Promoting heritage values ​​to make Hue ancient capital an attractive destination

Hue is a land known as the land of heritage, the place that best preserves and conserves Vietnamese traditional culture and rituals, and is an unmissable destination for anyone who wants to explore the origins of the nation.

Historically, Hue was the cultural and political center of Dang Trong during the Nguyen Lords (1558-1777) and Tay Son Dynasty (1778-1802). In the following period, Hue was the capital of unified Vietnam (1802-1945), not only holding the position of political center but also cultural and religious center of Vietnam under Nguyen Dynasty.

The inheritance of unique values ​​of indigenous culture combined with the cultural quintessence of the monarchical dynasties in history and new values ​​formed during the Nguyen Dynasty have crystallized in the heart of the ancient capital of Hue a huge and extremely diverse complex of cultural and historical heritage, including both tangible and intangible heritage and documentary heritage that has been honored by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Hue Royal Architecture. (Source: Tourism Newspaper)

Land of heritage

Up to now, Hue owns many heritages of different types recognized by UNESCO: Complex of Hue Monuments (December 11, 1993 - World Cultural Heritage); Royal Court Music, Vietnamese Court Music (November 7, 2023 - Intangible and Oral Heritage of Humanity; November 4, 2008 - Representative Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity) and World Documentary Heritages: Woodblocks of Nguyen Dynasty (July 31, 2009), Royal Records of Nguyen Dynasty (October 30, 2017); before that, May 14, 2014 - Documentary Heritage of Asia-Pacific region and Poetry on Hue Royal Architecture (May 19, 2016 - Documentary Heritage of Asia-Pacific region) and Reliefs on Nine Bronze Urns in Hue Imperial Palace (May 8, 2024) - Documentary Heritage of Asia-Pacific region. It is worth mentioning that these heritages all belong to the Nguyen Dynasty, the last monarchy of Vietnam.

Up to now, Hue owns many heritages of different types honored by UNESCO. (Photo: Minh Chau)

In that complex, the Complex of Hue Monuments is a typical example of planning and construction, a diverse royal architectural system, including citadels, palaces, mausoleums, temples, pagodas, towns, gardens... comprehensively reflecting an oriental capital in its most brilliant period of development.

Despite the devastation of war, natural disasters and the erosion of time, this architectural complex is still quite intact and is being preserved and maintained very well thanks to the efforts of the entire Vietnamese community, along with the joint efforts of friends from all over the world.

Nha Nhac – Vietnamese court music is also a unique heritage that Hue still preserves. However, until the late 90s of the last century, this heritage was in a state of real danger due to the increasingly absent team of veteran artists and the lack of performance environment.

Nha Nhac – Hue Royal Court Music. (Photo: Minh Chau)

The tireless efforts of the team of conservationists in the ancient capital of Hue, the love for the profession and enthusiasm of the artisans, and the active support of UNESCO have revived Nha Nhac. This learned and noble performing art has not only been restored and performed in its birthplace, but has also been widely promoted in many countries around the world, and is one of the province's main art forms during the Hue Festivals.

As the capital of a dynasty that particularly valued education and knowledge, Hue was also the place where huge treasures of documents converged. Under the Nguyen Dynasty, the number of compiled and printed works was even greater than that of all previous dynasties combined.

Nguyen Dynasty Woodblocks (wooden blocks for printing works of the dynasty), Nguyen Dynasty Royal Records (1802-1945) – The court documents that were reviewed and approved by the king in vermilion ink, or the poems and literature carved, inlaid, and enameled on the royal architecture system in Hue are all large collections of documents and have special values.

Poetry on royal architecture. (Photo: Minh Chau)

Through the ups and downs of history, the Nguyen Dynasty Woodblocks with more than 34,600 plates are currently being kept and preserved at Archives Center IV (Da Lat); the Royal Records with hundreds of thousands of sheets are being preserved at National Archives Center I (Hanoi). Poetry and literature on Hue royal architecture (1802-1945) and the reliefs on Nine Bronze Urns in Hue Imperial Palace are the remaining parts in Hue as "heritage within heritage".

The above heritages have all received special attention for preservation and exploitation to promote their values. Recently, the Royal Records and Woodblocks of the Nguyen Dynasty have been “returning” to Hue in an impressive way through large-scale exhibitions at the Royal Palace with many different themes, creating opportunities for many tourists and local communities to learn more about the rich and unique heritage values ​​of the ancient capital of Hue.

