On the evening of September 18 (August 16 of the lunar calendar), the Provincial Party Committee, People's Council, People's Committee, and Fatherland Front Committee of Hai Duong province solemnly held a ceremony to commemorate the 724th death anniversary of National Hero Tran Hung Dao and open the Con Son - Kiep Bac autumn festival in 2024.
Comrades: Tran Duc Thang, member of the Party Central Committee, Secretary of the Hai Duong Provincial Party Committee; Kham Phan Sit Thi Dam Pha, member of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party Central Committee, Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, Governor of Vientiane Province (Lao People's Democratic Republic); Hoang Dao Cuong, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism; Trieu The Hung, Vice Chairman of the National Assembly's Committee for Culture and Education, former Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, former Chairman of the Hai Duong Provincial People's Committee; Le Van Hieu, Standing Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, Chairman of the Provincial People's Council, Head of the Provincial National Assembly Delegation; Le Ngoc Chau, Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee; Venerable Thich Quang Tung, Vice Chairman of the Central Executive Council of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha attended the ceremony.
Attending the ceremony were comrades in the Provincial Party Standing Committee; leaders of the Provincial People's Council, People's Committee, and Fatherland Front Committee; leaders of departments, branches, and localities; leaders of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of some neighboring provinces, along with a large number of people and tourists from all over the country.
In his opening speech, comrade Le Ngoc Chau, Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, Chairman of the People's Committee of Hai Duong province affirmed that Hai Duong is a land with a long history, rich in cultural and revolutionary traditions, one of the cradles of the Red River civilization. As a land of talented people, the eastern fence protecting the capital Thang Long - Hanoi, the East/Hai Duong is not only the birthplace of many famous people but also a place that attracts and gathers many outstanding talents from all over the world.
Van Kiep is the military, cultural and economic region of Chi Linh, Hai Duong and the whole country. With the strategic position of "a solid front and rear", with his genius vision, after the first resistance war against the Mongol invaders (in 1258), Hung Dao Dai Vuong Tran Quoc Tuan chose Van Kiep to concentrate troops to build military camps, making Van Kiep the command center of the military defense line in the Northeast region, stretching from the Lang Son border to the East Sea, creating a position to fight the Mongol invaders for the second time (in 1285) and the third time (in 1288).
The Grand Duke and Commander-in-Chief of the Tran Dynasty, Tran Quoc Tuan, was born in 1228, and belonged to the royal family of the Tran Dynasty. He was famous for his handsome appearance, outstanding intelligence, and his ability to both read and write. As a talented general and to protect the country's pillars, he was highly regarded by four Tran kings, leaving behind a good reputation that was honored and respected by future generations. Under his strategic command, the army and people of Dai Viet were filled with the spirit of "Killing the Mongols", defeating the Yuan-Mongol invaders three times, protecting the entire territory. Not only was he a military genius, Hung Dao Vuong was also a great thinker and an outstanding cultural figure of the nation, leaving behind for future generations heroic literary works, immortal works such as: Proclamation of the Generals and Soldiers, Essentials of Military Strategy, Secret Book of Van Kiep Tong, etc.
In 1288, the resistance war against the Yuan-Mongol invaders was victorious. Hung Dao Vuong retired to live at Van Kiep residence and died here on August 20, 1300.
Over the past 7 centuries, the ideology of respecting the people, "to spare the people's strength to make a plan that takes deep roots and is strong is the best policy to protect the country", along with the ideology of military art, strategy, the way of being a general, how to use people, loyalty and patriotism for the country of Hung Dao Dai Vuong will forever be lessons of great value in the cause of building and defending the country of the Vietnamese people. The belief in worshiping Saint Tran has become a unique intangible cultural heritage in the national culture, with eternal vitality, preserved from generation to generation in the Vietnamese people's consciousness.
Con Son - Kiep Bac Autumn Festival 2024 with the practice of traditional rituals such as: Memorial and opening ceremony, Seal opening ceremony, Peace praying ceremony and lantern festival, Procession ceremony, Death anniversary of Saint Tran.
This year's autumn festival takes place at a time when the three provinces of Hai Duong, Quang Ninh and Bac Giang are welcoming expert delegations to appraise and submit to UNESCO the Yen Tu - Vinh Nghiem - Con Son and Kiep Bac Monuments and Landscape Complex as a world cultural heritage. With their unique and outstanding values, the Con Son and Kiep Bac special national relics and Thanh Mai pagoda will make an important contribution to affirming and demonstrating the integrity and authenticity of the heritage complex.
The same evening at Kiep Bac relic site, the Seal Opening and Seal Granting Ceremony took place. Before the opening ceremony, there was a ceremony to commemorate the 582nd death anniversary of National Hero, World Cultural Celebrity Nguyen Trai; awarding prizes for the excellent tour guide competition; opening the Culture, Tourism and Trade Promotion Week; and displaying Tran Dynasty antiques.
On September 19 (August 17 of the lunar calendar), at Kiep Bac relic site, activities within the framework of the Culture, Tourism and Trade Promotion Week continued to take place; water puppetry performances; opening and organization of the Festival of Performing Arts for the Saints.