Dien Hai Citadel located on the bank of the Han River. It foundation the Gia Long dynasty in 1813, formerly known as Dien Hai. It’s close to Da Nang seaport. In 1823, King Minh Mang moved to the interior of the mainland on a high mound. The citadel built by brick after that Minh Mang renamed to Dien Hai citadel in 1835.
How Dien Hai Citadel is unique?
In 1847 during Thieu Tri. Dien Hai citadel was expanded with a perimeter of 556m, higher than 5m, around 3m deep ditch. There are two main entrance, one to the east and other one to the west. There are cemeteries, food stalls, ammunition, gunpowder and 30 large artillery cannons. The building is made of brick under Vauban design scheme. At present, the wall in the west & the east intact the corner, while the entrance in the south has been lost and the North has been damaged.
Recently, the relics of Dien Hai were restored, reinforced, restored to the status quo. An impressive statue of General Nguyen Tri Phuong was erected here, to memorize a glorious historical period of the city.
Dien Hai citadel was an important fortress to defeat the attack of the French colonialists in Da Nang. (1858 – 1860). On 12/4/2008, during the construction of the renovation, renovation, embellishment Historically, the workers have discovered a cannon deep underground. This cannon is 2.8 meters long, a head diameter of 23cm and a tail of 42cm. Especially we found 1 canon while constructing of Da Nang Cham Museum on the base of Dien Hai Citadel. July 2008. Nearly 200 years ago, these cannons, along with the Nguyen dynasty, under the command of General Nguyen Tri Phuong, fought off dozens of French attacks at the mouth of the Han River. The cannon mounted on gun turrets, facing the sea, ready to fight enemy ships.
The cannons have remained silent here for more than 1.5 centuries, most of them with rust, broken sides and revolving axes, but the gun body is almost intact. They are cast iron, cast iron or bronze, the largest one weighs more than 3 tons, the small also about 1 ton.
The canal in the Dien Hai city is a valuable evidence for generations of people proud of the land of the sea. With courage, strong willpower, Dai Viet people have won the mightiest army in the world at that time. On November 16, 1988, it was classified by the Ministry of Culture and Information as a National historical relic. You like architecture, history? So this is good for day trips from Da Nang.
It’s great for
Educational tour, researcher Vietnamese history
