Location: Tien Giang province Map
Vinh Trang Pagoda
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Mỹ Tho is a major city in the Tien Giang province in the South Vietnam. Mỹ Tho was found by the Chinese refugees in 1680's in the delta of the Mekong delta. To this day rivers and streams of this majestic river plays an important role in moving people and items.
In 1683 China became a colony of the Qing Empire, causing
Chinese migrations to the region of Vietnam. These refugees
founded Mỹ Tho in the 1680s. Once part of the Khmer Empire, the
area was annexed to Vietnam in the 19th century, receiving its
name from the homonymous river. Thanks to its proximity to
Saigon, Mỹ Tho became the traditional entrance to the Mekong
Delta. By the 17th century the city had already become one of
the largest shopping centers in the southern region of Vietnam.
In the 1860s, during the French occupation, the city, together
with Saigon, became an important strategic point. The French
capture of Mỹ Tho happened in 1862, establishing then the French
colony of Cochinchina. During this colonial period the economy
continued to prosper, attracting immigrants from Teochew and
Minnan. Mỹ Tho is recognized as a Second Degree city since
October 7, 2005.
There are many opinions about the origin of the place
name My Tho. Most opinions say that My Tho originates from the original
Khmer dialect such as Mi Sâr, which mutated into My and Tho, meaning the
land with beautiful, white-skinned girls. From then on My, the Chinese
word means beautiful, but the word Tho is not in the Chinese word, so
there are different ways of writing through Nom, there are two ways of
writing, to refer to fragrant water or fragrant grass.
The
combination of two elements with completely Vietnamese phonetics, "my"
and "tho", does not create any meaning as understood in Vietnamese.
Documents about the history and activities of the Khmer people in the
ancient region have determined that this locality was at one time called
"Srock Mi Xo" (the land of the white lady). Vietnamese people call it My
Tho, removing the word Srock, leaving only Mi Xo.
My Tho in
history is an important land that was soon explored by the Chinese, is
an organized city... quoted as follows:
According to "Gia Dinh
Thanh Thong Chi":
My Tho post: My Tho post is in the south of the
town, in the past it was a wild forest, where tigers and leopards made
their dens... (At Nam Nhat Ly Hua town, it used to be a wild forest,
tigers and leopards had their nests...).
My Tho River: My Tho River
is in front of the town, is the town's big river, originating from the
inland of Yunnan province... (In the town, in the town of Dai Giang, it
originates from the inland of Yunnan province. ..).
According to
"Dai Nam Nhat Thong Chi":
My Tho big street: market, shop: My Tho
market in Kien Hung district, often called big street market. Tiled
houses, carved rafters, high communal houses, large pagodas. The river
is deep, ships and boats are sailing back and forth like weaving
looms...(My Tho city in Kien Hung district, nicknamed big city, alley,
tall house, Quang Tu. Duong Ha boats collect wall products, come and go
like position...)
My Tho tax gate: My Tho gate is in Kien Hung
district, the sixteenth year Minh Mang established the tax gate. In the
third year, Thieu Tri was abolished... (In Kien Hung district, Minh Mang
was responsible for 16 years of tax administration. Thieu Tri had a
court for three years...)
According to "History of the
Cochinchine Expedition" ("Histoire de la conquête de la Cochinchine")
the French author wrote:
Saigon is the military center, My Tho is the
commercial center. The boats of the Japanese, Chinese, Annamese, and
Siamese have shallow bottoms that make it easy to move on the river near
the rice production area, adding to the centuries-old tradition of local
people, making My Tho a center. the largest trade of the South, before
the Europeans arrived.
... My Tho is an area with large houses,
roofed with nipa palms according to custom. But along the banks of the
Post Canal (Arroyo de la Poste or Bao Dinh Canal) the houses are much
more elegant, with tiled roofs amid coconut and areca gardens, all seem
elegant, prosperous, sometimes wealthy. Can be compared to the bustling
urban scene of Cho Quan and the Chinese people in Saigon...
According to "Monographie de My Tho 1902" (Monographie de My Tho 1902),
the French author wrote:
...My Tho's location is wonderful. It
occupies the most important transit position for large fishing boats
from the West to Cho Lon (Saigon) through Bao Dinh canal and Cho Gao
canal. My Tho has Indochina's first railway, the Saigon - My Tho railway
and the waterway connecting Saigon and the Western provinces up to Phnom
Penh via Luc Tinh My Tho train station...
