Nguyễn Văn Mạnh was a

Lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

in the

South Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam (RVN; , VNCH), was a country in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975. It first garnered Diplomatic recognition, international recognition in 1949 as the State of Vietnam within the ...

ese

Army of the Republic of Vietnam The Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN; ; ) composed the ground forces of the Republic of Vietnam Military Forces, South Vietnamese military from its inception in 1955 to the Fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. Its predecessor was the ground forc ...

(ARVN).

Military career

In mid-1965 he commanded the 23rd Division. On 23 November 1966 he was appointed commander of

IV Corps 4 Corps, 4th Corps, Fourth Corps, or IV Corps may refer to: France * 4th Army Corps (France) * IV Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * IV Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperi ...

, which oversaw the

Mekong Delta The Mekong Delta ( or simply ), also known as the Western Region () or South-western region (), is the list of regions of Vietnam, region in southwestern Vietnam where the Mekong, Mekong River River delta, approaches and empties into the sea th ...

region, replacing the competent, but corrupt General Đặng Văn Quang. Mạnh was a supporter of General

Nguyễn Văn Thiệu Nguyễn Văn Thiệu (; 5 April 1923 – 29 September 2001) was a South Vietnam, South Vietnamese military officer and politician who was the Leaders of South Vietnam, president of South Vietnam from 1967 to 1975. He was a general in the Repub ...

. During the

Tet Offensive The Tet Offensive was a major escalation and one of the largest military campaigns of the Vietnam War. The Viet Cong (VC) and North Vietnamese People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) launched a surprise attack on 30 January 1968 against the forces of ...

Mạnh was preoccuppied with the security of his headquarters at

Cần Thơ Base Camp Cần Thơ Base Camp (also known as Cần Thơ Army Airfield) is a former U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force (USAF), Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN), Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF) and current People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) base west of C� ...

, rather than commanding his subordinate units throughout his Corps Tactical Zone. On 23 February 1968 he was replaced as IV Corps commander by Lieutenant general Nguyễn Đức Thắng. Mạnh then became the ARVN inspector-general. In 1969 he was appointed chief of staff of the

Joint General Staff The Joint General Staff (JGS) was a body of senior uniformed leaders in the South Vietnamese military which advised the Ministry of National Defence and the President of South Vietnam. Organisation The JGS carried out administrative and plannin ...

(JGS). In March 1974 he was made deputy chairman of the JGS for pacification and development in place of Lieutenant general Nguyen Van La who retired because of old age.

Awards

Decorations National

VPD National Order of Vietnam - Commander BAR

Commander of the National Order of Vietnam

Foreign honours

* : **

Grand Cordon of the

Order of the Cloud and Banner The Order of the Cloud and Banner () also known as the Order of the Resplendent Banner is a military award of the Republic of China. It was instituted on June 15, 1935 and is awarded in nine grades for contributions to national security. The insig ...

* : ** Knight Grand Cross of the

Order of the Crown of Thailand The Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand (; ) is a Thai order, established in 1869 by King Rama V of The Kingdom of Siam (now Thailand) for Thais, the royal family, governmental employees, and foreign dignitaries for their outstanding serv ...

* : ** Order of Military Merit (Chung mu Medal) * : ** Us legion of merit officer rib

Officer of the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nguyen, Van Manh Army of the Republic of Vietnam generals 1921 births 1994 deaths People from Huế