He Had Many Different Names In this phase of his career, Ho acted more as an arbiter of conflicts among the various factions, allowing the organization of revolutionary action, rather than as an initiator. He would remain nominally as North Vietnams head of state during the Vietnam War, but would take a more behind-the-scenes role. [30], In December 1920, Quc (H) became a representative to the Congress of Tours of the Socialist Party of France, voted for the Third International and was a founding member of the French Communist Party. While the conference was ongoing, Nguyn i Quc was already delivering speeches on the prospects of Bolshevism in Asia and was attempting to persuade French socialists to join Lenin's Communist International. [114] By March 1965, American combat troops began arriving in South Vietnam, first to protect the airbases around Chu Lai and Da Nang, later to take on most of the fight as "[m]ore and more American troops were put in to replace Saigon troops who could not, or would not, get involved in the fighting". Only the Americans have been defeated. That day, Saigon was renamed Ho Chi Minh City. [95] To counter the accusation that North Vietnam was violating the Geneva Accord, the independence of the Vit Cng was stressed in communist propaganda. Nationalist Party of Vietnam leader Nguyn Hi Thn was named vice president. Pop Quiz: 19 Things to Know About the Vietnam War. Ho Chi Minh | Biography, Presidency, & Facts | Britannica Beginning in 1964, thousands of American troops were poured into South Vietnam to battle the Vietcong and then to bomb North Vietnam. [42][pageneeded][43] H was removed from control of the Party he had founded. The Vietnam War (article) | 1960s America | Khan Academy Please select which sections you would like to print: Also known as: Ba, Ly Thuy, Nguyen Ai Quoc, Nguyen Sinh Cung, Nguyen Tat Thanh, Former Professor, Institute for Political Studies, University of Paris. [132] In the 1920s, he was bureau chief/editor of many newspapers which he established to criticize French Colonial Government of Indochina and serving communist propaganda purposes. Fighting erupted between the two governments shortly . If you are Vietnamese, what are your personal feelings regarding Ho Chi Ton That Thien 18, 1890 is the most likely year of his birth. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Get rid of them, and we can cope with Diem and Nhu afterward". Around this time, he began to use the name Ho Chi Minh (roughly translated as Bringer of Light). Six months later, from June 17 to July 8, he took an active part in the Fifth Congress of the Communist International, during which he criticized the French Communist Party for not opposing colonialism more vigorously. [121] H regarded the American bombing as a violation of North Vietnam's sovereignty, and he felt that to negotiate with the Americans reserving the right to bomb North Vietnam should he not behave as they wanted him to do, would diminish North Vietnam's independence. Why was the Ho Chi Minh trail important to the North Vietnamese and the NLF? However, according to Ton That Thien's research, he was a member of the inner circle of the Comintern, a protg of Dmitry Manuilsky and a member in good standing of the Comintern throughout the Great Purge. [23][24] However, the wall of New Zealand House, home of the New Zealand High Commission which now stands on the site of the Carlton Hotel, displays a blue plaque. Ewan MacColl produced "The Ballad of Ho Chi Minh" in 1954, describing "a man who is the father of the Indo-Chinese people, And his name [it] is Ho Chi Minh. [97] L Dun was officially named party leader in 1960, leaving H to function in a secondary role as head of state and member of the Politburo. Orthodox materialism accorded no place to heaven, gods, or other supernatural forces. Ho Chi Minh, original name Nguyen Sinh Cung, also called Nguyen Tat Thanh or Nguyen Ai Quoc, (born May 19, 1890, Hoang Tru, Vietnam, French Indochinadied September 2, 1969, Hanoi, North Vietnam), founder of the Indochina Communist Party (1930) and its successor, the Viet-Minh (1941), and president from 1945 to 1969 of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam). He was president of North Vietnam from 1945 to 1969, and he was one of the most influential communist leaders of the 20th century. As the leader of the . Photos of the chaos in the streets as men, women and children jostled for space on the last helicopters was broadcast across the world. Fighting broke out in the North soon after the Chinese left. [70] Mao Zedong's emissary to Moscow stated in August that China planned to train 60,00070,000 Viet Minh shortly. See the Vietnam War unfold through the gripping firsthand accounts of 13 brave men and women forever changed by their experiences. Among the 20th century revolutionaries, Ho Chi Minh waged the longest and in terms of human lives sacrificed, the costliest battle against colonial power. The Viet Minh's success attracted the attention of the U.S. Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the forerunner to the CIA. However, a document from the Centre des archives d'Outre-mer in France shows that he was admitted to Collge Quc hc on 8 August 1908, which was several months after the anti-corve demonstration (913 April 1908). His seminal role is reflected in the fact that Vietnam's largest city is named for him. The United States, with the support of Britain and the Associated States of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, suggested United Nations supervision. [81] Based on a proposal by Chinese delegation head Zhou Enlai, an International Control Commission (ICC) chaired by India, with Canada and Poland as members, was placed in charge of supervising the ceasefire. Repression returned to Indochina with the fall of the Blum government in 1937, and by 1938 the Popular Front was dead. Adviser, ditions du Seuil, Paris. Ho Chi Minh (May 19, 1890 - September 2, 1969) was born Nguyn Sinh Cung but was known in his youth as Nguyn Tt Thnh. "Although we have been separated for almost a year, our feelings for each other do not have to be said to be felt", he reassured Minh in an intercepted letter. During World War Two it had been invaded by Japan. Vietnam became a French colony in . [120] The bombing of North Vietnam proved to be the principal obstacle to opening peace talks as H repeatedly stated that no peace talks would be possible unless the United States unconditionally cease bombing North Vietnam. This plan was rejected by Soviet representative Vyacheslav Molotov, who argued for a commission composed of an equal number of communist and non-communist members, which could determine "important" issues only by unanimous agreement. Why was the Ho Chi Minh Trail important to the North Vietnamese and the [citation needed], After Chiang Kai-shek's 1927 anti-communist coup, Quc (H) left Canton again in April 1927 and returned to Moscow, spending part of the summer of 1927 recuperating from tuberculosis in Crimea before returning to Paris once more in November. Young and Hoa Pham Young: Painting in Lacquer", "Uncle Ho: a legend on the battlefield and in the boudoir", "Great 'Uncle Ho' may have been a mere mortal", The places where President Ho Chi Minh lived and worked in Thailand, "The Ballad of Ho Chi Minh Ewan MacColl with the London Critics Group", "LAYERS OF HISTORY Most Indian street names honor little men for the wrong reasons", "Remembering Vietnam's late President Ho Chi Minh in foreign countries Tuoi Tre News", "Time Magazine U.S. [26] They had been publishing newspaper articles advocating for Vietnamese independence under the pseudonym Nguyn i Quc ("Nguyn the Patriot") prior to Thnh's arrival in Paris. Reasons for US involvement in Vietnam - The Vietnam War - BBC In the political sphere, the puppet son of heaven (which had been weakly represented by the Bo i) was replaced by the people's republic. Why did the US intially get involved in Vietnam after WW2? From when he became president until the appearance of serious health problems, a short poem of his was regularly published in the newspaper Nhn Dn Tt (Lunar new year) edition to encourage his people in working, studying or fighting Americans in the new year. [124], In January 1967, General Nguyn Ch Thanh, the commander of the forces in South Vietnam, returned to Hanoi, to present a plan that became the genesis of the Tet Offensive a year later. This includes references to H Ch Minh's personal life that might detract from the image of the dedicated "father of the revolution",[156] the "celibate married only to the cause of revolution". Following the Geneva Accords, there was to be a 300-day period in which people could freely move between the two regions of Vietnam, later known as South Vietnam and North Vietnam. These young people would become the seeds of a new revolutionary, pro-communist movement in Vietnam several years later. Ho attended the National Academy in Hue before being expelled for protesting against emperor Bao Dai and French influence in Indochina. [35] She was 21 and he was 36. It was the capital of the French protectorate of Cochinchina (1862-1954) and of South Vietnam (1954-75). He instead decided to begin traveling the world by working on ships and visiting many countries from 1911 to 1917. In Hong Kong in early 1930, he chaired a meeting with representatives from two Vietnamese communist parties to merge them into a unified organization, the Communist Party of Vietnam. [48], Following the August Revolution organized by the Vit Minh, H Ch Minh became Chairman of the