Time Magazine Cover Featuring Võ Nguyên Giáp

The architect of the People’s Army of Vietnam’s (PAVN) victory against the French at Diên Biên Phu, Võ Nguyên Giáp first came to prominence during the Vietnamese resistance to Japanese occupation in World War II. Võ Nguyên Giáp commanded the PAVN from its formation until his retirement in 1981. Võ Nguyên Giáp fought the Japanese during World War II, the French during the Indochina war, the United States during the Vietnam War, the Khmer Rouge during the Cambodia-Vietnamese War, the Chinese during the Sino-Vietnamese War. He was the most prominent military commander in the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) and the face of the North Vietnamese military for the United States.