The proud and famous Lam Thanh

From Vinh city, following the Lam River bank road (also known as dyke road 42 or Lam left dyke), passing Dung Quyet mountain, we went to Lam Thanh mountain to enjoy the scenery. Visiting Phu Mau Lam Thanh, where you can see the green rice fields, the green banks of young corn, and the countryside with new, spacious houses.

Life is getting better day by day, Lam Thanh mountain still stands tall like a "witness" standing there for many generations, witnessing many ups and downs, vicissitudes. Looking out from the mountainside, ahead is a vast space with prosperous villages, endless fields, Lam river winding like a silk strip fluttering in the wind. Far away, on the other side is the Hong Linh range stretching seemingly endlessly, all appearing like a watercolor painting.

Lam Thanh Mountain - National historical and cultural relic. Photo: Cong Kien

Surely, in the past, Bui Duong Lich stood in this position to enjoy the scenery and wrote these evocative lines in “Nghe An Ky”: “Below the mountain, Lam River flows around, and La River, Minh River flows into. Looking up the mountain, you can see Hung Linh Mountain and Dai Hue Mountain to the west, Dai Hai Mountain and La Nham Mountain to the north, Thien Nhan Mountain and Hong Linh Mountain to the south, Kim Nguyen Mountain and Dung Quyet Mountain to the east, all facing this mountain. The river water is clean, the trees are lush, the streets are close to the villages, the scenery is like a painting, it is truly a famous place in Nghe An”.

According to historical records, Lam Thanh Mountain was often chosen by the kings of Dai Viet as a stopover to prepare food and recruit more soldiers on the way to the South to defeat the enemy and expand the territory. This can be explained by the important location on the national highway, and the patriotic and indomitable tradition of the people here.

For that reason, this land has recorded heroic and glorious victories as well as sorrows in the wars to protect the country and keep the people safe. Legend has it that when the Ho Dynasty's "troublesome politics" led to defeat, the country fell into the hands of the Ming invaders, the people fell into the tragic state of slavery, the foreign invaders turned Nghe An into a prefecture and chose Lam Thanh as the prefecture.

Landscape of mountains, rivers and villages seen from Lam Thanh mountain. Photo: Cong Kien

Faced with that situation, the Tran royal family quietly stood up to call for and gather the people to fight to regain the country. Tran Quy Khoang was crowned King (with the title Trung Quang). At first, he gained some prestige, but then his forces gradually declined. He had to sadly bear his hatred and watch the Ming invaders trample the country that his ancestors had built for generations.

In folklore as well as some historical books, there is still a story about Tran Quy Khoang sending Nguyen Bieu to Lam Thanh to meet Truong Phu - a general of the Ming Dynasty to ask for a title. With many despicable and dirty tricks, the general of the Ming Dynasty prepared a feast of human heads to welcome Nguyen Bieu to instill fear in him. But he still calmly ate and was not afraid, even though there were enemy soldiers standing guard on all four sides.

Faced with the spirit and indomitability of the Dai Viet envoy, Truong Phu and his subordinates cowardly killed Nguyen Bieu. At first, they tied him to a pole and planned to drown him in the river water, but after three days the tide did not rise, so they took him to Yen Quoc pagoda to kill him. Later, King Le Thanh Tong conferred on him the title of Righteous King.

Lam Thanh Mausoleum. Photo: Cong Kien

Admiring Nguyen Bieu's will and merit, the people around Lam Thanh mountain built a temple to worship him. Today, Nguyen Bieu is worshiped at the temple in Hung Phu commune and at Thanh Liet temple in Hung Lam commune. These two temples are both recognized as national historical and cultural relics, a place for people to express their admiration and respect for a man who sacrificed for the country and the people.

Perhaps when talking about Lam Thanh, we cannot help but mention the Lam Son uprising led by Binh Dinh King Le Loi. Implementing Nguyen Chich's strategy, the insurgents advanced into the western part of Nghe An via the upper road and achieved initial victory: "The battle of Bo Dang was thunderous and lightning/ In Tra Lan, bamboo split and ashes flew".

After capturing Tra Lan citadel (also called Tra Long, now in Bong Khe commune - Con Cuong), the insurgents followed the Lam river to capture Nghe An citadel, using it as a springboard to advance to capture Dien Chau, Thanh Hoa, Dong Do citadels and to the south to capture Thuan Hoa citadel, completely liberating the country.

After defeating the Ming army's positions along both banks of the river, King Le Loi of Binh Dinh ordered his troops to surround Nghe An citadel, blocking enemy reinforcements, forcing them to surrender due to hunger and cold. At the same time, military leader Nguyen Trai wrote many letters to the Ming generals who were defending the citadel, advising them to surrender to avoid bloodshed.

In the letters of surrender, Nguyen Trai analyzed the situation, talked about the pros and cons, and affirmed the unwavering will of the insurgents and the people who stood for the right. One by one, the generals Tran Tri, Ly An, and Phuong Chinh accepted painful defeats, handing over the defense of the citadel to Thai Phuc.

Part of Lam Thanh mountain top. Photo: Cong Kien

In February 1427, when he was at his wits' end, surrounded from all sides, unable to seek reinforcements and terrified by the power of the Lam Son insurgents, General Thai Phuc opened the city gates and led 10,000 troops to surrender. After capturing Lam Thanh, Nghe An was liberated, the Lam Son insurgents divided into attack groups, spreading out to all regions to regain the entire Dai Viet territory.

This event was later included by Nguyen Trai in his work "Binh Ngo Dai Cao" with words containing all his pride: "The morale was high/The army grew stronger/Tran Tri and Son Tho lost their souls at the sound/Ly An and Phuong Chinh held their breath and prayed to escape/Riding on the victory, our army recaptured Tay Kinh/Recruited soldiers to attack, and reclaimed the old land of Dong Do".

To express gratitude to the leader of the uprising, the people built a temple and burned incense all year round. Today, the temple of King Le Thai To (Le Loi) still stands silently and majestically in Hung Khanh commune. The temple has also been recognized as a national historical and cultural relic. This is considered the place where the King set up his headquarters when he besieged Nghe An citadel.

Thus, around Lam Thanh mountain there are 3 temples which are national historical relics, all associated with the merits of heroes who fought and defended the country, associated with the place name Lam Thanh.

Continuing to walk, we tried to find the remaining traces from hundreds of years ago. Only the remaining blocks of stone were stacked on top of each other like historical layers, silent before the infinity and endless flow of time. But that silence also spoke volumes, it was the "sediment" of culture, the pride in historical traditions, and also the fulcrum to move towards the future...