The prison was built in 1896 by French colonial to detain prisoners and political crimes. Today Hoa Lo just left a small corner where guests come to visit. Hoa Lo is also in the top 10 list of the most notorious prisons in the world.
Following the defeat at the battle of Dien Bien Phu and the 1954 Geneva Accords the French left Hanoi and the prison came under the authority of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. Thereafter the prison served as an education center for revolutionary doctrine and activity, and it was kept around after the French left to mark its historical significance to the North Vietnamese.
In 1993, on the ground of Hoa Lo Tower of Hanoi, a commercial center was built; the rest becomes a historic relic of capital revolution, which is evidence of the crimes of French colonial. It also kept many documents and records of the indomitable example, fought and sacrificed heroically of many generations of arrested communists. Hoa Lo relic is a fascinating attraction attracting many domestic and foreign tourists on every their occasion in Hanoi.
Hoa Lo is also a prison where retained a lot of great communists of Vietnam, addressing at 1 Hoa Lo street, Hoan Kiem district, Hanoi.
