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The Tran, who succeeded the Ly in 1225, continued this work
of unification and nation-building until the end of the 14th
century. During this 400-year period the country experienced
vigorous development in many fields.
Appendages and
domains greatly increased in number under the Tran, when
nobles and dignitaries endeavored to reclaim new lands,
then taking possession of them. Some used their power to
seize land belonging to villages and individuals. On these
appendages and domains, the peasants were in reality serfs,
while the lords kept a large number of domestic slaves. The
Ly had forbidden the traffic of young men to be used as
slaves, but the order was rescinded under the Tran.
The slaves
comprised former criminals, insolvent debtors, and prisoners
of war. During periods of famine, children were sold by
their parents as slaves. Some lords owned thousands of serfs
and slaves. These could not own property or gain access to
public positions. Under the Tran in particular, the nobles
had their own armed forces.
Buddhist
monasteries also constituted large domains with serfs and
slaves.
The great
societal movement for the liberation of these serfs and
slaves was to shake the regime to its foundations.
The larger part
of the land, however, belonged to the villages, which paid
rent and taxes to the royal administration. The village
population was periodically required to provide labor for
the construction of roads, dykes and canals, and to do
military service. Communal land was periodically distributed
among the villagers, under the direction of notables,
naturally in a manner profitable to the notables.
Land
appropriation by individuals became increasingly frequent
under the Le; as early as the 11th century, the Ly had to
promulgate legislation on the sale and purchase of land. A
class of peasant-owners thus appeared to challenge the lords
with their larger domains.
On several
occasions, the Tran had dykes repaired and canals dredged.
In 1382, they ordered the digging of several canals in Thanh
Hoa and Nghe An provinces, and in 1390 the Thien Duc Canal,
now the Song Duong. Dykes were built along the Red, Thai
Binh, Ma and
Chu
rivers, and every year, following the harvest, the mandarins
responsible inspected the dykes and directed maintenance and
repair work. In August 1315, when the waters rose to a
dangerous level, King Tran Minh Tong personally directed the
work. A mandarin advised him against such work, saying that
"it becomes a king to show great virtue, not to devote
himself to small things"; but another dignitary retorted,
"When the country is threatened by a major flood or severe
drought, it is a king's duty to directly take part in
carrying out the necessary measures. This is the best way to
show great Virtue".
Dykes were also
built along the coast so as to bring new land formed by silt
accumulating at the mouths of rivers into production.
With
administrative centralization, internal peace and the
safeguarding of national independence, agriculture, the
cornerstone of the economy, was able to develop further.
Historical records note few severe famines. The kings
sometimes decreed a reduction in taxes to encourage the
peasants.
Handicrafts also
saw rapid development. Cotton, silk and brocade weaving
reached a high level. Multi-colored brocades were exported
or presented to the Chinese imperial court. The development
of silver, gold, tin and lead mining gave birth to numerous
metal-working trades and jewelry-making. The state minted
copper coins and set up workshops for the manufacture of
weapons, religious objects and court attire. Bronze
smelting, for the making of bells in particular, and pottery
with high-quality enamels made great progress. The bricks,
tiles, and ceramic statues made in the Le period were
famous.
Printing from
engraved wooden plates contributed to the development of
education and the dissemination of Buddhist literature.
The development
of handicrafts led the Tran kings to divide the capital into
districts, each of which specialized in a particular trade.
In the 13th century, the capital had 61 districts, each of
which was occupied by a guild.
The growing
shipbuilding industry was able to produce large junks with
as many as one hundred oars. The capital Thang Long became
the country's great commercial centre, and markets were
established in many places. A Mongolian ambassador who
visited the country in the 13th century wrote that village
markets were held twice a month, with "plenty of goods", and
on the highways a market was situated every five miles.
There were also inns established by the authorities where
travelers could rest.
