Economy and culture of Nghe An in the Later Le Dynasty
(Baonghean.vn) - Nghe An in the Later Le Dynasty is associated with 400 years of complicated and harsh history of the country. There were more difficulties than advantages, but it seems that this was the period when generations of Nghe An people shaped the qualities of the community, actively improved themselves to mature, and made many important contributions to the historical and cultural process of the nation.
Many times of war
The Later Le Dynasty lasted from the beginning of the 15th century to the end of the 18th century, with several decades of the Mac Dynasty in between. During this period, Nghe An continued the process of settlement, not only of the Vietnamese/Kinh people from the North and Thanh Hoa, but also of the Thai, Mong... ethnic groups from the North; this was the process of forming the Tho ethnic group. At the same time, there was a continued process of migration to the South along with the expansion of the territory, especially during the Nguyen Lord period.
Although it is no longer the southern border of the country, with its special geopolitical and security position, Nghe An is still the place with the most wars due to the competition between forces, from the Southern - Northern dynasties to the Dang Trong - Dang Ngoai, then the Tay Son movement and many uprisings against the royal court. The people were devastated by war. "Nghe An suffered many wars. The fields in the districts were abandoned, the people were starving. Epidemics broke out again, more than half of the people died. The people were scattered, or scattered to the South, to the North. The land of Nghe An was desolate and deserted" (Cuong Muc). The economic and cultural development of this land therefore encountered many obstacles.
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| Map of Vietnam around 1760, drawn by the company Cóvens e Mortier, Amsterdam. Photo: wikipedia |
The economy is in turmoil.
After the liberation war, entering the early Le Dynasty, Nghe An's agricultural economy was restored and developed. Land reclamation was promoted, especially in the coastal and midland areas. The Le Dynasty's "ngu binh u nong" policy encouraged officials and people to organize land reclamation and establish many new plantations and villages such as: Nguyen Xi and his son Nguyen Su Hoi in Nghi Loc and Nghi Xuan; Nguyen Bien in Cam Xuyen; Le Khoi (Chieu Trung) in Thach Ha; Nguyen Nham Mo in Nam Dan... The policy of allowing the establishment of plantations by Le Thanh Tong in 1481 "was to devote all efforts to cultivating land to expand the reserve resources for the State" (Complete Book). Nghe An Governorate at this time had 4 offices: Ha Hoa plantation (Southwest Thach Ha area); Duc Quang plantation (Northwest Ngan Truoi, down to La Son/Duc Tho); Anh Do plantation (Southwest Anh Son area up to Con Cuong); Dien Chau plantation. The plantation workers were mainly prisoners, criminals, garrison soldiers and poor people.
Irrigation was given attention, with the position of Ha De Su in charge of dykes, water management and agriculture from prefectures and districts. At the commune level, there was a commune chief in charge of this. Thanks to that, many large irrigation works were built such as Xuoc canal, Tang canal (Quynh Luu), My canal (Yen Thanh), Thiet canal, Huong Cai canal, Dich canal (Hung Nguyen), Na canal (Cam Xuyen), Lac canal (Ky Anh). Nha Le canal continued to be dug or dredged all the way to Ngang pass.
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| The Le Dynasty Canal in Nghe An is ranked as a national monument. Photo: Nguyen Book |
During the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries, due to political upheavals, agriculture in Nghe An was devastated and declined, the population dispersed, and the land was abandoned. Farmers had to work hard to support themselves and pay taxes, and the villages were no longer as prosperous as before.
In terms of handicrafts, during the early Le Dynasty, due to the stable political and social situation, there was a fairly rapid development. In the plains, the following occupations were developed: mulberry cultivation, silk weaving, pottery making, iron forging, bronze casting, carpentry, and weaving. In the coastal areas, there were fishing, boat building, mat weaving, salt making, fish sauce making, etc. In the mountainous areas, there were lacquerware, pottery, iron forging, and weaving.
