Extended Historical Documents in Detail

Part 1: During the Resistance War Against the French (1945 – 1954)
In Vietnamese villages, a communal house (đình) is usually where people hold traditional festivals, gather for cultural activities, and manage village matters. But when the country was invaded, Phong Phu communal house became something much bigger: a place that brought people together, sparked their courage, and united the whole village to fight for freedom.
By the end of 1945, patriotic movements against French colonial rule broke out across the city. The most active group at that time was the ‘Vanguard Youth’ (Thanh niên Tiền phong).
* About the Vanguard Youth: The Vanguard Youth was originally set up under Japanese influence to recruit Vietnamese youth against the French. However, Dr. Pham Ngoc Thach cleverly took advantage of this platform to turn it into a genuine patriotic youth movement against the French. Right before the August Revolution in 1945, the Vanguard Youth openly declared that they were an official member of the Viet Minh Front.
At Phong Phu communal house, a local Vanguard Youth squad was formed with 16 members. The young people in the village took an oath and pledged their loyalty with a blood oath ceremony. Later on, they grew into guerrilla fighters and regular soldiers. This unit became Platoon 44, commanded by Nguyen Van Banh, which belonged to Company 15 led by Thai Van Lung. Both the Vanguard Youth and local soldiers trained right inside the communal house grounds. The temple committee helped them with food and weapons. Their very first weapons were quite simple: just 2 handguns and 1 French rifle, 1 Russian rifle, along with some grenades and machetes.
For their first battle, the local troops held an official send-off ceremony at Phong Phu communal house. In that fight, our soldiers attacked a Japanese post and captured 5 more rifles.
Late in 1946, comrade Dao Son Tay got in touch with comrade Nguyen Van Banh to bring a district troop unit (one company with over 100 soldiers) to station at the communal house.
During this period, the temple management committee had three key elders:
Mr. Nguyen Thanh Nhon
Mr. Le He
Mr. Truong Van Tap
Mr. Nguyen Thanh Nhon served as the head of the temple committee, and at the same time, he was the Chairman of the Administrative Resistance Committee of Tang Nhon Phu commune. This was a very special and close connection: the same person who organized religious rituals to worship the village deity was also the person leading the local resistance war. While these two roles might seem different, they actually shared the exact same goal: protecting the villagers, getting rid of danger, and bringing back peace. Because of this, the people of Phong Phu wholeheartedly respected their guardian god and wholeheartedly followed the revolution.
The Tragedy in 1946 and the Sacrifice of the Villagers
Phong Phu communal house witnessed the high spirit of the revolutionary youth, but it also witnessed a heartbreaking tragedy caused by French colonial troops. In 1946, the French carried out a brutal massacre right in front of the temple gates:
In May 1946, the Resistance Committee of Tang Nhon Phu commune asked local armed forces (Company 15, Branch 6, and local soldiers) to eliminate an officer nicknamed ‘Ach Rau’ (also known as ‘Mad Frenchman’) at the Bot Day Thep post. This man was notorious for beheading anyone he suspected of working with the Viet Minh. On June 14, 1946, our soldiers ambushed a target on the road to Thu Duc, about 1,500 meters from Bot Day Thep, and killed a bearded French soldier. However, it turned out he was not ‘Ach Rau’, but only a military cook from Long Thanh My post who was heading to the market. To get revenge, French troops rounded up innocent local people and locked them in Bot Day Thep for a day. The next day, they marched them in front of the gates of Phong Phu communal house and shot them. They shot 24 people in the first round and 19 more in the second round. This terrible crime made the villagers extremely angry and determined to fight back.
Normally, whenever bad things happened, the villagers would pray to the village deity for protection and justice. But they didn’t just pray—they took real action. The entire temple committee joined the resistance: they donated money and rice, fed the guerrillas, and encouraged many young people in the village to enlist in the army.
In 1948, following the ‘scorched earth’ resistance policy, the villagers moved the sacred statues of the deity to Thanh Long pagoda for temporary safety. With heavy hearts and tears, they had to dismantle their own beloved communal house into rubble, just so the enemy could not take over or defile this sacred ground. For the villagers, tearing down their own temple was an enormous sacrifice for the country’s freedom.
By 1952, Phong Phu communal house was rebuilt. From then on, the temple and the villagers continued to support the resistance until the French were completely defeated.
Part 2: During the War Against the US (1954 – 1975)
After the French were defeated at Dien Bien Phu and left Vietnam, our people had to face an even bigger and wealthier enemy: the American military. Once again, Phong Phu communal house continued its mission of supporting the revolution.
A Safe Meeting Place and Base for Revolutionaries
The communal house basically served as the commune’s revolutionary headquarters. Local cadres gathered here before heading out on missions, and returned here afterward to share information and experiences. Cadres from the district, zone, or neighboring areas who were traveling also stopped by to stay overnight. It was a relatively safe shelter. At times, as many as 200 cadres and soldiers from different units slept across the temple yard.
Why was Phong Phu communal house able to keep revolutionaries safe? There were a few main reasons:
Strong support from the people: First, almost every family living around the temple had children or relatives taking part in the revolution. Protecting the cadres meant protecting their own family members. The locals created a natural defense network around the temple. If soldiers approached, villagers immediately alerted the cadres inside. At night, if there was danger, villagers would light an oil lamp or burn a whole bundle of incense on their outdoor altar (‘bàn thiên’) as a quiet signal.
