Stop 3 Kinh thành Huế (Imperial City). Construction on the citadel commenced in 1804, after “Geomancers” had been “consulted as to the [most] propitious location site for the new city.” Kinh thành is ringed by 10 km of moats, hewen by hand, in front of brick and stone reinforced earth ramparts. The complex was the seat of government until the declaration of the French Protectorate in the 1880s, but continued to be the symbolic and traditional centre “until the Nguyễn dynasty was ousted in 1945”.
The “Việt Minh seized the Citadel in February” 1947 and the French counter attack led to a six week siege during which a number of buildings were damaged, and the “core of the city including the Imperial Palace was burned”. In 1968 a significant part of the Tết offensive was centred on Huế, and the Imperial City in particular, with both NVA and SVA forces occupying different sectors of the Citadel. The ensuing fighting led to considerable damage to the complex, much of which is still visible today, especially in and around the inner gatehouse.
As I was making my way to the ticket office a local school group were practicing their English by approaching tourists and asking questions as part of a school assignment. They were very pleased when I told them I was on my third visit to Vietnam and second visit to Huế.
See Oriental Architecture and UNESCO.