Trading between
the delta and mountainous regions flourished. The plains
exchanging salt and iron tools for forest products. Trade
with
China
was effected at special places near the frontier or the
ports. In exchange for fabrics, the Chinese obtained
essential bibs, ivory, salt and other minerals. The silk
trade was subject to rigorous regulation by the state, which
itself sometimes engaged in commercial operations. Japanese
and Siamese vessels came to the port of Van Don to buy
Vietnamese goods.
In 1280, King
Tran Nhan Ton instituted a uniform unit of measurement
for wood and textiles.
Commerce thus
began to develop, but merchants were not held in high
esteem, and external trade was tightly controlled by
the state.In
1242, a village administrative apparatus was instituted by
the Tran. Up to that time, the royal administration had
covered only province and district levels.
The monarchy
gave special attention to the building of a powerful army.
Serfs were not recruited into the army, and positions of
command were reserved for members of aristocratic families,
with the highest posts reserved for members of the royal
family. There was a special guard for the protection of the
king and the royal palace. Military service was extended to
cover the whole population except serfs. Conscripts
underwent a period of training, then returned to their
villages to continue their work in the fields. This
peasant-soldier policy made the mobilization of large forces
possible whenever necessary. Training was undertaken
regularly and, according to a Chinese ambassador of the
time, was of a high level. Under the Tran, the princes and
lords who owned large domains had their own armies made up
of serfs and slaves. The sons of prominent families were
trained in the art of war in a military school. Tran Hung
Dao, who defeated the Mongols, wrote a handbook on military
tactics for the use of his officers.
Glorious Resistance against the Mongols
At the beginning
of the 13th century, Gengis Khan, having unified
Mongolia,
started a war of conquest against
China.
In 1253, Kubilai conquered the Dai Ly kingdom (now
Yunnan
Province),
thus reaching the Vietnamese frontier. The Mongols demanded
passage through Dai Viet in order to attack the Sung from
the south (1257), but the Tran refused. A Mongol army
invaded Dai Viet, smashed its defences, and seized the
capital Thang Long, which was put to the sword and burnt to
the ground. The King Tran left the capital, which was also
abandoned by its inhabitants. The Mongol army were not able
to obtain food and fared badly in the tropical climate. A
Vietnamese counter-offensive drove the Mongols out of the
capital. In retreat, the enemy was attacked by local
partisans from an ethnic minority group living in the Phu
Tho region. This was the
first Mongol defeat.
Once they had
become the overlords of
China,
the Mongols grew more and more demanding towards Dai Viet.
Despite concession, by the Tran, the Mongol court
remained intransigent, dreaming of conquering both Dai Viet
and Champa. Relations between the two countries remained
tense, and Mongols envoys behaved with arrogance at the Tran
court. The Tran were not inactive, but rather made serious
preparations for the country's defence.
In 1281, Tran Di
Ai, a member of the royal family, was sent as an envoy to
China.
The Mongols persuaded him to accept his investiture by them
as king of Dai Viet. He returned to the country with an
escort of 1,000 soldiers to ascend the throne. However, the
Mongol escort was beaten and he was captured.
In the meantime,
the Mongols had completed preparations for an expedition by
sea against Champa. At the end of 1282, a Mongol general,
Toa Do (Gogetu), landed in Champa and seized its capital in
1281. But Cham resistance decimated the Mongol army. In
1284, Toa Do began withdrawing his troops, regrouping them
in the northern part of Champa near the Vietnamese frontier,
and awaiting further developments.
Kuhilai
had been making preparations for a powerful expedition
against Dai Viet and Champa; under the command of his son
Thoat Hoan (Toghan), 500,000 cavalrymen and infantrymen were
to rush southward to push the frontiers of the Mongol empire
to the southernmost part of the
Indochina
peninsula.
King Tran Nhan
Tong was aware of the enemy's strategy. As early as 1282, he
had assembled and consulted all the princes and high-ranking
dignitaries on the action to be taken; their unanimous
response was to fight. Tran Quoc Toan, only 16 years old,
recruited a guard of 1,000 men to go to the front. At the
close of 1283, all the princes and dignitaries were ordered
to put their troops under the supreme command of Tran Hung
Dao. A congress of village elders from all over the country
was convened and the following question put to them: "Should
we capitulate or fight?" A great cry rose from the assembly:
"Fight!"