In 1679, a group of about 3,000 Minh Huong people were allowed by
Lord Nguyen to settle this new land. In the group led by Duong Ngan
Dich, they established My Tho Dai Pho (Chinese: 美萩大浦) in My Chanh
village, Kien Hoa district. This urban area extends to Cau Vi and Go
Cat, which is the current My Phong commune area. Many villages
sprang up around My Tho area: Thai Tran established An Hoa village
(later changed to Thanh Tri), Nguyen Van Truoc established Dieu Hoa
village.
In the 17th century, My Tho became one of the two
largest commercial centers in the South at that time (the other
center was Cu Lao Pho, Bien Hoa). The prosperity of My Tho market
street shows that the local agricultural and fishery production and
commodity economy at that time had significant developments,
especially in the commercial sector.
In 1772, My Tho belonged
to Truong Don sect, and in 1779 Truong Don sect was upgraded to
Truong Don palace. In 1781, Truong Tu palace was renamed Tran Dinh
palace. By 1785, Siamese troops invaded and turned this place into a
battlefield (Battle of Rach Gam - Xoai Mut). The streets were
destroyed and property was plundered, so My Tho City became
desolate. Most of the traders here moved to do business in Saigon -
Ben Nghe. In 1788, although it was gradually restored, it was no
longer as bustling as before. In the year of the Rat (1792), Lord
Nguyen moved the headquarters of Tran Dinh to My Tho market in My
Chanh village (Old Market area in wards 2, 3 and 8 today) and also
here Lord Nguyen built Tran Dinh citadel. The citadel was built
according to the architectural drawings of Mr. Tran Van Hoc.
In 1826, King Minh Mang moved the headquarters of Dinh Tuong town to
the west of Bao Dinh river in Dieu Hoa and Binh Tao villages of Kien
Hung district (now in wards 1, 4 and 7), Kien An district, Dinh
province. Wall. Also in this year, Mr. Duong Tan Tuyen established a
market next to the new citadel in the My Tho market area today.
My Tho has always been the headquarters and provincial capital
of Dinh Tuong province and in 1900 became the provincial capital of
My Tho province when this province was established.
My Tho
used to have a 71 km long train line connecting with Saigon,
inaugurated on July 20, 1885, but it was destroyed during the war
against the French.
Before 1900
During the French colonial period (1862-1945),
according to the Treaty of Nham Tuat in 1862, Dinh Tuong along with
Bien Hoa and Gia Dinh were ceded to France. At first, Dinh Tuong
province was divided into 4 inspection districts, temporarily named
after the old district offices, then renamed according to the
headquarters location. That is:
Kien An Inspection District or
Kien Hung, later changed to My Tho Inspection District.
Kien Hoa
Inspection District later changed to Cho Gao Inspection District.
Kien Dang Inspectorate District was later changed to Cai Lay
Inspectorate District.
Kien Tuong Inspection District later
changed to Can Lo Inspection District.
On December 5, 1868,
Cai Lay Inspectorate district was dissolved and merged into My Tho
Inspectorate district, from December 15, 1868. Next, on December 23,
1868, Cho Gao Inspectorate district was dissolved and merged into
Cho Gao Inspectorate district. My Tho Inspectorate district. But on
October 20, 1869, Cai Lay Inspection district was re-established
according to the old area and on September 8, 1870, the headquarters
was moved to Cai Be, so it was called Cai Be Inspection district. On
September 20, 1870, Can Lo Inspectorate was dissolved, Phong Hoa and
Phong Phu were moved to Cai Be Inspectorate, and Phong Nam and Phong
Thanh were moved to Sa Dec Inspectorate. On June 5, 1871, Cai Be
Inspectorate district was dissolved and merged into My Tho
Inspectorate district. Thus, the above 4 Inspection districts were
in turn dissolved and merged into My Tho Inspection District.
From January 5, 1876, the Inspection districts were replaced by
the Counsel districts. In 1876, Dinh Tuong province was dissolved by
the French and turned into two sub-regions or arrondissement
counties, My Tho and Go Cong, belonging to the My Tho administrative
area.
After 1900
According to the Decree dated December
20, 1899 of the Governor General of Indochina converting all
consultation counties into provinces, from January 1, 1900 My Tho
consultation county became My Tho province. My Tho provincial
capital is located in Dieu Hoa village, Thuan Tri canton, Chau Thanh
district.
