Nguyễn Hữu An

Nguyễn Hữu An
Born October 1, 1926
Truong Yen Commune, Gia Vien District (Hoa Lu), Ninh Binh Province
Died April 9, 1995 (aged 68)
Hanoi, Vietnam
Allegiance  North Vietnam
 Vietnam
Service/branch  People's Army of Vietnam
Years of service 1945–1995
Rank Colonel general
Unit Battalion 251
Regiment 174
Division 1
308th Division
2nd Corps
Commands held Vietnam People's Army
Battles/wars First Indochina War
Vietnam War
Awards Independence Order
Military Exploits Orders
Liberation Military Exploits Order
Victory Order

Nguyễn Hữu An (October 1, 1926 – April 9, 1995) was a general in the Vietnamese People's Army.

Overview

Nguyễn Hữu An was born in the Truong Yen Commune of the Hoa Lư District, Ninh Binh, Vietnam. He joined the People's Army of Vietnam in September 1945.

First Indochina War

In the First Indochina War, An took part in several decisive battles. He participated in the battles of Bong Lau Pass and Lung Phay in 1949. The following year he took part in the Border Campaign, he was commander of 251st Battalion, a battalion of 174th Regiment (CAA Bac Lang) at the Battle of Dong Khe. He successively held titles of battalion commander, regiment deputy commander participating in actions at Binh Lieu, Vĩnh Phúc, and Moc Chau. In the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, he commanded 174th Regiment of the 316th Division, and three times attacked Hill A1 (Éliane 2). On 7 May 1954 his regiment finally overcame French defences on A1 and this marked one of the final actions in the battle.

Vietnam War

In the Vietnam War, An commanded North Vietnamese forces in the Battle of Ia Drang. In 1974 he was promoted to major general.

In the 1975 Spring Offensive, Major General Nguyen Huu An was Commander of 2nd Corps (Huong Giang). 2nd Corps, under his command, successively captured Quảng Trị and Huế; and in combination with armed forces of Military Region No.5 defeated nearly 100,000 regular troops of the ARVN within just 3 days at Da Nang. He then commanded the entire corps to march along nearly 1000 km to engage in the Ho Chi Minh Campaign after having destroyed the ARVN defensive line in Phan Rang.

In the last decisive fight to capture Saigon, 2nd Corps was one of five wings to surround Saigon, and planted the National Liberation Front's flag onto top of the Independence Palace at 11:30 on 30 April 1975.

Postwar career

After the end of the Vietnam War, An continued serving in the Vietnamese military. He achieved the rank of Lieutenant General in 1980. Six years later, he was promoted to Senior General. He held key posts in military such as Assistant Inspector General of the Vietnam People's Army, Deputy Chief concurrently Chief of Staff and Acting Commander of Military Region No.2 (1984–1987), Director of Army Academy (1988–1991), and Director of Academy of National Defense (1991–1995). He died in 1995.

He was called the "General of Battles" by the famed General Vo Nguyen Giap.

Awards

The Communist Party of Vietnam and State of Vietnam awarded him with:

Notes

    Book references

    Vietnamese
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