Three eras of cilvilization * Land and people * Who is Hanoi’s famous person? * Nearly 1000 years of National University * Education Center and famous teachers who are worshipped by their students * Literature – Art center * Access to sciences * The career built by human beings
From the dawn of the country, the area of T-junction between To River and Nhi River was the heart of the Red River civilization. Many cultural vestiges of Phung Nguyen, Dong Son were here. Bronze drums, bronze arrows, bronze sickles were found in earth’swomb of Co Loa, Ngoc Ha, Trung Mau, Thong Pagoda… The trophy of metallurgy is the presence and the contribution of Hanoi people to the country history. The ancient Co Loa citadel – the heart of Au Lac, was a military architectural monument, which brought fame to the Red River Civilization era in the country-founding period.
Co Loa Citadel, the place where King An Duong Vuong founded Au Lac. Picture from documentation
During the Ly-Tran-Le Dynasties, Thang Long – Dong Do Capital of Dai Viet had become the country political, economic and cultural centre. The Thang Long culture represented for Dai Viet civilizational era from the 11th to the 15th century. Thang Long both converged all the cultural quintessences in the country and spreaded its cultural affects to country. After thousands of years being dominated by the North empire, Vietnamese people had regained the independence and the unification. Thang Long (Flying Dragon) city strongly rose up in the restoring and developing culture. We can say that the nation intelligence had been tempered for Hanoi and Hanoi intelligence was the flower of all understandings in the whole country. Hanoi has trained many talents for our country been the place where famous people can bring into play their career building talent in the civilized capital land.
The Imperial University in Thang Long was the first university of Vietnam. It was established in 1076 and was the talents training center as well. Not to mention the Ly, Tran Dynasties, in Le Dynasty only, there were 124 second-degree examinations (thi hội) held in Thang Long. From the doctoral stelae appeared for the first time in the year of the dog (1442) to the last examination in the year of the mouse (1780), 2248 people were regconized as doctors and their names are still there on the 82 stelae left in the Temple of Literature.
Many of them became pillars of the court, clearsighted kings who could create a peaceful country, good writers, genius politicians, and outstanding teachers.
However, some of them became flies in the ointment, extortioners, opportunist, and treacherous people.
Thang Long also has a shool, which trained martial arts, studied the art of war, selected soldiers and generals and held martial art exams each three years. Giang Vo martial arts school established on the South-West of the Royal Citadel was operating during the 11th to the 15th century. In Post-Le Dynasty, Lord Trinh opened martial arts school and martial arts examination compound in Khuong Thuong hamlet. The first martial arts examination was held in the year of the cat (1723) with 572 candidates; just 14 of them passed. In 1724, the regulations were completed. After three tests of war manuals, martial art skills and battle strategy, 11 people became tạo sĩ out of 329. The last martial arts exam in Khương Thượng was held in 1787 under the reign of King Le Chieu Thong.
Capital Thang Long was the place which generated:
Civil mandarins who used their pens to rule the country
Military mandarins who used their swords to make peace and prosperity.
Along with the Temple of Literature, which was the literature center of the country and represented the national culture, Hanoi was the place where many famous teachers, poets and writers from provinces came to establish schools.
Tao Đan poets’ circle with Hong Đuc could brighten the literature of Le Dynasty. Ngo Thi Literary school with many great works was a dream of all families.
Besides Hanoi’s writers and poets such as Phan Phu Tien (Ve village, Tu Liem), Dang Tran Con (Moc Village, Tu Liem), Nguyen Huy Luong, Cao Ba Quat (Phu Thi Village - Gia Lam), Nguyen Van Sieu (Lu village, Thanh Tri), Thanh Quan district chief’s wife (Nghi Tam, Tu Liem), Ly Van Phuc (Ho village, Ba Dinh)…, we also have many stars from other provinces: Nguyen Du, Ho Xuan Huong, Phan Huy Ich who were originated from Nghe province, Le Quy Don from Thai Binh province, Truong Han Sieu from Ninh Binh, Pham Dinh Ho, Nguyen Binh Khiem from Hai Dong, Ngo Si Lien, Nguyen Trai from Son Nam…
How can we not count them whose lives and works connected closely to Thang Long – Hanoi into the list of cultural people of Hanoi? Great generals such as Tran Quoc Tuan (Nam Dinh) Ngo Van So (Quy Nhon), Nguyen Hue (Binh Dinh), Le Loi (Thanh Hoa) were from other provinces but their careers and feats were majority occurred in capital land. In addition, the two general officers of Hanoi Citadel: Nguyen Tri Phuong (Thua Thien), Hoang Dieu (Quang Nam), they died out of loyalty for this land, so are not they Hanoi’s historic personages?
The famous school, which was capital wide famous before the Temple of Literature was Bai An school of the renowned scholar Ly Cong An. The student Ngo Tuan living in Thai Hoa district had studied here and became the hero Ly Thuong Kiet, the author of the first national manifesto “The country from the South belongs to the King from the South”.
