Cultural life

'King's feast' on Tet holiday

LA (synthesis) January 27, 2025 10:46

If the traditional Tet holiday of the nation cannot lack the trays of food in each family, then in the ancient royal court there was also the ritual of giving banquets to the subjects on Tet holiday.

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A banquet for mandarins held in Can Chanh Palace during the reign of King Khai Dinh on Tet holiday (documentary photo)

According to our country's history books, the Ly Dynasty and before only recorded really big events, sometimes there was only one event in the whole year, so it was quite sketchy. Only from the Tran Dynasty did we see historical records of the royal court holding a court ceremony right on the first day of Tet, such as in the 8th year of Nguyen Phong (1258), when the Dai Viet army and people had just defeated the Mongols when they invaded our country for the first time, and this event happened right on the first day of Tet. "Dai Viet Su Ky Toan Thu" wrote: "In the spring, in the first month, on the first day, the king sat in the main hall, and invited hundreds of mandarins to attend the court. The people were at peace as before."

The story of the king giving a banquet to civil and military officials was first recorded in the “Complete Book” during the early Le Dynasty, during the reign of King Le Thai Tong, in the year At Mao, the second year of the Thieu Binh era (1435). This history book wrote: “The king gave a banquet for 5 days to civil and military officials inside and outside, and distributed money to civil and military officials who were appointed to positions outside according to different ranks”. However, the event took place after the 4th day of Tet, because on the 4th day, the Le Dynasty court received the envoys of Ai Lao, San Mac and Sat Mau, when they “brought gold and silver wine and two elephants as tribute”.

In the year of Ky Ty, the 7th year of Thai Hoa era, under the reign of King Le Nhan Tong (1449), "Toan Thu" continued to record: "Spring, January, a banquet was held for the mandarins. Dance and music were used to defeat the Ngo army". In the year of Binh Ty, the 3rd year of Dien Ninh era (1456), the event was recorded again, with a clear date, the 3rd day of Tet: "A grand banquet was held for the mandarins, Lang Son King (Le) Nghi Dan attended the banquet". The appearance of Le Nghi Dan was recorded in detail, because later, in the 6th year of Dien Ninh (1459), Le Nghi Dan murdered King Le Nhan Tong to take the throne himself.

King Le Thanh Tong probably did not like banquets, so during his reign, there was no record of banquets for his subjects. Even in the 14th year of Hong Duc (1483), the first line of history of that year stated: "Spring, January, 13th, banning banquets for public servants to prepare dishes to usurp the ceremony!"

During the Le Trung Hung period, on the morning of Chinh Dan, Lord Trinh always led civil and military mandarins to celebrate the longevity of King Le. After that, the Tet activities mainly took place at Lord Trinh's palace, including the Lord holding a banquet to entertain the mandarins. Besides enjoying the banquet, the mandarins were also rewarded by the Lord with money, in the unit of "precious money" (each mandarin had to have 600 dong, while the people spent "precious money", each mandarin only had 360 dong). The reward for the First-rank mandarin was 5 precious money quan; Second-rank mandarin got 4 quan; Third-rank mandarin got 3 quan; Fourth-rank mandarin got 2 quan; Sixth and Seventh-rank mandarin got 1 and a half quan; Eighth and Ninth-rank mandarin and civil and military mandarins Pho Tri, Thiem Tri, Cau Ke got 1 quan...

In Dang Trong, the regulation of banquets for the committees began during the reign of Lord Nguyen Anh, but first of all, it was in the most important ceremony, the Lord's birthday. The Nguyen Dynasty history book "Dai Nam Thuc Luc" stated that in the year of Tan Hoi (1791), spring, January, the Holy Birthday (the 15th) was taken as the Van Tho festival. In this ceremony, after the ceremony of informing the Thai Mieu, paying respects to the Queen Mother, the mandarins wished the Lord a long life, there was a section "Let the mandarins go to Phuong Dien (square palace) to have a banquet. From then on, it was an annual custom".

The custom of giving banquets to mandarins on the occasion of the Lunar New Year in the Nguyen Dynasty probably began during the reign of King Minh Mang. The history of the Nguyen Dynasty recorded this king's edict in the 7th year of Minh Mang (1826) on rewarding mandarins on the occasion of the Lunar New Year: "The Lunar New Year is coming, I will celebrate Tet with you all. On that day, I will order a banquet and reward silver according to your rank. Princes and dukes will each receive 20 taels; civil and military mandarins of the First Rank will each receive 12 taels; junior First Rank will receive 10 taels; junior Third Rank will receive 4 taels; senior Fourth Rank will receive 3 taels... The eunuchs, captains, squad leaders, squad leaders... will each receive 1 tael and will be allowed to attend the banquet".

The custom of giving banquets to officials has been maintained on major holidays and festivals since then, including the New Year, Longevity, and Doan Duong festivals (the 5th day of the 5th lunar month), the Mid-Autumn Festival (the 15th day of the 8th lunar month), or the Queen Mother's 50th, 60th, and 70th birthdays. The practice of having banquets was only suspended when the state was in state mourning, and all banquet activities were abolished. For example, after King Gia Long passed away, King Minh Mang ascended the throne, in the year Canh Thin, the first year of Minh Mang (1820), after giving the posthumous name to Queen Thua Thien Cao, the king gave silver to pay for banquets to officials in the capital and abroad.

