Discovering Vietnam's Ancient Capital: the Archaeology and History of the Imperial Citadel of Thăng Long-Hanoi

[From the foreword]: As Vietnam entered the 21st century it began to prepare for the 1,000th anniversary of the founding of its capital, Thăng Long (now Hanoi). In the heart of the city, a rescue excavation was launched on land earmarked for me construction or a new National Assembly building. Archaeologists unearthed thirteen centuries of vestiges of the ancient city of Thăng Long, yielding a richer record than anyone had dared to hope for. Construction plans were shelved, excavations widened, and at the city’s millennial celebrations in 2010, UNESCO announced its inscription of the Imperial Citadel of Thăng Long on its World Heritage List.

This archaeological discovery has two facets. The first, told here by the archaeologists involved, is the story of the excavations, as their trowels brought to light the bricks, tiles, pillars, sculptures and ceramics of countless ancient temples and palaces. The second is the history of the citadel itself, in its early years as an outpost of the Chinese empire, in its heyday as the Forbidden City of Vietnam’s emperors, and in its downgrading and eventual destruction at the hands of the Nguyễn dynasty and French colonial rulers. The book relates the questions, findings and emotions of research team members as the imperial citadel took shape before their eyes. Drawing on the results of their work, it presents a historical narrative of the continuous development of a regional political centre on this site. 

Bringing together history, urban archaeology and a fascinating story of the interplay of influences from China and Southeast Asia, this is also a fascinating case of an Asian capital city coming to understand its history, and deciding how to preserve its archaeological remains.

‘Annamite map of Hanoi’ collected betw. 1876 and 1883 [Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, DCP-GE A‑395 (RES), public domain, repr. in Discovering Vietnam’s Ancient Capital, 2024]. 

1) ​‘Annamite map of Hanoi’ collected betw. 1876 and 1883 [Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, DCP-GE A‑395 (RES), public domain]. 2) ​‘Environs de Hanoi’ [Hanoi and surroundings], French Expeditionary Corps in Tonkin, Chief of Staff Surveyor Service, 1885 [BNF DCP-GE 521, public domain]. 3) Street map of Hanoi, c. 2000 [cartographer: Lee Li Kheng].

1) ​‘Annamite map of Hanoi’ collected betw. 1876 and 1883 [Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, DCP-GE A‑395 (RES), public domain]. 2) ​‘Environs de Hanoi’ [Hanoi and surroundings], French Expeditionary Corps in Tonkin, Chief of Staff Surveyor Service, 1885 [BNF DCP-GE 521, public domain]. 3) Street map of Hanoi, c. 2000 [cartographer: Lee Li Kheng].

1) Lý-dynasty terracotta phoenix, symbol of the empress, exhibited at the Thăng Long Imperial Citadel on-site museum (53 cm x 62,5 cm). 2) Pavement with cockle shells unearthed in Section B, c. 2001 [photos: Institute of Archaeology, Hanoi].

1) Lý-dynasty terracotta phoenix, symbol of the empress, exhibited at the Thăng Long Imperial Citadel on-site museum (53 cm x 62,5 cm). 2) Pavement with cockle shells unearthed in Section B, c. 2001 [photos: Institute of Archaeology, Hanoi].

As the capital city of Dai Viet [Đại Việt]- ancient name of Vietnam — and the seat of its independent dynasties — the Ly, Tran and Lê -, Thang Long faded into oblivion starting from 1802, a few decades before the French army started its push inward, when the Nguyen lords established their grip over the country from Phu Xuan (later Hue) and their rival faction, the Trinh family, was confined to the northern regions. 

What the 2000 – 2004 excavations have shown, among many other findings, is that the Thang Long period marked not only a peak in the irredentist aspirations against Chinese hegemony but also a profound renewal of cultural references. As one of the leading Vietnamese architects on the citadel site, Nguyễn Tiến Đông, put it — before passing away prematurely two years before this collective book was published -

The Ly-Tran period appears as a time of strong renaisssance, and its achievements were not an accident of chance. On the basis of a local culture containing the vestiges of Dong Son culture combined with cultural factors from abroad, the Vietnamese [people] created architectural, sculptural and musical traditions — and a capital ‑that were Viêt in character but also contained much of the essence of other civilisations. One source of inspiration was Champa, a neighbouring country that possessed a dazzling civilisation and an attractive artistic tradition. This southern source became one of the factors impacting the reduction of the imitation of China, or as the Trần Quốc Vượng called it,​‘de-sinisation’.

