Later, to continue our Hanoi War Sites Walking tour, we take a look to discover Hoa Lo prison. Hoa Lo Prison which was formerly called "Hanoi Hilton" by the American prisoners. Lots of Vietnamese revolutionaries such as political prisoners as well as patriots against the French colonial Federal government were captured right here. Throughout the Vietnam War period, American detainees were kept in this jail. French colonialists constructed this main prison of both Central and Tonkin in suburb in 1896. The French name of Hoa Lo prison back then was Maison Centrale. Its Vietnamese name was Nguc That Hanoi (Hanoi dungeon). Its original area was more than 12000 square meters nut now it remains only more than 2000. In the 1980s, the contemporary authority demolished the whole complex but they kept the gatehouse as a sort of museum dedicated to resembling the wartime Exhibits at Hoa Lo Jail concentrate on the French colonial age consisting of the guillotine chamber. The original device with a hefty blade that slides down a wood framework is kept in the jail. This is, of course, a best-chosen destination in Hanoi War Sites Walking Tour. At this museum, you can obtain a deeper understanding right into the difficulties of the Vietnamese throughout the battle period and the secrets behind the victory over French and American.