Lang Son Ancient Citadel: The value and story of conservation and promotion

(LSO) – Lang Son ancient citadel (Doan Thanh) is a valuable historic relic, reflecting the history of military,  architecture and construction in the feudal monarchy  times of  Lang Son. In 1999, the monument was regarded as the National Monument. Over the past time, in parallel with the research work, the People’s Committee of Lang Son city has always paid great attention to  preserving and promoting the values of this relic through many practical activities.

According to two historical documents “Lang Son Doan Thanh Do” by Nguyen Nghem and “Dai Nam Thong Nhat Chi” – a history book written by a history writter under the Nguyen Dynasty, Lang Son Citadel (Doan Thanh) might have been built between the late 13th century and the early fourteenth century. The citadel was built of bricks and rectangular stones, with a circumference of 270 staff, 9 meters high, with 4 gates in four directions East, West, South, North, and 19 guard posts scattered around the citadel.

A working team of the Provincial Cultural Heritage Association visited and surveyed  the ancient citadel of Lang Son

Through the ups and downs of time, changes in history, the vestiges of Lang Son ancient citadel are now remained in two sections of the citadel which are the two gates of the South and the West. The West gate has been closed, only the South gate still crossing Nguyen Thai Hoc street  is open for transportation. Despite of its damages, the historical value of the ancient city is believed to remain forever in the minds of generations of Xu Lang.

Mr. Nong Van Phuong, a resident living in Van Mieu block, Chi Lang ward, Lang Son city said that living near Lang Son ancient citadel, he felt very proud and connected to the relic. He always took his distant friends and relatives to the ancient citadel when they visited Lang Son.

In addition to the sense of self-promotion to promote the cultural heritage of each citizen, over the years, the preservation and promotion of the values ​​of Lang Son Ancient Citadel has always received attention from  the City People’s Committee through various programs and solutions. Specifically, since 2018 when taking responsibilities of managing the citadel from the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the City People’s Committee has directed relevant specialized departments to erect 2 horizontal barriers to limit the height of vehicles; build the speed bumpers on the roads on both sides of the southern gate; install security surveillance camera system with a total cost of about 60 million VND from the city budget. In addition, the City People’s Committee instructed the People’s Committee of Chi Lang Ward to mobilize the people to plant green grass and cut weeds once a month in order to  ensure the beauty of the  landscape around the relic.

In parallel with the protection and preservation of monuments, since 2019, the City People’s Committee has directed the Department of Culture and Information to coordinate with the Culture and Television Department of Vietnam to develop documentary films and broadcast on the channel of heritage journey, posted 15 propaganda articles about the system of monuments, cultural heritages of the city, including the relics of Lang Son ancient citadel on the city’s website and the Fanpage “Lang Son city – cherry blossom city “.

Ms. Pham Thi Thuan, Deputy Head of City Culture and Information Department said that in the coming time they would recommend the City People’s Committee to continue directing the implementation of the management, protection, promotion, especially fostering the collection of historical documents, clarifying the scales and values of the ancient citadel relics. Besides, actions would be taken immediately to strengthen the content of propaganda and advertisement programs. At the same time, they would advise the City People’s Committee to research and restore the festival “Lang Tu Tran” associated with Lang Son ancient citadel to create new and attractive tourism products.

The traces of the ancient citadel of Lang Son still exist witnessing the change of the land and people there. It is believed that this relic will be preserved and preserved for generations thanks to specific and positive actions organized  by the City People’s Committee.

“Lang Son ancient citadel is a military architectural relic that plays an important role in defending and defending at the border gate of the country. Along with other relics in the city, the Old City is really a typical relic to help Lang Son people in particular and near and far visitors in general understand more about the history of the land and the Xu Lang people ”. Dr. Van Pao Hoang, Chairman of the Provincial Cultural Heritage Association