- Nguyen Van Vy
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In this Vietnamese name, the family name is Nguyen. According to Vietnamese custom, this person should properly be referred to by the given name Vy.
Nguyễn Văn Vy Born January 16, 1916
Hanoi, VietnamAllegiance State of Vietnam; 
South VietnamYears of service ?-October 25, 1955 (Vietnamese National Army)
October 26, 1955-April 30, 1975 (Army of the Republic of Vietnam)Rank Lieutenant General Nguyễn Văn Vy (born January 16, 1916) was a Vietnamese soldier who rose to the rank of lieutenant general in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN).
Vy was born on January 16, 1916, in Hanoi.[1] He originally served in the Vietnamese National Army under General Nguyen Van Hinh. On May 1, 1955, he was arrested after trying to take over the Army in the name of Emperor Bao Dai to stop Ngo Dinh Diem from taking power, and later fled into exile in France.[2][3]
Vy returned to South Vietnam after the 1963 coup which removed Diem from power and led to his assassination.[3] He was arrested during the 1964 South Vietnamese coup for allegedly participating in a plot to declare the country neutral and open talks with the North Vietnamese.[4] But like most military leaders involved in the alleged plot, he was soon released. He rose to the rank of Lieutenant General, and was appointed Chief of Staff of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam in 1967.[5] In February 1967, Prime Minister Nguyen Cao Ky appointed him and the Defense Minister, General Cao Văn Viên, to a committee to root out corruption among senior military personnel.[5] President Nguyễn Văn Thiệu replaced Viên as Defense Minister with Lt. Gen. Vy on May 25, 1968.[1][3][6] As Defense Minister, Vy ran the Servicemen's Mutual Aid and Savings Fund (SMASF), a government-run and owned pension fund for South Vietnamese military personnel.[7]
In the summer of 1971, Vy allegedly embezzled millions of dollars from the fund in order to create or buy the Bank of Industry and Commerce, Vicco (a road and bridge construction company), Vi-navatco (a transportation fim), Icico (an insurance company), and Foproco (a food processing company).[7] Thiệu removed him from office on August 6, 1972, for these actions.[8] Vy was placed under house arrest, and fired in March 1974.[9]
References
- ^ a b The International Who's Who 2004. 67th ed. Florence, Ky.: Routledge, 2003. ISBN 1857432177
- ^ Quang, Thi Lam. The Twenty-Five Year Century: A South Vietnamese General Remembers the Indochina War to the Fall of Saigon. Denton, Tex.: University of North Texas Press, 2001. ISBN 1574411438
- ^ a b c Kinnard, Douglas. The War Managers: American Generals Reflect on Vietnam. Reprint ed. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Da Capo Press, 1991. ISBN 0306804492
- ^ Smith, Hedrick. "New Saigon Chief Tightening Rule." New York Times. January 31, 1964.
- ^ a b "Ky Reported Ready to Oust 5 More Generals." Associated Press. February 6, 1967.
- ^ Roberts, Gene. "Saigon Announces a New, Broadly Based Cabinet." New York Times. May 26, 1968.
- ^ a b "Vietnam: Make Money, Not War." Time. April 3, 1972.
- ^ "Thieu Fires Defense Chief in Scandal Over Soldiers' Fund." Chicago Tribune. August 7, 1972; "Troops' Pay Invested." Los Angeles Times. August 26, 1972.
- ^ "Thieu Retires 11 Generals in Army Shakeup." Los Angeles Times. March 9, 1974.
External links
Categories:- 1916 births
- People of the Vietnam War
- Vietnamese military personnel
- Vietnamese exiles
- French people of Vietnamese descent
- Possibly living people
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