French urbanism in Indochina: the case study of Tourane City (1888-1950)
Author: Dinh, Nam Duch
Under the direction of: Enrico Chapel
Toulouse 2 University
Texte français
Keywords: Architecture. Indochina, Architecture, Colonial, Indochina, Tourane, Urbanism, Colonial cities, Architecture - French influence - Đà Nẵng (Việt Nam).
Abstract
At the end of the 19th century until the middle of the 20th century, the Vietnamese city of Da Nang was in the colonial scheme of a French concession area, called Tourane. The urban planning of the city was thus carried out according to the Western model and its functionalities. Nowadays, because of the works of urban renewal and expansion, such as the formation of residential areas or the construction of modern buildings, the values of French planning and architecture are seriously threatened. This research hypothesizes that the changes in French colonial strategy in Indochina strongly affected the urbanization process of Tourane, thus gradually forming the interference between Western architecture and Eastern architecture. We aim to highlight the characteristics, the significant impacts of French town planning on the process of urban and architectural development of Tourane at the time when it was the French concession (1888-1950). During the research, the methods of field observation, typo-morphological analysis and graphic reconstruction of the architectural and urban space were applied. Our research thus analyses and structures the urbanization process of Tourane in three phases 1888-1918, 1919-1939 and 1940-1950, associated with the distinct characteristics of the urban and architectural development of the city. French town planning in Tourane is the foundation and base of urban development that the city of Da Nang will experience thereafter. The centre of this city is today considered a notable urban and architectural heritage. Despite extensive damage caused by post-1950 urban plans, the French buildings in Da Nang are still highly regarded by the population and are therefore a top priority for the conservation of the city.
