Major General Nguyen Van Hieu, ARVN [Paperback]

Tin Nguyen (Author), Raymond R. Battreall (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 20, 2000

Brigadier General George Wear once noted, "When the ARVN troops were well led they fought as well as anyone's soldiers. They simply needed commanders who would support them properly and who could win their confidence and make them believe that their cause was worth risking their lives for." General Hieu had been one of such commanders. Colonel John Hayes, 5th ARVN Division senior advisor remarked in 1970, "General Hieu is an above average commander. Good qualities include dedication, experience as a combat leader, ability to stimulate and maintain morale, and ability to control those in his command. He is quite religious and patriotic, and demands high standards of conduct and discipline. He is methodical but decisive. He is rated better than the average US Division commander in overall performance. "American Veterans who had served in Vietnam might be interested in knowing that General Hieu had collaborated closely with the following American units: USMC HMM-364, 52nd Combat Aviation Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, 173rd Airborne Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, 174th Assault Helicopter Company, 1st Battalion/50th Mechanized Infantry, 7/15th Field Artillery Battalion, 19th Engineer Combat Battalion, 1st Infantry Division, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade/82nd Airborne Division, 12th Aviation Group and 3rd Squadron/17th Air Cavalry. * General Hieu was obviously a great soldier who put his country and his people foremost. (General Fred C. Weyand)* Biography of a South Vietnam general officer who has been likened to Patton, Rommel, Montgomery, and LeClerc. He was much admired by Vietnamese civilians and respected by his American advisors. (Douglas Pike)* This book sheds light on the ARVN Forces never before told. (Darryl Nelson)* I do not see how anyone studying the Vietnam War on the ARVN side can neglect your book at all. (James Miguez)

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

A younger brother of Major General Nguyen Van Hieu, Tin Nguyen was a high school teacher in Vietnam during the war. He escaped Saigon to the US 7th Fleet in one of the USMC Chinook helicopters on April 29, 1975. He is now a guidance counselor in a NYC public school and is the webmaster of generalhieu.com.

Product Details

• Paperback: 472 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse (July 20, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595006965
• ISBN-13: 978-0595006960
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,496,839 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Virtue and Corruption in the Viet Nam War, October 22, 2000

By 

M. JM Raffin "Doc5thMech" (IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Major General Nguyen Van Hieu, ARVN (Paperback)

This text presents and illuminating perspective into the highest Vietnamese traditions, and is a fitting posthumous tribute to a ranking member of South Viet Nam's highest military cadres. Written as a sibbling biography, it is richly peppered throughout with mild bias, something freely acknowledged by the author, which nevertheless does not detract from the wealth of objective information, and data that are only enriched by a personal, if family-oriented point of view. This book extolls the virtue of Vietnamese tradition with the highest esteem, as exemplified in this in-depth analysis of one man's contributions to his motherland, set against the backdrop of one of southeast Asia's most tragic and sad chapters in history. Factual information is well presented with adequate supporting documentation and numerous pictures give this historical personage a very vivid and intimate familiarity. The details of some of the information presented can be simultaneously revealing and startling. This book is well-balanced in the extremes: One man's virtues and rapid progression through the military ranks being consistently contrasted with the insidious prevalence or corruption or corrupt practices by the government which he is sworn to protect and defend. The admiration of the author for the Major General lies in stark contrast to the shameful behaviors of so many government officials at all levels, including the presidency, which must bear the brunt of the responsibililty for the eventual downfall of the government of the Republic of Viet Nam. "I am only the instrument of my brother. General Hieu's biography is a self-expression ... General Hieu drew a clear-cut line between the two military and private life areas. This explains why he was able to maintain his integrity and virtue while working with other corrupt and low-moral generals ... The majestic aura that soldiers perceived in General Hieu's personality came from his inner strength, not from an artificial majesty requiring the use of a general's baton, or a combat camouflaged outfit, or a cigar, or an imposing guard detail, etc... And thus they genuinely respected and loved him dearly ..." General Hieu was assassinated in his office headquarters on 8 April 1975. Except in the fact that he was shot to death, official reports and eyewitness testimony remain internally contradictory. by: Dr Michael JM Raffin 1st. Brigade, 5th. Infantry Division (Mechanized) Province of Quang Tri, Viet Nam July, 1968 to March 1969

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Meet an Unsung Hero of the ARVN, December 23, 2000

By 

Tin Van Nguyen (Bronx, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Major General Nguyen Van Hieu, ARVN (Paperback)

Meet one of the most gallant warriors of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. This biography depicts ARVN Major General Hieu under different facets: his personal life, his military career, his military exploits, and his unjust death. It reveals General Hieu as an unsung hero, whose tactical and strategic skills put him among the best soldiers of modern times, at par with General Rommel of Germany, Patton of the United States, Montgomery of England and Leclerc of France.