The Mongols
demanded that their troops be allowed to pass through Dai
Viet territory for the invasion of Champa. At the close of
1284, they crossed the frontier. The Vietnamese force,
totaling a mere 200,000 men, was unable to withstand the
first onslaught. Tran Hung Dao ordered the evacuation
of the capital and was asked by the king: "The enemy
is so strong that a protracted War might bring terrible
destruction down upon the people. Wouldn't it be better to
lay down our arms to save the population?" The general
answered: "I understand Your Majesty's humane feelings
perfectly, but what would become of our ancestors' land, of
our forefathers' temples? If you want to surrender, please
have my head cut off first". The king was rcassurcd. Hung
Dao wrote a handbook on military strategy for his officers'
use and issued a famous appeal which so inspired his men
that they all had "Death to the Mongols!" tattooed on their
arms. In the villages placards were put up enjoining the
population to resist the invader by every possible means
and, if necessary, to take refuge in the forests and
mountains and continue the struggle.
In early 1285,
the Mongols captured several posts, crossed the
Red River
and entered Thang Long. The capital was ransacked and its
inhabitants massacred. General Tran Binh Trong was taken
prisoner. When the enemy tried to win him over he said: "I
would rather be a ghost in the south than a prince in the
north", and was subsequently executed. The Mongol general
Toa Do left Champa to join up with the army led by his
colleague O Ma Nhi (Omar). A Vietnamese army under the
command of Tran Quang Khai was beaten off when it tried to
block his way in Nghe An Province. The Mongol fleet was
sailing up the
Red River.
Many princes and nobles, among them LeTac and Tran Ich Tac,
betrayed their country. The Tran court had to take refuge in
Thanh
Hoa
Province.
The Mongols controlled the greater part of the Red River
Delta and Thanh Hoa and Nghe An provinces, i.e. the majority
of the country's territory.
However, in the
process the Mongols were forced to distribute their forces
among a multitude of vulnerable posts and patrols whose task
was to keep communications open. In the first months of
1285, local chiefs in the uplands inficted losses on the
Mongols, while in the delta the population, leaving a vacuum
before the enemy, denied them all access to supplies and put
them in a most difficult position. The determination of the
Tran command was thus able to be brought into full play.
From Nghe An
Province, Toa Do's troops, harassed by guerrillas, tried to
move up the
Red River
and join the Mongol army stationed farther north. The Trap
sent 50,000 men to intercept them, and the Mongols suffered
an overwhelming defeat at Ham Tu (Hung
Yen
Province).
Fired up by this victory, Tran Hung Dao's troops dashed
towards the capital. Chuong Duong, an outpost 20 km south of
Thang Long, was taken. And when the King Tran with his
troops left their Thanh Hoa refuge to advance toward the
capital, the population rose up, harassing the
rearguard of the Mongol armies. Enemy troops evacuated Thang
Long and withdrew north of the
Red River.
The bulk of the Vietnamese forces threw themselves into
battle against Toa Do's army, which was crushed at Tay Ket
in July 1285; the Mongol general was killed and 50,000 of
his men captured.
After posting
troops along the route taken by the enemy as they retreated
towards
China,
Hung Dao staged a frontal attack on the Mongol army. As the
latter drew back, it fell into ambushes. Thoat Hoan, the
Mongol commander-in-chief, escaped by hiding in a bronze
cask. By August 1285, the whole country had been liberated,
and the Mongol army of half a million strong defeated.
Kubilai was
forced to abandon plans for an invasion of
Japan
in order to make preparations for a revenge expedition
against Dai Viet. As the Tran princes sought to recruit new
troops, General Tran Hung Dao said to them: "The strength of
an army lies in its quality, not numbers". And to the
anxious king he said, "Our troops are now better trained,
while the enemy, having suffered a defeat, has lost morale.
Victory will be easier".