The king's edict to all officials said: "When you first ascend the throne, you must show kindness to everyone, and have a banquet for your subjects, to celebrate the king's enlightenment and your kindness, and to believe in harmony between superiors and subordinates... The usual ritual is to pay respect and repay, and everything has been done in turn, but the music is still quiet, the bows and swords are not yet cooled, and I am still in pain. Is this the time for the king and his subjects to have a joyful banquet? The ceremony cannot be exceeded, but the work cannot be abandoned. Therefore, silver is given in lieu of banquets according to different ranks. (Above First Rank, silver is 20 taels; above First Rank, 15 taels; below First Rank, 10 taels; above Second Rank, 8 taels; below Second Rank, 6 taels; above Third Rank, 3 taels; below Fourth Rank, 2 taels. Officials in the capital are from Fourth Rank and above, and officials outside are from Third Rank and above)".

The Nguyen Dynasty's banquets for mandarins were often held in Can Chanh Palace. In the early years of Minh Mang's reign, the court also built a flower trellis in the courtyard to arrange tables for the mandarins to sit at. Later, the king told the Ministry of Rites: "I think that the banquets of previous emperors were mostly held in the palace. Now, the palace is spacious, so why build a tent and waste labor? From now on, when there is a celebration day, it is enough to hold the banquet in the palace."

Details on the seating arrangement when opening a banquet in Can Chanh Palace were recorded in “Dai Nam Thuc Luc”, the 18th year of Minh Mang (1837), according to the report of the Ministry of Rites: “The two houses of the military advisors on the left and right sides of Can Chanh Palace, each with 5 rooms, are paved with eight-sided planks, covered with mats. The middle room of the military advisors on the left has a red-painted table ready to be used as a place to stamp the national seal, the rooms on the left and right are for the mandarins to sit. The Lang Trung, Khoa Dao, Vien Ngoai Lang, and even the Lai Dien staff all sit on planks placed close to the ground. Considering the rank of the court, it is related to the people's contemplation. Lang Trung, Vien Ngoai, and Khoa Dao are the fourth and fifth-rank mandarins in the capital, now sitting together with the Lai Dich in the public office is considered not elegant. Therefore, please raise the rows of planks in the middle room and on the left and right to the brick steps to distinguish between high and low with the two rows of planks on the left and right. The central room has a red lacquered table with a seal, and the rest are the mats for the princes and dukes. The two rooms on the left and right are for the mandarins of the departments to sit, and the two rooms on the second left and right are for the Lang Trung, Vien Ngoai, and Khoa Dao. In addition, from the Chu Su, Tu Vu, Bat, and Cuu Pham clerks, they all spread out mats and sat on the ground.

In addition to the banquets and silver rewards during the holidays and New Year, King Minh Mang also prescribed additional rewards for silk officials according to different ranks. Regarding the members who were allowed to attend the banquets during the holidays and New Year, "Dai Nam Thuc Luc" stated that in the 16th year of Minh Mang (1835), the king instructed the Ministry of Rites: "The old rule is that every year, on the New Year festival, the banquets and rewards are given to civil and military officers from the fifth rank and above. On the Van Tho festival, the banquets are given to civil and military officers from the fifth rank and above. On the Doan Duong festival, the plowing ceremony, the banquets are given to civil and military officers from the vice-ministers of the Ministry of Defense and above. As for the subordinates in the Cabinet, all were allowed to attend. That was a special favor. However, thinking about the joyful ceremonies, the banquets and rewards are all related to the rituals. In the court, it must be regulated according to rank. If they are not worthy to attend, is it appropriate to let them attend?

So now, it is decided: All ceremonies must be attended according to rank according to the rules. As for the members of the Cabinet, the Privy Council, and the Ngoai Lang office of the ministries, departments, and offices of the Censorate, any ceremony that the original rank is not yet worthy of attending is not allowed to attend.

Then, in the 18th year of Minh Mang (1837), on the first day of the Lunar New Year, that year there was a celebration by the Queen Mother: "The civil and military officials in the capital, from the fifth rank and above, together with the local authorities, came to the annual meeting, were all given a banquet and rewarded with ranks."

The officials in the capital who are on the list to attend the banquet, if they have to go on official business, will also be compensated. The king's order issued in 1837 clearly stated: "All civil and military officials in the capital, civil from the seventh-rank minister of the Ministry of Public Security, military from the sixth-rank captain of the Ministry of Public Security and above, who are not allowed to attend the banquet on the day of the celebration, any officials appointed by the Ministry, who are on official business, and have not yet returned to the capital after completing their business trip, will be given two months' salary according to their rank. Anyone who returns to mourn the end of their leave or is sick at their place of residence will be given one month's salary."

According to the book “Kham dinh Dai Nam hoi dien su le”, the royal court’s feasts included offerings at temples and shrines to worship the king’s ancestors on important holidays such as Tet Nguyen Dan, other holidays, banquets to entertain officials or receive Chinese envoys and banquets for newly graduated doctors, which were arranged, inspected by the Quang Loc Tu agency and directly cooked by the Ly Thien and Thuong Thien departments. This book stated that the feasts at banquets were divided into different categories. The large feast included 161 dishes, the jade feast had 30 dishes, the precious feast had 50 dishes, and the dim sum feast had 12 dishes. However, the details of the dishes at the royal banquets have not been recorded in detail to this day.

However, from the royal cuisine that is still passed down to this day, it can be seen that the "royal feast" would certainly be very luxurious, delicious and also no less... expensive.

LA (synthesis)
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'King's feast' on Tet holiday