The flag stained with blood, protected more than life

(Dan Tri) - At Bien Hoa prison ( Dong Nai ), revolutionary soldiers used flour sacks and pieces of clothing to make flags. The flags were dyed with blood and red dye and protected with the soldiers' lives.

At the Military Zone 4 Museum (Vinh City, Nghe An ), many flags are being preserved and displayed. Each flag is a special story, an achievement in combat, study, labor, production of each unit, collective, individual, especially during the period of resistance war against America to save the country.

According to Major Nguyen Huu Hoanh - Exhibition Assistant, Military Region 4 Museum - the flag is a symbol of unity in the activities of the armed forces in particular and for the masses in general. The flag is present in all activities that have collective coordination and connection.

"The flag not only represents a call to arms and unity, but it is also a signal and command, a symbol of a political message, has historical and cultural value, and is a witness to a certain historical period," said Major Hoanh.

This flag was made by revolutionary soldiers imprisoned in Bien Hoa prison (Dong Nai) in 1970. The flag was sewn from flour sacks, the yellow star was hand-sewn by female prisoners from 3 pieces of underwear. The red color of the flag was dyed with blood and red dye, the yellow star was dyed with anti-edema dye. The flag is a symbol of the indomitable will of the imprisoned revolutionary soldiers.

The flag was first used on the 1st anniversary of Uncle Ho's death. The flag was hidden and strictly guarded from the prison guards. Each flag guarding team consisted of 3 people, ready to sacrifice their lives to protect it.

In 1973, when he learned that he would be repatriated, soldier Hoang Van Co (born in 1944, from Huong Son commune, Quang Binh district, Ha Giang province) used a rock to cut his thigh until it bled, then rolled a flag around the wound to escape enemy inspection.

In March 1973, at Thach Han River (Quang Tri), soldier Hoang Van Co handed over the flag to the liberation prisoner reception committee. The flag is currently preserved and displayed at the Military Zone 4 Museum.

This is the Party flag used in the Party admission ceremonies at the Independence Squadron 1 (Regiment 176, Military Region 4) for the unit and also when Regiment 176 carried out international missions in Laos, since 1978.

In the rugged border area, comrade Nguyen Van Thanh, Deputy Political Commissar of the Independent Squad 1, had the initiative to use a hammer and sickle-shaped cloth to press on a white cloth and then sew it back together according to the existing shape to become the Party flag (if the standard is correct, the hammer and sickle must be yellow). Each side of the flag is estimated to be rectangular with a length of 80x50cm, the hammer and sickle color is dyed from leaves and forest resin so it is only brown.

From 1978 to 1983, the Independence Squad 1 Party Cell used this flag to recruit more than 30 party members in Pac Xan and Na Uong communes (Laos), contributing to strengthening the local political base in the border area with Thailand.

The National Flag is used by armed forces when participating in occupying enemy positions or liberating an area. When the National Flag is raised, it means that the mission is completed and the battle is won.

With great significance in rallying forces, encouraging spirit, and motivating fighting, the flag is protected and preserved very carefully.

A flag covered with signatures of officers and soldiers, showing determination to overcome danger and hardship to win before entering battle.

In addition to the national flag and the Party flag, during the resistance war against America to save the country, command flags were widely used in military units, especially anti-aircraft artillery units.

"The command flag is a symbol of the signal to gather forces. According to regulations, the command flag is triangular and red, however, in wartime conditions, units can "create" command flags with all colors, materials and may not be correct in form, shape, or size. There are flags made from pieces of cloth, many patched pieces of clothes...

Although the shapes, colors, and sizes are different, they all have the same meaning, representing commands and combat coordination within the unit," said Major Nguyen Huu Hoanh.

In anti-aircraft artillery units, when an American plane is shot down, the flag becomes a witness to the feat and achievement of the combat unit embroidered on the flag. In the photo is the command flag of Company 22, Battalion 4, Regiment 222, shooting down the 1,900th plane in the sky of the North (in Do Luong district, Nghe An), on July 15, 1967.

In the picture is the command flag of hero martyr Nguyen Viet Xuan, political commissar of Company 3, Anti-aircraft Artillery Battalion 14, Division 325. On November 18, 1964, hero Nguyen Viet Xuan commanded his comrades to shoot down 3 American planes on the Eastern Truong Son route in the west of Quang Binh province.

President Ho Chi Minh's award flags are given to units with outstanding achievements in combat, labor, study, etc. Therefore, the award flags are symbols of achievements and a source of pride, encouraging the spirit of cadres and soldiers in emulation campaigns.

The collection of award flags being preserved and displayed at the Museum of Military Region 4 is the award flags that President Ho gave to units with outstanding achievements in the movement "Determination to defeat the American invaders".

The award flag of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Labor Youth Union presented to the 141st Battalion - Air Defense Troops who fought bravely to shoot down American aircraft in the first battle (August 5, 1964).

This flag became the pride of the whole unit, carried into subsequent battles. The flag still bears the blood of the soldier who held it.

The flag of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam was made of colored paper by the people of Vinh Linh district, Quang Tri province. During the resistance war against the US to save the country, from the 17th parallel south, the flag of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam was a symbol of special significance for territorial sovereignty and a symbol of belief in national unity.

The model recreates the image of the flag of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam flying on the Hue flagpole on March 26, 1975. The victory of the Hue - Da Nang campaign created a direct impetus for the historic Ho Chi Minh campaign, completely liberating the South and unifying the country.

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