Vijaya (meaning ''Victorious''; Chinese: 尸唎皮奈,
pinyin
Hanyu Pinyin (), often shortened to just pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Mandarin Chinese in China, and to some extent, in Singapore and Malaysia. It is often used to teach Mandarin, normally written in Chinese for ...
: ''Shīlì Pínài''; Vietnamese: ''Thị Lợi Bi Nai''; Chinese alt: 新州, pinyin: Xīnzhōu, lit. 'New Province'; Vietnamese alts: ''Đồ Bàn'' or ''Chà Bàn''), also known as Vijayapura, is an ancient city in
Bình Định province
B, or b, is the second letter of the Latin-script alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' bee'' (pronounced ), plural ''bees''. It r ...
,
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
. From the 12th century, it served as the capital of the Kingdom of
Champa
Champa (Cham: ꨌꩌꨛꨩ; km, ចាម្ប៉ា; vi, Chiêm Thành or ) were a collection of independent Cham polities that extended across the coast of what is contemporary central and southern Vietnam from approximately the 2nd cen ...
until it was conquered by
Dai Viet
Dai may refer to:
Names
* Dai (given name), a Welsh or Japanese masculine given name
* Dai (surname) (戴), a Chinese surname
Places and regimes
* Dai Commandery, a commandery of the state of Zhao and in early imperial China
* Dai County, in Xinz ...
during the
Champa–Dai Viet War of 1471.
Geography, economy, transport
Vijaya was centred on the lowland area along lower
Côn River, in what is now the south of
Bình Định Province
B, or b, is the second letter of the Latin-script alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' bee'' (pronounced ), plural ''bees''. It r ...
. To the east of the plain and near the estuary of the river is a strategic and well-protected location for a port. This led to the rise of
Cảng Thị Nại, one of the major ports of Champa. The river leading up into the highlands to the west was important for the trade with highland peoples supplying Champa with luxury goods such as
eaglewood
Agarwood, aloeswood, eaglewood or gharuwood is a fragrant dark resinous wood used in incense, perfume, and small carvings. This resinous wood is most commonly referred to as "Oud" or "Oudh". It is formed in the heartwood of aquilaria trees when ...
for export. Vijaya's geography was also important for its agriculture. With one of the larger rivers of Champa, its soils were more fertile than that of many other places.
[Tran 2009, 173] This allowed for a relatively large concentration of people near the centre of Vijaya, which resulted in a relatively large number of temples.
According to two noteworthy 15th century reports noted in Vietnamese grand chronicles, the ''
Toàn thư,'' Vijaya had a small number of households, just 2,500, or approximately 10,000 inhabitants. More accurate, the second report states that the city had about 70,000 people living inside.
History
The area around Vijaya was probably one of earliest landfalls of the
Cham people
The Cham (Cham: ''Čaṃ'') or Champa people (Cham: , ''Urang Campa''; vi, Người Chăm or ; km, ជនជាតិចាម, ) are an Austronesian ethnic group. From the 2nd century to 1832 the Cham populated Champa, a contiguous territo ...
in what is now Vietnam.
[Vickery 2009, p. 47] However, its architecture implies that it did not become important until the 11th or 12th century.
[ Records suggest that there was an attack on Vijaya's citadel from the Vietnamese in 1069 (when Dai Viet was ruled by Lý Nhân Tông) to punish Champa for armed raiding in Vietnam. The Cham king Rudravarman III was defeated and captured and offered Champa's three northern provinces to Dai Viet (present-day Quảng Bình and ]Quảng Trị
Quảng Trị () is a district-level town in Quảng Trị Province in the North Central Coast region of Vietnam. It is second of two municipalities in the province after the provincial capital Đông Hà.
History
The Sino-Vietnamese name Quả ...
provinces).[Maspero, G., 2002, The Champa Kingdom, Bangkok: White Lotus Co., Ltd., ]
In Champa at the time there were two ruling kings– Parameśvaravarman and Rudravarman III
Rudravarman III (Chinese: 施里律律茶盤麻帝楊溥; pinyin: ''Shīlǐ Lülǜchápánmádì Yáng Pǔ'') was a medieval king of Champa, ruled the kingdom from 1062 to 1069/1074.
