Quoc Hoc High School - The 2nd Symbol of Hue
Why could Quoc Hoc be a symbol of Hue City?
one of the first three schools in Vietnam built according to modern standards
Quoc Hoc High School (commonly known as Quoc Hoc Hue) is one of the oldest secondary schools in Vietnam, third only to Chasseloup Laubat High School (completed in 1874 ,now known as Le Quy Don High School in Ho Chi Minh City) and College de My Tho (now knows as Nguyen Dinh Chieu High School). This is where President Ho Chi Minh studied during his youth.
Besides its long history, the school's picturesque and ancient architecture simple yet very impressive, which frequently appears in films, also makes Quoc Hoc a must-visit destination when coming to Hue.
Top-notch academic quality
Quoc Hoc is also famous for nurturing many talented individuals of the older generation: Ho Chi Minh, General Vo Nguyen Giap, Pham Van Dong, poet Xuan Dieu, and it consistently ranks among the top 3 high schools for the gifted in Vietnam. It holds many records in the "Road to Olympia Peak" competition, including the most appearances in the finals, the only school to have 3 consecutive years in the finals, and also the school with the most championships in this most famous academic competition in Vietnam (with 3 victories).
Furthermore, on the international stage, Quoc Hoc High School has achieved a total of 17 academic Olympic medals at the World (in subjects like Mathematics, Biology, Physics, and Chemistry) and Asia-Pacific levels. Among these, 11 medals were from the World Olympics and 6 were from the Asian competitions."
The Origin of this School
Quoc Hoc Hue was established in 1896 by the edict of King Thanh Thai of the Nguyen Dynasty. The school was built on the grounds of the Thuy Su Camp (a place for training naval soldiers of the Nguyen Dynasty's army) in the style of thatched houses with earthen walls. It was located on the front of Jules Ferry Street (now Le Loi Street). Opposite Quoc Hoc School is also a memorial stele for Vietnamese soldiers deported to the German-French battlefields during World War I.
In 1911, after a major fire, the school was rebuilt with more solid bricks and tiles by the French contractor Leroy and hundreds of construction workers (on a very large scale compared to the old one) and was completed in 1917. Coinciding with this major upgrade, the school was also upgraded to a secondary level and renamed Collège Quoc Hoc.
The school gate uses yin and yang tiles and is glazed with a crab-red enamel. This may have been a deliberate use of color consistent with the gate's form to distinguish it from the use of colorful glazed tiles found in the ancient architecture of the imperial court. The surface of the tile is covered with an enamel layer; over time, the decorative surface of the tile has faded but not deteriorated much. The decorative tile on the yang cornice features a stylized "longevity" (寿) character, while the yin cornice features a tiger head (hổ phù).
The top of the gate's roof is decorated with stylized floral and dragon motifs and a stylized moon face in the center (Figure 11). This decorative motif is imbued with East Asian and Hue architectural characteristics. Below the roof details are stylized floral paintings, including a set of horizontal stylized paintings of Plum (Mai), Orchid (Lan), Chrysanthemum (Cúc), and Bamboo (Trúc), which are embossed on the surface. These roof decoration motifs are relatively common in architectural works in Hue. Examples can be seen in churches and pagodas, distinct from the dragon, phoenix, and four sacred animal patterns commonly used in royal tombs and mausoleums.