Provisional Government (Premier of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and issued a Proclamation of Independence of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. He nevertheless maintained considerable influence in the government. [147], In Vietnam, as in China, Communism presented itself as a root and branch rejection of Confucianism, condemned for its ritualism, inherent conservatism, and resistance to change. PDF Ho Chi Minh (1890-1969) - Columbia University [101], At a meeting in Hanoi held in French, H told Goburdhun that Diem was "in his way a patriot", noting that Diem had opposed French rule over Vietnam, and ended the meeting saying that the next time Goburdhun met Diem "shake hands with him for me". Updated: April 16, 2021 | Original: July 6, 2010. Remembering Ho Chi Minh's 1945 Declaration of Vietnam's Independence Ho Chi Minh - Vietnamese Nationalism, Viet Minh, First Indochina War In Saigon, with violence between rival Vietnamese factions and French forces increasing, the British commander, General Sir Douglas Gracey, declared martial law. The trail was a route to move goods to allies in South Vietnam. [16] The so-called "men in black" were a 10,000 member guerrilla force that operated with the Vit Minh. North Vietnam created the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam in December 1960 as a "united front", or political branch of the Viet Cong intended to encourage the participation of non-Communists. But in October 1946, a French cruiser opened fire on the town of Haiphong after a clash between French and Vietnamese soldiers. Introduction: From Matthew Masur, "Nationalism, Communism, and the Vietnam War," in Understanding and Teaching the Vietnam War, ed. Ho articulated many of the same goals as the United States' founding fathers. During the six years that he spent in France (191723), he became an active socialist under the name Nguyen Ai Quoc (Nguyen the Patriot). In 1923, Quc (H) left Paris for Moscow carrying a passport with the name Chen Vang, a Chinese merchant,[10]:86 where he was employed by the Comintern, studied at the Communist University of the Toilers of the East[10]:92[34] and participated in the Fifth Comintern Congress in June 1924 before arriving in Canton (present-day Guangzhou), China in November 1924 using the name Ly Thuy. Inspired by the Bolshevik Revolution, he joined the Communist Party and traveled to the Soviet Union. In May 1922, he wrote an article for a French magazine criticizing the use of English words by French sportswriters. Ho began negotiations with the French in efforts to achieve a Chinese withdrawal as well as eventual French recognition of Vietnams independence and reunification of North and South Vietnam. In 1911, Ho Chi Minh left Vietnam and embarked on a journey that would shape his revolutionary path. [125] L' Dun supported Thanh's plans, which were stoutly opposed by the Defense Minister, General V Nguyn Gip, who preferred to continue with guerrilla war, arguing that the superior American firepower would ensure the failure of Thanh's proposed offensive. The optimistic spin that the American military command had sustained for years was no longer credible. At its height, several tons of supplies, weapons and ammunition were sent each day. Minh was an important figure in the establishing of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam in 1945. In the same month, a force of 200,000 National Revolutionary Army troops arrived in Hanoi to accept the surrender of the Japanese occupiers in northern Indochina. [154], A completely different form of the cult of H Ch Minh (and one tolerated by the government with uneasiness) is his identification in Vietnamese folk religion with the Jade Emperor, who supposedly incarnated again on earth as H Ch Minh. [citation needed], In Saigon, he applied to work as a kitchen helper on a French merchant steamer, the Amiral de Latouche-Trville, using the alias Vn Ba. [121], In March 1966, a Canadian diplomat, Chester Ronning, arrived in Hanoi with an offer to use his "good offices" to begin peace talks. [164][165] His thought and revolution inspired many leaders and people on a global scale in Asia, Africa and Latin America during the decolonization movement which occurred after World War II. With the Allied victory in 1945, Japanese forces withdrew from Vietnam, leaving the French-educated Emperor Bao Dai in control of an independent Vietnam. He sometimes went on-air to deliver important political messages and encourage soldiers. He soon began recruiting members of a Vietnamese nationalist movement that would form the basis of the Indochinese Communist Party (founded in Hong Kong in 1930) and traveled the world, including Brussels, Paris and Siam (now Thailand), where he worked as a representative of the