In 1912, the French colonial government divided My
Tho province into two regions: Region 1 had 2 agencies (délégation),
Region 2 had two villages: Dieu Hoa and Binh Tao. On January 1,
1933, the boundary of My Tho province was expanded to the west,
taking additional land from the villages of Thanh Tri, Dao Ngan and
Binh Tao.
On December 16, 1938, My Tho was recognized as a
mixed town (also known as a cooperative). On July 29, 1942, My Tho
Cooperative was divided into 4 administrative areas:
Administrative area 1: equivalent to current wards 1 and 7
Administrative area 2: equivalent to current wards 2, 3 and 8
Administrative area 3: equivalent to ward 4 and part of ward 6 today
Administrative area 4: equivalent to ward 5 and part of ward 6 today
During the resistance war against the French (1945 - 1954), on
the side of the Revolutionary government, My Tho town was
established under My Tho province. The area of My Tho town at that
time also included three suburban communes: Trung An, Dao Thanh, Tan
My Chanh.
Republic of Vietnam
On October 22, 1956, President of the Republic
of Vietnam Ngo Dinh Diem issued Decree No. 143-NV to "change the
boundaries and names of Saigon - Cho Lon and the provinces and capitals
in Vietnam". The boundaries and place names of the provinces in the
South changed a lot, some new provinces were established. According to
this Decree, the Southern part of the Republic of Vietnam includes
Saigon City and 22 provinces. At this time, Dinh Tuong province was
established on the land of My Tho province (except for the area south of
the Tien Giang river, An Hoa district, which was renamed Binh Dai
district and merged into Kien Hoa province) and the old Go Cong
province. The provincial capital of Dinh Tuong province is located in My
Tho and still retains the name "My Tho", administratively belonging to
Dieu Hoa commune, Chau Thanh district.
After 1956, the government
of the Republic of Vietnam dissolved My Tho town, merging the area into
Dieu Hoa commune, Chau Thanh district. During the period 1956-1960, Dieu
Hoa commune served as both the district capital of Chau Thanh district
and the provincial capital of Dinh Tuong province.
On November 8,
1960, Chau Thanh district changed its name to Long Dinh district, and
moved the district capital to Long Dinh commune. At this time, My Tho
provincial capital administratively belonged to Dieu Hoa commune, Long
Dinh district, Dinh Tuong province. On May 23, 1964, the government of
the Republic of Vietnam divided Long Dinh district into Chau Thanh
district and Long Dinh district. At that time, Dieu Hoa commune returned
to Chau Thanh district and My Tho provincial capital continued to be
located in Dieu Hoa commune, Chau Thanh district until 1970. In
addition, from 1964 to 1975, the district capital of Chau Thanh district
was located in Chau Thanh district. in Trung An commune.
Dieu Hoa
commune at that time included 25 affiliated hamlets: Lac Hong, Vo Tanh,
Ngo Quyen, Nguyen Hue, Truong Vinh Ky, Thai Lap Thanh, Nguyen Trai, Phan
Van Tri, Trinh Hoai Duc, Dinh Bo Linh, My Chanh, Phan Thanh Gian, Hoc
Lac, Doc Binh Kieu, Nguyen Huynh Duc, My Phuc, Xom Dau, Cong Hoa, Quyet
Tien, Community, Dong Tien, Democracy, Vo Thang, Binh Thanh, Binh Tao.
