It would be a pity when traveling to Hue but failing to visit the royal tombs. The royal tombs are monuments to nine of the thirteen rulers of the Nguyen Dynasty. They are designed and constructed during the Emperor’s lifetime. Although they are designed individually, they shares certain design conventions.

The royal tombs were built according to strict rules of geomancy, which often involved making substantial modifications to the landscape to ensure that the sight lines and orientation of the constituent elements complied with celestial and supernatural forces.

Each Royal Tomb reflects the personality of specific ruler. There are seven tombs, three of which (includes Minh Mang, Tu Duc, Khai Dinh) attracts the largest number of tourists, and the four others are less-visited but still have interesting features:

Minh Mang’s Tomb

The most majestic tombs to be mentioned here is that of Emperor Minh Mang, a staunch follower of Confucianism with many wives, concubines and a small army of children. The construction of the tombs had been planned in advanced by the Emperor and built shortly after his death. It is laid out in formal Chinese style with exotic and opulent architecture pattern.

With the possible exception of Khai Dinh’s monument, no other tomb approaches the level of unity of the elements of Minh Mang's tomb. The harmony layout and symmetry as well as the architectural balance of the tombs have made it a architectural work of art which will continue to satisfy the eyes of visitors.

Tu Duc’s Tomb

The tomb of Tu Duc is set among an elegant garden with peaceful lake and pavilion complex. The centerpiece of the Tomb is really simple despite the lavish opulence resign of the Emperor. The tomb is, in fact, just a monument since the Emperor was buried elsewhere to thwart grave robbers.

Despite his cultural pursuits and desire to achieve a humble lifestyle, it was under the rule of Tu Duc that the Nguyen court reached its zenith of lavish opulence. Tu Duc King then withdrew into court life, seemingly indifferent to the people he ruled, and the brutal treatment of the three thousand artisans and workers who were pressed into service to build this tomb.

Khai Dinh’s tomb

Totally different from the tomb of Tu Duc, Khai Dinh tomb appears, at first, to be an unprepossessing concrete construction. It is the combination of Vietnamese and European features with the use of fragments of ceramics and glass for decoration.

However, Khai Dinh tomb is of great interest as an architectural watershed, the cusp between the influences of a Chinese past and a Western oriented future. The lavish embellishments inside the tomb are far different from grimy and rather simple facade and courtyard. A golden effigy of the Emperor seated on his throne under a magnificent cement canopy extravagantly decorated with ceramic fragments could be regarded as a masterpiece.

Besides, there are four other tombs which attract fewer visitors than the three tombs above. However, they also contain interesting features and many tourists still want to visit. They are the tombs of King Gia Long, Thieu Tri, Duc Duc, Thanh Thai and Duy Tan. The tomb of Duc Duc is also the resting place of King Thanh Thai and