During 30 years of finding a way to save the country, President Ho Chi Minh spent four years in the United Kingdom (UK). Both Vietnamese and international historical researchers share a common view that he stayed in London from 1913 to 1917.
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In May 1913, Nguyen Tat Thanh left France’s La Havre port to come to the UK - the center of imperialism. He then took work in the kitchen at the Drayton Court Hotel on The Avenue in West Ealing.
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Drayton Court Hotel was in Ealing district of London. This building still exists and is now a pub, but visitors can climb to the 3rd floor to visit the room, where President Ho Chi Minh used to be. It is the smallest of the rooms reserved for hotel staff.
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The Drayton Court Hotel is one of the oldest pubs in Ealing, west London.
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| The reception area. |
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Documents from Ealing Council record that “the former Vietnamese leader, Ho Chi Minh, toiled in the kitchens of the Drayton Court Hotel in 1914, before going on to change his country's history, driving out forces from Japan, France and the United States.”
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Until the 1930's, the building was still a hotel, including ballroom. It was used by local groups such as Ealing Rotary Club as a place in which to hold meetings. The building remained a hotel until the 1940's, when it became one of the area’s largest pubs.
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| The hotel is decorated in a classic style. |
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Uncle Ho then went on to work at the Carlton Hotel at the Corner of Haymarket and Pall Mall, now the most notable place during Nguyen Tat Thanh’s stay in London. The hotel was later destroyed during the 1940 bombings and its replacement was the 19-storey New Zealand House, a modern office building.
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The New Zealand building, which began construction in 1959 and completed in 1963 on the Carlton Hotel's ground, now has a blue sign with the content: "Ho Chi Minh (1890-1969) - The person who gave birth to Vietnam today - worked at Carlton Hotel, the old building on the ground in 1913”.
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By A.N (Photo: VNA)
