Ho Chi Minh City

City Hall in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh City was ceded to France in 1862 by the Vietnamese emperor Tu Duc and was administered by the French until 1945, when independence was declared by the Viet Minh organization under Ho Chi Minh. Rioting occurred in Saigon and French troops seized control of the city; the First (or French) Indochina War began. Ho Chi Minh City still has many Western-style buildings dating from the period of French colonial rule.

Chief port and industrial city of South Vietnam; population (1997 est) 3,571,000 (the largest city in Vietnam). It lies on the Saigon River, 54 km/ 34 mi from the South China Sea. Industries include shipbuilding, textiles, rubber, and food products. Since the unification of Vietnam, state-run enterprise in handicraft trades has expanded, producing goods such as carpets, furniture, and lacquerware mostly for export. Saigon was the capital of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) from 1954 to 1976, when it was renamed, and the city was also the former capital of French Indochina.