The August Revolution of 1945 was among the greatest events in the history of the Vietnamese nation, the crystallization of the people’s patriotic spirit and the scientific revolutionary thought of President Ho Chi Minh. On the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the August Revolution and the National Day of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on September 2, the Academy of Finance is pleased to present an article by Comrade Duong Quoc Quan—Secretary of the Party Cell of the Faculty of Political Theory—on the immense contributions of President Ho Chi Minh.
The August Revolution of 1945 was one of the most momentous events in Vietnam’s national history, embodying the convergence of the nation’s age-old patriotism with the scientific revolutionary thought of President Ho Chi Minh. That “heaven-shaking, earth-shattering” revolution, with the momentum of a nationwide general uprising, forced “the French to flee, the Japanese to surrender, and Emperor Bao Dai to abdicate” [1], ushering the country into an era of independence, freedom, and socialism. On the 80th anniversary of the August Revolution and the National Day of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (September 2), we more fully appreciate the value of the will for national independence in the thought and revolutionary life of President Ho Chi Minh—the one who sought the path, blazed the trail, and guided the Vietnamese nation through the twentieth century.
The national liberation revolution must be linked with the proletarian revolution
On June 5–6, 1911, the young patriot Nguyen Tat Thanh boarded the ship Amiral Latouche Treville at Nha Rong Wharf and set out to find a way to save the nation.
From the very beginning of the twentieth century, Vietnamese history witnessed many attempted paths to national salvation, all of which failed. Only when Nguyen Tat Thanh went abroad in search of a path and encountered Marxism–Leninism was the proletarian revolutionary road established as the correct and sole choice for national liberation. Ho Chi Minh realized that only socialism and communism could truly liberate the nation from slavery. He affirmed: “To save the country and liberate the nation, there is no other path than the path of the proletarian revolution” [2].
The Eight-Point Demands of the Vietnamese People, submitted by Nguyen Ai Quoc and a group of patriotic Vietnamese to the French Parliament and the delegations attending the Versailles Conference (June 1919).
This thought was not only the product of theory; it also sprang from the realities of oppressed workers across the continents that he personally witnessed. Therefore, national liberation had to go hand in hand with human liberation, ensuring that the people could “have enough to eat and adequate clothing.” It was this steadfast choice that enabled him to rally forces and awaken and organize the masses to struggle. The victory of the August Revolution is proof of the correctness of the path chosen by President Ho Chi Minh, which led the nation out of bondage and to mastery of its own destiny.
Placing the task of national liberation above all else
One of Ho Chi Minh’s outstanding innovations was his correct resolution of the relationship between the national question and the class question in colonial Vietnam. While the Communist International emphasized class liberation, Ho Chi Minh—drawing on the country’s conditions—identified national liberation as the supreme task. This was a turning point in revolutionary cognition and action in Vietnam. He led the nation from patriotism to Marxism–Leninism, disseminating this doctrine as a handbook for national liberation. That thought was reflected in the “political commitment” made as soon as the Communist Party of Vietnam was founded. The Party’s first Political Platform (1930) set the strategic line: “Carry out the bourgeois-democratic revolution and the land revolution to advance to a communist society” [3]. The task of national liberation was concretized at the 8th Plenum of the Party Central Committee (1941), when Ho Chi Minh emphasized: “If the problem of national liberation is not solved… then the interests of parts or classes cannot be regained even in ten thousand years” [4]. The August Revolution was the direct result of placing national liberation at the forefront, thereby creating favorable conditions for carrying out subsequent class tasks in an independent, sovereign society.
Creatively combining national tradition with Marxism–Leninism
Another major contribution of Ho Chi Minh was his combination of traditional patriotism with Marxism–Leninism in Vietnam’s specific context. The French historian Charles Fourniau observed that Ho Chi Minh applied Marxism in a distinctive way, linking the national revolution with the international communist movement and thereby creating a unique character for the Vietnamese revolution. He turned theory into action—from mass mobilization and building revolutionary organizations to directing the general insurrection to seize power [5]. In a colonial country like Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh affirmed that genuine patriotism was the greatest source of strength. He saw that, regardless of class—workers, peasants, bourgeoisie, or landlords—all colonized people shared the pain of national loss and a deep love for the motherland. Hence, he advocated uniting all strata of the people, without class discrimination, into a broad united national front. Duong Kach Menh (The Revolutionary Path, 1927) affirmed that the Vietnamese revolution was a revolution for national liberation that required the participation of the entire people. He stated clearly: “In a national revolution, class distinctions are not yet drawn; that is, scholars, peasants, workers, and merchants unite to oppose tyranny” [6]. This all-people revolutionary line overcame the limitations of earlier national-salvation currents. When the opportune moment arrived, his call for the “entire nation to rise up” awakened a powerful patriotic spirit, producing a nationwide general uprising known as the August Revolution—a revolution profoundly popular in nature. Later, Ho Chi Minh wrote: “It was through their patriotic spirit that our army and people endured years of countless hardships… resolutely building an independent, unified, democratic, free, and prosperous Vietnam” [7]. The linkage of national independence with socialism was not only his ideal; it became the strategic through-line of the Vietnamese revolution. The August Revolution stands as evidence of the success of this synthesis. It not only brought national independence but also laid the groundwork for the subsequent building of socialism.
