Agree to prepare a dossier to propose ranking Dien Khanh Citadel as a special national monument

On May 29, Mr. Dinh Van Thieu, Vice Chairman of Khanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee, said that he had issued a document assigning the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism (DTC) to preside over and coordinate with relevant agencies, units and localities to prepare a dossier to submit to competent authorities to propose the Prime Minister to rank Dien Khanh Citadel, Dien Khanh town, Dien Khanh district (Khanh Hoa) as a special national relic. This document was issued after Khanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee received the consensus of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in Official Dispatch No. 2222/BVHTTDL-DSVH dated May 20.

According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, after researching and consulting scientists of the National Cultural Heritage Council, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism proposed using the name Dien Khanh Citadel.

According to historical data, Dien Khanh Citadel was completed in the year Quy Suu - 1793 on an area of about 36,000m2, located in the two villages of Phu My and Truong Thanh, now Dong Mon hamlet, Dien Khanh town, Dien Khanh district with military architecture in the Vauband style, hexagonal curves with 6 sections of the wall 2,693m long, 3.5m high, each corner of the citadel has a 2m high mound of earth to place cannons called corner forts.

The citadel wall was built of earth, the outer surface was slightly vertical, the inner surface was gently sloping with two steps used as paths; on the citadel, many bamboos and thorny trees were planted to increase durability and create a defensive fence, outside, a 3-5m deep moat was dug, with uneven width and narrowness, under the moat there was water led from the Cai River and many obstacles...

According to some historical documents, inside the citadel there are many unique architectures such as the royal palace, flagpole, patrol palace, judge palace, warehouse... There was a period when Dien Khanh Citadel became the headquarters of the Can Vuong Khanh Hoa insurgent army in the early days of fighting against the French. Dien Khanh Citadel is one of the typical historical and cultural relics in Khanh Hoa, recognized by the Ministry of Culture and Information as a National Historical Relic in 1988. Over the past decades, Khanh Hoa province has had many measures and solutions to protect and restore this relic associated with effectively exploiting cultural tourism activities.

The large-scale project to restore and embellish the Dien Khanh Ancient Citadel National Historical Relic officially began in early 2025 with a total investment of nearly 167 billion VND, invested by the Khanh Hoa Provincial Development Project Management Board.

Before starting the project, the Department of Cultural Heritage of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism requested the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Khanh Hoa province to coordinate, guide and support the investor to establish a relic assessment council according to regulations, in order to preserve the original elements and historical values of the relic to the maximum extent. In addition, priority should be given to the application of manual methods to restore the earthen ramparts, dredging, waterproofing... especially at locations near the gate and corners of the citadel, limiting the use of mechanical equipment such as bulldozers, excavators...

Source: https://cand.com.vn/van-hoa/thong-nhat-lap-ho-so-de-nghi-xep-hang-di-tich-quoc-gia-dac-biet-thanh-dien-khanh-i769897/