A millennium of Chinese rule meant that the Chinese inputs to Việt culture were multiple and contributed, along with indigenous factors, to the country’s unique southern identity. For Trần Quốc Vượng [1], ​‘imitation of China was inevitable’ for the following reasons:

a. Because of China’s presence during a millennium of rule;

b. Because of the implicit and explicit pressure exerted by China from the tenth century, impeding the country’s development;

c. Because ​‘whatever Vietnam does, it must keep one eye on its northern neighbour. China is large, Vietnam is small; imitation of China demonstrates that Vietnam is ​“not less” and ​“no different” from China, and as ​“cultured” as China, which means Vietnam has no need for Chinese rule’.

The tenth century saw the beginning of a period of restoration of national independence and renaissance of national culture. Long-standing influences from Indian culture (Buddhism and Hinduism), shown in the veneration of Đế Thích and Nhị Thiên Vương (Lý-dynasty divinities of the sun and moon), and new influences arriving from Champa and Chenla, two great non-Chinese civilisations, acted as counterweights for Vietnamese culture, serving to balance Chinese cultural influence and increase the uniqueness of Vietnamese identity.

These ideas led me to agree that it was entirely natural for Đại Việt to look south for inspiration, and that Champa served as a counterweight to China, giving new forms to Vietnamese efforts to escape from Chinese cultural constraints. The people in the past did not make straight copies of Champa cultural models, but learned from them, absorbed them, and used them to create unique cultural forms on the basis of an indigenous culture. What we see unearthed today at the Thăng Long Citadel is evidence of a political transformation and cultural renaissance in Đại Việt during the centuries after Lý Công Uẩn chose Gao Pian’s town for his capital, justified this choice with Chinese geomantic ideology, and initiated a building programme strongly inspired by the art forms and construction technologies of Champa.

[1] Here, the author was quoting Trần Quốc Vượng, ​‘Xuân lửa Đống Đa trong bối cảnh văn hóa xã hội đương thời’ [The Đống Đa spring of fire in contemporary cultural and social context], in Trên mãnh đất ngàn năm văn vật, ed. Trần Quốc Vượng. Hanoi: Nxb Hà Nội, 2000, p. 142. [From the same author — Trần Quốc Vượng & Vũ Tuấn Sán, Hà Nội nghìn xưa [Hanoi, A Thousand-Past City]. Hanoi Sở Văn hóa Thông tin Hà Nội, 1975, reprint 1990.]

1) A well built during the Tran dynasty [photo Institute of Archaeology, Hanoi, 2003]. 2) French president Jacques Chirac, first foreign head of state to visit the Thang Long citadel archaeological site [photo EFEO Hanoi, 2004]. 

1) A well built during the Tran dynasty [photo Institute of Archaeology, Hanoi, 2003]. 2) French president Jacques Chirac, first foreign head of state to visit the Thang Long citadel archaeological site [photo EFEO Hanoi, 2004]. 

LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS

• Đào Hùng (1932−2013): Historian, former editor of XuaNay review, Vietnam History Association.
• Đỗ Danh Huấn: Historian, Institute of History, Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences.
• Andrew Hardy: Historian, EFEO.
• Lê Thị Liên: Archaeologist, administrative officer of the Vietnam Archaeology Association.
• Nguyễn Gia Đối: Archaeologist, former director of the Institute of Archaeology, Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences.
• Nguyễn Hồng Kiên: Archaeologist, Institute of Archaeology, Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences.
• Nguyễn Tiến Đông (1962−2022): Archaeologist, Institute of Archaeolog Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences.
• Nguyễn Văn Anh: Archaeologist, Faculty of History, University of Soc Sciences and Humanities, Hanoi.
• Nguyễn Văn Sơn: Archaeologist, president of the Association of the History of Hanoi.
• Phan Huy Lê (1934−2018): Historian, honorary president of the Vietnamese History Association, foreign corresponding member of the French Academy of Inscriptions and Belles-Lettres.
• Phạm Văn Triệu: Archaeologist, Institute of Archaeology, Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences.
• Olivier Tessier: Anthropologist, EFEO.
• Tống Trung Tín: Archaeologist, president of the Vietnam Archaeological Association.
• Franciscus Verellen: Historian, Professor Emeritus EFEO, member French Academy of Inscriptions and Belles-Lettres.