The Internet format of this biography has received wide acceptance from its readers with more than 20,000 visitors the first year. One reader comments, "Besides its military historical value, it has room for deep, emotional feelings," and another reader writes, "Of all the military stories I have read, yours is the most touching. What a fine officer General Hieu must have been, so very much an all around person. I did not know him. But I am sure glad I have read about him; it seems as if he comes alive again through your stories, and once again he is an inspiring figure, as his modesty transcends the years," Vietnam War Veterans have found it "fascinating", "incredibly factual," "exceptionally superior," and something that "may well be required reading in high schools, military college..."

Containing first hand military documents pertaining to operational orders, it provides a rare presentation for ordinary people; one is allowed to see how a divisional commanding general plans and executes his battles. The story of an individual life, this biography offers an illuminating insight of the ARVN and provides a unique perspective of the Vietnam War.

This book gives answers to the following questions:

- The NVA has General Vo Nguyen Giap. Does the ARVN have someone comparable?

- How did General Hieu score next to General John Norton, Jr of the US 1st Cavalry Division?

- How did General Hieu score next to General Albert Milloy of the US 1st Infantry Division?

- What did General Dennis McAuliffe of the US Big Red One Division think about General Hieu?

- How did Colonel John Hayes, Senior Advisor of ARVN 5th Division, evaluate General Hieu?

- How did the ARVN 22nd Division score next to the US 1st Cavalry Division?

- How did the ARVN 5th Division score next to the US 1st Infantry Division?

- What role did General Hieu play in the Ia Drang Valley Battle (US 1st Cavalry Division), Pershing Operation (US 1st Cavalry Division), Dong Tien Operations (US 1st Infantry Division), Total Victory 46 Operation (US 1st Cavalry Division)?

- How did the ARVN Airborne Division score next to the US 173rd Airborne Brigade and the US 101st Airborne Division?

- etc...

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Uncommon ARVNB General, October 31, 2000

By 

Tri V Nguyen (Philadelphia, PA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Major General Nguyen Van Hieu, ARVN (Paperback)

This biography, a reader would notice at the outset, is not written by a historian, an investigative reporter, or a professional biographer. It originates instead from the pen of a younger sibling seeking to resolve the mystery surrounding his brother's untimely death. This legitimate curiosity has evolved into a collection of articles depicting General Nguyen van Hieu as a family man, a patriot, a military strategist, and a man of integrity. This collection of articles authored by siblings, friends, and fellow military men unexpectedly converges to project a dynamic image of an intelligent soldier and brilliant strategist engaged in the twofold quixotic task of overcoming a corrupted military hierarchy and fighting the invading North Vietnamese communist army. The book presents the reader with glimpses of a man living the yin aspect of the Vietnamese society (egalitarian, flexible, spiritual, congenial) and, at the same time, confronting the yang aspect of the neo-Confucianist military and government hierarchy (male dominant, rigid, self-serving, elitist, concerned with face and status). Without any claim to being systematic or thorough in his research, the author has nevertheless gathered a number of revealing personal anecdotes, testimonies from living witnesses, declassified documents from the National Archives, letters from former military academy classmates, phone interviews, excerpts from books, and so forth. From this cacophony of voices emerges the image of a virtuous man, caring father, loving spouse, and competent general respected by Vietnamese and American military personnel of all ranks. The reader would no doubt be surprised to discover this unsung hero in the stark background of negative memories of the Vietnam War and betrayal of the Vietnamese people by the neo-Confucianist military and government hierarchy. Though modest in its presentation, the book manages to do justice to a dedicated soldier and competent general, who is mostly unknown to both the Vietnamese and the American public. After reading this fascinating biography, the reader comes away wondering what might have been had this uncommon general, who epitomized the true Vietnamese people, been allowed to fully exercise his military competence.END