horses and mandarins, and in turn leads to the stele pavilion. Tu Duc himself wrote the text on the carved stele. From the pavilion one can see the grave, which is said to be empty. Nobody knows exactly where the king’s remains lie, as legend has it that the 200 servants who buried the king were executed soon after the burial.
Probably one of the most graceful of the eight Nguyen Dynasty tombs, this mausoleum was built to Emperor Minh Mang’s own design after his death in 1841. The grounds are large and peaceful. The entrance is guarded by statues of civil and military officials and opens up to a courtyard with three main temples, including one dedicated to his empress.
Red lacquered doors pivot open into the main pavilion inside Minh Mang’s mausoleum.
Minh Mang’s interest in architecture introduced a lot of new construction to the Imperial City, mostly in the Chinese tradition, not only during his reign but also after the construction of the buildings in his mausoleum.
The Khai Dinh mausoleum (r. 1916–25) is much more modern looking, since the emperor was fond of French architecture and design. A combination of classic Vietnamese style and French palace architecture, it was built between 1920 and 1931. Even though the staircases and temples are made of concrete, which does not make it the most beautiful building in Hue, it is heavily ornamented and is the only mausoleum with painted ceilings.
A shrine dedicated to Minh Mang and his empress sits on top of an altar in the Minh Mang mausoleum.
The Longevity Temple in the Imperial city was built in 1822 during the reign of Minh Mang.
A small stained-glass window in the temple. Unusually, clear glass was also used in door panels.
The interaction between Oriental and Western styles can be seen in these very unusual beautiful wooden doors with stained-glass windows.
The tomb of the Emperor Tu Duc is one of the most elegant mausoleums in Hue and sits in a garden with a magnificent lake and pavilion complex. The Chinese-style pavilion was the centerpiece of the tomb, a place where the emperor could sit in peace and write his poetry.
This extremely rare painting on glass shows a contemporary depiction of court life, in this case a feast. The emperor sits on a raised stage at one end while the guests, dressed in traditional costumes, sit at long tables set with many dishes. Musical ensembles provide entertainment.
One of the statues guarding the mausoleum. The tombs of both high-ranking mandarins and emperors follow the Chinese tradition of being accessed by a grand alley flanked by stone images of soldiers and animals. The number of images depended on rank.
Minh Mang’s tomb is built like a miniature palace set in gardens and surrounded by ponds and lakes. The Sung An temple shown here is dedicated to his empress. Vietnamese funerary architecture was strongly influenced by geomancy, with the sites and the size of buildings being determined by strict rules.
Emperor Khai Dinh’s mausoleum was built during the 1920s, and in comparison to earlier tombs is a much more modern interpretation of both Oriental and Western architectural nuances. Most of the vast pillars and statues are built in concrete. In this first main courtyard, two rows of statues representing the emperor’s soldiers and mandarins, flanked by life-sized elephants, face the court center.
The walls in the main room of the emperor’s tomb are covered in an elaborate glass and porcelain design.
The ceiling clearly shows a mixture of Oriental and Western styles, with nine painted dragons dancing among gray clouds.
garden houses of hue
IN THE CITY OF HUE one finds a number of garden houses that date from the nineteenth century to the present day. Garden house architecture follows exactly the same principles as the imperial palaces of Hue. The house structure is basically a timber, load-bearing frame that can be easily dismantled. The wood used is not as precious as the lim (ironwood) reserved for temples and palaces, but tends to be any of the rot-resistant varieties such as kien, mit and gu. As in palace architecture, such houses respect the rules of geomancy (phuong thuy), with elements of the garden being used as natural screens. The ancestor’s altar, the protective plant screen and an ornamental pond are usually aligned on the same axis. Sometimes, again respecting phuong thuy principles, the garden and house entrances are not on the same axis or, alternately, the plant screen may protect the main door of the house from any bad spirits tempted to enter. The garden is thus a part of the house. As well as having aesthetic and spiritual functions, it also ensures the rapid absorption of excess rainwater and keeps the temperature at an acceptable level during the hot Hue summers.
Most of Hue’s extant garden houses have retained traditional styles and forms. However, many have incorporated French elements, such as a brick wall painted in yellow, blue or green, or floor tiles and furniture, resulting in a pleasant marriage between French classic shapes and Vietnamese traditional wood craftsmanship. Some are also relatively new, having been built only a few years ago and thus maintaining a lively tradition.
The Ngoc Son garden house, one of the oldest in Hue, is believed to have been built between 1885 and 1888. The Emperor Dong Khanh (who reigned only from 1885 to 1888 before the French deposed him) gave it to his daughter, the Princess Ngoc Son. Today, his direct descendant, Mr An, looks after the house. The house was built in traditional Vietnamese style according to strict rules of geomancy. The main entrance faces the garden, not the street, and a protective bamboo screen separates the main door of the house from the pond. Inside, the library has changed little during the last 100 years. The only traces of French influence are the blue wooden shutters on the doors and windows, which are usually kept open, but are closed when the midday sun is too bright.
Garden houses are a unique feature of Hue and date from the beginning of the nineteenth century. The houses were usually privately owned and set in attractive formal gardens. Some have connections with the old Royal Imperial Court.
Harmony between the city’s ancient ambience and its poetic landscape
