In the blazing fire...

The spirit, the spirit and the glorious victory of the August Revolution in 1945 have engraved into the history of the nation and the history of Thanh Hoa a fiery autumn...

The Provisional Revolutionary Committee chaired by comrade Le Tat Dac was introduced in Thanh Hoa town on August 23, 1945. (Photo taken from documents and artifacts kept at Thanh Hoa Provincial Museum)

The atmosphere and colors of autumn often evoke stirring, romantic vibrations. If only fate did not weigh down the Vietnamese people with so many "heartbreaking" tragedies, perhaps autumn would have passed beautifully on the pages of history. But this life has no "if only". The history of Vietnam, of many generations of Vietnamese people, was written with blood and tears, struggles and sacrifices. That blood and tears soaked through more than a thousand years of Chinese domination with "long dark nights"; the feudal regime oppressed for dozens of centuries. The rude and brutal colonial boots plundered our resources and wealth, killed our compatriots, and forced us to live a life of slavery...

The situation of the country, the misery of the people made the beloved father of the nation - Uncle Ho unable to calm down. That night, in the Na Lua hut, at the foot of the Hong mountain range (Tuyen Quang), although his body was still tormented by a persistent fever, sometimes conscious, sometimes unconscious, Uncle Ho was still determined on one goal, raised a will: "The favorable opportunity has come, no matter how much sacrifice, even if we have to burn the entire Truong Son range, we must resolutely gain independence...". In mid-August 1945, also in this land of Tan Trao (Tuyen Quang), Uncle Ho called out: "The decisive hour for the fate of our nation has come. The whole nation, let's rise up and use our strength to liberate ourselves". Uncle Ho's words at that time fanned the flames of revolution, warmed the hearts of communist soldiers and burned the enemy with a burning spirit and surging resentment.

Thanh Hoa in the autumn days was seething with fighting spirit, determination and revolutionary spirit. Since the whole country "tested the fire", through 3 rehearsals, which were also 3 revolutionary high tides: The 1930-1931 revolutionary high tide, the peak of which was the Soviet - Nghe Tinh movement; The 1936-1939 revolutionary high tide; The 1939-1945 national liberation revolutionary high tide, the heroic and resilient Thanh Hoa land lit its own fire, shining brightly on the golden pages of the nation's history.

The torchlight flickered in the middle of Treo cave (Ngoc Trao commune, Thach Thanh), 21 team members - typical soldiers of Thanh Hoa guerrilla self-defense force, swore to establish "Ngoc Trao Guerrilla Team", comrade Dang Chau Tue was the team leader. Under the glorious Party flag, "hearts as bright as jade" together wrote an epic poem called - Ngoc Trao Guerrilla War Zone. The battles between the newly established revolutionary force and the colonial army that invaded the country took place fiercely. The Ngoc Trao guerrilla soldiers with their indomitable and brave spirit repelled many counterattacks of the enemy and could not avoid casualties and losses. Faced with the overwhelming balance of forces, the war zone's leadership decided to transfer all forces to Cam Bao village (Vinh Loc) to form small units, changing the direction of activities to continue maintaining forces for future struggles. The people of Cam Bao village did not hesitate to sacrifice hardships and wholeheartedly protect and care for the Ngoc Trao soldiers. On the evening of October 25, 1941, the entire guerrilla team set off for revolutionary bases in the province, preparing for a new battle.

The more the revolutionary movement spread, the more its spirit rose. The French colonialists at that time were like monsters writhing with their bodies covered in wounds, "retaliating with each other". Covering everything was the atmosphere of fierce terror of the enemy. After the Ngoc Trao incident, a wave of white terror took place in all areas of the province where they suspected the Party and revolutionary masses had bases. Hundreds of cadres, party members and revolutionary masses were tortured and imprisoned. Thanh Hoa prison was packed with revolutionary soldiers, many villages and hamlets were destroyed, and their properties were confiscated. All our army and people were united, hastily preparing for the General Uprising in the fury and brutality of the colonialists.

On March 9, 1945, Japanese fascists staged a coup against France and monopolized Indochina. Faced with that situation, on March 12, 1945, the Party Central Committee issued a directive: "Japan and France are fighting each other and our actions." In Thanh Hoa, from the beginning of April 1945, a conference was held to quickly prepare for an uprising, determined to raise the slogan: "Expel Japanese fascists", develop "Propaganda Volunteer Teams" to expand the revolutionary base; develop self-defense and national salvation, self-defense combat units, establish anti-Japanese bases, and move towards an uprising to seize power. These timely policies brought the Thanh Hoa revolutionary movement to a decisive moment.

