Ho Dynasty Citadel is located in Vinh Loc district (Thanh Hoa province), is a majestic, unique stone citadel architecture, one of a kind in East Asia and Southeast Asia in the late 14th and early 15th centuries. With its outstanding and distinct values, in June 2011, UNESCO recognized Ho Dynasty Citadel as a World Cultural Heritage.
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Ho Dynasty Citadel - World Cultural Heritage
The great work of East Asia According to historical records, the Ho Dynasty Citadel was built in just 3 months (from January to March) in 1397. The Ho Dynasty Citadel covers an area of 155.5 hectares, including the Inner Citadel (142.2 hectares), La Thanh (9.0 hectares) and Nam Giao Altar (4.3 hectares), located in a buffer zone with an area of 5,078.5 hectares. The citadel was built in an area with beautiful natural scenery, between the Ma River and the Buoi River (in Vinh Loc district). The architecture of the Ho Dynasty Citadel is divided into 2 main walls. These are La Thanh and Hoang Thanh. The wall is 8m high on average, consisting of two layers: the outer layer is stone, the inner layer is soil. La Thanh is the outer wall protecting all the architecture and residents in the Citadel, built by Ho Quy Ly in September 1399, about 10km long. La Thanh is about 2-3km from the Hoang Thanh in all directions. The boundary from the stone wall area inwards is the Imperial Citadel area. This is where the mandarins and royal family in the court lived and worked. |
Hoe Nhai Street - Royal Street connecting the Imperial Citadel to the Nam Giao Altar
The Imperial Citadel area has a nearly square plan, the main facade facing Southeast, with each wall nearly 900m long. Inside the Imperial Citadel are Nhan Tho Palace (Ho Quy Ly's residence), Hoang Nguyen Palace (where the King held court), Phu Cuc Palace, Dong Thai Mieu, Tay Thai Mieu...
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Huge blocks of stone were chiseled into squares and stacked on top of each other to create a sturdy wall.
Scientists assess that the outstanding and distinct value of the Ho Dynasty Citadel is the demonstration of the ability to build and arrange giant stone blocks, which were squarely chiseled to absolute precision, to build a great work of the East Asia and Southeast Asia region in the late 14th and early 15th centuries. Outstanding global values The Ho Dynasty Citadel Heritage was recognized by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage according to criteria (ii) and (iv) on Cultural Heritage. The Ho Dynasty Citadel demonstrates the influence of Chinese Confucianism on a symbol of royal power concentrated in the late 14th and early 15th centuries. The citadel demonstrates new developments in architectural style in terms of technique and the acceptance of feng shui principles of urban planning in the context of East Asia and Southeast Asia, making full use of the surrounding natural conditions and uniquely combining elements into the construction and landscape of the citadel. |
The stone blocks are meticulously and precisely chiseled and assembled to create a rarely seen beautiful city gate.
The Ho Dynasty Citadel is an outstanding example of an architectural complex in a natural landscape that demonstrates the flourishing of Neo-Confucianism in late 14th-century Vietnam, a period when this ideology spread throughout East Asia and became a highly influential philosophy for governance in the region. The use of large stone blocks demonstrates the organizational strength of a Neo-Confucian state and the change in the direction of the main axis makes the Ho Dynasty Citadel different in design from Chinese standards. |
Tourists visit Ho Dynasty Citadel
Gradually revealing the shape of the glorious capital Each archaeological excavation in the Ho Dynasty Citadel area has uncovered many artifacts and architectures... Through that, gradually revealing the shape of a glorious capital, a unique citadel. In the 2008 excavation in the area of the South Gate of the Ho Dynasty Citadel, traces of the Hoe Nhai road, which UNESCO calls the Royal Road, were discovered. This road was built by the Ho Dynasty in 1402, connecting the Imperial Citadel area to the Nam Giao Altar, with a length of about 3.5km. This is considered the most intact ancient stone-paved road in the feudal capital today. |
Artifacts excavated in Ho Dynasty Citadel
In 2011, through excavations at the South Gate of the Ho Dynasty Citadel, scientists discovered a military structure built around the 16th century, a horseshoe-shaped stone rampart. This is the first defensive rampart discovered at the citadel gate in Vietnam. 2.5 km south of the South Gate of the Ho Dynasty Citadel is the Nam Giao Altar. The Nam Giao Altar of the Ho Dynasty Citadel is a relatively intact and oldest relic in the history of Giao altars in Vietnam. This is also an architectural work that has both common characteristics of Eastern Giao altars and unique features of Vietnam. |
Terracotta phoenix head excavated in Ho Dynasty Citadel
In addition, through archaeological excavations, scientists also discovered relatively intact architectural foundations in the areas of the Main Hall, East Thai Mieu, West Thai Mieu... In addition, many artifacts have been collected such as: Phoenix heads, mandarin ducks made of terracotta; bricks, Bodhi leaves decoration from the Tran - Ho dynasty; flat tiles, curved tiles with gutters from the Le dynasty; ceramics, enamel from the Tran - Ho and Le So dynasties; some clusters of stone balls and bullets...  |
Through excavations, a golden capital and unique citadel have gradually been revealed.
According to Associate Professor, Dr. Tong Trung Tin, former Director of the Institute of Archaeology, Chairman of the Vietnam Archaeological Association: “The Ho Dynasty Citadel still has many different architectural relics. All are planned and arranged in a very standardized, synchronous, harmonious, and methodical manner... If we do it well and scientifically, we can gradually understand and restore the oldest capital in Southeast Asia, gradually turning the heritage into one of the most outstanding cultural heritages of Vietnam, with strong appeal to the public at home and abroad”. Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/thanh-nha-ho-di-san-van-hoa-the-gioi-giua-long-xu-thanh-post714067.html
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