Army general () is the highest military rank of Vietnam and the highest rank in the People's Army of Vietnam.
According to Article 88 of the 2013 Constitution of Vietnam, the rank of General of the Vietnam People's Army is decided by the President, who is also the Chairman of the National Defense and Security Council.
The rank of Army General is conferred only on senior officers holding the following positions: Minister of National Defense, Chief of the General Staff and Director of the General Political Department. Exceptions include:
Hoàng Văn Thái was promoted in 1980 while serving as Deputy Minister of National Defense and Deputy Chief of the General Staff, although he was the first Chief of the General Staff from 1945–1954 and acted briefly as Chief of the General Staff in 1954 and 1974). Lê Đức Anh in 1984 when he was Deputy Minister of Defense and commander of Vietnamese volunteer troops in Cambodia.
As of November 4, 2025, the Vietnam People's Army has had 19 servicemen conferred the rank of Army General.
There were two servicemen who were directly promoted to the rank of General without intermediaries: Võ Nguyên Giáp (1948) and Nguyễn Chí Thanh (1959).
Currently, there are 3 Army Generals in service, namely Phan Văn Giang, Minister of National Defense, Nguyễn Tân Cương, Chief of the General Staff, and Nguyễn Trọng Nghĩa, Director of the General Political Department. Furthermore, there is one more Army General who remains active in politics, but is no longer serving in the army: Director of the Party's Propaganda and Mass Mobilization Department Trịnh Văn Quyết, who was formerly Director of the General Political Department.
Rank insignia
According to Decree No. 33 of March 22, 1946 signed by the President of the Government of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, the rank of General of the National Army of Vietnam was first regulated with the rank of 3 gold stars on the shoulder on red background. However, at that time, no soldier had been awarded this rank. It was not until January 20, 1948, that Commander-in-Chief of the National Army and militia and self-defense militia Võ Nguyên Giáp was the first to be conferred this rank.
The rank of General was again redefined with the Law on Service Regulations of Officers of the Vietnam People's Army dated May 31, 1958 and Decree 307-TTg dated June 20, 1958 also stipulates that the rank of General carries 4 gold stars above the rank. And on August 31, 1959, Chairman of the General Department of Politics Nguyễn Chí Thanh was the second person to be conferred the rank of General.
List of Vietnam army generals
No.NameLifespandate of appointmentleft military service1Võ Nguyên Giáp1911–2013194819802Nguyễn Chí Thanh1914–1967195919673Văn Tiến Dũng1917–2002197419874Hoàng Văn Thái1915–1986198019865Chu Huy Mân1913–200619876Lê Trọng Tấn1914–1986198419867Lê Đức Anh1920–201919918Nguyễn Quyết1922–2024199019919Đoàn Khuê1923–1999199710Phạm Văn Trà1935–2003200611Lê Văn Dũng1945–20262007201112Phùng Quang Thanh1949–2021201613Đỗ Bá Tỵ1954–2015201614Ngô Xuân Lịch1954–202115Lương Cường1957–2019202416Phan Văn Giang1960–202117Nguyễn Tân Cương1966–202418Trịnh Văn Quyết1966–202519Nguyễn Trọng Nghĩa1962–2025
See also
Vietnamese military ranks and insignia
References