Imperial City, Huế
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The Imperial City in Huế is a walled fortress and palace in the former capital of Vietnam. It was intended to be a copy of the Chinese Emperor's Forbidden City in Beijing, China.
[edit] Characteristics
The grounds were surrounded by a wall 2 kilometers by 2 kilometers, and the walls were surrounded by a moat. The water from the moat was taken from the Huong River (Perfume River) that flows through Huế. This structure is called the citadel.
Inside the citadel was the Imperial City, with a perimeter of almost 2.5 kilometers.
Inside the Imperial City was the imperial enclosure, called the Purple Forbidden City in Vietnamese. The Purple Forbidden City was reserved for the Nguyen royal family. Interestingly, this is the same name that the Chinese gave to their palace complex, the Forbidden City. A moat was dug around the Purple Forbidden City. The Purple Forbidden City included many palaces, gates and courtyards.
[edit] History
In June, 1802 Nguyễn Phúc Ánh took control of Vietnam and proclaimed himself Emperor Gia Long. His rule was recognized by China in 1804.
Gia Long asked geomancers what was the best place for a new palace and citadel. The geomancers chose a site in Huế. Gia Long wanted his palace and fortress to be a smaller copy of the Chinese Forbidden City. In 1804, tens of thousands of workers were forced to produce a wall and moat, 10 kilometer long. Initially the walls were earthen, but later these earthen walls were replaced by stone walls, 2 meters thick.
The citadel was oriented to face the Huong River to the east. This was different than the Forbidden City in Beijing, which faces south. The Emperor's palace is on the east side of the citadel, nearest the river. A second set of walls and a second moat was constructed around the Emperor's palace. Many more palaces and gates and courtyards and gardens were subsequently added.
The rule of the last Vietnamese Emperor lasted until the mid-1900s. At that time, the Purple Forbidden City had many buildings and hundreds of rooms. It suffered from termite and cyclone damage, but was still very impressive.
American bombing in 1968 in response to a communist takeover of Huế flattened most of the city. Only a few buildings survived, such as the Thai Hoa Temple, Can Thanh Temple, The Mieu, and Hieu Lam Cac.
The city was made a UNESCO site in 1993. The buildings that still remain are being restored and preserved. Unfortunately, most of the site was destroyed by the Vietnam war and so is now covered with rice paddies.
