Early history
Ho Chi Minh Citybegan as a small fishing village known as Prey Nokor. The area
that the city now occupies was originally swampland, and was inhabited by
Khmerpeople for centuries before the arrival of the Vietnamese. It should be
noted that in Khmer folklore that Southern Vietnam was given to the Vietnamese
government as a dowry for the marriage of a Vietnamese princess to a Khmer
prince in order to stop constant invasions and pillaging of Khmer villages.
KhmerTerritory
In 1623, King Chey Chettha II of Cambodia (1618-1628) allowed Vietnamese
refugees fleeing the Trinh-Nguyen civil war in Vietnam to settle in the area of
Prey Nokor, and to set up a custom house at Prey Nokor. Increasing waves of
Vietnamese settlers, which the Cambodian kingdom, weakened because of war with
Thailand, could not impede, slowly Vietnamized the area. In time, Prey Nokor
became known as Saigon.
Nguyen dynasty rule
In 1698, Nguyễn Hữu Cảnh, a Vietnamese noble, was sent by the Nguyễn rulers of
Huế by sea to establish Vietnamese administrative structures in the area, thus
detaching the area from Cambodia, which was not strong enough to intervene.. He
is often credited with the expansion of Saigon into a significant settlement. A
large Vauban citadel called Gia Dịnh was built, which was later destroyed by
the French over the Battle of Chí Hoà.
Colonial French era
Conquered by France in 1859, the city was influenced by the French during their
colonial occupation of Vietnam, and a number of classical Western-style
buildings in the city reflect this, so much so that Saigon was called "the
Pearl of the Far East" (Hòn ngọc Viễn Đông) or "Paris in the Orient" (Paris
Phương Đông).
Capital of South Vietnam
Former Emperor Bảo Đại made Saigon the capital of the State of Vietnam in 1950
with himself as head of state. After the Vietminh gained control of North
Vietnam in 1955, the Saigon government was renamed the Republic of Vietnam,
commonly referred to as South Vietnam. Saigon and Cholon, an adjacent city with
many Sino-Vietnamese residents, were combined into an administrative unit
called Đô Thành Sài Gòn ("Capital City Saigon").
Post-Vietnam War and today
At the conclusion of the Vietnam War, on April 30, 1975, the city came under
the control of the Vietnam People's Army. In the U.S. this event is commonly
called the "Fall of Saigon," while the communist Socialist Republic of Vietnam
called it the "Liberation of Saigon."
In 1976, upon the establishment of the unified communist Socialist Republic of
Vietnam, the city of Saigon (including Cholon), the province of Gia Ðịnh and 2
suburban districts of two other nearby provinces were combined to create Hồ Chí
Minh City in honour of the late communist leader Hồ Chí Minh.
----- Original Message ----
From: DAZ <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: [email protected]
Sent: Sunday, September 28, 2008 3:23:34 PM
Subject: RE: 73 - 77 years old?
VOTE FOR COMMUNIST!
________________________________
Date: Sat, 27 Sep 2008 21:23:48 -0700
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: 73 - 77 years old?
To: [email protected]
Under 8 years of the Republican
10 of million Americans lost their homes… and 3.6 million Americans lost their
“good” jobs…
Are we going to vote for the Republican again?
How much can he contribute to the world affairs at 73 years old?
________________________________
Enter today! Win a Hotmail Go-Kart to race at Bathurst.
--~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"Cambodia Discussion (CAMDISC) - www.cambodia.org" group.
This is an unmoderated forum. Please refrain from using foul language.
Thank you for your understanding. Peace among us and in Cambodia.
To post to this group, send email to [email protected]
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/camdisc
Learn more - http://www.cambodia.org
-~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
