Hien Luong Bridge – everlasting desire for national reunification

 

Hien Luong Bridge and the Ben Hai River will be an enduring symbol of the everlasting desire for peace, national independence and reunification.

The Geneva Agreements on Vietnam signed in 1954 divided the country into North and South Vietnam at the 17th Parallel where the Ben Hai River runs through the central province of Quang Tri. The temporary division was only expected to last two years, but in fact it stood for 21 years through the great struggle for national reunification.

Throughout this prolonged period, the Hien Luong Bridge in Vinh Thanh village in Vinh Linh district of Quang Tri province became a symbol of division, expectations and the pain of loss.

The bridge represents the desire for national reunification. The soldiers and people of Quang Tri, and all of Vietnam, struggled bravely, loyally and heroically, leaving behind glorious pages in the history of the fight to achieve the current national independence. 

It was a political, diplomatic and military battlefield. War ended long time ago and Hien Luong Bridge is a historic witness of Vietnam's tragic but ultimately victorious past.

   Hien Luong Bridge in 1961.   The banks of the Ben Hai River.   Hien Luong Bridge was built by the French in 1952 and destroyed by American bombs in 1967. It was restored in 2002 and opened to public as a historical relic in 2003.   “Desire for National Reunification” statute on the south bank.   The new Hien Luong Bridge was built in 1996.   Showroom of images and historical artifacts related to Hien Luong Bridge and Ben Hai River from 1954 to 1975.   Hien Luong Bridge today.

(VOV)