Lam Kinh – A national historic relic

Being 150 kilometers from Hanoi, the national historic relic Lam Kinh in Xuan Lam commune, Tho Xuan district is a famous tourist spot in Thanh Hoa province. 

Here, tourists have a chance to visit a well-known historic relic related to the life and career of King Le Thai To, a famous king in Vietnamese history, and the uprising of the Lam Son troops in the 15th century. After ten years of leading the Lam Son (1418-1428) uprising to fight against the Northern invaders, Le Loi won and became a king in 1428 with the official name of Le Thai To. He set up the capital in Dong Kinh (Thang Long – present-day Hanoi). Simultaneously, he ordered an imperial city built in his birthplace and called it Lam Kinh or Tay Kinh. According to historical documents in the excavations in the area, the imperial city of Lam Kinh was built on a large-scale with the architectural style of “Noi cong, ngoai quoc”. The imperial city sits on Dau Mountain in the north and faces towards the Chu River in the south. Chua Mountain is in front of it, Phu Lam Forest is on the left and Huong Mountain is on the right. To reach the central area of the royal citadel, tourists have to pass over a stone bridge crossing the Ngoc River. Walking for about 50m, tourists see a green plot of grass and an ancient well with clean and clear water. Next is the southern gate with a 300-year-old banyan tree covering up the roof of the gate and then a dragon yard. Passing the dragon yard, tourists come to the central palace where kings gave audience and discussed state affairs. The central palace includes three large wood buildings which had great architectural value in the Le So Dynasty (1428-1527). Behind the central palace are nine imperial temples that were successfully restored. Lam Kinh is not only a historic relic but good for eco-tourism. More and more visitors travel to the place.