Communist International organization. North Vietnam was ultimately victorious against South Vietnam and its allies. [m], As President, he held formal receptions for foreign heads of state and ambassadors at the Presidential Palace, but he did not live there. The first such medium was one Madam Lang in the 1990s, but the cult acquired a significant number of followers through another medium, Madam Xoan. Key People | Vietnam War - Pritzker Military Museum & Library As a communist, he was one of the few international figures who were relatively well regarded in the West, and did not face the same extent of international criticism as much as other Communist factions, going to even win praise for his actions. Vietnam became part of French Indochina in 1887. McMaster, H.R. H Ch Minh Indochinese Communist Party, Vit Minh, and the struggle for independence French Indochina in World War II Viet Minh OSS Deer Team August Revolution Declaration of independence President of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam War in Vietnam (1945-1946) Fontainebleau Agreements Ho-Sainteny agreement Land reform 1954 Geneva Conference [160], Many activists and musicians wrote songs about H Ch Minh and his revolution in different languages during the Vietnam War to demonstrate against the United States. [135] In addition to the marriage with Zeng Xueming, there is a number of published studies indicating that H had a romantic relationship with Nguyn Th Minh Khai. He was jailed in China by Chiang Kai-shek's local authorities before being rescued by Chinese Communists. He was a seaman for more than three years, visiting various African ports and the American cities of Boston and New York. The offensive was executed at great cost and with heavy casualties on Vit Cng's political branches and armed forces. The only evidence that he was in the United States is a single letter to French colonial administrators dated 15 December 1912 and postmarked New York City (he gave his address as the poste restante in Le Havre and his occupation as a sailor)[19] and a postcard to Phan Chu Trinh in Paris where he mentioned working at the Omni Parker House Hotel. [10]:51 It is believed that while in the US he made contact with Korean nationalists, an experience that developed his political outlook. During the land reform, testimonies by North Vietnamese witnesses suggested a ratio of one execution per 160 village residents, which if extrapolated would indicate a nationwide total of nearly 100,000 executions. Vietnam ?s Flashcards | Quizlet Armed conflict between the two states continued until a decisive battle at Dien Bien Phu ended in French defeat by Viet Minh forces. In 1959, H Ch Minh began urging the Politburo to send aid to the Vit Cng in South Vietnam; a "people's war" on the South was approved at a session in January 1959, and this decision was confirmed by the Politburo in March. Vietnam was officially unified in 1976. [38] Eventually, after appeals to the Privy Council in London, H was reported as dead in 1932 to avoid a French extradition agreement;[40] it was ruled that, though he would be deported from Hong Kong as an undesirable, it would not be to a destination controlled by France. "[161] Russian songs about him were written by Vladimir Fere, and German songs about him were written by Kurt Demmler. [167], One of H Ch Minh's works, The Black Race, much of it originally written in French, highlights his views on the oppression of peoples from colonialism and imperialism in 20 written articles. (1997) "Dereliction of Duty: Lyndon Johnson, Robert McNamara, The Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Lies that Led to Vietnam", pg. In the petition, Ho demanded that the French colonial power grant its subjects in Indochina equal rights with the rulers. On 24 September, the Vit Minh leaders responded with a call for a general strike. [137] H even approached the Far Eastern Bureau and requested permission to marry Minh Khai even though the previous marriage with Zeng remained legally valid. [103] Supporting the latter theory is the fact that Nhu promptly leaked his meeting with Maneli to the American columnist Joseph Alsop, who publicized it in a column entitled "Very Ugly Stuff". Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, "Chronology", p. 45. Ho Chi Minh - Figures in History - WorldAtlas Bao Dai abdicated in favor of the revolution, but French military troops gained control of southern Vietnam, including Saigon, and Chiang Kai-Sheks Chinese forces moved into the north according to the terms of an Allied agreement. He ordered the building of a stilt house at the back of the palace, which is today known as the Presidential Palace Historical Site. The campaign initially targeted more than 100 cities and towns, including the strategic southern capital of Saigon, now named Ho Chi Minh City. Ho Chi Minh led a long and ultimately successful campaign to make Vietnam independent. He had done many "nice" things to kill Vietnamese people and leaders. [86], Between 1953 and 1956, the North Vietnamese government instituted various agrarian reforms, including "rent reduction" and "land reform", which were accompanied by political repression. [116] It was agreed that no Chinese combat troops would enter North Vietnam unless the United States invaded North Vietnam, but that China would send support troops to North Vietnam to help maintain the infrastructure damaged by American bombing. He subsequently returned to the Soviet Union and in Moscow studied and taught at the Lenin Institute. The Japanese occupation of Indochina that year, the first step toward an invasion of the rest of Southeast Asia, created an opportunity for patriotic Vietnamese. They assaulted the French positions, smoking them out with straw bundled with chili pepper, destroying armored vehicles with "lunge mines" (a hollow-charge warhead on the end of a pole, detonated by thrusting the charge against the side of a tank; typically a suicide weapon)[68] and Molotov cocktails, holding off attackers by using roadblocks, landmines and gravel. Crossing over the border into Vietnam in January 1941, the trio . At the start of 1955, French Indochina was dissolved, leaving Dim in temporary control of the South. Citing the principle of self-determination outlined before the peace accords, they requested the allied powers to end French colonial rule of Vietnam and ensure the formation of an independent government. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. [38] He also founded the Indochinese Communist Party. In 1935 the Seventh Congress of the International, meeting in Moscow, which he attended as chief delegate for the PCI, officially sanctioned the idea of the Popular Front (an alliance with the noncommunist left against fascism)a policy Ho had advocated for some time. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! Too many farmers, he said, had been incorrectly classified as "landlords" and executed or imprisoned and too many mistakes had been made in redistributing land. It supplied itself from captured American arms and from material that came through from the North. However, the Chinese government later admitted to sending 320,000 Chinese soldiers to Vietnam during the 1960s and spent over $20 billion to support Hanoi's regular North Vietnamese Army and Vit Cng guerrilla units. [126] With the Politburo divided, it was agreed to study and debate the issue more.[127]. In the early 1960s, the North Vietnamese Politburo was divided into the "North first" faction who favored focusing on the economic development of North Vietnam, and the "South first" faction, who favored a guerrilla war in South Vietnam to reunite Vietnam shortly. The scope of the action shocked the world, which until then had been assured that the Communists were "on the ropes". One of those is Poems from the Prison Diary, written when he was imprisoned by the police of the Republic of China. In one corner of the room, a silver ice bucket contained ice and a bottle of good champagne, indicating that H expected the negotiations to succeed. In January 1924, following the death of Lenin, he published a moving farewell to the founder of the Soviet Union in Pravda. Was Ho Chi Minh a good man, and how is he viewed in Vietnam nowadays? Ho was brought back from Siam, therefore, and on February 3, 1930, he presided over the founding of the party. In early 1969, H suffered a heart attack and was in increasingly bad health for the rest of the year. The trail connected North Vietnam with Laos. Inspired by the success of Vladimir Lenins Bolshevik Revolution, he joined the new French Communist Party in 1920 and traveled to Moscow three years later. [166], In 1987, UNESCO officially recommended that its member states "join in the commemoration of the centenary of the birth of President H Ch Minh by organizing various events as a tribute to his memory", considering "the important and many-sided contributions of President H Ch Minh to the fields of culture, education and the arts" who "devoted his whole life to the national liberation of the Vietnamese people, contributing to the common struggle of peoples for peace, national independence, democracy, and social progress". [54] Hundreds of political opponents were jailed or exiled in July 1946, notably, members of the Nationalist Party of Vietnam and the Dai Viet National Party after a failed attempt to raise a coup against the Viet Minh government. Meeting in Hong Kong in May 1929, members of the Thanh Nien decided to form the Indochinese Communist Party (PCI). Find History on Facebook (Opens in a new window), Find History on Twitter (Opens in a new window), Find History on YouTube (Opens in a new window), Find History on Instagram (Opens in a new window), Find History on TikTok (Opens in a new window), Ho Chi Minh: Founding of the Viet Minh and North Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh: Toward War with the United States, https://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/ho-chi-minh-1. 