Which army colonel asked his comrades to cut off his right arm?

He is an army colonel who salutes with his left hand for a special reason. He is 93 years old this year but many streets and schools across the country have been named after him.

1. Which army colonel once asked his comrades to cut off his arm?

• La Van Cau
  0%
  
• Nguyen Thai Dung
  0%
  

Exactly

In the Vietnam People's Army, there are two people who salute with their left hand. The first is Major General Nguyen Thai Dung, former Principal of the Army Officer School, and the second is Colonel, Hero of the People's Armed Forces La Van Cau, 93 years old this year.

Mr. La Van Cau was born in 1932 in Dinh Phong commune, Trung Khanh district ( Cao Bang province), in a poor farming family, orphaned at a young age.

Having witnessed the success of the August Revolution in 1945 as a child, and having been enlightened by cadres, Mr. La Van Cau understood more clearly the root cause of the suffering of the people who lost their country. In 1948, at the age of 16, he increased his age by two years to join the army, fought bravely, sacrificed himself for the independence and freedom of the Fatherland and achieved many feats.

2. Why did he ask his teammates to cut off his right arm?

• Because the French shot his right hand.
  0%
  
• Accident
  0%
  

Exactly

During the Border Campaign in 1950, as Deputy Squad Leader, Platoon 2, Company 671, Hero La Van Cau and his teammates were assigned to use explosives to attack the enemy bunker at Dong Khe base. Despite being wounded in the face and having his right arm crushed by enemy fire, La Van Cau still carried the explosives to destroy the enemy bunker after asking his teammates to cut off his arm to make it easier.

In a report, Mr. La Van Cau recounted this story: "I thought I was going to die, so I tried to shout: Long live President Ho. Long live independent Vietnam. When I woke up, I checked my body and found that one side of my body was numb, my right arm was dangling, and my right cheek was gone. At that time, I thought about my mission. I didn't pay attention to my arm anymore, I didn't feel any pain anymore, I just kept running up the old road.

I went to the place where the explosive was hidden, picked it up and continued to destroy the bunker. The explosive weighed 12kg but my left hand was still strong enough to pick it up. I crossed several trenches, but I missed the first trench and fell into the trench. I struggled to get up and continued to the bunker.

After passing the third trench, I missed my jump again because I was already weak. I rolled down into the trench and then struggled to get up. The enemy's machine guns kept exploding, and their loopholes kept firing continuously. Down in the trench, I felt so tired. But I thought back to the Command Board's instructions to destroy this bunker at all costs, because the Dong Khe position was very important, it protected Highway 4. This bunker fired down That Khe Road and provided cover fire for the Cam Vay outpost. If we couldn't destroy that bunker, it would be difficult for our troops to advance."

3. What ethnicity is hero La Van Cau?

• Tay
  0%
  
• Nung
  0%
  
• Thai
  0%
  

Exactly

Hero La Van Cau is a Tay ethnic in Trung Khanh district, Cao Bang province.

4. In which year was Mr. La Van Cau awarded the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces?

• 1951
  0%
  
• 1952
  0%
  
• 1953
  0%
  

Exactly

In 1952, at the first National Congress of Heroic Emulation Soldiers, Mr. La Van Cau was one of the first 7 soldiers to be awarded the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces by the state.

He was also awarded many other noble medals and orders such as: First Class Resistance Medal against France, Third Class Military Exploit Medal, First, Second, and Third Class Glorious Soldier Medal.

In 2009, People's Armed Forces Hero La Van Cau was awarded a certificate of merit by the Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee; in 2017, he was awarded a certificate of merit by the Prime Minister. In 2019, he was honored by Hanoi as an "Outstanding Citizen of the Capital".

5. In what year was hero La Van Cau promoted to colonel?

• 1984
  0%
  
• 1985
  0%
  
• 1986
  0%
  

Exactly

Hero La Van Cau was promoted to the rank of colonel in 1985. Later, Colonel La Van Cau worked at the Organization Department of Military Region I, Vietnam Military History Museum until his retirement in August 1996.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/vi-dai-ta-quan-doi-nao-nho-dong-doi-chat-dut-canh-tay-phai-2399093.html