Since the reign of King Gia Long, in addition to the fleets on duty on rivers and bays, the Nguyen Dynasty built a system of seaport defenses against foreign invaders.
After unifying the country, Nguyen Anh ascended the throne in 1802, taking the reign name Gia Long, and choosing Phu Xuan (present-day Thua Thien Hue) as his capital. The young government was often spied upon by Western ships.
However, the coastal defense system of the Nguyen Dynasty was still rudimentary. The Son Tra Peninsula only had a fire station on the top of the mountain to observe the sea and light a signal fire when foreign ships were preparing to enter the bay. The Da Nang estuary had a small military post, located on the left bank of the Han River.
Many official documents of the Nguyen Dynasty recorded that King Gia Long recognized the risk of invasion from Western countries, so he requested that foreign ships only be allowed to trade in Da Nang Bay, and at the same time built a system of coastal defense forts and built a navy at the estuary.
Tran Hai Thanh was built in 1813, during the reign of King Gia Long, to guard and protect the sea area of Thuan An (Thua Thien Hue). Photo: Vo Thanh
Identifying Thuan An estuary, the gateway to the East Sea of the capital Hue, as an important place, in 1813 King Gia Long ordered high-ranking mandarin Nguyen Duc Xuyen to oversee the construction of Tran Hai tower here. After the tower was completed, it was eroded by storms and rain, forcing the Nguyen Dynasty to build piles, stone embankments, and plant thousands of coconut trees on the surrounding sand dunes.
At the same time, the king ordered the construction of Dien Hai fort by the sea on the left bank of the Han River estuary. The fort was made of earth, surrounded by a moat on the outside. Across the moat from the river bank there was a wooden bridge, designed in the form of a drawbridge. Inside the fort was a barracks. To the south of the fort was a flagpole. Ships from the sea entering the Han River estuary (about 200 m wide) could see the fort and flagpole.
Because Dien Hai station was built of earth and was often eroded by sea waves, the court ordered Commander-in-Chief Tong Phuoc Luong to mobilize 500 Quang Nam people to repair it, and at the same time built An Hai fortress on the right bank of the Han River estuary.
Tran Hai Tower, Dien Hai Tower and An Hai Fort were the first three military structures built by the Nguyen Dynasty to defend the seaports of Hue and Da Nang. As soon as the structures were completed, King Gia Long traveled by land to Thuan An Port (Hue), then by water to Da Nang for inspection.
"Personally organizing a long tour from Hue to Tran Hai fort and then Dien Hai fort shows King Gia Long's great concern for defending important coastal positions, reflecting the importance of Dien Hai fort in protecting the Da Nang coast and the country's defense and security issues at the beginning of the Nguyen Dynasty," said Mr. Huynh Dinh Quoc Thien, Director of the Da Nang Museum.
Building Hai Van Pass, strengthening coastal defense system
With a strategic vision of the sea and islands, King Minh Mang paid more attention to the defense of the seaports in Hue and Da Nang. In 1822, the king ordered the Dien Hai fort to be moved inside the Han River. In addition to choosing a high and wide mound of land and measuring it carefully, the Nguyen Dynasty used bricks, various types of stepping stones, and paving stones to build the fort instead of using earth as before. Inside there was a flagpole, a military barracks, and an ammunition depot. Dien Hai became the most important military base in the Da Nang seaport defense system.
In 1826, King Minh Mang ordered the construction of Hai Van Quan on the top of Hai Van Pass, located between the capital Hue and Da Nang. The king ordered his soldiers to use telescopes to observe ships entering and leaving the Da Nang estuary. If they saw strange ships, they would fire signal flares for patrol forces at the Han River estuary and Son Tra peninsula to check. On Son Tra peninsula, the king ordered the construction of many structures, creating a complete defense system, closely connected with Dien Hai and An Hai.
