Trần Văn Minh, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death
TweetTrần Văn Minh
South Vietnamese commander
Date of Birth: 
Place of Birth: Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
About Trần Văn Minh
- Lieutenant General Sylvain Tr?n Van Minh (born 19 August 1923, Saigon, French Indochina – died 31 May 2009, Nice, France) was a Vietnamese diplomat and a general of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. In 1942, he passed the entry exam for the St Cyr/St Maxient Military Academy organized in Tong, Indochina.
- From 1943-45, Lieutenant Minh served with the 9th R.I.C.
- During this period, he participated in operations in Central and North Vietnam, most notably in Cha Pa.
- After the Japanese coup of 9 March 1945, he accompanied General Alessandri's troops in the retreat to China.
- In 1946, he was part of the French troops that retook Dien Bien Phu.
- From there, he eventually made his way to Saigon, travelling on the Mekong River through Luang Prabang and Vientiane.
- Deployed to the 22nd R.I.C.
- (1946–47), he was in charge of protecting military convoys between Saigon and Dalat. Minh was named Directeur des Etudes (Chánh S? Nghiên C?u – Director of Intelligence) for the Governor of North Vietnam, Nghiêm Xuân Thi?n.
- 1950 found him in Paris studying at the War Academy (École de Guerre à Paris).
- Upon his return to Vietnam, he worked at the newly formed State of Vietnam's Ministry of Defense.
- Two years later, he served on the Chief of Staff.
- During this time, he worked with General de Lattre de Tassigny in the "Vietnamization" of the Corps Expéditionnaire Français.
- After participating in Operation Atlante, he was promoted to Commander of the South Sector.In 1955, Colonel Minh was one of the French delegates at the Geneva Convention.
- After the accords were signed, he returned home to take command of the first military region in South Vietnam.
- Late 1955, he was promoted to Général de brigade (Major General).
- A year later, the 33-year-old Minh was promoted to Général de division (Lieutenant General).
- From 1957-59, he served as Commandant of the Da Lat military academy.
- In 1960, President Ngô Ðình Di?m named him Inspector General the National Defense, a post he held until 1963.In 1964–65, he was the Chief of General Staff and in 1965, Minister of Defense.
- The last position he held was Ambassador of the Republic of Vietnam to Tunis, Tunisia from 1971 until 30 April 1975, when Saigon fell.
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