Rudravarman III was a grandson of king Jaya Paramesvaravarman I ...
–in Nha Trang
Nha Trang ( or ; ) is a coastal city and capital of Khánh Hòa Province, on the South Central Coast of Vietnam. It is bounded on the north by Ninh Hòa District, Ninh Hoà town, on the south by Cam Ranh city and on the west by Diên Khánh Distri ...
and Phan Rang Phan may refer to:
* Phan (surname), a Vietnamese family name
* Phan District, Chiang Rai Province, Thailand
* Phan River, Bình Thuận Province, Vietnam
* Phan (tray)
Phan ( th, พาน, ) is an artistically decorated tray with pedestal. It ...
, respectively. Rudravarman of Phan Rang had good relation with the Chinese Song dynasty
The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
. None of them ever did manage to travel far north to counter the Vietnamese. Northern Champa at that time was ruled by a Cham chief/warlord with title Śrī Yuvarāja Mahāsenāpati, not related to the Parameśvaravarman– Bhadravarman–Rudravarman family.
The Vietnamese raid in 1069 began embarking from a port in Hue on 28th day of the third month, reached their destination of the third day of fourth month, then engaged with the Cham. Sailing from Hue to Vijaya (Qui Nhon) within six days doesn't make sense. King Ðệ Củ/Chế Củ had been fleeing into Cambodia (Zhenla), was then captured. They pillaged the city of Indrapura (Phật thệ) for one month, then it took one month for them to return to Hanoi. Michael Vickery insists that the 1069 Vietnamese raid did not target Vijaya, but probably Châu Sa & Cổ Lũy citadels on the north and south banks of the Trà Khúc River
Trà Khúc River ( vi, Sông Trà Khúc) is a river in Vietnam. It is the largest river in Quảng Ngãi Province.''Atlat Dia li Viet Nam'' (Geographical Atlas of Vietnam). NXB Giao Duc, Hanoi: 2010
File:Tra khuc watershed.png, Map of the Trà K ...
in Quảng Ngãi
Quảng Ngãi () is a city in central Vietnam. It serves as the capital city of Quảng Ngãi Province. Quảng Ngãi City borders Tư Nghĩa District to the south and west, Sơn Tịnh District to the northwest and Bình Sơn District to the ...
province. Châu Sa was a large port city named Amaravati, has the temple of Chánh Lộ dating to eleventh century. He also speculates that Chế Củ was certainly not king Rudravarman III, but a Cham chief somewhere in the north. The earliest mention of Vijaya as a Cham city was dated to around 1153 to 1184, so the explicitly application of Vijaya for a location of Champa prior that period should be considered an historical anachronism.
Vijaya was involved in wars with Angkor
Angkor ( km, អង្គរ , 'Capital city'), also known as Yasodharapura ( km, យសោធរបុរៈ; sa, यशोधरपुर),Headly, Robert K.; Chhor, Kylin; Lim, Lam Kheng; Kheang, Lim Hak; Chun, Chen. 1977. ''Cambodian-Engl ...
(now Cambodia
Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...
) in the 12th and 13th centuries. Khmer military incursions into Champa were successful for some time and Suryavarman II
Suryavarman II ( km, សូរ្យវរ្ម័នទី២), posthumously named Paramavishnuloka, was a Khmer king from 1113 AD to 1145/1150 AD and the builder of Angkor Wat, the largest religious monument in the world which he dedicated t ...
managed to subdue Vijaya in the 1145, deposing Jaya Indravarman III,[ but the Khmer were later defeated in 1149.] Vijaya was at times dominated by the Khmer king Jayavarman VII
Jayavarman VII, posthumous name of Mahaparamasaugata ( km, ជ័យវរ្ម័នទី៧, c. 1122–1218), was king of the Khmer Empire. He was the son of King Dharanindravarman II (r. 1150–1160) and Queen Sri Jayarajacudamani.