In late 1287,
Thoat Hoan again crossed the frontier with 300,000 men while
a Mongol fleet of 500 vessels headed for the Vietnamese
coast. The King Tran again left the capital. The Mongol
general O Ma Nhi sent him this warning: "Even if you fled to
the sky I'd go after you. I'd pursue you to the bottom of
the seas, to the heart of the forests, if necessary!" The
Mongols sought to occupy more and more territory, but found
only deserted areas around them. The Yuan (name of the
Mongol dynasty) annals relate: "The Chiao Chih (Dai Viet)
population hid their rice and fled". The invading army ran
short of supplies. Thoat Hoan ordered the capital set on
fire, then withdrew north of the
Red River;
during that time, his troops were constantly harassed by the
Tran army and the population.
At Van Don on
the coast (near present-day Halong), General Tran Khanh Du
kept a close watch on Mongol supply convoys. He caught the
enemy fleet unawares, destroyed it and seized the cargoes of
food. The enemy was greatly demoralized on hearing the news.
The Mongols pillaged the countryside, but the population put
up a heroic resistance. Thoat Hoan was told by his generals:
"We have no more citadels left, no more food; the strategic
passes have been lost, and summer will soon come with its
retinue of diseases. We'd better withdraw". The Mongol
retreat was effected by land through Lang Son and by sea,
the fleet sailing down the
Bach
Dang
River.
Tran Hung Dao
used Ngo Quyen's old stratagem, iron-tipped stakes
planted at the mouth of the river. General Pham Ngu Lao was
sent to Lang Son to guard the mountain passes. Tran Hung Dao
himself took the bulk of the troops across the
Hoa
River
(Kien An Province) and launched a big offensive. When
crossing the river, Hung Dao publicly swore the following
oath: "If the Mongols are not defeated, we will not re
cross
this river".
At high tide,
the Mongol fleet sailing down the Bach Dang was engaged by a
small Vietnamese fleet which soon retreated. O Ma Nhi's
forces were pursuing it when Tran Hung Dao's army turned up.
The Mongol fleet beat a hasty retreat, but by this time the
tide was ebbing and the Mongol junks broke up on the
iron-tipped stakes. O Ma Nhi was taken prisoner and 100 of
his junks were destroyed and another 400 captured (April
3, 1288).
Thoat Hoan was
terrified on learning the news, and hurriedly withdrew. His
troops were decimated during their retreat, the third Mongol
defeat. In late 1288, the King Tran wisely sent a mission to
China
to negotiate, offering tribute to the Mongol court. In 1289,
he handed over the captured Mongol generals and officers.
The Chinese court wanted more than this formal recognition
of suzerainty but its demands were not accepted. In 1293,
the Mongols began organizing another expedition but Kubilai
died in 1294 and his son Timour abandoned the project. The
new ruler established friendly relations with Dai Viet,
which continued to pay tribute annually to the Mongol court.
The principal
reason for the victory over the Mongols was the strength of
the socioeconomic system established under the Ly and Tran,
and the successful military policy followed by the Tran
command. The monarchy and nobles had promoted the
development of agriculture and instituted a peasant-soldier
system so that when a war occurred, the whole nation united
around its chiefs, each man becoming a combatant. Ethnic
minority chieftains in mountainous regions also contributed
to victory. National unity became a reality. National
consciousness, mounded over the course of many centuries of
struggle against foreign aggressors and consolidated by the
establishment of stable centralized power had been
considerably strengthened. General Tran Hung Dao never
failed to seek the support of the population in his fight
against an enemy superior in numbers and armaments, and he
used appropriate strategies and tactics. He willingly left
towns, and even the capital where necessary, avoided combat
when the enemy was too strong, resorted to guerrilla
harassment, and resolutely took the offensive whenever the
circumstances were favorable. The fierce determination of
his command galvanized the men.
On a visit to
Tran Hung Dao shortly before died in 1300, King Tran Anh
Tong asked him, "What should we do in the event of a new
invasion from the north?" Hung Dao replied, "The enemy
relies on numbers. To oppose the long with the short -
therein lies our skill. If the enemy makes a violent rush
forward, like fire and tempest, it is easy to defeat him.
