Declaration of Independence
On 2 September 1945, approximately 500,000 people gathered in Ba Đình Square1 to hear Hồ Chí Minh read the Vietnamese Declaration of Independence and announce the creation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) government (fig. 1). His words mimicked the American Declaration of Independence. In addition, he made reference to the credo of liberty, equality and fraternity found in the French Constitution. Some believe this was an attempt to reconcile with future allies and past enemies.
“All people are created equal,” said Hồ Chí Minh. “They are endowed by the Creator with certain unalienable Rights; among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”2
Out of Reach
However, no sooner had Hồ Chí Minh delivered his speech, the prospect of true Vietnamese independence vanished. On 12 September 1945, British and French forces arrived in Saigon to accept Japan’s unconditional surrender. The presence of three foreign militaries in the city created a tense and unruly atmosphere.
Meanwhile, British and French forces clashed continually with southern Việt Minh forces over control of South Vietnam until March 1946. Codenamed Operation Masterdom by the British, the Southern Resistance War (Nam Bộ kháng chiến) reinstalled French rule in the south, in the process officially killing the first American soldier in Vietnam.3
REFERENCES AND FOOTNOTES:
- Ba Đình Square, named after the Ba Đình Uprising, is in the center of Ba Đình District of Hanoi. Hanoi built the granite Hồ Chí Minh Mausoleum to display his embalmed body. It remains a major site of tourism and pilgrimage.
- Hồ Chí Minh, “Declaration of Independence of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam,” 2 September 1945.
- Lt. Col. A. Peter Dewey killed in Saigon.