Records from ancient documents and results of excavations and heritage surveys show that the Ho Dynasty Citadel was planned and built very systematically and on a large scale. Outside the four gates of the citadel are bustling streets of trade, urban areas, etc. The once bustling streets of the capital are now only a thing of the past, replaced by the presence of traditional villages. Next to the stone citadel, dozens of traditional villages are distributed in the buffer zone and surrounding areas as witnesses to history. The names of Xuan Giai, Tay Giai, Dong Mon, Tho Phu, Phuong Giai villages, etc. have become connecting points and must-see sights on the journey to the land of Tay Do and the Ho Dynasty Citadel.
Going back in history, along with the construction of the citadel, the Ho Dynasty built streets such as Hoa Nhai Street and the wards of Thanh, Thi, Chac, Bai Cho, Ho Me, Van Ninh, Lan Giai... Hoa Nhai Street is located on the main street running from the South gate of the citadel to the foot of Dun Mountain (also known as Hoa Street). Regarding the market, there is Tay Do Market located in Lan Giai Ward, on the West gate of An Ton Citadel. The expansion of streets and markets by the Ho Dynasty attracted craftsmen and merchants to come and do business. At the same time, there were also officials from the Tran and Ho dynasties who stayed in this An Ton land. Therefore, at one time, Hoa Nhai Street was very bustling, bustling with buyers and sellers.
Through historical upheavals, along with the end of the Ho Dynasty, the bustling streets were no longer there, returning the rustic, simple appearance to the villages. The bustling Hoa Nhai street gradually transformed into the purely agricultural Xuan Nhai/Xuan Giai village. Just a slight change in the village name showed many changes.
Coming to Tay Giai village, listen to the story of the Ho Dynasty building the citadel and constructing the capital to better understand the history of the traditional villages at the foot of the stone citadel. Memories of Lan Giai ward (Tay Nhai, Tay Ve) under the Ho Dynasty still exist in the artifacts and traces left here. In the past, Lan Giai ward had streets and a market located on a high land. The streets were paved with stone from the West Gate of An Ton citadel to the bank of Ma River, where there was a royal wharf. Like Xuan Giai, since the ward and market were established, craftsmen and traders gathered here to live and make a living. Later, during the years when the Ming Dynasty invaded our country and occupied Tay Do citadel, the traders and craftsmen left for other places, leaving only the simple farmers to stick to the fields.
Up to now, Tay Giai village still preserves many typical historical and cultural values such as: The ancient house of Mr. Pham Ngoc Tung's family, Tay Giai village communal house, etc. The lifestyle and way of thinking are still purely agricultural, simple, and uphold traditional cultural values. Mr. Trinh Van Chien, Secretary of Tay Giai village Party cell, enthusiastically shared about the village's mutual aid association - a model of great solidarity that is both rustic and imbued with humanistic values, inherited and promoted by generations of descendants from generation to generation, becoming a valuable beauty.
From the years of deprivation or when life has eased many difficulties, the purpose and meaning of the Tay Giai village mutual aid association has always promoted the spirit of sharing, kindness, and strengthening the village and clan relationship through the most practical actions. Every month, 6 households of 2 clans (big and small clans) belonging to the mutual aid association will receive rice donations from other members of the clan. Every year, they will elect Mr. Cau to be the person who runs their activities. Every month, at Mr. Cau's command, the clan members will bring rice to contribute, then divide it equally among those 6 households. Households that have received rice this month will not receive it in the following months but will be transferred to other households.
In the event of a member passing away, upon receiving an order from Mr. Cau, all members must be present, regardless of the time. In cases of “force majeure” such as members being old, weak, sick or working far away, they must report to Mr. Cau and “authorize” their wives and children to go instead. During the roll call, any absent member will be recorded and fined. These are the regulations that the mutual aid association maintains and strictly implements, even though there are no legal constraints or regulations. That further demonstrates the awareness, responsibility, and “admirable” community spirit of the people here.
