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Ho Chi Minh: A Biography
Ho Chi Minh is one of the towering figures of the twentieth century, considered an icon and father of the nation by many Vietnamese. Pierre Brocheux's biography of Ho Chi Minh is a brilliant feat of historical engineering. In a concise and highly readable account, he negotiates the many twists and turns of Ho Chi Minh's life and his multiple identities, from impoverished beginnings as a communist revolutionary to his founding of the Indochina Communist Party and the League for the Independence of Vietnam, and ultimately to his leadership of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam and his death in 1969. Biographical events are adroitly placed within the broader historical canvas of colonization, decolonization, communism, war, and nation building. Brocheux's vivid and convincing portrait of Ho Chi Minh goes further than any previous biography in explaining both the myth and the man, as well as the times in which he was situated.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 2003
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
January 2, 2023
This was excellent in my opinion. The author gave it to us straight to the point on his life and the events leading to him becoming this famous historical figure. I felt the writing was clear and was written to deliver detail without confusion.
Ho Chi Minh (meaning Well of Light, pg 78) was born in 1890 Nguyen Sinh Cung in a poor rural village in the French protectorate Nghe An in Vietnam. His name changed to Nguyen Tat Thanh at age 10 due to Vietnamese custom, and again to Nguyen Ai Quoc (Nguyen the Patriot, pg 13) in 1919. Ho's ideological sense followed Marxist-Leninist thought and his goal was liberation of peoples subjected to colonialism of any sort. He left school from Hue to travel within Indochina then abroad via steamship and cargo ship. There he learned French, English, Chinese, and obtained literacy in his own quoc ngu Vietnamese alphabet. His travels showed him misery and oppression throughout he world, not just in Vietnam (pg 10-1), and he was heavily influenced by membership and active participation in the French Socialist Party, Chinese Communist Party, and other political activity.
In 1930 Ho consolidated the various communist groups into a single-party entity, the Indochina Communist Party. Their revolutionary vision was a struggle for national liberation similar to the Soviet Union and the Chinese Revolution. This would be implemented by a unified national front called the League for the Independence of Vietnam (Viet Nam Doc Lap Dong Minh Hoi), better known as the Viet Minh.
Overall this was a learning experience and I enjoyed it thoroughly. It was a very quick read and not as heavily detail-oriented as the William Duiker biography. This was a worthy and recommended read! Thanks.
Ho Chi Minh (meaning Well of Light, pg 78) was born in 1890 Nguyen Sinh Cung in a poor rural village in the French protectorate Nghe An in Vietnam. His name changed to Nguyen Tat Thanh at age 10 due to Vietnamese custom, and again to Nguyen Ai Quoc (Nguyen the Patriot, pg 13) in 1919. Ho's ideological sense followed Marxist-Leninist thought and his goal was liberation of peoples subjected to colonialism of any sort. He left school from Hue to travel within Indochina then abroad via steamship and cargo ship. There he learned French, English, Chinese, and obtained literacy in his own quoc ngu Vietnamese alphabet. His travels showed him misery and oppression throughout he world, not just in Vietnam (pg 10-1), and he was heavily influenced by membership and active participation in the French Socialist Party, Chinese Communist Party, and other political activity.
In 1930 Ho consolidated the various communist groups into a single-party entity, the Indochina Communist Party. Their revolutionary vision was a struggle for national liberation similar to the Soviet Union and the Chinese Revolution. This would be implemented by a unified national front called the League for the Independence of Vietnam (Viet Nam Doc Lap Dong Minh Hoi), better known as the Viet Minh.
They would confiscate only the land of "colonialists and landlords who were traitors to our country," and distribute it to the poor peasants and landless laborers. The revolution would be achieved through armed struggle led by the party, and all Indochina peoples would be liberated, including the Khmer and Lao. pg 73After the liberation of the French colonialists, hallmark Marxist-Leninist ideology took place: reform, collectivization, reeducation, cultural rectification, etc. It was interesting to see how Ho Chi Minh navigated the waters of world communism, especially between the Soviets and the Chinese (the Sino-Soviet conflict) from the late 1950s through the 1960s. Ho was revered by the Vietnamese people and was different from Lenin, Stalin, Mao Zedong, and Kim Il Sung: Vietnamese cultural norms, beliefs, and widespread syncretism have molded him as the Great Hero, Uncle Ho, Father of a Nation.
