Visit the national historical site of Ly Palace of the Ho Dynasty

The stone stele remains intact at the Ly Palace National Monument of the Ho Dynasty.

According to historical records, in the years 1396-1398, our country was facing the risk of being invaded by foreign enemies from both ends of the country. In the North, the Ming army invaded and occupied the border. In the South, the Champa army also plotted to annex our country. At this time, Ho Quy Ly was a general under the Tran dynasty. He used soft diplomatic tactics to delay the enemy troops from both sides. In the country, he stood up to quell the rebellions of the rebels. He also advised the Tran king to move the capital from Thang Long to Thanh Hoa to ensure long-term safety.

When entering Thanh Hoa , Ho Quy Ly built Bao Thanh Palace on a large area. In front was a vast space sheltered by the mountain ranges along the Len River (a branch of the Ma River), behind it leaned against high mountains. The project was invested in and elaborately built to welcome King Tran to Thanh Hoa, preparing for the construction of a new capital, Tay Do Citadel (today's Ho Dynasty Citadel). During these years, Bao Thanh Palace became the headquarters to fight the enemy and the place where the Tran Dynasty king and his subjects discussed military affairs.

When the Ming invaders invaded our country, the Ly Palace of the Ho Dynasty was destroyed. However, when the invaders withdrew, the Bao Thanh Palace still had a solid foundation system and the Phong Cong Pagoda, also known as Tranh Pagoda. In 1942, during a trip through the Do Len area (old Ha Trung district), Professor Hoang Xuan Han discovered an old ruined architectural ruin. And he thought about the assumption that this was the Ly Palace of the Ho Dynasty. After many explorations, it was not until 1979 that Vietnamese archaeologists confirmed that this was the Ly Palace of the Ho Dynasty. From then on, in the years 1979-1985, archaeologists conducted 4 excavations in the Ly Palace on an area of 600 square meters. The excavations showed that the Ly Palace was located on an area of several thousand square meters, following the architecture of the Tran - Ho Dynasty. In the palace architecture, a row of green stone foundations was found, processed into square blocks, with lead fish holes at the end, connected together into a block. Outside the green stone foundation is a row of surrounding flower bricks, the next outer point has a row of vertical border bricks. On the main hall floor, there are remaining stone blocks as a proof of the grandeur of Ly Palace. The courtyard has a nearly square layout, the entire floor is paved with large slate, with flower bricks surrounding it. In particular, a unique lotus stone pedestal was discovered in the middle of the palace floor. Inside and outside the palace yard, stone art artifacts carved with chrysanthemums, lotus petals, and statues of animals such as dogs, ducks, etc. were also found.

Up to this point, the local authorities have found 5 lakes around the area, including a lake named Ao Beo or also known as Sao Sia Lake. According to legend, the Sao Sia Lake area is where Ho Quy Ly trained his elite troops who specialized in operating in dangerous places. Next to the training ground, Ho Quy Ly also dug a well (the well's mouth remains) for soldiers to get clean water for daily use. Although the relic is no longer intact, Ly Cung Nha Ho still has great historical significance, high artistic value and is a masterpiece of Tran - Ho culture. Therefore, in 1997, the Ministry of Culture - Information (now the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) recognized Ly Cung Nha Ho as a national historical - cultural relic site.

Talking to us, Head of the Department of Culture - Society of the People's Committee of Ha Trung Commune, Nguyen Thi Mai, said: "After more than 600 years with many historical ups and downs and harsh natural conditions, this unique architectural work is gradually becoming a ruin. The entire Ly Cung relic site of the Ho Dynasty now only remains as an empty land, overgrown with weeds. Many architectural works of high artistic value here now only have a stone stele erected on the back of a turtle intact and a roughly built shrine in the middle of the empty land. A church was built with contributions from local people. For many years, the local government has repeatedly requested support for construction, but there is still no plan for restoration or embellishment."

Article and photos: Khac Cong

(The article uses the historical and cultural relic profile of Ly Palace of Ho Dynasty).

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/tham-di-tich-lich-su-quoc-gia-nbsp-ly-cung-nha-ho-270169.htm