But if he shows patience, like the silkworm nibbling at the
mulberry leaf, if he proceeds without haste, refrains from
pillaging, and does not seek a quick victory, then we must
choose the best generals and effective tactics, as in a
chess game, the army must be united and of one mind, like
father and son. It is essential to treat the people with
humanity, so as to strike deep roots and ensure a lasting
base". Ever since then, the memory of Tran Hung Dao has been
honored at the Kiep Bac Temple.
After his
victory over the Mongols, King Tran Nhan Tong gave up the
throne in 1293, retired to the monastery and together with
two other bonzes founded the Truc Lam (Bamboo
Forest)
sect. A doctrinal work from the Tran period, the Khoa Hit
Litc, has been preserved with the following lines:
Nothing, is born,
Nothing dies.
When this has been understood
The Buddha appears,
The round of avatars ends.
King Tran Thai
Tong, who reigned from 1225 to 1258, described in tile
foreword to a doctrinal work how he had sought the monastic
life:
"Ever since the king, my father, handed over the kingdom to
me, then only a child, I have never been free from care. I
told myself: 'My Parents are no long here to give me advice;
it will be very difficult for me to win the people's
confidence. What should I do?' After thinking deeply, I came
to the conclusion that to retire into the mountains,
to seek the Buddha's teachings in order to know the reasons
for life and death and to pay homage to my parents would be
the best way. I decided to leave. On the third day of the
fourth month of the fifth Year of Thien Ung's reign, I
dressed as a commoner and left the palace. To the guards I
said,' I want to mix with the people, learn about their
hardships, and know their thoughts'. Seven or eight men
followed me; when the hoi hour had passed, I crossed the river then told the truth to the guards, who burst into
tears. The next day, while passing the Pha Lai Ferry, I hid
my face in order not to be recognized. We spent the night at
Gia Chanh Pagoda. The next day, we went straight to the top
of the mountain on which the Great Master Truc Lam
resided. Overjoyed, the Great Master greeted me with these
words:
'The old bonze that I am, who has retired into the midst of
forest, whose body is nothing but skin and bone, who lives
on wild herbs and berries, drinks from the stream and
wanders among the trees, has a heart as light as the clouds
and unburdened like the wind. Your Majesty has left Your
sumptuous palace to come to this remote place. May I ask you
what compelling need has prompted you to make this journey?
With tears in my eyes, I replied:
'I am very young, my parents are no longer in this world and
here I am, alone, reigning over the people, without any
support. I think that thrones have always been fragile and
so I have come to these mountains with my only desire that
of becoming, a Buddha.' The Great Master replied, 'No, the
Buddha is not to be found in these mountains, he is in our
hearts. When the heart is at peace and lucid the Buddha is
there. If Your Majesty has an enlightened hear, you
immediately become the Buddha; why then seek else where?
(The Court came to beseech the king, to return and the prime
minister threatened to commit suicide if the king refused).
"The Great Master took my hand and said, ' Since you are
king, the will of the kingdom must also be your will, the
heart of the kingdom must also be your heart. The whole
kingdom is now asking you to return, how can you refuse?
There is however one important thing you should not forget
when you are back in your palace: studying the sacred
books'. I returned to the palace, and against my will,
remained on the throne for several decades. In my leisure
time I would gather together eminent old men for the study
of the Thien doctrine (Dhyana) and of the sacred books, none
of which was omitted. When studying the Diamond sutra, I
often stopped at the sentence: ' Never let your heart cling
to any fixed thing'. I would then close the book, and remain
along time in meditation. Enlightenment came to me and I
composed the initiation to the Thien…"
It would be naïve to think that during this period Buddhism
confined itself to these purely spiritual exercises. It was
the state religion with all its pomp and vigor; it provided
people with spiritual consolation, the ruling class with
divine prestige, and some minds with a means of escape; it
was imbued with superstition in many of its manifestations
and with Taoism in its doctrine. It left a lasting imprint
on the Vietnamese soul. However, as the monarchical order
was gradually consolidated, the social hierarchy became
increasingly complex, and the royal administration extended
its power to the detriment of the aristocracy. Buddhism was
no longer enough.
