Re-enactment of naval battle stirs patriotic feelings

Marine majesty: The 1,300 actors and actresses took part in the re-enactment of an historical naval action by the Nguyen Lords was held on the banks of the Huong River in Hue on Monday. — VNA/VNS Photo Nhat Anh

That was what spectator Tran Quang Ngoc said about 1,300 actors and actresses who took part in the re-enactment of a navy manoeuvre under the Nguyen Lords' Era show at the bank of the Huong River in Hue City on Monday night.

Ngoc was not the only one impressed by the spectacular performance, as many lingered around after the show to congratulate to Nguyen Quoc Hung, general stage director of the programme.

"I've seen such imposing scenes," said 48-year-old Pham Mai Lien. "I am proud of the Vietnamese nation."

Another spectator, Nguyen Mai Trang from the Hue National School, exclaimed: "I can still feel my heartbeat, this has brought me a lot of ideas about the country's history."

The performance, part of the on-going Hue Festival, commemorates an historical event from 375 years ago when Lord Nguyen Phuc Lan selected Kim Long to be the capital of the Southern Kingdom. He went on to develop the area where Hue City now sits into a thriving bureaucratic centre, Phu Xuan city.

As a display of strength of the feudal military, the Lord arranged a navy manoeuvre involving ballistic weapons and warships.

The re-enactment began with a ceremony in which the king, imperial ministers and soldiers prayed for good weather, favourable terrain and a united populace. Aggressive battles on the river bank and over the water followed, with the navy returning triumphant.

Fire, smoke, drum-beats and soldier shouts all helped to recreate a majestic feudal atmosphere.

"Nguyen Lords staged the very first naval revolutions of the nation," said Phan Tien Dung, director of the Thua Thien-Hue Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism. "With seasoned soldiers and special arts of war, they brought many glorious victories in the fight for the country's sovereignty."

"The festivity is original," he said. "Besides developing cultural inheritance, it will arouse the people's patriotism as well as their will to defend national independence."

"I think it was successful because of the intense ardour in every actor and actress," Hung said. "Who are they? Most of them are normal people, soldiers and students."

"The festival programmers have touched an emotional nerve in our collective history." — VNS