Vietnam capital hosts photo exhibit of former prison to celebrate 60th liberation anniversary

An exhibit showcasing old photos of the former Hoa Lo Prison – one of Indochina’s largest – and its political inmates is taking place in Hanoi until the end of this month.

The exhibit, titled “Nhung The He Tu Chinh Tri Nha Tu Hoa Lo Voi Thu Do Ha Noi,” (Generations of Hoa Lo Prison’s Political Inmates in Hanoi,) is being held to mark the 60th anniversary of Hanoi’s liberation from French rule.

With 154 photos, archival materials, and artifacts, the exhibition depicts the ex-prison’s architectural traits and the notoriously punishing regime imposed on the political inmates, who were revolutionary leaders and soldiers.

The exhibit also highlights the inmates’ incredible physical and mental stamina, and their massive contributions to, and sacrifice for, the cause of liberating the Vietnamese capital from French rule.

A number of them survived the grueling prison life and continued to fight steadfastly for liberation.

The prison was named after Hoa Lo Street in Hoan Kiem District, which was lined with stores selling wood and coal-fired stoves.

The name of the prison is literally translated as “fiery furnace,” "Hell's hole," or "stove."

The prison was built by the French between 1886 and 1901 during their period of colonial rule.

The French called the prison “Maison Centrale” (Central House), a traditional euphemism to denote prisons in France.

The structure was intended to imprison Vietnamese people, particularly revolutionaries fighting for the capital’s liberation.

The prisoners stayed in subhuman conditions, suffered merciless torture, and many of them were executed.

The Vietnamese capital city was completely freed from French colonial rule on October 10, 1954, following the historic Dien Bien Phu victory.

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