Ho Chi Minh City will open an exhibition on Friday telling the story of its Independence Palace, one of the country’s most famous landmarks.

The “From Norodom Palace to Independence Palace 1868-1966″ exhibition will feature a collection of over 500 documents, pictures and artifacts showcasing the history of the Independence Palace, especially from the lesser-known time period between 1868 and 1966, said Tran Thi Ngoc Diep, director of the Independence Palace.

This exhibition is the most comprehensive ever about the palace, said Diep.

The exhibition will display how the palace was constructed and how its left-wing was destroyed by bombs during the war, and depict the rise and fall of former President of the Republic of Vietnam Ngo Dinh Diem. It will also show the self-immolation of Buddhist monk Thich Quang Duc in protest of the persecutions of Buddhists under Diem’s regime.

A central part of the exhibition is its colossal reserve of valuable historical documents, collected by historians from around the world. Many of them came from archives centers in Vietnam, the United States and France.

“We want to provide viewers with an interpretation of history itself, not just its recreation,” said Edward Miller, a professor of history and author of the book “Misalliance: Ngo Dinh Diem, the United States, and the Fate of South Vietnam”, who is one of the organizers.

“You must understand history in its particular context, not in isolated, separate time periods,” he said.

Lire la suite : VnExpress International, 07/03/2018

Pour en savoir plus :

• Mỹ Uyên-Hồng Hải, “Tư liệu về dinh Độc Lập, biến cố cuộc đời ông Ngô Đình Diệm được trưng bày“, Nguoi Lao Dong, 10/03/2018. Sáng 10-3, rất đông người dân và du khách đã đến Hội trường Thống Nhất (TP HCM) để tham quan triển lãm “Từ dinh Norodom đến dinh Độc Lập 1868-1966”.

Illustration “à la une” : l’historien Edward Miller présentant un panneau de l’exposition sur Ngo Dinh Diem © VnExpress/Manh Tung