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HUE
Prior to WWII, Hue had been
the capital of Vietnam and
the residents of this city
act as if Hue still is. The
city has a long and
distinguished history.
During the Tet Offensive in
1968 the North Vietnamese
flag flew from the citadel
flag pole for 25 days. When
the Americans returned to
re-take the city, Hue was
virtually destroyed in over
ten days of terrible
conflicts. The film "Full
metal jacket" has much of
the major fighting set in
Hue, and accurately
represents just how
completely devastated the
city was. It is estimated
that over 10,000 people were
killed during this battle
including thousands of
people rounded up by the
North Vietnamese as
‘undesirables’ and shot or
buried alive. The city has
now been mainly rebuilt and
no real signs of the Tet
Offensive remain except for
the virtual destruction of
the Imperial city.
Hue citadel
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The construction of Hue
Citadel was commenced in
1801 by Emperor Gia Long.
This followed a period
during which the Nguyen
Lords moved the capital
around the surrounding area.
Since the initial
construction, the citadel
has been altered and
improved upon by a number of
Emperors including Emperor
Minh Mang, whose tomb is not
far from modern day Hue
city.
Unfortunately, Vietnam’s
history of war has boded ill
for the citadel, and much of
the interior, particularly
the Forbidden Purple City,
has been destroyed. It was
during the conflict with the
Americans that some terribly
bloody and vicious fighting
took place, which flattened
a lot of the inner city.
However, some parts do still
remain and will give you an
idea of what a magnificent
imperial capital Hue must
have been
The Citadel is almost 10 km
in circumference and its
walls are 6 m high and 20 m
thick. The moat encircles
the entire Citadel and is 23
m wide with a depth of 4 m.
There are ten entrances to
the citadel, many of which
are now bridges and roads
into the Citadel area (where
people live and farm).
Imperial city
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The Imperial City was
constructed in 1804 and is
square in shape, with a
perimeter of nearly 2.5 km.
It has four entrances: the
Noon Gate that is opposite
the flag tower, the Gate of
Humanity on the left side,
the Gate of Virtue on the
right hand side, and the
Gate of Peace at the rear.
The city is surrounded by
the Golden Waters pond that
flows into the lakes at the
northern corner of the city.
Each gate has a bridge
spanning the Golden Waters,
whilst the Noon Gate has
three bridges. In imperial
times, the centre bridge was
for the use of the Emperor
alone, whilst the other two
bridges were for the use of
his entourage.
Once you enter via the Noon
Gate, separating you from
the Great Rites Court is the
Thai Dich Lakes (Great
Liquid Lakes). These were
dug in 1883 and are spanned
by a central bridge, the
Trung Dao (Central path)
Bridge. The bridge has two
ornately designed gateway,
carved with dragons
slithering up and down them.
The Great Rites Court (also
known as the Esplanade of
Great Salutation) consists
of two paved terraces. The
upper was reserved for high
ranking civil and military
mandarins, whilst the lower
was for village officials
and elders. The steles on
each side of the court
indicate where each
official’s designated place
was. At the two corners of
the court stand two bronze
Kylins, which are believed
to bring peace.
Beyond the Great Rites Court
there is the Throne Palace.
This was used on meetings.
During these meetings, the
Emperor would sit on his
throne whilst only four top
ranking officials were
allowed in the palace. The
remainder of officials had
to stand outside according
to rank. The palace was
seriously damaged during the
Tet Offensive
Behind the Throne palace is
where the Great Golden Gate
once stood, marking the
entrance to the Forbidden
Purple City
The imperial City was not
destroyed to the extent of
the Forbidden Purple City
and there are number of
temples still standing,
although some are locked up
due to their instability.
These include Trieu Temple,
Thai Temple (a
reconstruction), the
Residence of Everlasting
Longevity, Phung Tien
Temple, Mieu Temple, and the
Hung Temple
Forbidden City
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Unfortunately most of the
Forbidden Purple City was
completely destroyed during
the Tet Offensive. Most of
what remains is no more than
the foundations of what must
have once been grand
buildings. There are a
number of smaller buildings
that were spared complete
destruction, and there are
some attempts at restoration
going on (and so there
should be, given the
admission price).
Before its destruction, the
Forbidden Purple City was
used solely by the emperor
and his family. It was
originally constructed
during the reign of Emperor
Gia Long and was known as
Cung Thanh (City of
Residences). It was not
until the reign of Emperor
Minh Mang that the name
Forbidden purple City was
adopted
The City has seven gates
linking it to the Imperial
City. From the Great Golden
Gate, you will enter a large
paved area, backed by the
foundations of everything
that used to be there. To
your left and right there
are two small buildings that
house many artefacts of the
City. In the left house, you
can dress up as an Emperor
and have your photo taken
sitting on a throne (really
makes you wonder sometimes).