Some handicraft products of this period had quite high techniques and quality such as: Quynh Doi silk (Quynh Luu), Nho Lam iron, Van Chang forging (Duc Tho), Bong market pottery (Dong/Yen Thanh), Cam Trang (Duc Tho), Thien Loc mats (Can Loc)... Some craft villages were formed such as: Nhan Ly, Quynh Doi, Phuong An, Hoan Nghia (Quynh Luu); Hoang Le (Ky Anh); Dong Mon, Dai Tiet, Ha Hoang... (Thach Ha); Viet Yen, Yen Ho, Hoa Lam (La Son/Duc Tho); Quang Trung, Trung Phuong (Dong/Yen Thanh)...
Under the Le Dynasty, Nghe An's commerce moved along with the development of agriculture, handicrafts and other socio-political factors. During the early Le Dynasty, agriculture and handicrafts developed more but trade was still small and self-sufficient. In Nghe An, during the Le Trung Hung period, there were continuous wars, agriculture stagnated, and handicrafts developed slowly. However, in the general trend of the whole country, taking advantage of the time of peace between the powers, commercial activities changed. The village market system was expanded. More and more district markets were opened. With the advantage of a natural estuary system and canals running along the coast, some ports such as Dien Chau, Hoi Thong, Cua Sot, Nhuong Ban... continued to operate. In particular, since the 17th century, Phu Thach street, on the right bank of Lam River, opposite Lam Thanh, has become a major commercial center of Nghe An. There are many foreign ships coming here to trade; there is a Chinese town (Minh Huong) that comes here to settle and trade.
A culture that stands shoulder to shoulder with the "four towns"
Nghe An, until the Tran Dynasty, was still a "camp" land, an undeveloped border area, with a low level of education. Entering the Later Le Dynasty, along with the socio-economic development, Nghe An's education had developed, laying a solid foundation for the cultural progress of this land, to gradually establish its position as a cultural center of the whole country.
Regarding education, there were schools to teach letters, and the number of people who learned and knew how to read and write increased. During the Le Dynasty, Nghe An had a regional examination school in Lam Thanh. The number of people who were good at studying and passing the examinations increased. According to statistics, during the early Le Dynasty, Nghe An (old) had 51 people, during the Mac Dynasty, there were 23 people, and during the Later Le Dynasty, there were 68 people who passed the imperial examinations. In the Nham Thin examination (1590), father and son Ngo Tri Tri and Ngo Tri Hoa (Ly Trai, Dong Thanh) both passed. In the Binh Thin examination (1756), two brothers Le Si Triem and Le Si Bang (Noi Thien Loc, Thien/Can Loc) both passed. Three father and sons all passed, such as the Phan Huy Can family and their two sons Phan Huy Ich and Phan Huy On. There were many families honored as imperial examination families such as: Ho family, Phan Huy family, Nguyen Huy family...
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| Road to Nghe An (photo taken at Cam Bridge). Photo courtesy: Nguyen Thanh Hai |
On the basis of education, literature and history, during this period, many famous authors and outstanding works appeared. In terms of literature, there were Dao dinh su tap by Ho Si Dong; Duong hien vinh su tri by Pham Nguyen Du; Nguyen Tham hoa thi tap by Nguyen Huy Oanh. In terms of history, there were Viet giam vinh su tri tap by Dang Minh Khiem, Viet su bi lam by Nguyen Nghiem; Trung hung thuc luc by Ho Si Duong; Liet truyen dang khoa khao and Khoa bang tieu ky by Phan Huy On... In Nghe An, at the end of the 18th century, Hong Son literary school was formed with many famous authors and works, including many people from the Nguyen - Tien Dien, Nguyen Truong Luu and Phan Huy Thu Hoach families such as: Nguyen Nghiem, Nguyen Khan, Nguyen Hanh, Nguyen Huy Oanh, Nguyen Huy Tuu, Nguyen Huy Vinh, Nguyen Huy Hao, Phan Huy Ich...
In particular, this was the period of completion and development of Vi and Giam folk songs, in which the most prominent were Phuong Vai singing and A Dao/Ca Tru singing. Folk knowledge about astronomy, medicine, cuisine, etc., was accumulated and summarized.
Along with the Confucian political ideology, the religious activities and beliefs of the community became more abundant. Besides Buddhism and traditional indigenous beliefs, at this time there were also beliefs in Mother Goddess worship (Mother of the Three Palaces and Mother of the Four Holy Ladies) and Christianity. The four temples: "Con, Qua, Bach Ma, Chieu Trung" - considered the most sacred in Nghe An were all established during this period.