Confucian
culture grew in importance under the Tran: the competitions
were better codified and held more regularly. The title of
"doctor" was bestowed, enhancing the prestige of Confucian
literature. Institutes were created in the capital for the
study of Confucian literature, subjects in the competitions
comprised in particular the composition of poems, royal
ordinances and proclamations, and essays on classical
literature. As well as public schools, private schools also
appeared under the direction of famous people, the most
prominent of these being Chu Van An. In the field of
culture, Buddhist bonzes were increasingly eclipsed by
Confucian scholars; in 1243, the title of doctor was awarded
to Le Van Huu, who was to become
Vietnam's
first great historian.
Confucian
scholars monopolized more and more positions in public life,
displacing Buddhist bonzes and nobles of military origin,
who were often uneducated. In the 13th century, the
ideological struggle between Buddhism and Confucianism
became increasingly acute, a struggle which reflected the
antagonism facing the nobles, owners of great domains, from
the fast-growing class of peasant owners of lowly origin.
The great domains were also shaken by revolts among serfs
and domestic slaves at the close of the 13th century. Thus,
divisions appeared between the aristocracy and
Buddhist clergy on one side, and on the other side, the
class of peasant-owners allied with the serfs and slaves
with Confucian scholars as their spokesmen in the field of
ideology.
"In face of Buddhism which affirmed the vanity, even the
unreality of this world, preached renunciation, and directed
men's minds towards other worldly aspirations, Confucianism
taught that man is essentially a social being bound by
social obligations. To serve one's king, honor one's
parents, remain loyal to one's spouse until death, manage
one's family affairs, participate in the administration of
one's country, contribute to safeguarding the peace of the
world - such were the duties prescribed by Confucianism for
all. To educate oneself, to improve oneself so as to be able
to assume all these tasks, this should be the fundamental
preoccupation of all men, from the Emperor, Son of Heaven,
down to the humblest commoner.
The scholars
directed their attacks not only against Buddhist beliefs,
but also against the place granted to them by the State and
society. The historian Le Van Huu wrote:
"The first King Ly ,
hardly two years after his accession to the throne, at a
time when the ancestral temples of the dynasty had not yet
been consolidated, had already had eight pagodas built in Thien Duc district, and many others
restored in different provinces; he kept more than a
thousand bonzes in the capital; much wealth and labor had
thus been wasted! These riches had not fallen from the sky,
this labor had not been supplied by the gods; to do such
things was to drain the blood and sweat of the people."
The scholar Le
Quat lamented:
"To implore the Buddha's blessing, to dread his malediction-
how had such beliefs become so deeply rooted in the hearts
of men ? Princes of the blood and common people alike
squandered their possessions in venerating the Buddha, quite
happy to give them away to pagodas, as if they had been
given a guarantee for life in the other world. Wherever
there was a house, one was sure to find a pagoda next to it;
a crumbling pagoda was soon replaced by a new one; bells,
pagodas, drums, towers - half the population were engaged in
making these things."
Truong Han Sieu
also made a direct attack on the bonzes:
" Scoundrels who lost all
notion of Buddhist asceticism only thought of taking
possession of beautiful monasteries and gardens, building
for themselves luxurious residences, and surrounding
themselves with a host of servants… People became monks by
the thousand so as to get food without having to plough and
clothes without having to weave. They deceived the people,
undermined morality, squandered riches, were found
everywhere, followed by numerous believers, very few of them
were not real bandits."
But several
centuries were to pass before Buddhism was eliminated from
the scene, at least from public office, and Confucianism
could stand alone. Competitions in the three doctrines
(Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism) still took place under
the Kings Tran. No war of religion ever broke out in
Vietnam. By the 14th century, however, Confucianism had
risen to pre-eminence.
