According to legend, in 1010, when moving the capital from Hoa Lu to Thang Long, King Ly Thai To ordered the construction of a citadel but it kept collapsing. The king then went to the temple of Long Do god who protected Thang Long land (built in the late 9th century) to ask for help. That night, the god appeared in a dream and told the king to follow the footprints of a white horse to build the citadel. After saying that, a white horse suddenly appeared and ran around. The king followed his instructions and indeed the citadel stood firm. To express his gratitude, the king ordered the Long Do temple to be rebuilt and named it Bach Ma temple.
Sketch by designer Le Quang Khanh
After many restorations, the temple now has the architectural style of the Nguyen Dynasty in the late 19th century. The temple was built in the style of "inner public, outer private" (*). According to the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports , the special feature of the temple is the crab-shaped roof system connecting the structures. The temple still retains many valuable artifacts such as ancient stone steles recording the temple's renovation, royal decrees bestowed by the Nguyen Dynasty, etc.
Sketch by artist Vuong Long
After three major fires and a B-52 bombing raid by the US, the area around the temple was devastated but the temple remained unaffected. In 2022, Bach Ma Temple was ranked as a special national monument.
Sketch by Architect Bui Hoang Bao
Sketch by Architect Bui Quan
Sketch by artist Tran Binh Minh
Painting by Architect Phung The Huy
Bach Ma Temple Festival on the 12th and 13th of the second lunar month with many traditional activities: palanquin procession, Xuan Nguu offering ceremony (offering spring buffalo, meaning to encourage agriculture)...
Sketch by Architect Dang Viet Loc
White horse statue in the temple - sketch by architect Linh Hoang
Sketch by Architect Linh Hoang
Sketch by Architect Tran Xuan Hong
(*): A popular temple and pagoda architectural style in Vietnam and China. Noi cong: the interior is built in the shape of the letter cong (工), or the letter tam (三). Ngoai quoc: a building with a row of houses or surrounding walls creating a closed space, similar to the outline of the letter quoc (囯).
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/goc-ky-hoa-con-ngua-bach-giup-xay-thanh-thang-long-185250308201356838.htm
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