{"id":2908,"date":"2018-04-29T11:45:54","date_gmt":"2018-04-29T04:45:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hoangthanhthanglong.vn\/en\/?p=2908"},"modified":"2023-05-26T09:50:04","modified_gmt":"2023-05-26T09:50:04","slug":"__trashed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hoangthanhthanglong.vn\/en\/__trashed\/","title":{"rendered":"Unforgettable memorabilia"},"content":{"rendered":"

As anniversary of the Victory Day of 30 April draws near, celebrations and gratitude-paying activities take place across the whole country. April 30 has become a glorious landmark, a lasting heroic epic in the history of Vietnam when the entire nation joyfully reunified after so much loss, damage and familial separation. 43 years have passed, but the remnants of war remain. Stories of wartime life and death still move both the veterans and the whole nation, reminding us of the value of peace and urging us not to forget the fallen.<\/p>\n

On this occasion, many photos and objects of a hard war full of sacrifices have been introduced again to the public to reminisce, to thank and to forgive.<\/p>\n

During the war, letters were arguably the most intimate belonging for all the soldiers. Abounding in wishes for peace, they also helped connect the frontline and the rear emotionally. Each letter sent served to boost the morale of the soldiers in the battleground and assuage the concerns of their beloved families at home. No wait was as special as waiting for a letter during that time. And together with the letters were the stamps that had become close to the heart of many people all over the country.<\/p>\n

In the \u201cLetter, Wartime Diary\u201d exhibition held at the Vietnam Museum of Military History, at anytime one is likely to see a mother, an old soldier, and even a youngster with teary eyes as they fail to hold back emotions at the sight of each object of memory. Wartime letters were sent every time, everywhere, now in the underground shelter or a stop on the way to the front, now at a corner of the forest or by the side of a fresh artillery combat field lingering with smoke. These letters contained in them lots of love and affection, yearning and hope without disheartening or demoralizing the soldiers. In the harshest moments of war, it was not uncommon for letters to go astray or to reach the hands of the intended recipient only after a whole year. There were letters whose senders died in the battle before they were received, and those that were found underground.<\/p>\n

\"temthu01\"<\/p>\n

Wartime letters<\/em><\/p>\n

Despite its hardship and destitution and a lot of danger, damage and separation, wars could not demoralize the soldiers and deprive them of hope and love for their country. In a letter dated 19 July 1968, to soothe her mother\u2019s anxiety in the rear, female soldier V\u00f5 Th\u1ecb T\u1ea7n wrote in a sanguine and half-joking manner: \u201cWe are very happy here. At night, American bombs give us light to make roads and during the day they kill fish and enrich our meals. Bombs shake mountains and forests, but not our hearts, dear mom\u2026<\/em>\u201d. Five days after writing this letter, V\u00f5 Th\u1ecb T\u1ea7n died in the battle.<\/p>\n

A letter by senior lieutenant \u0110\u1ed7 S\u00e2m, artilleryman of the Military Zone 5 Command to his wife \u0110\u00e0o Thu Qu\u00fd prior his departure to the Central Highlands (T\u00e2y Nguy\u00ean) Battlefield in April 1968: \u201c\u2026You can always be proud of your husband who is fighting in the front battlefield against the enemy and you in turn should always be a wife I adore for my whole life\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n

Letters from mothers, wives, children, friends and relatives at the rear sent to soldiers in the battlefield were always filled with love for the family and the country. At the same time, they encouraged and fueled the soldiers with more strength, mettle and belief so they could fulfill their duties and return as victors.<\/p>\n

\"temthu02\"<\/p>\n

A letter sent by soldier L\u00ea V\u0103n Hu\u1ef3nh to his family on 11\/9\/1972. He died on 2 January 1973 in Qu\u1ea3ng Tr\u1ecb<\/em><\/p>\n

In a letter to his dad Tr\u1ea7n V\u0103n Ph\u00e1c, political commissar of the liberation army of the South, soldier Tr\u1ea7n Trung T\u00edn promised to do his best in his study to become one of \u201cUncle Ho\u2019s Good Children\u201d: \u201c\u2026 Dad, my only wish is to grow up quickly to join you and other elders to fight the American bandits and defend the country. But my first duty is to study and work hard to become<\/em> one of \u201cUncle Ho\u2019s Good Children\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n