There are only a handful of
buildings within the city
that have been completely
destroyed
Thien Mu Pagoda
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This pagoda overlooks the
southwest bank of the
Perfume River, around 4km
south of the railway bridge
crossing. This was the home
of the Buddhist monk Thich
Quang Duc, who burnt himself
to death in protest to the
Ngo Dinh Diem regime. The
motor car that took him to
the site of his
self-immolation in Ho Chi
Minh City in 1963 is out
back. The pagoda has been
adopted as the symbol of Hue
City and is very popular
with both foreign and local
tourists, hence the trinket
sellers and beggars out
front. Behind the pagoda is
a lovely garden and a large
glass encased smiling
Buddha. To the left of the
pagoda is a huge bell dating
to the 18 century and is
said to be audible 10 km
away
The road to Thien Mu Pagoda
runs along the bank of the
Perfume River and is great
for a late afternoon ride as
many boats are returning
upriver. The light is just
great so take your camera.
The road also passes by a
Portuguese church and also a
mid sized fresh produce
market, which stocks
excellent frui
The Imperial Tombs
Hue was the imperial centre
of the Nguyen Dynasty which
was founded in 1802 by
Emperor Gia Long, and lasted
until 1945. The banks of the
Perfume River around the
Imperial City became the
royal graveyard for the
thirteen rulers of this
area. The majority of
Vietnamese practice ancestor
worship, regarding death as
a passage into another
existence. They believe the
layout of a tomb affects the
soul’s journey to the spirit
world, and the fortunes of
the living relatives are
determined through formal
ceremonies to the dead and
protection of the tomb.
Desecration of a tomb would
have detrimental affects
upon both the living
ancestors and the souls
chance of reaching the
ultimate resting place in
the spirit world. The tombs
of the Emperors were even
more important as their
position would determine the
future of the Dynasty. The
Emperors of the Nguyen
Dynasty there fore
established their own Valley
of the Dead, which is
believed to be protected in
both the physical and
spiritual worlds
Tomb of Tu Duc
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Tu Duc was the Emperor of
Vietnam from 1848 to 1883.
He is regarded as one of the
more decadent cruel
Vietnamese Emperors.
Although he was a dedicated
Confucian, his lifestyle was
unusual in all areas. At
each mail he would have a
choice of fifty dishes that
were delivered by fifty
servants and prepared by
fifty chefs! He had over one
hundred wives and quite a
few girlfriends on the side,
although he never had
children. When Tu Duc drank
tea, the water was collected
as dew from lotus leaves. He
also had one of his brothers
put to death after his
involvement in a revolt
against him. His tomb was
constructed between 1864 and
1867 and is own of the more
grandiose tombs in Hue
City’s surrounds. In an
attempt to foil grave
robbers, his body was not
even buried in the tomb, and
all those who were involved
in the burial were beheaded.
His body and treasures are
at a destination that
remains unknown
The centrepiece of the tomb
is a huge stone tablet that
is estimated to weigh over
twenty tonnes upon which are
inscribed various
clarifications of his rule.
There are also a number of
temples and other buildings
within the tomb grounds,
along with a nice lake with
an island in the centre.
Towards the end of his rule,
Tu Duc spent a lot of time
on this island and generally
within his tomb, accompanied
by his entourage. The tomb
of Tu Duc is about 7 km out
of the centre of Hue city
Tomb of Minh Mang
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Minh Mang Emperor ruled from
1820 to 1840 and was
responsible for some of the
major construction upon the
Imperial City. It was also
the actions of Minh Mang
towards the Catholic
missionaries which first
brought French military
power to bear on Vietnam.
The ground of his tomb are
large and peaceful, and his
actual bomb oversees the
Lake of Tranquillity. The
first entrance is guarded by
a life size stone entourage
of soldiers, horses and
elephants, and opens to a
courtyard containing three
temples. Past the temples,
you will cross Trung Minh Ho
(The Lake of Impeccable
Clarity) which is bridged in
three places. The central
bridge was for the sole use
of the Emperor whilst the
other two were for his
entourage. Beyond the pond
there is Sung An Temple that
Minh Mang dedicated to his
Empress. Following this
temple you need to cross
another bridge before
reaching his tomb that is a
huge walled-in dirt mound,
which you cannot enter. To
give Minh Mang peace of mind
whilst ruling, all his
servants were eunuchs
Tomb of Khai Dinh
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Khai Dinh
Emperor
ruled from 1916 to 1925, and
his tomb majestically
appears from the side of a
mountain covered by forest.
Unfortunately, the tomb
lacks the harmonious
blending with nature that
many of the other tombs and
Vietnamese architecture
tries to achieve. This is
due to the fact that the
tomb was built earlier this
century during the French
colonial occupation and
under their influence. The
weather-stained and
blackened concrete walls
make the tomb seem older
than it actually is, but the
different style of Khai
Dinh’s tomb makes it worth a
visit
The tomb is layered, and
each stage is divided by
stairs. The entrance to the
tomb begins with a long
climb up from the street
level staircase that is
bound by dragon banisters.
This opens up onto a
courtyard, but it is the
second level that has a
stone statued entourage made
up of life size mandarins,
horses and elephants. You
must contend with more
stairs to get to the main
part of the tomb and to
where Emperor Khai Dinh is
buried. The Khai Dinh temple
is 10 km south of Hue City,
and a sealed road passes
straight past its entrance.
The view from the top is
quite beautiful, looking at
the plains and surrounding
mountains. The large white
statue farther south
standing on a hillside is of
Quan Am, the Goddess of
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