He w ...
.[Vickery 2009, p. 54] The Khmer king relied on Cham supporters for his successful military campaigns in both Angkor and Champa.[
Vijaya was captured by the Yuan army led by Mongol commander Sogetu in early 1283. The Mongols were ultimately driven away, but the city was sacked. In 1377, the city was unsuccessfully besieged by a Vietnamese army in the ]Battle of Vijaya
The Battle of Vijaya (Vietnamese language: ''trận Đồ Bàn'') between Đại Việt and the kingdom of Champa was a siege of Vijaya, the Cham capital, in 1377. The Vietnamese forces were defeated and the Đại Việt emperor, Trần Duệ Tô ...
. Major wars with Vietnam were fought again in the 15th century, which eventually led to the defeat of Vijaya and the demise of Champa in 1471. The citadel of Vijaya was besieged for one month in 1403 when the Vietnamese troops had to withdraw because of a shortage of food. The final attack came in early 1471 after almost 70 years without major military confrontation between Champa and Dai Viet. It is interpreted to have been a reaction to Champa asking China for reinforcements to attack Dai Viet. Much of Champa was dissolved after the 1471 Cham–Vietnamese War; Vijaya was complete destroyed; while other southern principalities had a protectorate-like status within Dai Viet.
Architecture
Vijaya's architecture distinguishes it from other Champa centers, because it used a combination of stone and brick elements,[Vickery 2009, p. 48] while most other Cham structures only used bricks. This suggests some influence from Cambodia
Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...
n Angkor
Angkor ( km, អង្គរ , 'Capital city'), also known as Yasodharapura ( km, យសោធរបុរៈ; sa, यशोधरपुर),Headly, Robert K.; Chhor, Kylin; Lim, Lam Kheng; Kheang, Lim Hak; Chun, Chen. 1977. ''Cambodian-Engl ...
.[ It also points to the relative abundance of labour in Vijaya compared to other Champa centres of powers, because processing stones for construction was more labour-intensive than the production of bricks.][ Vijaya's style of architecture seems to have been dominant throughout Champa for some time, given the later classification of the architecture from the period between the 12th and 14th centuries as the 'Binh Dinh style'.][Tran 2009, p. 179]
Remains
A relatively large number of towers built in Vijaya have been preserved in Bình Định Province
B, or b, is the second letter of the Latin-script alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' bee'' (pronounced ), plural ''bees''. It r ...
. They include the ruins of the citadel: Cánh Tiên tower and several temple towers. The Dương Long towers are among Southeast Asia's tallest Hinduist buildings.[
]
Capital of Tây Sơn dynasty
The ruins of Tây Sơn era Hoang De citadel lies within the old Champa city walls.
References
{{reflist, 2
;Bibliography
*Hardy, Andrew (2009): "Eaglewood and the Economic History of Champa and Central Vietnam". in Hardy, Andrew et al. (ed): ''Champa and the Archaeology of Mỹ Sơn (Vietnam)''. NUS Press, Singapore
*Nguyễn Đình Đầu (2009): "The Vietnamese Southward Expansion, as Viewed Through the Histories". in Hardy, Andrew et al. (ed): ''Champa and the Archaeology of Mỹ Sơn (Vietnam)''. NUS Press, Singapore
*Trần Kỳ Phương (2009): "The Architecture of the Temple-Towers of Ancient Champa". in Hardy, Andrew et al. (ed): ''Champa and the Archaeology of Mỹ Sơn (Vietnam)''. NUS Press, Singapore
*Vickery, Michael (2009): "A Short History of Champa". in Hardy, Andrew et al. (ed): ''Champa and the Archaeology of Mỹ Sơn (Vietnam)''. NUS Press, Singapore
Champa
Buildings and structures in Bình Định province
Destroyed cities
vi:Đồ Bàn