Trung Sisters' Temple Festival recognised as national intangible cultural heritage

ABO/NDO- A ceremony was held at Dong Nhan Ward, Hai Ba Trung District, on March 5 to commemorate the 1985th anniversary of the Trung Sisters' Uprising (40-2025) and announce the official recognition of the Trung Sisters' Temple Festival as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage.

The event was attended by Politburo member and Secretary of Hanoi Municipal Party Committee Bui Thi Minh Hoai.

At the ceremony, delegates, local residents and visitors participated in an incense-offering ritual to honour and express gratitude for the merits of the Trung Sisters and their insurgent army. Their uprising expelled the Eastern Han invaders from the nation, restoring the "legacy of the Hung Kings" and securing independence and autonomy for the people.

1,985 years ago, in the year 40 AD, under the brutal oppression and exploitation of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Trung Trac and her younger sister Trung Nhi raised the banner of resistance, calling upon heroes from all over the land to rise against the Han rule.

Leaders of Hai Ba Trung District receive the decision recognising the " Trung Sisters' Temple Festival as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage.

In a short period, the Trung Sisters successfully captured 65 districts and citadels, reclaiming the entire territory of Vietnam. With the country liberated, Trung Trac was revered by generals and the people as their ruler, taking the title Trung Nu Vuong and establishing the capital in Me Linh.

After three years on the throne, in 43 AD, the enemy once again invaded the nation. The Trung Sisters led their troops and people in resistance. On the 6th day of the second lunar month, in the Year of the Cat, it is said that after a fierce battle, refusing to be captured, the two sisters sacrificed themselves by plunging into the Hat River. Their indomitable spirit is believed to have turned into stone statues, drifting downstream to the Dong Nhan shore.

Recognising its historical significance and value, in 2019, the Trung Sisters’ Temple-Pagoda-Communal House complex has been honoured as a Special National Relic Site by the prime minister. Beyond preserving unique architectural and artistic values, the temple complex dedicated to the Trung Sisters holds profound cultural significance. The annual Trung Sisters’ Temple Festival is held to pay tribute to and commemorate the two outstanding national heroines — Trung Trac and Trung Nhi — their brilliant generals, and the courageous soldiers who contributed to the glorious pages of the nation's early history in the national construction and defence.

(Source: NDO)