In the 14th century, Chu Van An from Thanh Liet opened Huynh Cung school (Thanh Tri). In the 15th century, Bui Xuong Trach taught in Thinh Liet (Thanh Trì), Ngô Chi Lan, Phù Thúc Hoành taught in Phu Lo, Phu Xa (Sóc Sơn). In the 16th century, Le Duc Mao became a teacher in Dong Ngac(Tu Liem), Ngo Thi Tran, Ngo Thi Uc in Ta Thanh Oai (Thanh Trì). In the late 17th century, the school of Vu Thanh from the Hao Thien precint, Hao Nam stood out. In the 18th century, Doan Lenh Phuong, whose aunt was Doan Thi Diem established a school in Ha Khau (Hang Buom); Hoa Duong Pham Quy Thich who was from Hai Duong opened one in Bao Thien; Nguyen An from Du Lam (Dong Anh) established his school near the Sword Lake (Ho Guom). Poetess Ho Xuan Huong established her own school in Khan Xuan. The 19th(1). century was full of private schools. In the year of national exam or during the time of literary comments in National University, students were crowded on all the streets. During 1850’s – 1870’s, Hanoi had the nice “scolars’ tradition” and strong “scholar’s sense of honour”
In the first 20 years of the 19th century, there was Duong Am school of teacher Pham Hoi teacher in Hang Trong Street, later moved to Chan Cam street. It always had 200 students. The students were taught to value ethics and meanings, be upright in writing style, and write honest words. Among his 3000 students, many gained top ranks in examinations. His honest and upright life was a great example to students. When he died, his students set up a house of worship for him at the school. In the middle of the century, Nguyen Van Sieu’s Phuong Dinh school locating in the T-junction area where To River aparts from Red River, near Gao Market was very famous. Its name meant a square Communal House, which it was. Being famous for his talent in literature, the named “Genie Sieu”, and his righteousness and generosity, so many students came and studied with him and packed the communal house of the Thanh Ha precint. Besides, we also had Trung Tu school of Nguyen Van Ly with sucessful students like: Hoang Tuong Hiep…
In Tu Thap hamlet (Hang Trong), students of doctor Vu Tong Phan’s Ho Dinh school were mainly taught with the “candidate” method, so many of them passed the exams with flying colors and became bigwigs in the court. The teacher’s upright writing and the school tradition generated two excellent teachers: bachelor Nguyen Huy Duc with Vu Thach school in Trang Thi and bachelor Ngo Van Dang from Ta Thanh Oai (Thanh Tri) with Tien Song school in Kim Co, Hang Hai (at the beginning of Hang Bong). The small difference from the school in Tu Thap was the the “competition-examination” ideology in this school had decreased and been more ibullient and more suitable to social conditions. Kim Co School had two well-known students Luong Van Can and Nguyen Van Giai, the authors of Hanoi Citadel Indomitable spririt song. Le Dinh Dien from Moc village who had been a student of Ho Dinh school resigned his provincial education officer position to open the Cuc Hien school at at 39 Hang Dau. He had a lot of students. When French traders camt to Hanoi and kept a convetous eye on the streets with dubious intention, students and teachers of Cuc Hien school and other schools in Kim Co and Tu Thap held a meeting to find out the way to suppress them. They hathered in the Temple of Literature to set a group of 300 self-denying people, set an ambush arrested some French soldiers who were harassing people. In two times when the French invaders attack Hanoi Citadel, students from these schools participated in the war beside Hanoi people. Some of them were arrested or killed.
In suburban areas, teacher Doan Huyen from Huu village (Thanh Tri), taught in Tay Mo; “Saint Quat” – Cao Ba Quat had established a school in his hometown Phu Thi before becoming a district education officer of Quoc Oai and rose up in arms at My Luong.
In the 20th century, there were Trung Tu school of Nguyen Huu Can and Dong Ngac school of Hoang Tang Bi in Hanoi. However, in 1907, emerging like a modernist and advanced movement was Dong Kinh Nghia Thuc school of the bachelor Luong Van Can at 10 Dao Street (Hang Dao). With popular literary style, Dong Kinh Nghia Thuc school had encouraged the patriotism and the indomitable will in Hanoi. Many sudents of the school had entered the country independence restoring movements. Therefore, the enemy forced to close the school, arrested the principal Luong Van Can and exiled him to Cao Mien after the bombardment in the hotel of Vietnam Restoration League (1913).
Afterwards, perhaps there are fewer students setting houses of worship for their teachers than students of this period did. In Hanoi only, there are four memorial monuments of the love between teachers and students: the house at 1 Hang Trong street where used to be Duong An school is the house of worship of teacher Pham Hoi, teachers of Phuong Dinh School are worshiped at 12 Nguyen Sieu, teachers of Cuc Hien school are worshiped at 39 Hang Đau, and the doctorate Tu Thac was in Bach Mai.