In addition to the above heritages, the land rich in tradition of Thua Thien Hue, together with other localities, is also preserving two intangible heritages recognized by UNESCO: the worship of the Mother Goddess of the Three Realms (December 1, 2016) and the art of Bài Chòi in Central Vietnam (December 7, 2007).

Thua Thien - Hue always affirms that the value of the ancient capital's heritage and Hue's cultural identity is the foundation for development, contributing to socio-economic growth, so that the ancient capital of Hue can develop quickly and sustainably from its own strengths and characteristics.

Up to now, the work of preserving and promoting the value of Hue cultural heritage has entered a phase of stability and sustainable development. Hue is evaluated by domestic and foreign individuals and organizations, especially UNESCO, as a leading locality in heritage conservation, with the potential to become a standard center for transferring conservation technology in the Asia-Pacific region.

Developing the brand of Hue Festival four seasons

Over 24 years of organization, Hue Festival has achieved outstanding achievements, gradually affirming its position, consolidating the Festival brand at national and international level, contributing to creating a driving force to stimulate tourism, preserve culture and develop the economy - society of Thua Thien Hue province.

In an effort to become a typical Festival city of Vietnam, Hue Festival 2024 continues to be a unique cultural activity, attractive for its traditional, impressive and humane nature, turning people and tourists into both creative and enjoyable subjects.

Here, there are not only typical art programs, representing the imprints of many domestic and international cultures for tourists to participate in, but also royal festivals, folk festivals... which have been painstakingly recreated, preserved or new festivals suitable for trends, meeting the enjoyment needs of the public.

Hue Festival contributes to promoting socio-economic development, making Thua Thien Hue worthy of being one of the major and unique centers of the country and Southeast Asia in terms of culture and tourism, contributing to the successful implementation of Resolution 54-NQ/TW of the Politburo on building and developing Thua Thien Hue province to 2030, with a vision to 2045, with the goal that by 2050, Thua Thien Hue will become a centrally-run city on the basis of preserving and promoting the value of the ancient capital's heritage and Hue's cultural identity, with cultural, heritage, ecological, landscape, environmentally friendly and intelligent characteristics.

A street festival within the framework of Hue Festival. (Photo: Minh Chau)

Following the success of previous Festival seasons, Hue Festival 2024 will continue to exploit the festival series throughout the year, gradually building a new festival program system. The goal of the four-season Hue Festival brand is to stimulate demand, increase the ability to develop tourism economy, and festivals therefore have fresh features to meet the changes in needs and new trends of the public and tourists.

Spring Festival - Spring of the Ancient Capital (January - March) is highlighted by royal Tet activities, traditional Tet cultural space and extremely rich and unique folk festivals, attracting the response and participation of tourists.

Summer Festival - Shining Imperial City (April - June) with the highlight of Hue International Arts Festival Week 2024 contributes to introducing and promoting towards building Hue to truly become a typical Festival city of Vietnam.

Autumn Festival - Hue in Autumn (July - September) focuses on the Mid-Autumn Festival Program with Hue Lantern Festival 2024, combining activities of Lion - Lion - Dragon street performance, display, installation, lantern procession, traditional Mid-Autumn Festival experience, introducing the beauty of Vietnamese Mid-Autumn Festival culture.

Winter Festival – Hue Winter (October – December) highlights Hue Music Week 2024 and ends with the Countdown Program to say goodbye to Hue Festival 2024 – welcome the new year 2025.

Recently, the Hue International Arts Festival Week 2024 (from June 7 to June 12) with the theme "Cultural heritage with integration and development" gathered nearly 30 art troupes from France, Belgium, Spain, Canada, Japan, China, Korea and Vietnam, bringing to the audience dozens of art programs imbued with the identity of many cultural regions of countries around the world.

More than 565 domestic and international artists, musicians, singers, actors, and a large number of artists, extras, students, etc. participated in displaying the uniqueness, sophistication, and diversity of art forms, and gave their all on stage to bring the audience an artistic feast filled with cultural identity, expressing the desire for a world of peace, friendship, cooperation, and development among nations.

The art programs blend in the ancient space of a cultural capital with 8 heritages recognized by UNESCO. With 12 main programs, 24 art performances on stages and nearly 10 response, companion, display and exhibition activities taking place continuously in the province, the activities in the Hue International Art Festival Week have attracted a large number of audiences to attend and enjoy. Hue - the Festival City of Vietnam is still increasingly radiant with the vitality of a green, environmentally friendly and sustainably developed urban area.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/phat-huy-gia-tri-di-san-de-co-do-hue-thanh-diem-den-hap-dan-280665.html