Applying and developing Ho Chi Minh’s thought in the cause of renovation and national defense
President Ho Chi Minh’s thought on national independence associated with socialism has continued to be inherited and developed by the Communist Party of Vietnam in the period of Doi Moi (renovation). The 13th National Party Congress (2021) affirmed the continued creative application and development of Ho Chi Minh’s thought in the new context. In the new era—marked by deep international integration, digital transformation, and sustainable development—Ho Chi Minh’s thought remains a foundational strategic compass for national construction and defense. In particular, the thought of national independence associated with socialism has been flexibly and creatively applied by the Party to safeguard national sovereignty, harness internal strength, and elevate the country’s international standing. The view that “the will of the people is the root” of the posture of all-people national defense and people’s security continues to be affirmed in national development strategies. The August Revolution of 1945 and the birth of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (now the Socialist Republic of Vietnam) were the magnificent fruits of the combination of the nation’s patriotic spirit with Ho Chi Minh’s revolutionary thought. The revolution not only freed the Vietnamese people from colonial bondage but also opened a path of independent development toward freedom and socialism. Ho Chi Minh’s thought on national liberation—whose core is a truly independent national will—continues to light the way for the cause of national construction and defense today and in the future, in the very spirit affirmed by the Communist Party of Vietnam: “Hold high the banner of national independence and socialism—the glorious banner that President Ho Chi Minh entrusted to the present and future generations” [8].
The Academy of Finance actively studies and follows President Ho Chi Minh’s teachings
Educating students about patriotism, national traditions, the role of the Communist Party of Vietnam, and the great role and merits of President Ho Chi Minh is a central task of the Faculty of Political Theory at the Academy of Finance.
The 80th anniversary of the August Revolution and National Day (September 2) is an occasion for every faculty member and student of the Academy of Finance to gain a deeper understanding of the value of national independence and the role of Ho Chi Minh’s thought in the cause of national liberation and national development.
Appraisal Council for the Political Economy–Finance Training Program at the Academy of Finance (March 2025).
Building on that spirit, the Academy is actively renewing its training and scientific research, notably by launching the Political Economy–Finance training program— a strategic step to connect Marxist–Leninist political economy with the realities of modern Vietnamese finance and the economy. The establishment of this program not only contributes to safeguarding and developing the Party’s ideological foundation in the field of finance and economics but also affirms the Academy of Finance’s pioneering role in training a contingent of personnel who are solid in political theory and in finance–accounting expertise, while being well-versed in practice—thus meeting the demands of rapid and sustainable national development in the new era.
[1] Ho Chi Minh, Toan tap (Complete Works), National Political Publishing House – Truth, Hanoi, 2011, vol. 4, p. 3.
[2] Ho Chi Minh, Toan tap (Complete Works), National Political Publishing House – Truth, Hanoi, 2011, vol. 12, p. 30.
[3] Ho Chi Minh, Toan tap (Complete Works), National Political Publishing House – Truth, Hanoi, 2011, vol. 3, p. 1.
[4] Communist Party of Vietnam, Van kien Dang toan tap (Complete Party Documents), National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2000, vol. 7, p. 13.
[5] Charles Fourniau, “A Patriot and an Exemplary Revolutionary,” in Ho Chi Minh, Notre camarade, Editions Sociales, Paris, 1970, p. 21.
[6] Ho Chi Minh, Toan tap (Complete Works), National Political Publishing House – Truth, Hanoi, 2011, vol. 2, p. 287.
[7] Ho Chi Minh, Toan tap (Complete Works), National Political Publishing House – Truth, Hanoi, 2011, vol. 7, p. 39.
[8] Communist Party of Vietnam, Documents of the 11th National Congress, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2011, p. 65.
Source: hvtc.edu.vn
