Article of the day for September 25, 2016
The Article of the day for September 25, 2016 is Nguyễn Chánh Thi.
Nguyễn Chánh Thi (1923–2007) was an officer in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. Thi joined the French Army at 17 and was captured by Japan after they invaded French Indochina during World War II. In 1960 he led the Vietnamese Airborne Division in an unsuccessful coup against Prime Minister Ngô Đình Diệm, citing political interference in the military. After Diệm's assassination in 1963, he became the deputy commander of I Corps under Nguyễn Khánh and helped him overthrow Diệm's opponents in 1964. Thi was in several juntas that ruled South Vietnam for the next two years. In February 1965, he helped to defeat a coup attempt and to force Khánh's resignation at the same time. In June Thi declined an opportunity to serve as prime minister after being nominated by his fellow officers; he wanted to let a rival take the job and then step in after they failed, but he never got the chance. After the Buddhist Uprising of 1966, Prime Minister Nguyễn Cao Kỳ had him exiled to the United States. Thi's ouster was supported by the American leadership, who backed Kỳ's pro-U.S. regime.
Nguyễn Chánh Thi (1923–2007) was an officer in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. Thi joined the French Army at 17 and was captured by Japan after they invaded French Indochina during World War II. In 1960 he led the Vietnamese Airborne Division in an unsuccessful coup against Prime Minister Ngô Đình Diệm, citing political interference in the military. After Diệm's assassination in 1963, he became the deputy commander of I Corps under Nguyễn Khánh and helped him overthrow Diệm's opponents in 1964. Thi was in several juntas that ruled South Vietnam for the next two years. In February 1965, he helped to defeat a coup attempt and to force Khánh's resignation at the same time. In June Thi declined an opportunity to serve as prime minister after being nominated by his fellow officers; he wanted to let a rival take the job and then step in after they failed, but he never got the chance. After the Buddhist Uprising of 1966, Prime Minister Nguyễn Cao Kỳ had him exiled to the United States. Thi's ouster was supported by the American leadership, who backed Kỳ's pro-U.S. regime.