The beauty of each house shines from the village lifestyle. With an age of more than 210 years, the ancient house of Mr. Pham Ngoc Tung's family is not only a "witness" of a family, a clan but also a parallel history of the formation and development of the village, commune, and the entire Tay Do region. The house was built in 1810 by the hands of talented craftsmen from Nam Ha (today's Ha Nam) and Dat Tai village (Hoang Hoa, Thanh Hoa). The house has 7 wooden compartments, with an architecture of overlapping beams, rafters and overlapping beams, rafters. The roof is tiled; each pattern is meticulously and delicately carved according to the themes of "four sacred animals", "four seasons", stylized longevity characters... In September 2002, the Ministry of Culture - Information (now the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) coordinated to restore it on the principle of ensuring originality. After restoration, the house was recognized by UNESCO as one of the 10 most typical ancient folk houses in Vietnam. In 2004, the project to restore this ancient folk house won the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Regional Award for Cultural Heritage Conservation.
As the 7th generation descendant of the Pham family, Mr. Pham Ngoc Tung and his family always feel lucky and proud to live in a centuries-old ancient house, which is also a place of worship for the family. Under this roof, he and his family have experienced all the joys and sorrows of life; it is a place where the descendants of the Pham family, far and near, offer incense to show their respect to their ancestors. In particular, with its architectural, historical and cultural values, the ancient house of Mr. Pham Ngoc Tung's family is one of the places that attracts many tourists to visit and learn. Mr. Tung said: "Preserving and maintaining a durable wooden house over time is difficult, how to maintain the family tradition and customs that have been formed and continued through many generations is the most important thing". Therefore, Mr. Tung always teaches his children: "No matter how life changes, we must be determined to preserve the ancient house and preserve family ethics. To keep the ancient house as an impressive highlight in the heritage area forever".
The construction of the Ho Dynasty Citadel and the relocation of the capital to An Ton have created profound changes in the countryside "at the end of the water and the beginning of the mountain" to become the political center of the whole country. There, the history of the formation and development of ancient villages is a vivid proof of those changes. Mr. Trinh Huu Anh, Deputy Director of the Ho Dynasty Citadel World Cultural Heritage Conservation Center shared: "One of the differences of the Ho Dynasty Citadel heritage is that the community is currently making a living right in the core area; traditional villages surround the four gates of the citadel with high density, containing many typical tangible and intangible cultural values. The vitality of traditional villages plays a particularly important role and significance in the overall cultural space of the Ho Dynasty Citadel. The richness and diversity of traditional villages allow the center to build an open strategy to maximize the cultural values of the buffer zone to deploy more tours and routes to serve tourism development".
In the master plan for preserving and promoting the value of the Ho Dynasty Citadel relic and its surrounding areas in association with tourism development according to Decision No. 1316/QD-TTg, dated August 12, 2015 of the Prime Minister, the organization of space and landscape architecture of traditional villages is one of the highlights. Accordingly, Xuan Giai village takes the space and landscape architecture of religious and belief works as the core of the layout. Both sides of Hoe Nhai Street are renovated and the facade is decorated (no sidewalk) to create a traditional architectural style. Hoe Nhai Street is paved with stone based on archaeological results, and some places on the road are built with archaeological exhibition pits. Dong Mon and Tay Giai villages take Dong Mon communal house, Tay Giai communal house and the ancient house of Mr. Pham Ngoc Tung's family (Tay Giai village) as the core. Preserving the architecture of houses in the village in the form of traditional rural houses in the North Central Delta. Xuan Giai field and Nam Giao field are preserved as traditional rice fields, exploited for tourism purposes...
Decision No. 1316/QD-TTg is of particular importance for the preservation and promotion of the value of the World Cultural Heritage of the Ho Dynasty Citadel and its surrounding areas. Therefore, in order to further improve the preservation and promotion of the value of the Ho Dynasty Citadel and its surrounding areas, including traditional villages, the most important thing is to accelerate the implementation of the contents and projects according to Decision No. 1316/QD-TTg. At the same time, the Ho Dynasty Citadel World Cultural Heritage Conservation Center continues to promote the spirit of dynamism, creativity and responsibility; on the one hand, connecting with tourism and travel agencies to build tours, sightseeing routes and experiences to attract tourists; on the other hand, closely coordinating with local authorities and communities in the preservation and promotion of the value of relics and culture within traditional villages...
Source: https://vhds.baothanhhoa.vn/nhung-ngoi-lang-truyen-thong-duoi-chan-thanh-nha-ho-33760.htm
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