On September 30, 1970, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Vietnam
issued Decree No. 114/SL-NV converting Dieu Hoa commune into My Tho
town, an autonomous town under the Central Government of the Republic of
Vietnam. At the same time, it also serves as the provincial capital of
Dinh Tuong province. On June 10, 1971, My Tho town was divided into 6
neighborhoods:
Quarter 1: includes the hamlets Lac Hong, Vo Tanh, Ngo
Quyen, Nguyen Hue, Truong Vinh Ky, Thai Lap Thanh, Nguyen Trai
(equivalent to Ward 1 and Ward 7 today)
Quarter 2: includes the
hamlets of Phan Van Tri, Trinh Hoai Duc, Dinh Bo Linh, My Chanh
(equivalent to current ward 2)
Quarter 3: includes the hamlets of
Phan Thanh Gian, Hoc Lac, Doc Binh Kieu, Nguyen Huynh Duc, My Phuc, Xom
Dau (equivalent to ward 3 and ward 8 today)
Quarter 4: includes the
hamlets of Cong Hoa, Quyet Tien, Commune, Dong Tien, and Dan Chu
(equivalent to Ward 4 today)
Quarter 5: includes Chien Thang hamlet
and Nguyen Tri Phuong hamlet (equivalent to current ward 5)
Quarter
6: includes the hamlets of Binh Thanh and Binh Tao (equivalent to Ward 6
today)
On January 3, 1972, all hamlet units were converted into
clusters directly under the neighborhood; At the same time, Binh Thanh
cluster in Quarter 6 is divided into 3 clusters: Binh Thanh, Ly Thuong
Kiet, Ngo Tung Chau
National Front for the Liberation of South
Vietnam
However, the government of the National Front for the
Liberation of South Vietnam (later the Provisional Revolutionary
Government of the Republic of South Vietnam) and the Democratic Republic
of Vietnam did not recognize the name Dinh Tuong province and still kept
the name. The old province is My Tho province. At the same time, the
National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam still maintained My
Tho town under My Tho province during the period 1956-1967.
On
August 24, 1967, the Central Committee of the Southern Department
approved the separation of My Tho town from My Tho province, and at the
same time raised the town to My Tho city under Zone 8.
At that
time, the revolutionary government divided My Tho city into 4 districts,
1 town, 6 wards and 5 communes:
District 1: current wards 1 and 7
District 2: current wards 2, 3 and 8
District 3: current wards 4, 5
and 6
District 4: Wards 9, 10 and Tan Long; Tan My Chanh, Dao Thanh,
My Phong, Trung An communes today.
After April 30, 1975, the
military government of the Republic of South Vietnam at that time still
maintained three equal provincial administrative units: My Tho province,
Go Cong province and My Tho city until the beginning. year 1976.
On September 20, 1975, the Politburo issued Resolution No. 245-NQ/TW on
abolishing zones and merging provinces nationwide "to build provinces
into economic, planning and administrative units with the ability to
solve to the highest level the requirements of promoting production,
organizing the people's material and cultural life, consolidating
national defense, protecting public security, and being able to
contribute best to the common cause of the whole country". According to
this Resolution, Long An province, Ben Tre province, My Tho province, Go
Cong province and My Tho city will merge into one province, the name of
the new province and the location of the provincial capital will be
proposed by the locality. .
But on December 20, 1975, the
Politburo issued Resolution No. 19/NQ to readjust the consolidation of
provinces in Southern Vietnam to be closer to the actual situation,
according to which My Tho province, Go Cong province and My Tho city was
merged into a province.
On February 24, 1976, the Government of Vietnam decided to merge My
Tho province, Go Cong province and My Tho city to establish a new
province: Tien Giang province (except Binh Dai district located south of
Tien River, which was merged into the province). Ben Tre from before).
At the same time, the old districts (district 1, district 2, district 3
and district 4) were also dissolved and the wards and communes under the
city because My Tho city was now transformed into a district-level city
under Tien province. Giang. My Tho city serves as the provincial capital
of Tien Giang province to this day.
In 1976, My Tho city was
recognized by the Central Government as a class 3 urban area under Tien
Giang province. My Tho city at that time included 8 wards: 1, 2, 3, 4,
5, 6, 7, 8 and 5 suburban communes: Tan Long, Tan My Chanh, Dao Thanh,
My Phong, Trung An.
On December 9, 2003, the Government of
Vietnam issued Decree No. 154/2003/ND-CP on the establishment of wards
and communes in My Tho city, Go Cong town and Cai Be district, Tien
Giang province. The content of the Decree on the establishment of new
wards in My Tho city is as follows:
Establish Tan Long ward on the
basis of the entire natural area and population of Tan Long commune.
Established Ward 9 on the basis of 274 hectares of natural area and
9,270 people of Tan My Chanh commune.
Established Ward 10 on the
basis of 69.32 hectares of natural area and 3,323 people of Dao Thanh
commune, 197.26 hectares of natural area and 6,964 people of Trung An
commune. Ward 10 has 266.58 hectares of natural area and 10,287 people.
On October 7, 2005, the Prime Minister issued Decision No.
248/2005/QD-TTg recognizing My Tho city in Tien Giang province as a
class II urban area.
