Trần Văn Quang (1917 – 3 November 2013) was a

colonel general Colonel general is a military rank used in some armies. It is particularly associated with Germany, where historically General officer#Old European system, general officer ranks were one grade lower than in the Commonwealth and the United States, ...

(three-star general) of the

People's Army of Vietnam The People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN), officially the Vietnam People's Army (VPA; , , ), also recognized as the Vietnamese Army (), the People's Army () or colloquially the Troops ( ), is the national Military, military force of the Vietnam, S ...

(PAVN). He was a deputy chief of General Staff of PAVN and a deputy minister of Vietnam's Ministry of Defence. During the

Battle of Dien Bien Phu The Battle of Điện Biên Phủ was a climactic confrontation of the First Indochina War that took place between 13 March and 7 May 1954. It was fought between the forces of the French Union and Viet Minh. The French began an operation to in ...

, Quang was the head of Department of Operations.

Early years

Born in 1917 in Nghi Lộc District, Nghệ An Province of

Annam (French protectorate) Annam (; alternate spelling: ''Anam''), or Trung Kỳ (), was a French protectorate encompassing what is now Central Vietnam from 1883 to 1949. Like the Tonkin (French protectorate), French protectorate of Tonkin, it was nominally ruled by ...

, Quang was a son of Trần Văn Năng – a

Confucianist Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China, and is variously described as a tradition, philosophy, religion, theory of government, or way of life. Founded by Confucius ...

who was jailed by French colonial government for six months. His elder brother is Trần Văn Tăng – a teacher and revolutionist and member of New Revolutionary Party of Vietnam who was also jailed by the French and died in prison. His second elder brother is Trần Văn Cung, who was a Vietnamese

revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society. Definition The term—bot ...

and was the secretary of the first

communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

cell in Vietnam. His young brother is Trần Văn Bành, who was a colonel of PAVN. Quang joined the

Indochinese Communist Party The Indochinese Communist Party (ICP) was a political party which was transformed from the old Vietnamese Communist Party () in October 1930. This party dissolved itself on 11 November 1945. It is considered the first stage in the history of th ...

in 1936. Between 1938 and 1939, he was one of communist leaders in

Saigon Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) ('','' TP.HCM; ), commonly known as Saigon (; ), is the most populous city in Vietnam with a population of around 14 million in 2025. The city's geography is defined by rivers and canals, of which the largest is Saigo ...

– Cho Lon. He was jailed by French in 1939, but he escaped in October 1940 and went to Nghệ An. In April 1941, he was caught again and was life sentenced. In June 1945, he was freed.

Military career

During November 1946 and July 1947, Quang was the Commissar of Interregion IV (including 11 provinces of North Central Coast). During 1948 and 1949, Quang was the military commander and the commissar of Bình– Trị– Thiên region.Phan Hoàng (11/2013), "Hành trình đặc biệt và chiến công lẫy lừng của Thượng tướng Trần Văn Quang," Pháp luật và Cuộc sống, các số 40, 41, 42. In May 1950 when the 304 Division was established, Quang became the political commissar of this division. In 1958, he became a major general and the deputy chief of General Staff. In 1961, he went to Southern of Vietnam and became a member of Central Executive Committee of the People's Revolutionary Party who was in charge of military affairs. In 1965, he became the Commander of

4th Military Region The 4th Military Region of Vietnam People's Army, is directly under the Ministry of Defence of Vietnam, tasked to organise, build, manage and command armed forces defending the North Central Vietnam. The predecessor, 4th War Zone () was esta ...

. During 1965 and 1973, Quang was the Commander cum Commissar of Trị–Thiên Military Region ( B4 Front). In 1974, he was promoted to lieutenant general. He became a deputy chief of General Staff for the second time. During 1978 and 1981, Quang was the commander of 678

Corps Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was formally introduced March 1, 1800, when Napoleon ordered Gener ...

and the commissar of Vietnamese Voluntary Force in Laos. He became a deputy minister of Defense during 1981 and 1982 and a colonel general in 1984. Quang died on 3 November 2013 in Hanoi.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tran, Van Quang 1917 births 2013 deaths People from Nghệ An province Viet Minh members Generals of the People's Army of Vietnam North Vietnamese military personnel of the Vietnam War Alternates of the 3rd Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Vietnam Members of the 3rd Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Vietnam