Haiphong

Haiphong (Vietnamese: Hải Phòng) is the third-largest city in Vietnam and is the principal port city of the Red River Delta. The municipality has an area of 1,562 km² (603 sq mi), consisting of 8 urban districts and 7 rural districts. Two of the rural districts cover islands in the South China Sea: Bạch Long Vĩ and Cát Hải. It has a population of 2,359,000 in 2021. The city's economy has strength in manufacturing, as evident by large industrial parks and numerous smaller traditional handicraft villages.

In the imperial era of Đại Việt, the Bạch Đằng River in Haiphong was a place of many legendary victories, led by now-legendary commanders Ngô Quyền and Trần Hưng Đạo. In the 16th century, Mạc dynasty has promoted the coastal settlement as a secondary capital, growing to become an important port town of Đàng Ngoài. After the French conquest of Vietnam, in 1888, the president of the French Third Republic, Sadi Carnot, promulgated a decree to establish Haiphong as one of the principal cities of the French Indochina. From 1954 to 1975, Haiphong served as the most important maritime city of North Vietnam. It was one of directly-controlled municipalities of a reunified Vietnam with Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City in 1976. In the 21st century, Haiphong is under active land reclamation, the most recent effort being the construction of South Đình Vũ dike in 2022.

Haiphong is a popular seaside vacation spot and known for biological reservations in Cát Bà Island. For its extensive port, the city hosts the headquarter of Vietnam People's Navy. Phoenix flowers are commonly associated with Haiphong in Vietnamese culture.