On September 26, 2009, the Government of
Vietnam issued Resolution No. 28/NQ-CP on adjusting the administrative
boundaries of Chau Thanh district and Cho Gao district to expand the
administrative boundaries of My Tho city; Adjust commune administrative
boundaries, establish communes in My Tho city, Chau Thanh district, Cho
Gao district, Tien Giang province as follows:
1. Adjusting the
administrative boundaries of Chau Thanh district and Cho Gao district to
expand the administrative boundaries of My Tho city: Expanding the
administrative boundaries of My Tho city on the basis of adjusting
2,585.77 hectares of natural area and 24,440 people of Chau Thanh
district (including the entire 1,211.64 hectares of natural area and
5,505 people of Thoi Son commune; 329.90 hectares of natural area and
4,174 people of Long An commune; 177.69 hectares of natural area and
1,754 people of Thanh Phu commune; 510.01 hectares of natural area and
6,177 people of Phuoc Thanh commune; 356.53 hectares of natural area and
6,830 people of Binh Duc commune) and 709 ,51 hectares of natural area
and 6,917 people of Cho Gao district (including 502.33 hectares of
natural area and 4,986 people of Luong Hoa Lac commune; 207.18 hectares
of natural area and 1,931 people of the commune Song Binh) returned to
My Tho city to manage.
My Tho city has 8,154.08 hectares of
natural area and 204,142 inhabitants.
2. Adjust commune
administrative boundaries, establish communes in My Tho city, Chau Thanh
district and Cho Gao district.
Established Phuoc Thanh commune in
My Tho city on the basis of adjusting 329.90 hectares of natural area
and 4,174 people of Long An commune; 177.69 hectares of natural area and
1,754 people of Thanh Phu commune; 510.01 hectares of natural area and
6,177 people of Phuoc Thanh commune (part of natural area and population
of Phuoc Thanh commune of Chau Thanh district adjusted to My Tho city).
Phuoc Thanh commune has 1,017.60 hectares of natural area and 12,105
people.
Adjusting 356.53 hectares of natural area and 6,830 people of
Binh Duc commune (the natural area and population adjusted to My Tho
city) to Trung An commune under My Tho city for management;
Adjusting
502.33 hectares of natural area and 4,986 people of Luong Hoa Lac
commune (the natural area and population adjusted to My Tho city) to be
managed by Dao Thanh commune of My Tho city;
Adjusting 207.18
hectares of natural area and 1,931 people of Song Binh commune (the
natural area and population adjusted to My Tho city) to Tan My Chanh
commune under My Tho city for management;
Adjusting 323.14 hectares
of natural area and the remaining 3,093 people of Phuoc Thanh commune to
Thanh Phu commune of Chau Thanh district for management.
3. After
adjusting the administrative boundaries of Chau Thanh district and Cho
Gao district to expand the administrative boundaries of My Tho city;
Adjust commune administrative boundaries, establish communes in My Tho
city, Chau Thanh district, Cho Gao district:
Dao Thanh commune
has 1,031.47 hectares of natural area and 12,427 people.
Tan My Chanh
commune has 931.59 hectares of natural area and 8,975 people.
Trung
An commune has 1,063.03 hectares of natural area and 14,651 people.
My Tho city, after adjustment and expansion, has a natural area of
8,154.08 hectares (an increase of 3,295.28 hectares), a population of
204,142 people (an increase of 94,725 people), 17 administrative units
of wards and communes (an increase of 02 people). unit). The area and
population increased to expand the city are adjusted from a part of the
communes: Long An, Phuoc Thanh, Thanh Phu, Binh Duc and the entire Thoi
Son commune (Chau Thanh district) and a part of the communes: Song Binh
– Luong Hoa Lac (Rice Market). The 17 ward-commune administrative units
of My Tho City when adjusted and expanded include wards: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5,
6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Tan Long and communes: Phuoc Thanh, Trung An, Thoi Son,
Dao Thanh, Tan My Chanh, My Phong.
On February 5, 2016, the Prime
Minister issued Decision No. 242/QD-TTg on recognizing My Tho city as a
class I urban area under Tien Giang province. Thus, up to this point, My
Tho city is the second class I urban area in the Mekong Delta region
after Can Tho city, and is the first provincial city in the Mekong Delta
region. recognized as a class I urban area and the 17th class I urban
area in the country.