Hoang A Tuong Castle (Hoang Yen Chao Castle)
Location:
Hoang A Tuong Castle is located in Na Hoi Tho Hamlet, Bac Ha District, Laocai Province; 300m from Bac Ha Market.The castle was built at the beginning of the 20th century (between 1914 and 1921). Its owner was Hoang Yen Chao of Tay origin. He was the father of Hoang A Tuong, a tribal mandarin under the domination of the French colonialists.
The castle covers
an area of 4,000m² in which the main building occupies 420m². In front of its
arched doors are earthen banks. Occupying a pivotal position overlooking the Bac
Ha valley, the castle serves both as the residence of Hoang Yen Chao, then Hoang
A Tuong and as a fortress. Its network of walls, bunkers, and battlements were
reinforced by a mortar mixed with sugar molasses. In a distance, the white
castle jutting out from the valley looks imposing and majestic.
At present, this castle is put under a restoration scheme to better help
tourists get insight into the changes of the local life.
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Source: Vietnam Administration of Tourism |