Published:  00:00 Friday - September 24, 2010

Ha Noi has the most ancient citadels in the country. Most popular are Co Loa, Thang Long Royal Citadel and Son Tay.

Located in Dong Anh district, 17km from the centre of Hanoi, the Co Loa citadel has seen numerous archaeological digs. Discoveries have shown the continuous development of cultures, from the Bronze, Stone and Iron ages to the height of the Dong Son culture.

Archaeologists say that Co Loa was the most ancient citadel in Vietnam with unique architecture. The citadel was the country’s former capital under King An Duong Vuong dynasty in the third century BC and the Ngo Quyen era in the 10^th century.

The archaeological relics show the techniques used for building ramparts and reveal the military tactics used by the ancient Vietnamese people, who took advantage of the natural terrain to build the meandering citadel.

On the 6^th day of the first lunar month of the year, the local people hold an annual festival to remember the citadel builders and King An Duong Vuong.

Thang Long Imperial Citadel has been recognised as a world cultural heritage site, as it boasts treasures, both buried and visible, and is more than 1,300 years old.

The site includes the Hoang Dieu archaeological site (No 18) and the central axis of the Hanoi ancient citadel, which are both nestled in the Forbidden Area in the heart of Thang Long Imperial Citadel.

At the Hoang Dieu site, scientists found remains typical of the Ly, Tran and Le dynasties that reveal a lot about the origin of the Thang Long Imperial Citadel more than 1,300 years ago.

Lying adjacent to Kinh Thien Palace to the west, the Hoang Dieu site is part of the Forbidden Area from the Ly dynasty to the end of the Le Trung Hung era.

From December 2002 to March 2004, archaeologists excavated numerous artefacts on the 19,000 sq. m of the site, exposing layers of cultures from different dynasties which reigned in Vietnam and proving that Thang Long Imperial City played a key role as a political centre throughout the last 1,300 years.

Architectural vestiges of palaces, pavilions, and the foundations of parts of the Imperial Citadel have also been revealed.

A system of ancient wells was also discovered, including two believed to exist in the Dai La era, two built under the Ly dynasty, two under the Tran dynasty, and six under the Le dynasty. These wells have a similar shape and size to those found in the forbidden citadels in Japan, China and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

The Hoang Dieu site has supplied clear evidence of the site’s important role throughout the nation’s history, from 1010 to 1789.

Situated to the east of the Hoang Dieu site is Hanoi’s ancient citadel area - the remainder of the central axis of the Vauban building.

Many buildings inside the citadel were constructed by the French during the 1880s after they occupied Hanoi. There are also some important buildings built after 1954, which served as the headquarters of the Defence Ministry until 2004.

Son Tay citadel, covering 16 ha in Son Tay township, 40km from Hanoi’s centre, has military rampart with special architectural features.

The ancient military structure was built during the Nguyen dynasty, under the reign of King Minh Mang in 1822.

The citadel was built in a square shape, with each wall about 400m long and 5m high, built in the Vauban style.

One of the four main ports, or gates, the south gate, was called Tien (front) gate; the north was the Hau (back) gate, the east, Ta (left) main and the west, Huu (right) the main entrance.

After nearly 200 years and a lot of devastation, the ancient Son Tay citadel now has only the walls, doors, door posts, two cannons and some ruins at Vong Lau, the foundation of Kinh Thien palace and the wells.

Hanoi is investing in preserving these citadels to attract more tourists to the city.