LANG FORTRESS

Lang Fortress – a sacred milestone in the capital's history, a proud symbol of the indomitable spirit of Hanoians – has long been a gathering place for the memories and self-respect of countless generations. It not only preserves the echoes of the opening moments of the nationwide resistance but is also a space for each person to rediscover the source of the will for independence and the strength of unity that forged the spirit of Thang Long – Hanoi.

The Lang Fortress relic is now located on the extended Huynh Thuc Khang Street, in Lang Ward, Hanoi. Previously, the relic was at No. 8, Lang Fortress Street, within the office area of the General Department of Meteorology and Hydrology in Lang Thuong Ward, Dong Da District (former).

Lang Fortress is a valuable relic within the system of revolutionary resistance relics of Hanoi. Here, at 20:03 on 19/12/1946, Lang Fortress, commanded by platoon leader Nguyen Ung Gia, was honored to fire the first artillery shot as the signal opening the nationwide resistance.

Lang Fortress was built by the French colonialists from 1941 on the Lang Trung field, Yen Lang Commune, Hoan Long District, Hanoi Special Delegation. The fortress consisted of four 75 mm anti-aircraft guns and a command post. At this position, the French colonialists once fired at American aircraft over Hanoi but did not hit them. In March 1945, when the Japanese fascists staged a coup against the French, Lang Fortress fell into Japanese hands. When Japan surrendered to the Allies and the August Revolution succeeded, the Japanese had the large guns destroyed and removed and discarded important parts so they would not have to hand them over to the Chiang Kai-shek troops for disarmament. Our ordnance department searched for and collected the parts from everywhere, assembled them, and turned parts from 20 anti-aircraft guns into 7 complete guns capable of firing.

After the Preliminary Agreement of 6/3/1946, the French colonialists broke their promise, provoked us in many places, and suddenly increased their troop numbers with elite, battle-hardened forces equipped with modern weapons, including 62 armored vehicles, 14 aircraft, 42 artillery pieces, 5,000 rifles, 600 light machine guns, and 180 heavy machine guns; at the same time, they arranged strongpoints blocking the city gates to form an encircling belt around Hanoi and control our tactical positions. They plotted to use strong forces in the city to attack, split Hanoi into pieces, and encircle and destroy us in each area. Especially in the final days of 1946, the French colonialists intensified their provocations. In Hanoi, incidents of house burning, robbery, arrest of civilians, and shooting at the Self-Defense forces occurred continuously…

In that situation, following the Directive of the Party Central Committee, on 29/6/1946, at the Central National Defense Guard Camp (now at No. 40 Hang Bai Street, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi), Chief of the General Staff Hoang Van Thai announced the decision of the Minister of National Defense to establish the first artillery unit of the Vietnam People's Army, consisting of 4 platoons deployed at 3 forts: Lang Fortress with 2 guns, Xuan Canh Fortress with 1 gun, and Xuan Tao Fortress with 2 guns. In November 1946, comrade Vuong Thua Vu assigned comrade Pham Van Don, artillery company commander, to directly command Lang Fortress.

During combat preparations, the unit urgently built fortifications and searched for ammunition depots. Our combat plan was mainly to fire at specific points in each area rather than coordinate with infantry. The focus of bombardment was the Hanoi Citadel (the headquarters of the French army's General Staff) and to serve as a communications signal for other forts. Lang Fortress was tasked with concentrating fire on areas with large numbers of French troops, such as Bach Mai Airport, the Shell oil depot in Kham Thien…

Lang Fortress had a very favorable terrain; from this position, our artillery could bombard and threaten the enemy from the north, south, and east of Hanoi. In addition, the position had advantages such as more complete guns and proximity to the front command.

On 16/12/1946, Commander-in-Chief Vo Nguyen Giap – Minister of National Defense – and Hanoi front commander Vuong Thua Vu and political commissar Tran Do came to Lang Fortress to visit the gun crews and encourage the soldiers to prepare well and be ready to fight.

Continuously on 16, 17, 18, and 19 December 1946, the French colonialists blatantly provoked, committed aggression, and massacred our compatriots. On the evening of 18/12/1946, they sent an ultimatum to our government demanding the disarmament of the National Guard, self-defense forces, and police, and demanding control of the city. Faced with that situation, on the afternoon of 19/12/1946, the front command urgently convened a conference to inform people of the situation and assign tasks to combat forces in Hanoi. On the evening of 19/12/1946, at exactly 20:00, under the orders of the command, workers at the Hanoi Power Plant detonated mines to destroy the generator; the city lights suddenly went out, signaling the start of the nationwide resistance. Lang Fortress opened fire, firing the first shots at enemy facilities in the city as the signal for the nationwide resistance.

At 20:03, comrade Pham Van Don, directly commanding Lang Fortress, ordered three consecutive volleys; the Xuan Canh and Xuan Tao artillery positions fired successively at the Hanoi Citadel, then fired suppression into areas of French activity; Tho Khoi Fortress was separately assigned to fire at Gia Lam Airport. That night, we fired about 500 rounds. Caught by surprise, the French were extremely confused; only the next day (20/12) did they return fire but did not hit Lang Fortress at all. On 20/12, the Lang position shifted to many key targets such as the Hanoi Citadel, the Governor-General's Palace, Hang Co Station, the Shell oil depot, the Mint, and the Brewery. … The very next day, the enemy sent Moran aircraft to reconnoiter the city and locate Lang Fortress for bombing. By direct aiming, the fortress soldiers achieved a resounding feat by shooting down an enemy aircraft over the capital on 21/12/1946. This was the first time a French aircraft was shot to pieces by us in the skies over Hanoi. On 22-12-1946, comrade Vo Nguyen Giap sent a letter praising and commending the fortress soldiers.

In the following days, Lang Fortress continued fighting while consolidating its position and building two dummy forts about 1 to 2 km from the position to deceive the enemy, thereby partly avoiding losses from French counter-battery fire.

Lang Fortress fought continuously until the end of January 1947. During the fighting, Lang Fortress also came under counter-battery fire and some soldiers sacrificed their lives. In early February 1947, there was an order to fire all ammunition and then dismantle and move the guns. Some heavy parts that could not be moved were destroyed on site.

Lang Fortress was built on a flat, elevated area of about 1,000 m2 between the two villages of Lang Trung and Lang Thuong. The Lang position was built with the task of protecting Hanoi's skies and fighting Japanese Fascist aircraft, so it was built quite solidly; four 75 mm anti-aircraft guns were firmly mounted on four concrete gun platforms. The forts were built at the four corners of the position, with the command post and combat trenches at the center.

From a solid combat structure, Lang Fortress has now been completely destroyed as its military role ended. The only remaining trace is the barrel of the 75 mm gun, 3 m long (the gun body is 2 m long and the mount is 0.8 m long), located among the high-rise buildings of the Lang Meteorological and Hydrological Agency. At the end of the 20th century, the city widened the road running through here and named it Lang Fortress Street.