The northern province of Quang Ninh hosted a ceremony on April 21 to mark the 1080th (938-2018) and 730th (1288-2018) anniversaries of the Bach Dang Victories.
A performance reflects the heroic victories of the Vietnamese people
and army against invaders on Bach Dang River in the past
The celebrations aimed to pay tribute to the ancestors who fought off foreign invaders in the two famous Battles of Bach Dang in 938 and 1288.
The event featured various rituals and festive activities, with a procession of a Tran Hung Dao statue, the military commander of the Tran Dynasty who defeated the Mongol naval fleet on the river in 1288, as well as an art programme and a traditional boat racing on Bach Dang, recalling a heroic chapter in the history of national construction and defence on Bach Dang River.
Speaking at the ceremony, Quang Ninh provincial People's Committee Chairman Nguyen Duc Long affirmed that the Bach Dang historical site is one of the five special national monuments in Quang Ninh province.
The Bach Dang festival is an important activity which serves as a tribute to people’s sacrifices for the protection of national sovereignty and is also a review of historical tradition, thus arousing pride and patriotic spirit for future generations, he said.
Throughout the ups and downs of history, traces of the Bach Dang battles are still present in the typical relics in Quang Yen town, with hundreds of iron-headed wooden poles under the waters stretching over an area about 118m long and 20m wide at the mouth of the Chanh River (under Bach Dang River system).
The celebration, as part of the National Tourism Year 2018 hosted by Quang Ninh, is also an opportunity for Quang Yen to promote the values of the Bach Dang historic site.