Tran Temple

Tran Temple is a historic temple complex in Loc Vuong Ward, Nam Dinh City, Ninh Binh Province, dedicated to the kings and mandarins of the Tran Dynasty (1225-1400). Located on the former site of the Tran royal palace estate, the complex comprises three main temples - Thien Truong, Co Trach and Trung Hoa. It is nationally famous for the annual Tran Temple Festival and the seal-opening ceremony.

Visitors can expect a large, traditional Vietnamese temple complex with multiple courtyards, ornate gates, stone steles, incense halls and ancestral shrines set among mature trees and ponds. The three main temples display wood carvings, altars dedicated to 14 Tran kings and General Tran Hung Dao, and historical relics. The site is active for worship, with incense offerings, prayer areas and festival decorations during lunar January and August.

The complex honors the Tran Dynasty which ruled Vietnam from 1225 to 1400 and is credited with repelling Mongol invasions. It was built on the site of the Tran family's ancestral estate and former Thai Vi palace. The main Thien Truong Temple was first built in 1695 to worship 14 Tran kings, Co Trach Temple worships General Tran Hung Dao (Tran Quoc Tuan), and Trung Hoa Temple worships his parents. The site has been restored multiple times and recognized as a National Historical and Cultural Relic.

Tran Temple is one of the most important spiritual and cultural centers in northern Vietnam, dedicated to ancestor worship of the Tran kings and national hero Tran Hung Dao. The annual Tran Temple Festival, especially the Khai An seal distribution ceremony on the night of the 14th to 15th of the first lunar month, attracts thousands of pilgrims seeking luck, prosperity and academic success for the new year. The August festival commemorates the death anniversary of Tran Hung Dao.