Citadel of the Hồ Dynasty ( vi, Thành nhà Hồ, Hán Nôm: 城家胡; also called ''Tây Đô castle'' or ''Tây Giai castle'') is a 15th century stone fortress in
Thanh Hóa
Thanh Hóa () is the capital of Thanh Hóa Province. The city is situated in the east of the province on the Ma River (Sông Mã), about 150 kilometers (93 miles) south of Hanoi and 1560 kilometers (969 miles) north of Ho Chi Minh City. Thanh ...
, Vietnam. It served as the western capital of the
Hồ dynasty
The Hồ dynasty (Vietnamese: , chữ Nôm: 茹胡； Sino-Vietnamese: ''Hồ triều, chữ Hán:'' 胡 朝) was a short-lived Vietnamese dynasty consisting of the reigns of two monarchs, Hồ Quý Ly (胡季犛) in 1400–01 and his second ...
(1398–1407) while also being an important political, economic and cultural centre in the 16th to the 18th century. It is located in Tây Giai commune,
Vĩnh Lộc District, in
Thanh Hóa Province, in Vietnam's
North Central Coast
Bắc Trung Bộ (literally North Central Region, and often translated as North Central Coast) is one of the regions of Vietnam. It consists of six provinces: Thanh Hóa, Nghệ An, Hà Tĩnh, Quảng Bình, Quảng Trị, Thừa Thiên–Hu ...
region.
Tây Đô castle is rectangular in shape. Its north-south side is in length and its east-west side is in length. There are four gates: one at the south (fore gate), one at the north (back gate), one at the east (left gate), and one at the west (right gate). The southern gate is high and wide. The castle was constructed from stone blocks, each of which is size on average. Except for its gates, the castle is mostly ruined.
The citadel was built in 1397. It was composed of an Inner Citadel made of limestone, the La Thanh Outer Wall and a 155 hectare altar. The design and decoration of architectural elements in terms of space management was meant to showcase a centralized imperial city ruled by royal power, based on Confucianism mixed with a Buddhist culture. The construction of the castle was built according to ''fengshui'' principles. The citadel was inscribed on UNESCO World Heritage Sites on June 27, 2011.
Gallery
File:Cổng Nam.jpg, General view
File:Tay Do castle South gate.JPG, South gate
File:Tay Do castle North gate.JPG, North gate
File:Tay Do castle East gate.JPG, East gate
File:Dan da thanh Tay Do.png, A stone cannonball found in Tây Đô castle
File:12-gieng_vua-dan_te_nam_giao.JPG, King's Well
References
External links
Hồ castle
15th-century fortifications
Forts in Vietnam
Buildings and structures in Thanh Hóa province
Architecture in Vietnam
Hồ dynasty
World Heritage Sites in Vietnam
Tourist attractions in Thanh Hóa province
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