and a message: "Gray Tiger" sip continuously! And from then on, he had a new nickname "Phong binh toong".

Lieutenant General Le Nam Phong - the man associated with many legendary feats. Photo archive

In the battle of Xuan Loc, the last fierce confrontation between us and the US-puppet, in the middle of a fierce battle, suddenly the enemy's VTD communication system got into our VTD. On the other end of the line, the puppet general Le Minh Dao shouted aggressively in a condescending tone:

- Who is the commander of the Viet Cong?

Division Commander Le Nam Phong could not contain his anger and shouted:

- I'm Le Nam Phong! I will smash your head right here on Xuan Loc land.

Le Minh Dao roared:

- The Republic of Vietnam will fight a battle to show the world its majesty!

Commander Le Nam Phong also roared:

- We will beat you to the point of losing all your armor.

After this "unprecedented" story (General Nam Phong was almost disciplined), General Van Tien Dung called him "Fire Phong".

At the end of the war, his superiors suggested that he write a report to honor him as a Hero. He said nothing, just thanked him, but when he returned to his unit, he said:

- The people and soldiers are heroic and majestic, but I will not sit down and write a long list of achievements to be awarded the title!

And the hero of the people and comrades peacefully passed away with many comrades on March 26, 2022 in the city named after Uncle Ho, at the age of 95, leaving behind many regrets for comrades and comrades. His passing also left behind legends of a general with many resounding achievements associated with the history of the Vietnam People's Army.

Lieutenant General Le Nam Phong, whose real name is Le Hoang Thong, was born in 1927 in Quynh Hoa commune, Quynh Luu district, Nghe An province, into a poor farming family. During his legendary military career, he fought on many fronts of the resistance war against French colonialism, American imperialism and the Northern Border War.

Lieutenant General Le Nam Phong was the former Commander of Division 7, Corps 4 (also known as the Mekong Delta Corps), during the anti-American war; Commander of Corps I protecting the northern border; Deputy Chief of Staff of Front 719 - Ministry of National Defense helping the Cambodian people escape genocide; Director of Army Officer School 2.

Coming from a family of martial artists, in March 1944, at the age of 16, he joined the secret Viet Minh organization in the region as a liaison. He joined the Party in February 1948, officially on September 4, 1948, and continuously participated in revolutionary activities until his retirement in 1997.
Lieutenant General Le Nam Phong is a general with many nicknames such as Nam "fire", Nam "pot toong", Nam "firepower", "gray tiger of the Southeast" and "father Nam" given by officers and soldiers.