The State Guest House () is a historical monument in

Hoàn Kiếm District Hoàn Kiếm () is one of the four original urban districts (quận) of Hanoi, the capital city of Vietnam. It is named after the scenic Hoàn Kiếm Lake. The lake is in the heart of the district and serves as the focal point of the city's publ ...

Hanoi Hanoi ( ; ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Vietnam, second-most populous city of Vietnam. The name "Hanoi" translates to "inside the river" (Hanoi is bordered by the Red River (Asia), Red and Black River (Asia), Black Riv ...

, Vietnam. It is presently used as a

state guest house {{Unreferenced, date=May 2022 A state guest house is a building owned by the government of a country which is used as an official residence for visiting foreign dignitaries, especially during state visits or for other important events. Africa M ...

. The building is representative of

French Colonial French colonial architecture includes several styles of architecture used by the French during colonization. French colonial architecture has a long history, beginning in North America in 1604 and being most active in the Western Hemisphere (Car ...

architecture in

French Indochina French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China), officially known as the Indochinese Union and after 1941 as the Indochinese Federation, was a group of French dependent territories in Southeast Asia from 1887 to 1954. It was initial ...

. It was formerly the Residential Palace of the Tonkin Governor (, ), built between 1918 and 1919 to house the French Governor of

Tonkin Tonkin, also spelled Tongkin, Tonquin or Tongking, is an exonym referring to the northern region of Vietnam. During the 17th and 18th centuries, this term referred to the domain '' Đàng Ngoài'' under Trịnh lords' control, including both the ...

. It was later renamed the Tonkin Palace () when the

Viet Minh The Việt Minh (, ) is the common and abbreviated name of the League for Independence of Vietnam ( or , ; ), which was a Communist Party of Vietnam, communist-led national independence coalition formed at Pác Bó by Hồ Chí Minh on 19 May 1 ...

took over northern Vietnam.

History

The palace was built by Auguste Henri Vildieu between 1918 and 1919 to house the French Governor of

. The building was the location of

's takeover of northern Vietnam, following the

August Revolution The August Revolution (), also known as the August General Uprising (), was a revolution led by the Việt Minh against the Empire of Vietnam from 16 August to 2 September 1945. The Empire of Vietnam was led by the Nguyễn dynasty and was ...

in 1945. On December 20, 1946, the French Army battled to capture Tonkin Palace from Viet Minh. The fighting was intense and marked the early stage of the

First Indochina War The First Indochina War (generally known as the Indochina War in France, and as the Anti-French Resistance War in Vietnam, and alternatively internationally as the French-Indochina War) was fought between French Fourth Republic, France and Việ ...

. After six attacks, 122 casualties, and the destruction of four tanks, the French Army occupied the palace. After the partition of Vietnam, it became the state guest house of

North Vietnam North Vietnam, officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV; ; VNDCCH), was a country in Southeast Asia from 1945 to 1976, with sovereignty fully recognized in 1954 Geneva Conference, 1954. A member of the communist Eastern Bloc, it o ...

, while

South Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam (RVN; , VNCH), was a country in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975. It first garnered Diplomatic recognition, international recognition in 1949 as the State of Vietnam within the ...

had the state guest house at Nguyễn Du Street, Nhà khách 108 Nguyễn Du, and close to the

Independence Palace The Independence Palace (), also publicly and officially known as the Reunification Convention Hall or simply Reunification Hall (), is a landmark in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly known as Saigon), Vietnam. It was designed by architect Ngô Vi� ...

. In modern times, the building serves as the State Guest House of the Vietnamese Government.

Gallery

File:Bacbophu.jpg, Tonkin Palace at night

References

Notes {{coord missing, Vietnam Historical sites in Hanoi Buildings and structures in Hanoi French colonial architecture in Vietnam State guesthouses

History

Gallery

See also

References