Lê Lợi Boulevard
Lê Lợi Boulevard (Vietnamese: Đường Lê Lợi) is a boulevard in District 1, downtown Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.[1] The boulevard stretches from Đồng Khởi Street, right across from the Municipal Theatre of Ho Chi Minh City to the Quách Thị Trang Square (in front of the Bến Thành Market).[2]
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.jpg.webp) Le Loi Boulevard in 2014 | |
| Native name | Đường Lê Lợi, Đại lộ Lê Lợi (Vietnamese) |
|---|---|
| Former name(s) | Boulevard Bonard |
| Owner | Ho Chi Minh City |
| Location | District 1, Ho Chi Minh City |
| Nearest metro station | Ben Thanh metro station Opera House metro station |
| Coordinates | 10°46′29″N 106°42′05″E |
| Northeast end | Đồng Khởi Street |
| Major junctions | Nguyễn Huệ Boulevard Pasteur Street Nam Kỳ Khởi Nghĩa Street Nguyễn Trung Trực Street |
| Southwest end | Quách Thị Trang Square |
The Ho Chi Minh City Metro Line 1 runs underneath the boulevard.[3]
History
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The history of the boulevard dates back to the 1860s, following the French takeover of Saigon. They ordered the digging of a 800-metre canal with two drainages, the Saigon River (near the Marine barracks) and the arroyo Chinois. One of its main goals was to drain the lower part of Saigon, which was then a pestilential swamp. This waterway was crossed perpendicularly by the "Grand Canal", which later became the Charner Boulevard.[4]
The canal was eventually filled in to create an artery known as "rue n° 13", later changed to boulevard Bonard. The exact time when the canal was filled in is unknown, but it was estimated to be between 1870 and 1880. Initially, the Bonard Boulevard ended at Mac Mahon Street (present-day Nam Kỳ Khởi Nghĩa Street), and it was not until 1914 that the boulevard was extended to the Central Market.[4]
In 1955, the boulevard was renamed Lê Lợi Boulevard by the government of South Vietnam.[5][6]
See also
References
- Tran, Quynh (August 14, 2022). "Saigon street breathes after metro construction site cleared". VnExpress.
- "Map of Ho Chi Minh City". HCM CityWeb.
- Clark, James (August 12, 2020). "Ho Chi Minh City Metro 2020 construction update". Future Southeast Asia.
- Baudrit, André (1943). Guide historique des rues de Saigon. Saigon: S.I.L.I. p. 116.
- Corfield, Justin (2014). Historical Dictionary of Ho Chi Minh City. Anthem Press. p. 356.
- Guillaume, Xavier; Guillaume, Marie-Christine (2004). La Terre du Dragon – Tome I. Paris: Publibook. p. 59.
External links
Media related to Le Loi Boulevard, Ho Chi Minh City at Wikimedia Commons