Hà Nội trước thời khắc lịch sử năm 1946

Seventy years ago, in the winter, President Ho Chi Minh wrote the call for nationwide resistance, and at exactly 8:03 PM on December 19, 1946, the sound of gunfire from the Lang fortress signaled the beginning of the resistance war against the French.

The Hang Dao and Cau Go street area (Hanoi) in 1946. Photo: Vietnam Military History Museum.

Immediately after its establishment on September 2, 1945, the Democratic Republic of Vietnam faced a precarious situation. The economy was devastated, the treasury had only 1.2 million Indochinese dong left, still in the hands of French capitalists. Chiang Kai-shek's army brought in "quan kim" and "quoc tie" currency, causing market disruption. Floods occurred in many areas, and famine was rampant.

"There were many days when I woke up in the morning, opened the door, and saw ox carts full of the corpses of people who had died of starvation passing by," recalled Colonel Nguyen Trong Ham (former Deputy Chief of Staff of the Capital Military Region).

Although Vietnam had gained independence, no country recognized it. North of the 16th parallel, nearly 200,000 Kuomintang troops poured into the North, colluding with reactionary parties like Viet Quoc and Viet Cach to plunder and kill civilians. In the South, over 100,000 British troops, under the pretext of disarming the Japanese, were actually paving the way for the French colonialists to return and seize Vietnam once again. Meanwhile, the armed forces of the fledgling state were still very small.

On September 23, 1945, with British support, the French launched an attack on Saigon and several other areas in Southern Vietnam, officially invading Vietnam for the second time. Approximately 600,000 Japanese troops, although awaiting orders to disarm, had already paved the way for the French to expand their occupation in the South.

In late November 1946, French troops advanced north, occupying Hai Phong, Lang Son, and Da Nang. In Hanoi, on December 17, they destroyed fortifications of the capital's militia in Hang Bun - Yen Ninh Street, causing bloodshed in the Long Bien Bridge and Cua Dong areas. The following day, General Louis Morlière sent an ultimatum to the Vietnamese government demanding the occupation of the Ministry of Finance, the disbandment of the self-defense forces, and the handover of security control in Hanoi.

If the above demands are not met, the French army will take action no later than the morning of December 20, 1946.

Colonel Nguyen Trong Ham.

Preparations for a protracted resistance war.

Determining that "sooner or later France will attack us, and we must certainly fight France," the Central Party Standing Committee issued a directive on nationwide resistance, emphasizing that the resistance strategy should be all-encompassing, protracted, and self-reliant. The entire country was divided into 12 war zones, with Hanoi being War Zone 11. The Zone Party Committee, the Protection Committee, and the Hanoi Front Command were established.

In early December 1946, warehouses, factories, and weapons production facilities in Hanoi were moved to rural areas and mountainous regions to prevent the spread of the war. The central agencies of the Party, Government, National Assembly, Front, and General Headquarters moved to the Viet Bac safe zone. Hanoi was transformed into a battlefield; armed forces, including five battalions of the National Guard, four artillery platoons, and the Self-Defense Forces, fought in Hoang Dieu Citadel. The Citadel Self-Defense Forces dug trenches, breached walls to connect houses, and built defensive fortifications.

On December 18-19, 1946, in Van Phuc village (Ha Dong), the Standing Committee of the Central Party Committee met and decided to launch a nationwide resistance war. On December 19, in the attic of his house in Van Phuc village, President Ho Chi Minh wrote the Call for National Resistance, which was broadcast the following day by the Voice of Vietnam radio station.

"Fellow countrymen! We want peace. We must make concessions. But the more concessions we make, the more the French colonialists advance because they are determined to seize our country again! No! We would rather sacrifice everything than lose our country, than be enslaved," President Ho Chi Minh wrote.

Calling on "any man or woman, regardless of religion, political party, or ethnicity, any old or young, as long as they are Vietnamese, to rise up and fight the French colonialists to save the Fatherland," President Ho Chi Minh affirmed: "The time to save the country has come. We must sacrifice to the last drop of blood to preserve our land. But with unwavering determination and sacrifice, even if the resistance is arduous, victory will certainly belong to our nation!"

At exactly 8:03 PM on December 19, 1946, gunfire erupted from the Láng fortress, signaling the start of the nationwide resistance war.

Having been part of the fighting team at Lang Fortress on the night of December 19th, Mr. Do Van Da recalled: “Around 8 PM, the city lights went out, and flares were fired. The platoon leader shouted: 'Fire!' Six rounds from two cannons were fired into the city center. At this moment, artillery positions from many directions, along with the soldiers and civilians inside the city, simultaneously opened fire. Standing at the artillery positions, looking into the city, all you could see was a corner of the sky glowing red.”

The Lang Fortress battleground was where the first shots were fired, marking the beginning of 60 days and nights of holding the enemy captive in the heart of Hanoi.

Phát đạn pháo mở màn cho 60 ngày đêm quân và dân Hà Nội chiến đấu với mục đích giam chân quân Pháp trong thành phố, tạo điều kiện cho Trung ương có đủ thời gian rút lên chiến khu an toàn, giúp cả nước chủ động chuẩn bị bước vào cuộc kháng chiến trường kỳ 9 năm chống Pháp.

Theo VNE