Trường Chinh (Vietnamese: [ʈ͡ʂɯɤ̀ŋ ciŋ̟], meaning "Long March"), born Đặng Xuân Khu (9 February 1907 – 30 September 1988) was a Vietnamese communist political leader, revolutionary and theoretician. He was one of the key figures of Vietnamese politics for over 40 years, and played a major role in the 1946-54 war against the French. Trường also played an important role in shaping the politics of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) and creating the socialist structure of the new Vietnam.
Between November 9, 1940 and November 11, 1945, when the party dissolved, Trường was General Secretary of the Indochinese Communist Party Central Committee. Between 1946 and 1954, the First Indochina War led to the fall of French Indochina and the partitioning of Vietnam between north and south. On February 19, 1951, Trường became First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Vietnam Central Committee (although Hồ Chí Minh, in his capacity as founder and chairman of the party, was Trường's superior). In 1956, after the failure of the Land Reform program, he was dismissed from his post of General Secretary and had less power. Hồ Chí Minh selected Lê Duẩn to succeed him as the General Secretary and Lê became the most powerful person in the party after Hồ Chí Minh's death in 1969. However, Trường Chinh remained an influential force in the party during the Second Indochina War and after the reunification of Vietnam; he was Chairman of the National Assembly of Vietnam from 1960 to 1981 and head of state of Vietnam from 1981 to 1987 as 3rd President of Vietnam. Following the death of Lê Duẩn in July 1986, Trường again became General Secretary, and held the post until December 18, 1986. His last vital role was to carry forward the Đổi Mới renovation that still affects Vietnam to this day.