The Birth of a National Literature
With the
recovering independence, a national literature took shape
and gradually developed. Popular and oral literature in the
national language became ever richer, but it is difficult to
date most of the works, songs and stories handed down from
generation to generation. In the l0th century, a scholarly
literature appeared in classical Chinese, the common
language of the culture of the Far East, using Chinese
characters. However, more and more a need for the
development of a script for the Vietnamese language was
felt; the nom script, derived from Chinese, was thus
created. The exact date of its creation is not known, but
the first works written in nom appeared in the 14th
century.
The first works
in classical Chinese were mostly Buddhist texts expounding
the doctrine or expressing the bonzes' reactions to certain
events, for example a poem by the bonze Van Hanh, who died
in 1018:
Mail is a shadow, gone as soon as born,
The trees, so green in spring, are bare in autumn.
Greatness and decline, why, should we care?
The destiny of men and empires is like a dew-drop on a grass
leaf.
The bonze Vien
Chieu (98-1090) was also it poet who wrote:
Escorted by the wind, the sound of the horn slips through
the bamboo grove,
With the moon rising behind, the shadows of mountains climb
the ramparts.
With the
consolidation of the kingdom, Buddhist inspiration on the
evanescence of things gave way to the contemplation of
nature; then with the struggle for national independence,
patriotism prevailed in the writings. The same men who in
peace time sang of the beauty of the land took up their pens
at critical moments to exalt the nation's struggle.
King Tran Nhan
Tong, the victor over the Mongols left this twilight
landscape:
Villages grow dim in the mist,
They now vanish, now reappear in the sunset.
Buffalo-herds blowing their horns take their cattle home,
A flock of white egrets swoop down oil the fields.
When the country
was invaded by the Mongols, General Tran Hung Dao, wrote
a proclamation to the army which is one of the jewels in
the treasury of our national literature:
I can neither eat nor sleep, my heart aches, and tears
trickle down from my eyes; I am enraged at being unable yet
to tear the enemy to pieces, pluck out his liver, taste his
blood. But you are neither disturbed nor ashamed by the
humiliation suffered by your king and your fatherland. You
who are officers and generals
of our royal army, how can you serve the enemy
without feeling hatred? How can you listen to the music
greeting enemy envoys without choking with anger? You spend
your time watching cock fights, gambling, tending your
gardens, looking after your wives and children. You are busy
making money and forget about state affairs. The pleasures
of hunting prevail in your minds over your military
preoccupations. You are absorbed in wine and song. If the
country were invaded by the Mongols, your cock's spurs would
not be able to pierce their armor, your gambling tricks
could not replace military strategy. You may possess immense
gardens and fields but even a thousand tales of gold could
not redeem your lives. Your wives and children would only
encumber you; all the gold in the world could not buy the
enemy's head, Your hunting dogs could not drive him away,
your wine could not intoxicate him to death, sweet songs
could not seduce him. Then both You and I would be in the
enemy's clutches. Not only could I no longer enjoy my
appendages, but you too would lose all your privileges; not
only would my family be broken up, woe would also befall
your wives and children; both royal ancestral temples and
your own ancestors' graves would be trampled upon; dishonor
would stain both my name and yours, not only during our
lifetime, but for centuries to come. Would you then persist
in pleasure-seeking?"
Among the author
who left great literary works were Mac Dinh Chi (died in
1346), Truong Han Sieu (died in 1354), Chu Van An (died in
1370), Nguyen Trung Ngan (1289-1370), Pham Su Manh who in
1345 led a mission to China, and Le Quat. Truong Han Sieu
glorified the two victories won in 939 and 1288 on the Bach
Dang River, in a famous poem ending with these verses:
The enemy has fled, peace is restored for centuries to come,
Terrain played no role, noble virtues were decisive.
Of this period
two works of religious tendency remain: Viet Dien
U Linh, a collection of texts on genii, divinities, and
deified famous men, which was attributed to Ly Te Xuyen, and
Thien Uyen Tap Anh, a collection of texts and
biographies of bonzes up to the Tran Dynasty.
