Lê Duẩn Boulevard () is a

boulevard A boulevard is a type of broad avenue planted with rows of trees, or in parts of North America, any urban highway or wide road in a commercial district. In Europe, boulevards were originally circumferential roads following the line of former ...

in District 1, downtown

Ho Chi Minh City Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) ('','' TP.HCM; ), commonly known as Saigon (; ), is the most populous city in Vietnam with a population of around 14 million in 2025. The city's geography is defined by rivers and canals, of which the largest is Saigo ...

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

. The boulevard stretches from Nam Kỳ Khởi Nghĩa Street, right across from the

Independence Palace The Independence Palace (), also publicly and officially known as the Reunification Convention Hall or simply Reunification Hall (), is a landmark in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly known as Saigon), Vietnam. It was designed by architect Ngô Vi� ...

, across the

April 30 Park April 30 Park (Vietnamese: ''Công viên Ba Mươi Tháng Tư'' or shortened as ''Công viên 30/4'') is a park located in the center of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, within District 1 facing Independence Palace and behind Notre-Dame Cathedral Basi ...

, to Nguyễn Bỉnh Khiêm Street, right across from the

Saigon Zoo and Botanical Gardens The Saigon Zoo and Botanical Gardens (, ), or known locally as The Zoo ("Sở Thú"), is Vietnam's largest zoo and botanical garden. The Saigon Zoo and Botanical Gardens was commissioned by Admiral Pierre-Paul de La Grandière in 1864, and was ...

. The offices of the United States Consulate General, British Consulate General, France Consulate General, Netherlands Consulate General and German Consulate General are located on this boulevard.

History

Lê Duẩn Boulevard, initially named boulevard Norodom, named after King Norodom of Cambodia, is one of Saigon's first five boulevards that were built by the French. According to scholar Vuong Hong Sen, the boulevard was opened in 1872, following the completion of the

Saigon Governor's Palace The Saigon Governor's Palace (; ), also known as the Norodom Palace () and then renamed Independence Palace, was a government building in Saigon, French Cochinchina, built between 1868 and 1873. It contained the residence of the governor of Co ...

. Initially, the boulevard was quite short, stretching only from the palace to

rue Catinat ''Ruta graveolens'', commonly known as rue, common rue or herb-of-grace, is a species of the genus '' Ruta'' grown as an ornamental plant and herb. It is native to the Mediterranean. It is grown throughout the world in gardens, especially fo ...

. It was then extended in two stages: first as far as rue de Bangkok (present-day Mạc Đĩnh Chi Street) and then all the way to the Botanical and Zoological Gardens. In 1955, following the departure of the French, boulevard Norodom was renamed Thống Nhứt Boulevard () by the

South Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam (RVN; , VNCH), was a country in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975. It first garnered Diplomatic recognition, international recognition in 1949 as the State of Vietnam within the ...

ese government of

Ngô Đình Diệm Ngô Đình Diệm ( , or ; ; 3 January 1901 – 2 November 1963) was a South Vietnamese politician who was the final prime minister of the State of Vietnam (1954–1955) and later the first president of South Vietnam ( Republic of ...

. In August 1975, after the

Fall of Saigon The fall of Saigon, known in Vietnam as Reunification Day (), was the capture of Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, by North Vietnam on 30 April 1975. As part of the 1975 spring offensive, this decisive event led to the collapse of the So ...

, the boulevard was renamed April 30 Boulevard by the Provisional Revolutionary Government. In 1986, it was renamed again to Lê Duẩn Boulevard to commemorate Vietnam Communist Party General Secretary

Lê Duẩn Lê Duẩn (; 7 April 1907 – 10 July 1986) was a Vietnamese communist politician. He rose in the party hierarchy in the late 1950s and became General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam (VCP) at the 3rd Natio ...

, who passed away earlier that year.

"Business Boulevard"

The boulevard is also known as "The Business Boulevard" for being a prestigious diplomatic area where mostly nations from the G7 with some other nations have set their general consulates here, and a central business district where located some major administrative agencies with many complex buildings for offices, hotels and malls. Independent houses and

street vendors A hawker is a vendor of merchandise that can be easily transported; the term is roughly synonymous with costermonger or peddler. In most places where the term is used, a hawker sells inexpensive goods, handicrafts, or food items. Whether stationa ...

are unseen here.

References

External links

*{{Commons category-inline, Le Duan Boulevard, Ho Chi Minh City Streets in Ho Chi Minh City