The citadel was built in 1822 in Son Tay town, around 60km from Hanoi’s hub. It is now a
national historical relic and a tourist attraction in Hanoi.

The citadel was built in Vauban architectural style under
King Minh Mang’s dynasty. It used to be the capital of three provinces of Son
Tay, Hung Hoa and Tuyen Quang in the Nguyen Dynasty.

The citadel was the base of military of the Nguyen Dynasty
against the French in the 1870-1880s. It was lost to the French in 1883.

Son Tay ancient citadel is in square shape, with 400m long
sides, totaling around 16 hectares in area. Its four gates face East, West,
South and North. It was built from laterite, with walls of 4.5-5 meters long.
There is a 3m deep, 20m wide and 1795m long moat outside the wall, which is
connected to the Tich Giang river.

At present, two gates have been damaged. They are being
restored.

So far, three preservation projects have been carried out in
1995, 2001-2005 and one since late 2009.

The citadel in pictures:

The three gates of the citadel.

The walls of the citadel

A preservation project is underway

The citadel
was built from laterite

Ho Huong Giang