In the end, Ho Chi Minh remained faithful to the holistic conception of the relationship between individuals and society...his behavior was determined by the urgency and constraints imposed upon him by various situations, for Ho Chi Minh was a man of situations—those of the colonized and those of the revolutionary. However, he fully adopted the Soviet Socialist model and never repudiated it, thereby confirming and reinforcing the limits imposed on freedoms and on what we exalt today under the name of "human rights."
He tried to combine his unifying and temporizing patriotism with a revolutionary doctrine that bred antagonism and violence. The last two won out in the end, and Ho, steeped in Confucian humanism, gave on to—or rather under the weight of—an implacable system that he had helped put in place through his indisputable charisma. pg 187
Overall this was a learning experience and I enjoyed it thoroughly. It was a very quick read and not as heavily detail-oriented as the William Duiker biography. This was a worthy and recommended read! Thanks.
September 12, 2012
A biography of Ho Chi Minh, regarded by many as the father of his country — and a figure who also became an icon for elements of the American left during the Vietnam War — poses a problem, Pierre Brocheux announces in his preface. The biographer cites American historian Alexander Woodside, who argues against writing "another biography while certain periods of the subject's life are still obscure and questions remain about the man even today."
Surprisingly, Mr. Brocheux does not confront this epistemological issue head-on in "Ho Chi Minh" (Cambridge University Press, 288 pages, $35). It is in the nature of biography to probe what Herman Melville called "the ambiguities." It is impossible for biographers — or historians for that matter — to wait until all the evidence is in and verified. That never happens. There is always more evidence and, sad to say, always more data that disappear along with dying witnesses to history.
Or is Ho a special case? Mr. Brocheux seems to think so. Recently opened Soviet archives are heavily restricted, he reports, and the Chinese, he adds, are engaged in using their archives for patriotic purposes, ensuring that the available papers are "carefully screened."
Determined to heap even more difficulties on himself, Mr. Brocheux notes that Ho Chi Minh's tracks are vanishing at a "vertiginous pace" in Paris, Moscow, and Vietnam — the places Ho inhabited like a character in a John le Carré novel, changing his name from Nguyen Sinh Cung to Nguyen Tat Thanh to Nguyen Ai Quoc and finally to Ho Chi Minh. But wait! It gets worse: Ho gave four birth dates:1890, 1893, 1900, and 1903. Mr. Brocheux is much attached to 1890, noting in a footnote that Ho would have been 55 in 1945, "a suitable age to become President of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam." Okay, but is it verifiable? Apparently not.
With Mr. Woodside's doubts shadowing Ho's latest biographer, Mr. Brocheux acknowledges that five biographies in French, Russian, and English have preceded his. So why, indeed, another? The answer, Mr. Brocheux avows, is Montesquieu: "One's character is based largely on that of the people with whom one lives. … Knowledge opens the mind. … Travel also greatly expands the mind; we leave the circle of our nation's prejudices, and are hardly in a position to take on those of another."
This Enlightenment view of self and society provides a kind of grid that is meant to confine and clarify the elusive Ho's movements. Born in the Vietnamese village of Hoang Tru, a student in the imperial city of Hué, world traveler (by 1918, he has been to Paris, parts of Africa, America, and England), first a French socialist and then a communist (1918–23), and reputedly a student in Moscow (1923), Ho joined a Soviet mission in Canton (1924), returned to Moscow in 1927, and then was on the move again in Europe and Southeast Asia, founding the Vietnamese Communist Party in 1930. The British then arrested him in Hong Kong, and his death was announced in 1932, but more of the same peregrinations continue, culminating in Hanoi on September 2, 1945, when Ho declared Vietnam's independence from the French. Of course he was involved in plenty more history up to 1969 dying this time for good), six years before the communists declared Vietnam re-united in April 1975.