Good local control: Second, the revolutionary base in Tang Nhon Phu commune was very solid. At night, the revolution virtually controlled the village, so cadres could move around with relative ease.
The enemy’s fear of the sacred temple: Third, enemy soldiers were quite superstitious and hesitant to search the temple. The communal house was known to be very sacred, and they feared bringing bad luck or punishment upon themselves. Local elders shared a story about an enemy major who visited the temple to pray. On his way back, he was ambushed by our soldiers but managed to survive. Believing the deity had saved his life, he strictly ordered his soldiers never to bother the communal house again.
Quiet Heroes and Generous Support
Phong Phu communal house was not only a shelter, but also a vital supply depot that provided rice, money, kerosene, and medicine to the revolutionary forces.
One touching story is about the temple caretaker, Mr. Huynh Van Cho, who was completely blind. Every single night, he stayed awake waiting for revolutionary cadres to arrive so he could hand them bags of white rice and cans of kerosene. The temple committee trusted him completely with this important duty. The enemy never suspected that an elderly blind man would be helping the revolution, so when they arrested other elders in the committee, they always left him alone.
Whenever times were tough and funds ran low, cadres from both the commune and the district relied on the help of the temple committee. The elders donated most of the money offered by worshippers directly to the revolution. When people later asked how much they gave, the elders couldn’t remember the exact numbers—back then, whenever the revolution needed help, they just gave everything they could without keeping score. However, they kept the handwritten receipts given by the cadres, sealed them in an earthen jar, and buried it underground. Over the decades, termites destroyed many of them, and only 23 receipts remained by the time the site was officially documented as a historical relic.
Arrests, Bravery, and Clever Resistance
Suspecting that the temple committee was helping the Viet Cong, the local puppet regime arrested several elders in 1960, including:
Mr. Nguyen Thanh Nhon (Head of the Committee)
Mr. Truong Van Tap (Supervisor)
Mr. Truong Minh Thu (Secretary & Treasurer)
Mr. Phan Van Dung (Member)
Mr. Nguyen Van Trinh (Member)
The police tortured the elders using many cruel methods to extract information about revolutionary bases. But none of the elders gave in. They were imprisoned for 1 to 2 years (they had also been arrested earlier in 1950 for the same reason).
After being released, the elders went right back to supporting the revolution. The local authorities kept a close watch on them, labeling them a ‘Communist Committee’. The police locked up the temple donation box, sealed it, and kept the keys. Whenever they came to collect the money, an entire squad of armed soldiers guarded the box, dumped the cash into burlap sacks, and took it away. But the elders were clever: they quietly made duplicate keys and duplicated the paper seals. Under the cover of night, they opened the box, took out part of the money to send to the revolution, and resealed it neatly. The authorities never found out, and the revolution continued to receive steady support.
In 1973, as the war shifted in favor of the revolution, the elders reached out to Mr. Hoi Dong Thu (financial officer for the Governor of Gia Dinh) to ask for help with Chau Van Tien, the Governor of Gia Dinh. Eventually, Chau Van Tien signed an order forcing the local village council to grant full freedom back to the Phong Phu temple committee.
Part 3: Legacy and Pride Today
Today, after the complete victory of the resistance war, visitors to Phong Phu communal house can still see the hidden spots once used to shelter revolutionary cadres. These include a secret underground tunnel connecting the temple to a nearby rubber plantation, as well as hiding spaces beneath the rock miniature (hòn non bộ) and inside the main sanctuary.
The elders also set up a dedicated Memorial Room (Phòng Truyền thống) on the left side of the temple. This room honors local martyrs from Phong Phu hamlet across both wars: 48 who fell during the anti-French war and 84 who fell during the anti-American war. It also showcases portraits of notable figures:
Nguyen Van Ba: Heroic Martyr Nguyen Van Ba: a commune squad leader and later district commander, who was also a nephew of Mr. Nguyen Thanh Nhon.
Nguyen Van Hien: Colonel Nguyen Van Hien: a former Vanguard Youth member and the son of Mr. Nguyen Thanh Nhon.
Nguyen Van Tang: Colonel Nguyen Van Tang (Hero of the People’s Armed Forces): also a nephew of Mr. Nguyen Thanh Nhon.
The family of Mr. Nguyen Thanh Nhon is a shining example in Tang Nhon Phu commune (now part of Tang Nhon Phu B Ward). The father served as head of the temple committee throughout both wars against the French and the Americans, while his children and grandchildren joined the revolution and made outstanding contributions.
If you ask the local people about Phong Phu communal house, they will speak of it with great reverence and pride: ‘That temple is truly sacred, and it has a rich revolutionary tradition.’ In Southern Vietnam, people often use the word ‘traditional’ (truyền thống) to describe places with deep revolutionary ties.
On October 20, 1976, Tang Nhon Phu commune was officially awarded the title of ‘Heroic Commune’ by the Government Council for its outstanding achievements in the resistance war. In that proud accomplishment, the people never forget the heartfelt contributions of Phong Phu communal house—a sacred shrine preserving cultural traditions while standing strong as a fortress for the nation’s freedom.