And many other letters like that were written with a lot of yearning and affection, under the bombshell and the fierceness of war. These letters have now become invaluable objects of memories. Together with the letters were the simple and plain stamps that bear the traces of time and testimony to the connectivity of many different generations. During the wartime, stamps fulfilled a historical mission: they served as a bridge; they represented the affection and responsibilities between the people in the rear and in the front battle.<\/p>\n

A collection of postage stamps including 48 stamp sheets in commemoration of the National Reunification Day is also displayed on this occasion in the Revolutionary House D67 in the Imperial Citadel of Th\u0103ng Long.<\/p>\n

To illustrate the glorious historical events of Vietnam between 1945- 1975, Vietnam Post have circulated stamp sets and templates that summarize the country\u2019s history from the foundation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam to the prolonged resistance war and the \u0110i\u1ec7n Bi\u00ean Ph\u1ee7 Campaign; the period when the North developed the economy and the army to counter the sabotage war and when the entire nation staged the Spring 1975 Campaign to liberate the South to reunite with the North. Stamp sets that commemorate the National Reunification Day have brought visitors a strong sense of national pride when the entire country was totally liberated.<\/p>\n

\u00a0A stamp set coded 320 \u201cThe General Offensive of 1975\u201d issued on 14 December 1976 was the first stamp set that had a template on the 30 April 1975. The set contained 6 specimens jointly designed by 3 artists Tr\u1ecbnh Qu\u1ed1c Th\u1ee5, Tr\u1ea7n L\u01b0\u01a1ng and Tr\u1ea7n Ng\u1ecdc Uy\u1ec3n. Most noteworthy are the two specimens on the liberation of Bu\u00f4n M\u00ea Thu\u1ed9t on 12 March 1975 (priced respectively at 2 and 50 Vietnamese cents); 2 specimens on the Liberation of \u0110\u00e0 N\u1eb5ng on 20 March 1975 (priced at 3 cents and 1 \u0111\u1ed3ng); 2 specimens on the Liberation of S\u00e0i G\u00f2n 30 April 1975 (2 priced at 6 cents and 1 \u0111\u1ed3ng).<\/p>\n

\"temthu03\"<\/p>\n

The stamp set coded 461 on \u201c10th anniversary of the total liberation of the South of Vietnam\u201d issued on 30 April 1985 has widely been considered as the most beautiful, meaningful and unique. The set includes four specimens and 1 block designed by Artist Huy To\u00e0n and printed in Cuba. Mr. Ho\u00e0ng Anh Thi, Chairman of the Vietstamp Club, said that the best part of this stamp set is the depiction of three girls (representing the three regions of Vietnam) donning the traditional women\u2019s long gown (\u00e1o d\u00e0i) with joyous faces on the Reunification Day. In the background was a map of the unified Vietnam without any partition.<\/p>\n

\"temthu04\"<\/p>\n

Stamps have transcended historical events to become a lasting reminder of those hard but glorious days. Although they may now seem distant to today\u2019s digitalized citizens, they did fulfill their tasks as a bridge that connects \u201cbanks of happiness\u201d. It is not difficult to understand why these stained and sometimes even illegible letters from wartime still appeal so strongly to us.<\/p>\n

And I for some reason had an inexplicable association between letters and stamps as I visited the two exhibitions held at the Museum of Military History and Th\u0103ng Long Imperial Citadel<\/p>\n

Kim Y\u1ebfn
\n<\/strong>Th\u0103ng Long –\u00a0 H\u00e0 N\u1ed9i Heritage Conservation Centre <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As anniversary of the Victory Day of 30 April draws near, celebrations and gratitude-paying activities take place across the whole country. April 30 has become a glorious landmark, a lasting heroic epic in the history of Vietnam when the entire nation joyfully reunified after so much loss, damage and familial separation. 43 years have passed, …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2914,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[38,36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2908","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-news-events"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hoangthanhthanglong.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2908","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hoangthanhthanglong.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hoangthanhthanglong.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hoangthanhthanglong.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hoangthanhthanglong.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2908"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hoangthanhthanglong.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2908\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hoangthanhthanglong.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2914"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hoangthanhthanglong.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2908"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hoangthanhthanglong.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2908"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hoangthanhthanglong.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2908"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}