Like the proverbial cat, Ho's many lives have baffled biographers, Mr. Brocheux insinuates, though I wish he had engaged in more of a debate with his predecessors. It seems to me, especially in the case of someone as slick as Ho, Mr. Brocheux ought to open up a debate with biographers. Instead he hugs his Montesquieu:
Both the regional and family backgrounds of Ho Chi Minh suggest a certain geographical and sociological determinism, as well as individual destiny. Nghe An province is known as the forge of great men, from the conventional to the rebellious, and as the theater of historical events that gave birth to a tradition of heroism and sacrifice for the common good.
Ho, the biographer argues, clev erly merged this Confucian world view with communist teachings — or rather this was the line he took as a nationalist who believed he al so needed an ideology to unite his people.
But Ho was no more successful in providing his country with a co herent dogma than he was in articulating a consistent self. For all the ambiguities, Mr. Brocheux certainly provides a clear conclusion "Ho, steeped in Confucian humanism, gave into — or rather was crushed under the weight of — an implacable system that he had helped put in place through his in disputable charisma."
Surprisingly, Mr. Brocheux does not confront this epistemological issue head-on in "Ho Chi Minh" (Cambridge University Press, 288 pages, $35). It is in the nature of biography to probe what Herman Melville called "the ambiguities." It is impossible for biographers — or historians for that matter — to wait until all the evidence is in and verified. That never happens. There is always more evidence and, sad to say, always more data that disappear along with dying witnesses to history.
Or is Ho a special case? Mr. Brocheux seems to think so. Recently opened Soviet archives are heavily restricted, he reports, and the Chinese, he adds, are engaged in using their archives for patriotic purposes, ensuring that the available papers are "carefully screened."
Determined to heap even more difficulties on himself, Mr. Brocheux notes that Ho Chi Minh's tracks are vanishing at a "vertiginous pace" in Paris, Moscow, and Vietnam — the places Ho inhabited like a character in a John le Carré novel, changing his name from Nguyen Sinh Cung to Nguyen Tat Thanh to Nguyen Ai Quoc and finally to Ho Chi Minh. But wait! It gets worse: Ho gave four birth dates:1890, 1893, 1900, and 1903. Mr. Brocheux is much attached to 1890, noting in a footnote that Ho would have been 55 in 1945, "a suitable age to become President of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam." Okay, but is it verifiable? Apparently not.
With Mr. Woodside's doubts shadowing Ho's latest biographer, Mr. Brocheux acknowledges that five biographies in French, Russian, and English have preceded his. So why, indeed, another? The answer, Mr. Brocheux avows, is Montesquieu: "One's character is based largely on that of the people with whom one lives. … Knowledge opens the mind. … Travel also greatly expands the mind; we leave the circle of our nation's prejudices, and are hardly in a position to take on those of another."
This Enlightenment view of self and society provides a kind of grid that is meant to confine and clarify the elusive Ho's movements. Born in the Vietnamese village of Hoang Tru, a student in the imperial city of Hué, world traveler (by 1918, he has been to Paris, parts of Africa, America, and England), first a French socialist and then a communist (1918–23), and reputedly a student in Moscow (1923), Ho joined a Soviet mission in Canton (1924), returned to Moscow in 1927, and then was on the move again in Europe and Southeast Asia, founding the Vietnamese Communist Party in 1930. The British then arrested him in Hong Kong, and his death was announced in 1932, but more of the same peregrinations continue, culminating in Hanoi on September 2, 1945, when Ho declared Vietnam's independence from the French. Of course he was involved in plenty more history up to 1969 dying this time for good), six years before the communists declared Vietnam re-united in April 1975.
Like the proverbial cat, Ho's many lives have baffled biographers, Mr. Brocheux insinuates, though I wish he had engaged in more of a debate with his predecessors. It seems to me, especially in the case of someone as slick as Ho, Mr. Brocheux ought to open up a debate with biographers. Instead he hugs his Montesquieu:
Both the regional and family backgrounds of Ho Chi Minh suggest a certain geographical and sociological determinism, as well as individual destiny. Nghe An province is known as the forge of great men, from the conventional to the rebellious, and as the theater of historical events that gave birth to a tradition of heroism and sacrifice for the common good.
