Towards the 170th anniversary of the death of the famous Dang Van Hoa (1856 - 2026), at the end of October, the Department of Culture and Sports of Hue City coordinated with the Institute of History (Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences ) and the Executive Board of the Dang Ethnic Council of Vietnam to organize a scientific conference "Dang Van Hoa's Trai Ceremony - Life and Career". From the reports presented at the conference, the portrait of a Hue mandarin who went to Hanoi to serve as Governor under the Nguyen Dynasty and was greatly respected and appreciated by the people of the North was clarified.

Dang Van Hoa's Ceremony (1791 - 1856). Photo: Scientific conference "Dang Van Hoa's Ceremony - Life and career"

According to Dr. Phan Thanh Hai, Director of the City Department of Culture and Sports, in the flow of Nguyen Dynasty history, Le Trai Dang Van Hoa was a great mandarin of the Nguyen Dynasty, honored as "the elder of the four dynasties" with great contributions to politics , agriculture, culture, and was one of the typical great mandarins deeply attached to the North - Hanoi. During his two terms as Governor of Hanoi - Ninh Binh (1835 - 1839 and 1846 - 1847) for nearly 14 years, Dang Van Hoa left many important and profound marks on the land of Hanoi.

These were policies and solutions for flood control, dyke protection, agricultural care, livelihood development for people, security and order maintenance, and rectification of education and etiquette. He was the one who took special care of organizing sacrificial ceremonies at the Temple of Literature - Quoc Tu Giam; renovating and preserving important cultural architectural works, typically Khue Van Cac (1837); voluntarily deducting personal salary and donating donations from many Buddhists from all over to renovate and repair important items such as the main hall, left and right corridors, bell tower and three-door gate of Dien Huu pagoda (One Pillar Pagoda, 1838), building the Fire God temple in the 19th year of Minh Mang (1838) in Yen Noi village, Tho Xuong district (now 30 Hang Dieu street, Hanoi) to worship the Fire God to raise awareness of fire prevention and fighting...

With his great merits, he was respected by the people and scholars of Bac Ha, honored as "Black Saint", his nephew Dang Huy Tru called him uncle, clearly recorded in the book Nhi Hoang di ai. The tomb of Dang Van Hoa (in Phong Thai Ward, Hue City) was recently ranked as a national historical relic by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on September 9, 2025.

From the past, think about the present. Implementing the policy of the Party and the State, in recent times, 100% of the key leaders of 34 provinces and cities across the country have been mobilized and are not local people. Therefore, the legacy of Dang Van Hoa's Trai Ceremony has become a current event.

The way of being a mandarin is always the same. Those mandarins who know how to listen to the people's voices and wholeheartedly serve the people, the country, the country, and the nation are loved, respected, and worshipped by the people and their names are recorded in history.

BUI NGOC LONG

Source: https://huengaynay.vn/van-hoa-nghe-thuat/tu-le-trai-dang-van-hoa-nghi-ve-nguoi-dung-dau-160389.html