A proposed 36-meter “Triumphal Arch” at Hồ Gươm has sparked fierce public backlash, with an expert calling the plan “completely misguided.”
The Latest: On Sept. 7, the People’s Committees of Hoàn Kiếm and Cửa Nam wards opened public consultation on a proposal for a landmark approximately 36 meters tall at the northern end of Hoàn Kiếm Lake, within an expanded Đông Kinh Nghĩa Thục Square.
- Called a “Triumphal Arch,” the structure is described as drawing inspiration from a crane’s outstretched wings, creating a focal point along the corridor from the Old Quarter toward Hoàn Kiếm Lake.
The Details: The two ward committees are seeking public comment from Sept. 7 through Sept. 26, with Hà Nội’s Department of Construction leading the consultation during the planning review.
- The consultation also covers detailed proposals for renovating, upgrading, redeveloping, and reorganizing the lake area and its surroundings.
- The study area covers approximately 66 hectares across Hoàn Kiếm and Cửa Nam wards.
- The plan also proposes demolishing the headquarters of Hà Nội’s People’s Committee and People’s Council, the Children’s Palace, and the Khăn Quàng Đỏ (Red Scarf) Theater.
Article 37 of the 2024 Law on Urban and Rural Planning requires public consultation on urban plans to last between 20 and 30 days.
- The consultation on Hồ Gươm, another name for Hoàn Kiếm Lake, lasts exactly 20 days, including nonworking days—the legal minimum.
- Despite heavy rain on the afternoon of Sept. 9, Tuổi Trẻ reported large numbers of residents visiting the Hà Nội Information and Exhibition Center to examine the proposed planning changes.
From the State: Architect Hồ Thiệu Trị represents the planning consultant and is directly involved in developing and proposing the plan.
- Speaking to Tuổi Trẻ on the morning of Sept. 9, Hồ Thiệu Trị argued that the proposal was a planning adjustment, not an architectural design. At this stage, he said, the task was simply to identify locations for some future structures that would complement existing ones.
- He said that the consulting team considered the lake’s north-south axis an important organizing feature of the area and acknowledged that the proposed location was “very special and also very sensitive.”
- On Sept. 8, Hồ Thiệu Trị told reporters that the structure should commemorate a significant period in Việt Nam’s history and could be called a victory monument rather than a triumphal arch.
Furthermore, a representative of Hà Nội’s Department of Construction told reporters that the consultation was intended to guide the arrangement of public space and the landscape around Hồ Gươm. It was not a decision on a final architectural design.
- On the name, the department suggested that the word “môn,” meaning “gate,” might lead people to associate the proposal with foreign architectural forms. Calling it a “triumphal monument” instead could change public perceptions and reactions.
- The department’s representative added that the city wanted further input from experts, researchers, and residents as it refined the plan; only after receiving additional feedback would the city consider submitting detailed designs for individual structures for approval.
From the Experts: The proposal has faced immediate and severe pushback from historians, urban planners, and local citizens.
Đào Ngọc Nghiêm, Hà Nội’s former chief architect, called the proposed location “inappropriate” and said that the structure’s symbolic meaning needed reconsideration.
- “We need to adapt to new circumstances, but first we must correctly identify the values that need to be preserved,” he said.
Architect Lê Quang challenged the proposal on grounds of urban structure rather than aesthetics.
- He noted that triumphal arches originated in Roman tradition and the military campaigns of empires, where armies entered cities along prescribed ceremonial routes; the arch formed part of a military procession through which troops, spoils, prisoners, and commanders passed before reaching the seat of power.
- Hồ Gươm, he argued, “is neither the endpoint of a military boulevard nor the center of a radial urban axis. What Hồ Gươm has is water, a road around the lake and a branching network of Old Quarter streets. The appeal of that spatial arrangement is that the view changes constantly as people move around the water.”
- No sufficiently strong linear axis exists, he said, to orient that entire setting toward a central triumphal arch.
History professor Phạm Hồng Tung called the idea “completely misguided.”
- A triumphal arch, he argued, would be inconsistent both with Hồ Gươm’s historical and cultural setting and with the meaning of such a monument.
- It would also fail to reflect “the scale, character, and significance of the Vietnamese nation’s illustrious military achievements throughout history” and would add no value to the cultural landscape of Thăng Long–Hà Nội.
Public Response: The public response has been equally critical.
On Sept. 8, the Threads account lenin*** posted, “Unbelievable. Whoever signs off on this will leave generations of ancestors buckling under the burden. Tear down even Tháp Bút and build a triumphal arch that looks like a guillotine. Unbelievable. This is Hồ Gươm, not some park.”
- The post received more than 5,000 likes and 154,000 views within two days.
The same day, the account nuocva*** wrote, “A triumphal arch is meant for victorious troops to march through. Is the one at Hồ Gươm supposed to lead them straight into the lake?”
- The post received more than 1,600 likes.
According to Công Luận, many people said that the proposed location required careful study and urged the city to prioritize green space over a large new structure.
- Speaking to Công Luận, Phạm Hoàng Việt, who has lived near Hồ Gươm since childhood, worried that the proposed landmark could look “out of place” among the lake’s existing monuments.
- The area already has a distinctive collection of historic sites, he said. If the city wants a monument symbolizing triumph and victory, “the appropriate location would be at the capital’s gateways,” rather than at the heart of its heritage district.
- Some residents also expressed concern that more large structures could follow; rather than increasing building density, they urged planners to expand public space, add trees, and reduce existing development.
- These residents said that the proposals remained too preliminary to allow a full assessment of their effects on the landscape and heritage setting.
- They called for a comprehensive study before any decision, warning against moving too quickly.
- By contrast, a proposal to partially dismantle the lakeside post office to create more open space drew relatively strong support from residents, according to Công Luận.
- However, the newspaper did not explain the basis for this assessment.
The Background: Hoàn Kiếm Lake and Ngọc Sơn Temple were designated special national heritage sites by the prime minister under Decision No. 2383 on Dec. 9, 2013, alongside 13 other sites nationwide. According to the heritage designation dossier published by the Department of Cultural Heritage, the site encompasses the lake, Ngọc Sơn Temple, and the King Lê memorial.
- Hoàn Kiếm Lake covers 115,511 square meters. The King Lê memorial stands on the shore, in the former Hàng Trống ward, and comprises a ceremonial gateway, a square pavilion, and a statue of the king.
- The heritage designation therefore extends beyond the water and Ngọc Island to include structures on the lakeshore.
Why It Matters: Given its place in Hà Nội’s cultural and historical life, the Hồ Gươm area has long been a focal point of debate whenever new construction or redevelopment is proposed.
Đông Kinh Nghĩa Thục Square, where the monument would be located, takes its name from the Đông Kinh Nghĩa Thục school of 1907.
- The area was an important setting for the Duy Tân reform movement, initiated by Vietnamese scholars under French colonial rule.
Đông Kinh Nghĩa Thục is also mentioned in the heritage designation dossier for Hoàn Kiếm Lake and Ngọc Sơn Temple.
- According to the dossier, after the French occupation of Hà Nội, associations used the temple grounds to promote anti-French ideas and activities.
- In the early 20th century, Nguyễn Thượng Hiền and Lương Văn Can established a platform there for lectures on religious texts.
- Intellectuals subsequently organized public activities to encourage solidarity and patriotism, including those of the Đông Kinh Nghĩa Thục school.
Thành Phương wrote this news article in Vietnamese and published it in Luật Khoa Magazine on September 10, 2026. The Vietnamese Magazine translated it into English.
