Which is more suitable as the capital of Vietnam, Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City.

Vietnam is located in the coastal area of the eastern part of the Indochinese Peninsula, with two famous cities: Ho Chi Minh City in the south and Hanoi in the north.

Ho Chi Minh City far surpasses Hanoi in terms of urban scale and economic output, but Vietnam has established its capital in Hanoi. What is the reason behind this?

The political center of Vietnam has always been located in the northern region centered around Hanoi, which stems from its long historical development process.

After ending its northern rule, Vietnam established its first feudal dynasty - the Ding Dynasty.

In 968, Emperor Taizu of Song conferred the title of "Prince of Jiaozhi County" on the Ding tribe of the Ding Dynasty, and Vietnam began to follow the system of tribute.

Subsequently, Vietnam went through various dynasties such as the Li Dynasty, Chen Dynasty, Hu Dynasty, and Later Li Dynasty, most of which established their capitals in present-day Hanoi.

In 1010, Li Gongyun, the founder of the Li Dynasty, moved the capital to Shenglong (now Hanoi), marking Hanoi as the capital of Vietnam.

Li Gongyun's evaluation of Hanoi is that it has a central geographical location, a wide and flat terrain, and the people are free from the suffering of floods. Moreover, the terrain is suitable for development, making it an ideal place to create brilliant achievements.

After more than two hundred years of development during the Li Dynasty, Hanoi gradually became a core city with abundant resources, dense population, and convenient transportation. Throughout dynasties, Hanoi continued to be the capital city, and even with occasional capital relocation, it still retained its important position.

For example, although Hu Jiya, the last powerful minister of the Chen Dynasty, moved the capital to Qinghua, Hanoi remained the eastern capital;

Although the Nguyen Dynasty established its capital in Hue, Hanoi was still recognized as a secondary capital.

Therefore, from the 11th century AD, Hanoi has been recognized as the political center in Vietnamese history.

Hanoi is located in the Red River Delta, surrounded by forested highlands and plateaus, with numerous strategic locations, such as the 3143 meter high peak of Vietnam's highest peak, Fancy Bang Peak, which is only over 200 kilometers away from Hanoi.

Even if Hanoi is captured, Vietnam can still rely on the surrounding dangerous areas to organize a counterattack. In the anti French war after World War II, although Hanoi was quickly occupied by the enemy, the Democratic Republic of Vietnam relied on flexible tactics and China's support to establish a foothold in the northwest mountainous areas.

In the Battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954, Vietnam achieved an unprecedented victory, eliminating 16200 French soldiers.

In contrast, the surrounding areas of Ho Chi Minh City are mostly plains with little hiding place. Therefore, from a military perspective, Hanoi, surrounded by mountainous plateaus, is more suitable as the capital.

Ho Chi Minh City is located in the Mekong Delta, with a developed river network suitable for agriculture. The Mekong Delta was annexed by Vietnam in the 17th to 18th centuries, and since then, Vietnam has had a fertile granary.

In 2011, the rice and fishery production in the Mekong Delta accounted for 54.8% and 58.3% of Vietnam's total production, respectively.

Until now, the Mekong Delta remains the wealthiest place in Vietnam, making Ho Chi Minh City the most promising city in Vietnam.

Despite the excellent economic performance of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam is still unwilling to relocate its capital here.

This is because if the capital is relocated to Ho Chi Minh City, it will break the dual core development model of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam, which is not conducive to balanced regional economic development and narrowing the wealth gap between regions.

Therefore, Vietnam chooses to utilize the political center position of Hanoi and the economic center position of Ho Chi Minh City to develop the Red River Delta Economic Belt and Mekong Delta Economic Belt, in order to radiate the north and south directions of the country.

In summary, whether it is historical, geographical, or economic development factors, Hanoi has become a suitable choice as the capital of Vietnam.

In addition, the majority of ethnic minorities in Vietnam live in high-altitude mountainous areas and river valleys on the northern border, so from the perspective of enhancing ethnic cohesion, Hanoi is also a great choice for the capital.