35. The bombardment of Haiphong by French forces at Hanoi only strengthened the belief that France had no intention of allowing an autonomous, independent state in Vietnam. It was a startling admission. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. [155], The Vietnamese government's attempts to immortalize H Ch Minh were also met with significant controversies and opposition. However, it was noted that the Democratic Republic of Vietnam's first Congress had over two-thirds of its members come from non-Vit Minh political factions, some without an election. Who is Ho Chi Minh: Facts about Vietnam's beloved leader - Vinpearl Something went wrong. With his lieutenants Vo Nguyen Giap and Pham Van Dong, Ho returned to Vietnam in January 1941 and organized the Viet Minh, or League for the Independence of Vietnam. Today, H Ch Minh as the Jade Emperor is supposed to speak from the spirit world through Spiritualist mediums. [75][76], All the parties at Geneva called for reunification elections, but they could not agree on the details. He was the leader of Vietnamese independence movement & communist leader of North Vietnam. [103] On 2 September 1963, Maneli met with Ng nh Nhu, the younger brother and right-hand man to Diem to discuss the French peace plan. Sophie Quinn-Judge states that this is "in the realm of conjecture". On 1 November 1963, a coup overthrew Diem, who was killed the next day together with his brother. This poetry chronicle is Vietnam National Treasure No. Ho Chi Minh - U-S-History.com 30 August 1945. 14", "UNESCO. Dommen (2001), p.340 gives a lower estimate of 32,000 executions. Ideologically a MarxistLeninist, he was the Chairman and First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Vietnam.[i]. [36] In Ho Chi Minh: A Life, William Duiker considered this hypothesis, but ultimately rejected it. [55] All rival political parties were hereafter banned and local governments were purged[56] to minimize opposition later on. The son of a poor country scholar, Nguyen Sinh Huy, Ho Chi Minh was brought up in the village of Kim Lien. [39], In 1938, Quc (H) returned to China and served as an advisor to the Chinese Communist armed forces. After living in London from 1915 to 1917, he moved to France, where he worked, in turn, as a gardener, sweeper, waiter, photo retoucher, and oven stoker. [122] H's offer for a "political compromise" as transmitted by Lewandowski included allowing South Vietnam to maintain its alliance with the U.S., instead of becoming neutral; having the Viet Cong "take part" in negotiations for a coalition government, instead of being allowed to automatically enter a coalition government; and allowing a "reasonable calendar" for the withdrawal of American troops instead of an immediate withdrawal. He told Paris Police (Surete) he was born 15 January 1894. Reportedly, by 2014 the movement had around 24,000 followers. The trail was a pass around a U.S. naval blockade. [89][90][91], As early as June 1956 the idea of overthrowing the South Vietnamese government was presented at a politburo meeting. A CIA report from 1964 stated the factionalism in South Vietnam had reached "almost the point of anarchy" as various South Vietnamese leaders fought one another, making any sort of effort against the Viet Cong impossible, which was rapidly taking over much of the South Vietnamese countryside. Declaration of Independence and the French Revolution's Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. The day after the battle ended, on 1 May, veteran Australian journalist Denis Warner reported that "When the North Vietnamese marched into Saigon yesterday, they were led by a man who wasn't there". His application to the Colonial School in Paris gave his birth year as 1892. [67] The Vietnam National Army, mostly armed with machetes and muskets immediately attacked. Ho Chi Minh declaring the independence of Vietnam, Birth of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, His birth name appeared in a letter from the director of, The North Vietnamese government initially announced his death on 3 September in order to prevent it from coinciding with, In his application to the French Colonial School "Nguyen Tat Thanh, born 1892 at Vinh, son of Mr. Nguyen Sinh Huy (sub doctor in literature)".
How To Use Dunkin' Gift Card,
Employee Department Codes,
Top 20 Places To Visit In Tokyo,
Articles W