Ho, the biographer argues, clev erly merged this Confucian world view with communist teachings — or rather this was the line he took as a nationalist who believed he al so needed an ideology to unite his people.
But Ho was no more successful in providing his country with a co herent dogma than he was in articulating a consistent self. For all the ambiguities, Mr. Brocheux certainly provides a clear conclusion "Ho, steeped in Confucian humanism, gave into — or rather was crushed under the weight of — an implacable system that he had helped put in place through his in disputable charisma."
June 3, 2022
This is a solid biography, I'd give it 3.5 stars but I kinda get the impression it probably reads a little better in its original language. Something about the flow of the writing just made it hard for me to focus, and I know generally something gets lost in translations.
Anyway, with that being said, I liked this biography for the most part. The writing style isn't amazing and the author editorializes a little too strongly sometimes without allowing for more nuance in how he describes certain historical figures or events, but I did like the portrait he painted of Ho Chi Minh. It was good to read about such a monumental historical figure in a book that neither canonizes nor condemns him.
My only other gripe is that this book makes a lot of references to people and events that aren't explained, though I imagine that stems from this book originally being in French and therefore assuming a French audience. If I were writing a US history book I'm sure there would be figures I wouldn't stop to explain that people from other places might not get, so it's not necessarily the fault of the author. But it does make it harder to engage sometimes.
Overall, if you're looking for a quick read about Ho Chi Minh, this is a good place to look. It's not the most amazing biography, but it got the job done for me.
Anyway, with that being said, I liked this biography for the most part. The writing style isn't amazing and the author editorializes a little too strongly sometimes without allowing for more nuance in how he describes certain historical figures or events, but I did like the portrait he painted of Ho Chi Minh. It was good to read about such a monumental historical figure in a book that neither canonizes nor condemns him.
My only other gripe is that this book makes a lot of references to people and events that aren't explained, though I imagine that stems from this book originally being in French and therefore assuming a French audience. If I were writing a US history book I'm sure there would be figures I wouldn't stop to explain that people from other places might not get, so it's not necessarily the fault of the author. But it does make it harder to engage sometimes.
Overall, if you're looking for a quick read about Ho Chi Minh, this is a good place to look. It's not the most amazing biography, but it got the job done for me.
July 9, 2008
Unfortnately I had to return the book to Contra Costa County Library before I was able to finish it, because it was already long overdue and phone calls from the library were persistent. I got up to the point when Ho Chi Minh became the President of the Republic of Vietnam, after lasting through his long years in the revolutionary undergound struggle. Ho Chi Minh was a cadre of the Communist Internationale, dutifully carrying out the mission of the Third International to spread the inspiration of socialism throughout the world (and to Indochina in particular).
My friend gave me another book on Ho, which I'm dying to start reading, which details the missing years when Ho was in the Soviet Union, and managed to skillfully survive Stalin's purges, despite having ended up in the blacklist of that regime.
My friend gave me another book on Ho, which I'm dying to start reading, which details the missing years when Ho was in the Soviet Union, and managed to skillfully survive Stalin's purges, despite having ended up in the blacklist of that regime.
February 10, 2020
Quite an informative book on the man of many names. I really enjoyed the first 3/4, but found the final quarter a bit all over the place in terms of chronology and fluidity, it also strayed away from Ho in order to recount the Franco-Viet diplomacy.
January 2, 2026
Brocheux provides a highly enlightening and sympathetic account that tactfully navigates Ho's complex personality. It's straightforward and to-the-point while still taking the time to address points of ambiguity (e.g. to what extent we can blame Ho for the undeserved executions during his land reform process, or for various acts of aggression by the Viet Minh).
February 12, 2009
great history/bio of ho and the turbulent 20th century. if you need info on ho, this is it.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews