General Võ Nguyên Giáp (second from right) and other members of the Việt Nam Central Military Commission. — VNA/VNS File Photo
HÀ NỘI — An online exhibition featuring the life and works of late General Võ Nguyên Giáp will open this weekend in Hà Nội to mark his 110th birthday (August 25).
The virtual event is held by the Thăng Long-Hà Nội Heritage Conservation Centre to honour the legendary general’s great contributions to the national liberation cause.
Some 200 documents and photos about the General’s life and service in Việt Nam People’s Army will be displayed at the exhibition in three major themes of Từ Nhân Dân Mà Ra (Originated from People), Người Anh Cả của Quân Đội Nhân Dân Việt Nam (The Eldest Brother of the Việt Nam People’s Army) and Di Sản Của Đại tướng Võ Nguyên Giáp (The Legacy of General Võ Nguyên Giáp).
In particular, a secret dispatch handwritten by General Giáp on April 7, 1975, urging military units to exert every effort to liberate the south of Việt Nam will be showcased at the exhibition.
Visitors will also have a chance to look back at the heroic revolutionary traditions of the Việt Nam People’s Army associated with General Giáp, a loyal revolutionary soldier, an excellent and close disciple of President Hồ Chí Minh and the “eldest brother” of the Việt Nam People’s Army.
General Giáp, whose real name is Võ Giáp (alias Văn), was born in Lộc Thủy Commune, Lệ Thủy District, the central province of Quảng Bình on August 25, 1911. He passed away in Hà Nội on October 4, 2013, at the age of 103.
The General’s military career started with his appointment to lead the first Vietnamese revolutionary army unit with only 34 soldiers in 1944. He then became the commander-in-chief of the Việt Nam People’s Army and led the Vietnamese people’s army from victory to victory during the resistance war against French colonialists and then American imperialists.
General Võ Nguyên Giáp (right) and President Hồ Chí Minh (left). — VNA/VNS File Photo
The general was famous for leading the victorious Điện Biên Phủ campaign in 1954, which contributed to the country’s liberation from French colonialism.
To the Vietnamese people, he was not only a wartime hero but also an icon who dedicated his life to the development of the country. Millions of people lined up streets across the country in mourning after his death in 2013 and millions more have visited his final resting place in Quảng Bình.
He once served as a Politburo member, Secretary of the Central Military Commission, Standing Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of National Defence, Commander-in-Chief of the Vietnamese People’s Army and a National Assembly deputy from the first to seventh tenures. — VNS
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