During those heroic historical moments, the drumbeat of the uprising to seize power on July 24, 1945 in Hoang Hoa resounded as if urging people's hearts, encouraging the spirit and will to "use our strength to liberate ourselves". Accurately assessing the situation, the army and people of Hoang Hoa were well prepared, united in one heart, "preempted" the enemy as soon as they set foot on this land, quickly winning victory. At noon on July 24, 1945, the Party Cell and the Viet Minh Committee of the district urgently organized a rally at Con Ba Cay amid the joy and jubilation of the army and people of Hoang Hoa. The indictment denouncing the crimes of the district governor Pham Trung Bao and the puppet government resounded before the eyes of thousands of people. The uprising became a memorable historical event, a source of pride for the Party Committee, government and people of Hoang Hoa district in particular, and Thanh Hoa in general. This was the victory that opened the way for the uprising to seize power and brought the revolutionary movement in the whole province to its peak, contributing with the whole country to the success of the August Revolution in 1945.

Since that victory, a series of events and good news followed one another, fueling the spirit of fierce revolutionary struggle. On August 13, 1945, the Provincial Party Committee held an expanded conference in Mao Xa village (Thieu Toan commune, Thieu Hoa) to decide on policies and measures to be ready to launch a People's uprising to seize power. On August 15, 1945, Japanese fascists surrendered unconditionally to the Allies. Creatively applying the Central's directives to the actual situation of the province, the Provincial Uprising Committee was immediately established, chaired by comrade Le Tat Dac, and sending key comrades to lead the seizure of power in the localities. On the night of August 18 and early morning of August 19, 1945, the uprising forces seized power in the districts of Yen Dinh, Vinh Loc, Thach Thanh, Quang Xuong, Hau Loc, Ha Trung, Nga Son, Tho Xuan, and Thieu Hoa. On August 20, 1945, Tinh Gia (now Nghi Son town) and Cam Thuy districts successfully seized power. In Thanh Hoa town (now Thanh Hoa city), the revolutionary forces carried out many clever, flexible but drastic measures to force the Japanese fascists and their lackeys to surrender. On August 23, 1945, thousands of people excitedly flocked to the town center to welcome the revolutionary government - the first People's Democratic government.

The August Revolution of 1945 was “an unprecedented leap forward in human history”. Under the brilliant and wise leadership of the Party headed by President Ho Chi Minh, our people rose up to break the chains of slavery, overthrow the feudal regime, and open a great turning point in the revolution, establishing the Democratic Republic of Vietnam - the first People's Democratic State in Southeast Asia: “Four thousand years of flat chest, this afternoon a strong wind/ Blows it up. The heart suddenly becomes the sun” (August Hue - To Huu). The fire of the revolutionary autumn of 1945 opened a new era, the most brilliant era in the history of the nation - the Ho Chi Minh era: “Vietnam from blood and fire/ Rises from the mud to shine brightly” (Country - Nguyen Dinh Thi).

79 years have passed since the success of the August Revolution in 1945, but the spirit, momentum and glorious victory have been inscribed in the history of the nation, the history of Thanh Hoa, a fiery autumn... Thanh Hoa remembers Uncle Ho. Our hearts remember Uncle Ho. Remember the sacred moment in the middle of a sunny autumn day in Ba Dinh, when Uncle Ho solemnly read the Declaration of Independence, declaring to the world the birth of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam: "...A nation that has courageously fought against French slavery for more than 80 years, a nation that has courageously stood with the Allies against fascism for several years, that nation must be free. That nation must be independent". His words resounded in the vast autumn sky, among millions of hearts that were beating with happiness: “Vietnam has the right to enjoy freedom and independence, and in fact has become a free and independent country. The entire Vietnamese people are determined to devote all their spirit and strength, their lives and property to maintain that freedom and independence.” And from today’s peace, we deeply understand Uncle Ho’s words: “Making a revolution to transform the old society into a new one is a very glorious cause, but it is also a very heavy task, a very complicated, long-term, and arduous struggle” in which “the victories we have achieved are only the first step on a journey of thousands of miles.” Therefore, “we must move forward, the revolution must move forward. If we do not move forward, it means we are retreating. And if we retreat, the victories we have achieved cannot be consolidated and developed”...

The article uses materials in the book "Thanh Hoa Gazetteer", volume I - Geography and History, Culture and Information Publishing House.

Thuy Duong - Huong Thao

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/trong-bung-bung-anh-lua-222506.htm