THE PLACE WHERE COMMEMORATES THE REVOLUTIONARY EVENTS IN RESISTANCE WAR AT BACH MAI HOSPITAL

Bach Mai Hospital is located at No. 78 Giai Phong Street, Phuong Mai Ward, Dong Da District, Hanoi City.

Bach Mai Hospital was built in 1911 with the original name of "Cong Vong Infectious Diseases Hospital" or "Vong Infirmary". In 1929, Cong Vong Infectious Diseases Hospital was expanded to a General Hospital named "Robin Hospital" that both provided medical examination and treatment for Vietnamese people, and was a practice base of the School of Medicine and Pharmacy, Indochina Department. After the Japanese - French coup d'état on March 9, 1945, the Hospital was officially named Bach Mai Hospital. Over 100 years of construction and growth, Bach Mai Hospital has witnessed the painful and heroic moments of the nation. In particular, in the two wars against France and the United States, the hospital's team of doctors, physicians, officials, staff and technicians stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the people of the capital to fight and protect the Hospital while well performed the duties of front-line health staff, contributing to the overall victory of the country. Referring to Bach Mai Hospital, generations of hospital officials, nurses and doctors could not forget the memorable events taken place here on January 15, 1947 and December 22, 1972 which were very fierce but also very glorious.

• Event on January 15,1947:

After the success of the August Revolution for not a long time, the French colonialists had the intention to return to invade our country again. On the night of December 19, 1946, President Ho Chi Minh issued a call for national resistance. Responding to the call of the President, officials and employees of Bach Mai Hospital enthusiastically participated in the resistance war, protecting the revolutionary results, protecting the Hospital and taking care of people's health.

Vong Infirmary (former name of Bach Mai Hospital) was a quite large area with each size of 300m, surrounded by walls, with a guard tower at the gate, inside there were many 3-storey buildings. Our military force had Company 68 belonging to the Battalion 64 with 3 Self-Defense Platoon and about 100 first aid and nursing staff. All there were about 500 people. Weapons were mostly rifles, grenades and 01 machine gun located at the top of the gate, 01 on the ground which punched holes in the wall and fired along Highway 1.

At 5 am on January 15, 1947, a group of 8 tanks, armored vehicles, 10 trucks carrying about 300 European - African soldiers with support aircrafts from Kim Lien attacked Bach Mai Hospital. When about 300m from the Hospital, they deployed forces and then moved civilians to the front to shield them from bullets. My soldiers and Self-Defense Forces in the Hospital used the rifles to fire into the air and used loudspeakers to call people to spread out. The enemy used a machine gun to shoot people and then launched an attack. Our troops waited for the enemy to come near and used heavy machine-guns on the guard tower to shoot torrentially into the enemy formation and killed many enemies, and the rest fled. The enemy reorganized and continued to attack but they were stopped by our troops. By 10am, our soldiers and Self-Defense team inside the Hospital defeated 6 attacks of the enemy. Many National Guard and Self-Defense soldiers died, but they still bravely continued the fighting against the enemy.

At 11:00, a group of the enemy consisted of 500 persons, led by 8 tanks and armored vehicles, 15 trucks, after conquering Vinh Tuy and Trung Hien crossroads, following Dai La street to attack Vong Infirmary. When the enemy tanks knocked down the wall and broke into the Southeast side of the Hospital, our tripod bomb team rushed out to destroy an enemy tank. The enemy continued to move forward. We stayed in each house to stop the enemy. By 18:00, our forces withdrew to the direction of Khuong Thuong, Bach Mai Airport.

The Battle of Vong Infirmary was the largest and most fierce battle of our army and people in Phuong Mai area and was also one of the biggest and fiercest battles of the army and the people of the capital in the first days of the resistance war. Our army had tenaciously fought back and killed about 200 enemy soldiers, our side had 50 soldiers and Self-Defense team members bravely sacrificed.

After the liberation of the capital in 1954, the Hospital was remodeled, built and upgraded, becoming a leading hospital in the country.

• Events on December 22, 1972

During the raids of the US army using B52 aircrafts in Hanoi in 1972, Bach Mai Hospital - the largest health and medical center in the North Vietnam was the target of the US Air Force. At 8:57 am on June 27, 1972, US aircraft fired rockets and dropped large bombs at the center of the Hospital, which made many facilities of the Heart, Gastroenterology, Postoperative, and Department of Obstetrics destroyed and a number of medical officials and doctors sacrificed.

At 12:05 on December 19, 1972, the US aircrafts dropped four bombs at the Hospital, causing the clinic and experimenting department of Ear- Nose- Throat hospital and many houses destroyed. The situation was fiercer on the night of December 21, in the morning of December 22, 1972, the enemy sent B52 aircrafts to fiercely attack in many areas of Hanoi, Bach Mai Hospital became the focus of enemy bombardment. They dropped B52 bombs with large quantity, destroyed most of the largest health centers of the Capital and the whole country and made 28 officers, doctors and employees of the Hospital sacrificed, 3 solid buildings were destroyed, many other blocks of houses were damaged, and thousands of glass windows, machinery, and medical equipment were buried in the rubble.

After the enemy's raid, the board of directors of the hospital held the meeting right on the field, determined to strictly follow the guideline: When the people remain in the streets, the army forces still fight day and night to protect the capital, Bach Mai hospital will be still opened to serve and serve right within Hanoi.

In recognition of the Hospital's great contributions to the career of care and protection of the people's health, the Party and the State have awarded many noble titles to the Hospital such as the Ho Chi Minh Medal and the First Class Resistance War Medal, First Class Independence Medal, First Class Labor Medal, the Title of the Hero of the People's Armed Forces for the hospital's staff and employees.

The memorial of the revolutionary resistance event at Bach Mai Hospital now has an area of ​​85.7m2, located in the Hospital's premises. There is a sculpture depicting the soldiers, doctors, nurses, technicians, and assistants who sacrificed in the events on January 15, 1947 and December 22, 1972, the statue of the mother holding her baby in a ruined, painful landscape. Amidst the chaos and hustle of life, the memorial area appears as a solemn silence reminding each of us to always be grateful for the contributions and sacrifices of the team of physicians, officials and workers, staff, technicians etc. of Bach Mai Hospital - white-shirted soldiers in the frontline to fight the enemy in two national liberation struggles in the twentieth century.

Every year, on the major national holidays, such as April 30, July 27, National Day on September 2, the incense-burning activities commemorating soldiers, doctors, nurses and patients who died at Bach Mai Hospital on January 15, 1947 and on December 22, 1972 are held with gratitude and respect.

Over time, the war has receded, but the events taking place at Bach Mai Hospital in the past still remind each of us about a period of magnificence and tragedy of the nation, so that today's young generation respect the values ​​of peace, independence and freedom.

The place to commemorate the revolutionary - resistance event at Bach Mai Hospital was ranked as a city level historical relic in 2016 by the Hanoi People's Committee.