Festival celebrating Bach Dang Victory officially opens
The 2019 Bach Dang traditional festival officially opened in the town of Quang Yen on April 11, attracting a large number of province-wide and nationwide visitors to mark the 1081th (938-2019) and 731th (1288-2019) anniversaries of Bach Dang Victory in Yen Giang ward, Quang Yen town.
 |
| The 2019 Bach Dang traditional festival officially opened to mark the 1081th (938-2019) and 731th (1288-2019) anniversaries of Bach Dang Victory in Yen Giang ward, Quang Yen town. |
Bach Dang Traditional Festival - one of the major festivals in Quang Ninh is held annually from the seventh to the ninth day of the third lunar month. The three-day festival space stretches from the center of Tran Hung Dao Temple – Vua Ba Shrine, Yen Giang Communal House and Bach Dang Stake Yard to Trung Ban Communal House and Trung Coc Temple ... In particular, the procession of the statue of Saint Tran Hung Dao from his temple to Yen Giang Communal House along the roads of Quang Yen town is a unique highlight of the festival, attracting crowds of locals and tourists. This is also a big festival with plentiful activities such as art performances, folk games namely tug of war, human chess, card game, cock fighting, and a traditional boat race on Bach Dang River.
In the history of national safeguarding, Bach Dang River three times witnessed our army and people’s victorious triumphs over strong invaders from the north with their wooden stakes falling into the riverbed. It was the Bach Dang victory in 938 of Ngo Quyen that defeated the Southern Han troops, opening the era of independence of the nation; In 981, Le Hoan beat invading Song forces and the peak of the military art of Dai Viet was the Bach Dang victory in 1288 under the command of military genius Tran Hung Dao (Tran Quoc Tuan).
 |
| Bach Dang Traditional Festival - one of the major festivals in Quang Ninh is held annually from the seventh to the ninth day of the third lunar month. |
Bach Dang has become a legendary river, Bach Dang stakes have become a traditional symbol of the Vietnamese nation’s art of water fighting against foreign invaders. On the left bank of Bach Dang River (Quang Yen town), three large wooden stake yards have been discovered, including Yen Giang, Dong Van Muoi and Dong Ma Ngua. Dating back in the 13th century, they were remnants of the Battle of Bach Dang in 1288. Bach Dang River and its stake yards have become the historical landmarks associated with the national hero Tran Hung Dao (Tran Quoc Tuan). People of many generations in the land of Quang Yen honoured him as the village's tutelary deity and built temples, communal houses and shrines worshiping him and his courtiers who had merits in that fierce battle, forming a complex of Bach Dang Victory historical sites.
Respecting the historical values of the nation, the relics of the Bach Dang relic complex have been named national relics (from 1988 to 2012). On September 27, 2012, the Prime Minister signed a decision recognizing the Bach Dang historical relic complex as a special national relic site. Places marking the glorious victories in the past (including 11 relic sites, temples, shrines and stake yards on Quang Yen and Uong Bi today) and areas protecting and promoting the relics have been included in the overall planning on preservation and promotion of the values of the Bach Dang historical relic complex, which was approved by the Prime Minister in early 2013.
By Hue Linh