Literature in
nom appeared in the l4th century with Nguyen Thuyen and
Nguyen Si Co whose works, though mentioned in the annals,
have not survived. Tradition has it that when King Tran Nhan
Tong married Princess Huyen Tran to the king of Champa in
exchange for the O and Ly districts, this act was severely
criticized in satirical poems written in nom. The
appearance of poems in nom was an important landmark
in the development of a national literature. By the end of
the 13th century, Ho Quy Ly had translated the Kinh Thi
(Book of Poems), a Confucian classic, into nom.
An annals
department was created under the Tran. Tran Tan wrote
Viet Chi, a monograph which the great historian Le Van
Huu often referred to in 1272 when he compiled the Dai
Viet Su Ky (History of Dai Viet) in 30 chapters covering
the period from Trieu Da to the end of the Ly dynasty. Le
Van Huu's work was also lost, but it was the major
inspiration for the complete history of Dai Viet written
later by Ngo Si Lien. At the close of the Tran Dynasty, the
Dai Viet Su Luoc (Short History)
was written by an anonymous author. This book was to be
reprinted in China in the 18th century. It is reported in
the annals that Ho Ton Thoc wrote two historical chronicles,
the Viet Su Cuong Muc and
Nam Viet The Chi. Both these works have been lost. Under
the Tran, chronicles were also written describing military
exploits in the wars against the Mongols and the kingdom of
Ai Lao. Le Tac, who had taken refuge in China, wrote the
An Nam Chi Luoc at the beginning of the 14th century.
According to the
An Nam Chi Luoc, in Tran times "people played small
cylindrical drum, introduced from Champa, which had a clear,
pure sound. This drum was used in the great music play only
for the king; even princes and dignitaries were not allowed
to play great music, except at ceremonies. Guitars - cam,
tranh, ti ba with seven or two strings, and flutes of
various kinds could be used by all nobles or commoners,
Countless pieces were played".
The art of the
Tran period continued that of the Ly Palaces and royal
mausoleums continued to be built. Pho Minh Tower, built in
1305, is 14 stories high with the lowest two levels made of
stone and the rest of brick. The base was shaped like a
gigantic lotus flower emerging from the water. The Binh Son
tower still stands to this day, leaning slightly with its
remaining 12 storey totaling 15 meters in height. The
whole construction is of terra-cotta and the surfaces arc
richly decorated with lotus and other flowers, dragons,
lions, and leaves of the bo tree. The dragons have
lost their "natural" look and the S-shaped decoration on
their heads. Remarkable wood carvings have survived from the
Tran period. This art form appeared during a much earlier
period, but the works have suffered badly from the ravages
of climate and insects. Wood carving also used all the
above-mentioned motifs and themes.
Among the great
monuments from the Tran period are the Tay Do citadel, built
by Ho Quy Ly in Thanh Hoa Province in 1397, and which served
as a capital for a short time. Rectangular in shape, 900
meters long and 700 meters wide, with 6 metre-high ramparts,
it was built of large stone blocks, some of them 6 meters
long, 1.7 meters wide and 1.2 meters high and weighing 16
tons. Of the ancient palaces, only a few traces have
survived, such as stone dragons decorating flights of steps.
The arched porticoes were built from huge stone blocks.
Architecture had
thus reached a high level. Among other forms of technology
was the casting of cannon. Ho Nguyen Trung, taken prisoner
by the Ming, was entrusted by the Chinese emperor to make
cannons for the Chinese army. Astronomy also developed to
some extent. It is recorded in the annals that the mandarin
Dang Lo, in charge of astrology under the Tran, invented an
instrument used to observe celestial phenomena.
During the reign
of Tran Due Tong (1341-1369), lived the famous physician Tue
Tinh who made a special study of the healing properties of
local plants and herbs. In 1352, he was invited to China to
attend the Chinese empress. He left several medical
treatises, the most famous of which is the Nam Duoc Than
Hieu (About the Marvelous Effects of National
Medicines).. |
