A few days ago (September 2) was the anniversary of the death of Ho Chi Minh. The Vietnamese Communist revolutionary leader died on September 2, 1969 due to a heart attack. He was 79.
Even though this month marks the 24th year he’s been dead, the mention of his name brings back memories for all of us that lived through the “Vietnam era.”
Over the years he had lots of names — at birth, he was given the name Nguyēn Sinh Cung. Following Confucian tradition, it was changed at the age of 10 and throughout the years he wrote under pseudonyms, and during his life, while he engaged in all kinds of clandestine activities, it’s estimated he used anywhere between 50 and 200 aliases. He eventually settled on the name Ho Chi Minh — “he who has been enlightened.” He was often referred to by his admirers as “Uncle Ho.”
The French began their conquest of Vietnam in 1858 and consolidated their hold over the nation in 1885. Supposedly their purpose for being in Vietnam was to “civilize” the country, but they did little more than plunder it. Civil liberties were virtually non-existent, and protests were often met with merciless violence. It was this regime that Ho Chi Minh fought to overthrow and his effort made him famous, or notorious.
Even though he had strong opposition to French imperialism, Ho Chi Minh had a lot of respect for the French people and for Western democratic values. He once stunned Western listeners when he opened an important speech by quoting America’s Declaration of Independence and the French Declaration of Rights of Man.
When he was young, Ho Chi Minh spent four years in France — it was during that period that he officially became a communist. He wrote articles criticizing the capitalist West and participated in several international organizations established by the Soviet Union. By 1923, he was a “committed Stalinist.” However — Josef Stalin had little respect for his Vietnamese “comrade.” Ho went to Moscow on a diplomatic mission in 1950 and while there he asked Stalin to autograph a Soviet magazine for him. Stalin did, only to regret his decision later and ordered his bodyguards to discretely steal it back.
Of course he was most well known for his effort to unite and “free” Vietnam
Ho Chi Minh hoped to strike a deal with the French in which Vietnam wold be granted autonomy. He promised the French would be welcomed back as friends but not as conquerors. Unfortunately, a peaceful resolution wasn’t in the cards and Vietnam had to achieve independence through wars that would see hundreds of thousands killed.
So today, there is a united Vietnam — in large part due to Ho Chi Minh. It didn’t happen the way he had hoped for, but he certainly made an impact on history. His choice to use the name Ho Chi Minh — “one who enlightens” probably says a lot about him — too bad things had to work out like they did.
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