Beneath Hanoi’s Ba Đình district lie eight superimposed archaeological layers spanning thirteen centuries, from a Tang Chinese garrison to the command bunker of the Vietnam People’s Army. Above ground, gates, pavilions and the city’s emblematic Flag Tower trace a thousand years of continuous royal and political use of the same ground.
At a glance
Thang Long Citadel occupies a site first fortified by Tang Dynasty administrators between the 6th and 9th centuries, when Vietnam was under Chinese rule. In 1010 King Lý Thái Tổ, founder of the Lý Dynasty, declared the site the capital of Đại Việt under the name Thang Long, meaning Ascending Dragon. The location was chosen for its geomantic qualities, overlooking the Red River and framed by protective lakes and hills.
Six dynasties occupied the citadel in succession: the Lý, the Trần, the briefly ruling Hồ, the Later Lê under whom the citadel reached its greatest extent, the Tây Sơn, and finally the Nguyễn, who moved the capital to Huế but maintained a presence at Thang Long. Vietnam marked the thousandth anniversary of the capital’s founding in 2010, the year UNESCO inscribed the site.
Key facts
- Founded: 1010, by King Lý Thái Tổ of the Lý Dynasty
- Earlier occupation: Tang Dynasty prefectural citadel, Dai La, 6th–9th centuries
- Archaeological layers: eight, from the 7th to the 19th century, uncovered chiefly during excavation at 18 Hoàng Diệu Street from 2002
- Flag Tower: built 1812 under the Nguyễn Dynasty, 33.4 metres high
- UNESCO status: inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 2010
- Coordinates: 21.0363° N, 105.8375° E
History
The Nguyễn Dynasty rebuilt the citadel in 1805 in a Vauban-influenced star fortress style, with angular bastioned walls designed to give cannon clear fields of fire, the same approach used at the Citadel of Huế. The surviving Đoan Môn, or Main South Gate, has five arched openings of graded size, the central one reserved for the king and the flanking arches assigned by official rank. The Hậu Lâu, or Rear Pavilion, originally built in the 11th century to house royal concubines and princesses, has been rebuilt several times and today stands in its Nguyễn-era form.
The Flag Tower of 1812 is the citadel’s most recognisable structure, its three-stage base echoing the phases of the original perimeter wall, topped by an octagonal shaft and a twelve-sided lantern. The national flag has flown from it since 1954. Beneath the grounds lies the D67 bunker, the underground command centre used by the Vietnam People’s Army during the war years from 1967 to 1975, from which General Giáp directed operations; its rooms, maps and communications equipment survive and can be visited.
What you see
The 18 Hoàng Diệu archaeological site, entered from the citadel’s Ba Đình gate, preserves an open excavation with walkways above the exposed layers. In the main trench the eight periods of occupation are visible in cross-section, distinguished by their pottery, building plans and decorative motifs, including the three-clawed dragon roof tiles that marked Vietnamese royal use as opposed to the five-clawed Chinese imperial dragon.
The Thang Long Imperial Citadel Heritage Museum within the compound holds royal architectural fragments from the 11th to 18th centuries, among them dragon-head roof ornaments, painted wooden columns and ceramic sections of an underground drainage system dating back to the 11th century. The restored D67 bunker, open to visitors since 2004, retains its period maps and communications equipment from the later years of the Vietnam War.
Practical information
- Entrance: the main gate is on Điện Biên Phủ Street; the 18 Hoàng Diệu archaeological site sits in the compound opposite
- Closing day: the site is closed on Mondays; check the citadel’s official channels for current opening times and admission
- Guided tours: available in English, French and Mandarin, and include the D67 bunker
Getting there
Hanoi is served by Nội Bài International Airport. From the city centre the citadel is reached by the Cát Linh metro station on Urban Rail Transit Line 2A, which stands close to the site, or by taxi.
Nearby
- Temple of Literature — about 1 km south; Vietnam’s first university, founded in 1076 by Emperor Lý Nhân Tông, with 82 stone stelae recording scholars from imperial examinations held between 1484 and 1780, recognised by UNESCO’s Memory of the World programme in 2010
- Hoàn Kiếm Lake and the Old Quarter — about 2 km east; the symbolic centre of Hanoi, with the Turtle Tower, the Ngọc Sơn Temple reached by the red Huc Bridge, and the thirty-six-street guild district of the Old Quarter
Sources
- UNESCO
- Thang Long Imperial Citadel Heritage Museum
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