Ha Noi is also the place for talents developing of scientists such as Luong The Vinh (mathematician), Dang Lo (astronomer), Hai Thuong Lan Ong (Medical researcher), Vu Nhu To (architect), Vu Quynh (historian)…and many first doctoral candidates such as Mac Dinh Chi, Nguyen Hien…
Hence, referring to famous people of the a-thousand-year civilized land, we mentioned not only to original Hanoians who settled in the capital Hanoi a long time ago but also to those who lived in Thang Long and devoted their lives and careers in this apital land.. Because they were the majority – national heroes with brilliant names recorded in the history, famous people of culture and examinations whose works enriched the Thang Long – Hanoi cultural treasure, as well as the Viet Nam folk cultural treasure.
Due to the Northland- Southland division from the middle of Le Mac dynasty to the Post-Le and the beginning of the Nguyen dynasty in the 16th century, the Vietnam feudal regime was in degradation. The Nguyen Dynasty moved the capital to Phu Xuan so Thang Long was deprived of the capital position and became Ha Noi province. Over threes centuries, the main part of Thang Long “city” had seen many dissolution but the “business town” of its citizens still developed following the existing impetus. The socio-cultural life had changed thanks to external relationships. In the economic aspect, the 17th-18th centuries were considered as the prosperous period of the medieval Thang Long. Until the middle of the 19th century, the whole country was sunk in the disgrace of loosing our country and in the grip and the exploitation of French colonialism. Being a colonial city, Hanoi was changed into a capitalistic city; beside the old quarters was new European-styled quarters of office and commerce with. Hanoi was the metropolis of the North. The penetration of French to Vietnam had covered Hanoi with some miscellaneous features and some affection of the colonial culture. But in the heart of the city, there was always a seething wave of struggle to preserve the national culture and the liberation movements against the chains of the slavery were taken placed incessantly in blood and tears.
Following the ancestors’ tradition, the next generations still found many great examples who devoted their youth to the revolutionary struggles and followed ardently the Party banner like young Party members: Nguyen Phong Sac, Nguyen Hoang Ton, Do Ngoc Du, Tran Hai Ke…
Hanoi people still remember the revolutionary predecessors who devoted their lives to the capital such as Hoang Van Thu, Tran Phu, Nguyen Luong Bang, Hoang Quoc Viet…
Only when the August Revolution was successful and the Democratic Republic of Viet nam was established, did the new Hanoi revive and restore its center position of the country. As it had just started, French colonists came back to invade. After going through the misery in eight more years, Hanoi welcomed the victory troops coming to liberate the capital on 10th Octorber 1954.
The combat group of the 57th missile battalion participating in the 12- day and night-Ha Noi – Dien Bien Phu on air campaign. Picture: Documentation
Having just defeated the old colonialism, Hanoi as well as the whole country had to face with the neocolonialism, the American. The solution to force the American to go away at that time was the “Dien Bien Phu on air” campaign. Then the grand victory in the spring of 1975 overthrown the puppet regime, ended the 30 years of war, and led the history of Vietnam to a new era of independence, freedom and socialism to build a civilizational and wealthy country. This was the third era in the national history: the Viet Nam civilizational era.
On the resistance roads, Hanoi history had recorded golden names for its beloved sons, who had died for the homeland survival and future: Bui Ngoc Duong, Ngo Xuan Quang, Le Huu Tuu, Le Minh Truong, Ta Dong Trung…
In the field of culture and science, there were many talents in Hanoi. When the writers before revolution movement such as Ngô Tất Tố, Vũ Trọng Phụng, Nguyễn Huy Tưởng, Nguyễn Tuân, Doãn Kế Thiện, Phan Kế Bình…pasted away, two new generations of writers appeared on the literary circle: one is in the anti-French period and the other is in the anti-American period. We had the great pianist Dang Thai Son with his moving pianistic notes. The music of Van Cao, Do Nhuan has attracted many people.
After the previous people of culture like Nguyen Van Hieu, Hoang Minh Giam, Hanoi also gave strength to scientists to achieve worldly miracle successes like Ton That Tùng, Nguyen Tai Thu, Nguyen Trong Nhan, Nguyen Van Hieu…
The fondness of learning spirit and the scientific passion of Hanoian have been proved by many generations of students who had won the top prizes in national and international contests, writing beautiful pages on the history of Hanoi young talents. Intellectuals who were trained and grown in the old as well as new regimes have been serving in the leading sectors of technology and sciences. The grey matter inherited from the knowledge treasure of Bac Ha scholars has been developed.
The a-thousand-year civilized land has helped to create many generations of great people, and they have beautified to the heart of the homeland in order to make it more and more typical for the culture of Vietnam.
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