%%The northern province of Tuyên Quang is characterized by many peaks of more than 2,000m above sea level. It is covered by a large area of forests, mostly primeval, and is abundant in rare, precious timber trees and as many as 1,000 species of medicinal herbs and plants. Its provincial capital is also Tuyên Quang. Some 50km from this town is Tân Trào, formerly called Kim Long in Son Duong district. This is a hamlet of Tày ethnic minority lying in a small valley at the foot of the Re Pass, and is surrounded by rolling high mountains and thick forests. The hamlet was liberated in March 1945, and the valley was renamed as Tân Trào. A large banyan tree stands in Tân Trào. Under the canopy of this tree, General Võ Nguyên Giáp read the first Order of the Day for the departure of the liberation forces. By the stream is a wooden communal house where the National Congress met in August 16, 1945 and decided to launch the nationwide general uprising which led to the Declaration of Independence of Vietnam on September 2 the same year. Four kilometres from Tân Trào Communal House is the Hồng Thái Communal House which was the place of reception of delegates from different parts of the country who came to attend the National Congress' meeting. Tân Trào was then considered the provisional capital of Vietnamese patriotic forces against the colonial regime.