The south gate
9.5 metres of stone.
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The Citadel of the Ho Dynasty, or Tay Do, the Western Capital, is a 15th-century stone fortress built in 1397. It was the capital of the short-lived Ho dynasty from 1398 to 1407 and stayed an important political and cultural centre into the 18th century. UNESCO inscribed it as a World Heritage Site on 27 June 2011. The citadel is almost square, 870.5 metres north to south and 883.5 metres east to west, with a gate on each side; the largest, the south gate, is 9.5 metres high and more than 15 metres wide. It was built of huge stone blocks averaging about two metres by one by 0.7, laid without mortar, and the gates still stand with their arches even though most of the walls and the palaces inside have fallen. In February 2026 archaeologists found gold-glazed terracotta pieces some six hundred years old that finally pinned down where the main palace hall stood. The site is open and wide with little shade, so go in the morning and allow an hour or two to walk between the gates.
9.5 metres of stone.
Laid without mortar.
One on each side.
Tay Do, about 40 km northwest of Thanh Hoa city
The four stone gates with their arches and parts of the walls; the palaces inside are gone, and excavations are still uncovering their foundations.