Editing Ho Chi Minh City (section)

=== French colonial era ===
Ceded to France by the 1862 [[Treaty of Saigon (1862)|Treaty of Saigon]],<ref>{{Harvnb|Corfield|2014|p=xix}}</ref> the city was planned by the French to transform into a large town for colonization. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, construction of various French-style buildings began, including a [[Saigon Zoo and Botanical Gardens|botanical garden]], the [[Norodom Palace]], [[Hotel Continental Saigon|Hotel Continental]], [[Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon|Notre-Dame Cathedral]], and [[Bến Thành Market]], among many others.<ref>{{Harvnb|Vo|2011|pp=75, 85–86}}</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Corfield|2014|pp=xix−xx}}</ref> In April 1865, [[Gia Dinh Bao|Gia Định Báo]] was established in Saigon, becoming the first newspaper published in Vietnam.<ref>{{Harvnb|Vo|2011|p=82}}</ref> During the French colonial era, Saigon became known as "Pearl of the Orient" (''{{lang|vi|Hòn ngọc Viễn Đông}}''),<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bogle |first=James E. |url=https://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNAAK857.pdf |title=Dialectics of Urban Proposals for the Saigon Metropolitan Area |date=January 1972 |publisher=Ministry of Public Works, Republic of Vietnam; United States Agency for International Development |page=11 |access-date=20 May 2021 |archive-date=20 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210520054031/https://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNAAK857.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref> or "Paris of the Extreme Orient".<ref>{{Harvnb|Vo|2011|pp=1, 77}}</ref>

On 27 April 1931, a new [[région]] called '''Saigon–Cholon''' consisting of Saigon and Cholon was formed; the name Cholon was dropped after South Vietnam gained independence from France in 1955.<ref>{{Harvnb|Corfield|2014|p=xxi}}</ref> From about 256,000 in 1930,<ref name=":3">{{Cite book |last1=Banens |first1=Maks |url=https://www.ier.hit-u.ac.jp/COE/Japanese/discussionpapers/DP98.7/98_7.html |title=Estimating population and labour force in Vietnam under French rule (1900–1954) |last2=Bassino |first2=Jean-Pascal |last3=Egretaud |first3=Eric |publisher=Paul Valéry University |year=1998 |location=Montpellier |access-date=20 May 2021 |archive-date=3 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120403120609/http://www.ier.hit-u.ac.jp/COE/Japanese/discussionpapers/DP98.7/98_7.html |url-status=live}}</ref> Saigon's population rose to 1.2 million in 1950.<ref name=":3" />

<gallery mode="packed" style="text-align: center;" heights="130" perrow="3" caption="''Gallery of Saigon during the French colonial era''">
File:French capture of Saigon in 1859.jpg|The [[Siege of Saigon]] fortress in 1859 by Franco-Spanish forces.
File:Coat of Arms Saigon.svg|Coat of arms of Saigon established during [[French Indochina|French colonial administration]] and used from 1870 to 1975.
File:Citadel of Saigon 1881.jpg|Map of Saigon in 1881.
File:Casernes du 11e R.I.C. à Saigon.jpg|[[Troupes coloniales|French soldiers]] stationed at a barrack in Saigon in 1930.
File:Japanese troops entering Saigon in 1941.jpg|[[Imperial Japanese Army|Imperial Japanese soldiers]] entering Saigon in 1941, during [[French Indochina in World War II|World War II]].
File:Saigon under attack by US carrier planes on 12 January 1945.jpg|Saigon afire after aerial attacks from carrier-based planes of the [[United States Pacific Fleet|US Pacific Fleet]] in 1945.
</gallery>