Dien Hai Citadel was built during the reign of King Minh Mang and remains almost intact to this day. Photo: Nguyen Dong
In May 1830, the king sent 2 guards, 16 captains, and 800 soldiers to repair Tran Hai tower. The book Dai Nam Thuc Luc recorded that King Minh Mang instructed the Ministry of Public Works to repair the tower with solid and durable materials. "If there is any lack of conscience and the work is done hastily, or if there is any dishonest cutting or cutting, so that within three years, the brick and stone citadel collapses or becomes bulging and missing, then it must be handed over to the Ministry of Justice for very severe punishment."
Assessing the important position of Tran Hai fortress, the coastal town is different from other fortresses, in 1834 King Minh Mang specially called it a citadel. The citadel is designed in a circular shape, 284.8 m in circumference, 6 m high, on the citadel there are 99 cannons. There are two arched doors, in which the main door faces south and the side door is at the back of the citadel as an escape route. Surrounding the citadel is a moat 4 m wide and 2.4 m deep.
In the same year 1834, King Minh Mang decided to upgrade Dien Hai citadel to a citadel. The citadel has three gates, east, south and west, with a perimeter of 589 m, the inner citadel is 5.08 m high, the outer citadel is 2.96 m. The moat is 19.08 m wide, 2.96 m deep. The total area of Dien Hai citadel, calculated according to the outer citadel, is 18,340 m2. At the four corners of the citadel, there are four protruding forts, each with 7 cannons. The arrangement of firepower at these protruding corners will change depending on the actual direction of the enemy's attack.
In 1840, the royal court built Phong Hai fortress on Son Tra peninsula, with the task of defending and controlling ships entering and leaving the eastern side of Da Nang bay. Typical defense points at Da Nang estuary include Da Nang fortress, Cu De fortress, Dien Hai citadel, An Hai citadel (controlling the entrance to Han river), Phong Hoa tower, Dinh Hai fortress, Phong Hai artillery, 7 Tran Duong citadels and Hai Van defense line.
"Overall, there is a complete defense system here, with symmetry, correspondence, and connections between points. Each position has its own functions and also supports and provides information when needed," said Mr. Le Tien Cong, Director of Hoang Sa Exhibition House.
Hai Van Quan relic is being restored. Photo: Nguyen Dong
After two times the French navy provoked in Da Nang (1847 and 1856), the Nguyen Dynasty placed 20 artillery carriages at Tran Duong fort, located above Phong Hai fortress; built sand dunes and planted thorn trees to cover the area from An Hai citadel to the foot of Son Tra mountain and from Dien Hai citadel to Thanh Khe port.
4,000 pounds of gunpowder were also transferred from Hue citadel to the defense posts. King Tu Duc built a new palace and placed more gun emplacements in Tran Hai citadel. A system of fortifications was also established from Thuan An gate, Tam Giang lagoon to Huong river.
Dr. Tran Dinh Hang, Director of the Vietnam Institute of Culture and Arts in Hue, said that from the beginning, the Nguyen Dynasty kings recognized the threat from the West and built a coastal defense system. In the capital Hue, the Nguyen Dynasty built a naval force called Kinh Ky Thuy Su. At Thuan An estuary, the court built a solid Tran Hai fort and established a dense system of fortifications on the Huong River, the main gateway for ships to enter the Hue Citadel.
The Nguyen Dynasty tried to build a defense system, but could not cope with the French-Spanish coalition. On September 1, 1858, the coalition opened fire on Da Nang, after three attacks, it broke through the coastal defense system, captured the forts and Dien Hai citadel.
25 years later, in 1883, the French army captured Thuan An estuary, Tran Hai citadel fell, the citadel's garrison officers Le Si and Le Chuan died in battle, and officers Lam Hoanh and Tran Thuc Nhan committed suicide by jumping into the river. The court was forced to sign the Quy Mui peace treaty (Harmand peace treaty, 1883), accepting French protection.
The most obvious vestiges remaining today of the Nguyen Dynasty's coastal defense system are Dien Hai and Tran Hai citadels, other citadels and forts no longer exist. After 1975, Tran Hai citadel became a border guard station at Thuan An port, and in 1997 it was recognized as a national historical relic. Dien Hai citadel was recognized as a special national relic by the Prime Minister in 2017.
Nguyen Dong - Vo Thanh
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