THE UPPER NAM NGO
A SECRET VALLEY IN HIN NAMNO NP

In this issue, we continue our research into Ke Bang unexplored heights through the Upper Nam Ngo, a wild valley forming part of the western face of the range and where Secret Indochina carried out a reconnaissance mission in June 2024.

The Upper Nam Ngo Valley lies in central Laos, in Khammouane Province near the Vietnamese border, on the northern edge of the Hin Namno National Park (a National Biodiversity Conservation Area). The valley, with its reddish sandstone bed, is around 12 km long and an average of 1 km wide; it runs north-west-south-east, narrowing at the top to form a defile. Its sides are overhung by limestone bars and thick woods, giving it an aspect as dramatic as it is unique and preserving an environment of rare, unspoilt purity.

The Nam Ngo Basin belongs to a karst region in central Laos of majestic massifs and plateaus that stretch along a north-southeast axis between Kong Lor and Phong Nha-Ke Bang in Vietnam. For the most part, these heights are completely free of the surrounding schistose or sandstone formations, which have been eroded and disintegrated by wild waters and atmospheric agents over geological ages.

The archives describe the region as follows: “Blue limestone, perforated, jagged, part of the vast fragmented limestone sheet of the Maha-xai Causses. This formidable rocky massif, of Permian age (end of the Primary Era), arcs from the vicinity of Dông-hoi to beyond Kham-Kot, blocking the center of Indochina for more than 260 km. Dominating the whole, the imposing Phu Et-va (1512m) rises like a pyramid.” (Madrolle, p. 294, Indochine du Nord, 1932).

The imposing Mount Etva (1492m according to recent maps, also known as Mount Phu Chuang and Mount Buffalo Head) overlooks the Nam Ngo Valley to the north, the ridge of this pyramid covered by a plateau set with whitish cliffs. Towards the east and the nearby Vietnamese border, the valley is dominated by walls sometimes 300m high, the foothills of the Sayphou Louang range – a particularly impenetrable and unknown group of limestone peaks made up of bars, chimneys, and faults entangled in inextricable chaos, culminating in Mount Ayen (978m). The western side of the valley is similarly overlooked by another limestone edifice: the Phu Phac Kut plateau (791m), a massive square-shaped structure cut by faults and ravines.

At the southeastern end of the valley, its two sides meet to shape a series of narrow limestone valleys that create the headwaters of the Nam Ngo River. The waters tumble down from these heights before forming the meanders that characterize the central part of the river’s course, before the lower reaches join the Nam Xe Bang Fai at Natangchai. In its middle section, the Nam Ngo River is joined by the Houay Hok (Houay Tang) and widens at the Ban Du (Ban Dou) cirque, a rice-growing plain in the shadow of Mount Etva.

Various communities live here, including Ban Neua (Ban Xam Xua), Ban Thongxam, Ban Du, Ban Nong Sen, Ban Vangmaner (Ban Nga) and Ban Tongsam (Sa Lang). The population is an ethnic mix of Lao, Tay-Kadai (Phoutai, Yoi and Kaleung), and descendants of older groups, containing Proto-Indochinese Mon-Khmer (Khmu, Ma Coong, Ruc, Arem and Salang) in the Hin Namno area.

The valley is distinguished by its three listed caves: Tham Nok Aen, Tham Pak Tham, and Tham Nam Ork. Tham Nok Aen owes its name to the swallows (Nok Aen) that populate its dark depths along with clouds of bats. During Laos’ secret war, one of Tham Nok Aen’s rooms with a skylight regularly sheltered North Vietnamese soldiers and villagers. The Tham Pak Tham is notable for its guru and locals’ belief that a giant shrimp resides in the depths of the basin, while the cliffs above the cave are home to black langurs. The Tham Nam Ork is the resurgence of the creek, with traces of wild animals in the sand and black langurs drinking from a small spring on the cliff or eating from the trees.

During the Laotian secret war, the Nam Ngo axis was one of the major offshoots of the Hô Chi Minh Trail. The sharp karsts of the Hin Namno formed an inaccessible obstacle to the trail, making this valley a natural way to avoid it and reach the Vietnamese border. Upstream of the Nam Ngo’s headwaters, the track climbs a series of counter-slopes towards the Vietnamese border, crossing the southern part of the Bac Son plateau, skirting the great Ca Roong fault, passing over the Con Cooc valley, and joining Phong Nha and Dong Hoi on the coast.

Some of these routes are centuries-old, used since time immemorial by Proto-Indochinese groups for trade between the Mekong Basin and the Pacific. These ancient networks of navigable rivers and jungle trails were crucial during the war, in particular the Mu Gia Pass (located on the north face of Mount Etva). The Hin Namno was the target of 131,271 air sorties, with the most intense shelling concentrated on bridges, chokepoints, valley bottoms, and, in some cases, villages and their surroundings. The traces and after-effects of these bombardments are still fresh in people’s minds; some areas still completely cratered here and there with various carcasses along tracks, rivers, and villages, where UXO demining teams (MAG, Halo, Japan Mine Action Service) are on site.

The upper Nam Ngo Mountains are wild and almost unknown, with a unique natural diversity resulting from a multitude of ecological niches offered by complex terrains such as isolated high plateaus, fissured cliffs, corridors, wooded ravines, and caves. The lower part of the valley after Ban Tongsam and along the meandering river is dotted with rice fields, cassava plantations, and oak woods. Further on, as you enter the park boundary, the old-growth forest emerges, defined by stands of cycas palms (tree palms) and 100-year-old sraolaos with massive greyish-white trunks (Lagerstoemia calyculata). Higher up, at the bottom of the valley, there are hsienmus (Burretiodendron hsienmu), a species of tree endemic to the limestone heights.

Forty-five mammal species have been provisionally identified in these heights; of these, ten are listed as globally threatened or near threatened. Nine species of primate are thought to inhabit the area, including Douc’s langur (Pygathrix nemaeus), Francois’ langur (Semnopithecus francoisi), Assam macaque (Macaca assamensis), giant muntjac (Megamuntiacus vuquangensis), and saola (Pseudoryx nghetinhensis). Various feline species such as the clouded tiger are likely to be present.


ILLUSTRATION CREDITS

- Banner: saola by Eric Losh.
- Photo #1: bird's eye over Hin Namno National Park.
- Illustration #1: Hô Chi Minh Trail. By Hoang Tich Chu. 1974.
- Illustration #2: the clouded tiger.

 

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As part of our expanding urban production, we share the story of the family of Dong Khanh (born Nguyen Phúc Ung Ky or Nguyen Phúc Ung Duong), the 9th ruler of the Nguyên dynasty. He had nine descendants, including Princess Ngoc Son, whose garden house on the edge of the imperial city of Hue is one of the last standing witnesses to Vietnam’s dynastic history.

Before delving into the family of Dong Khanh, we look briefly at the Nguyên family clan’s past, which can be divided into two distinct periods: the shogunate lords who governed the southern part of Vietnam, known as Cochinchina, from 1558–1802; and the royal Nguyên dynasty, which ruled all of Vietnam from 1802–1945.

The first period is associated with territorial expansion towards the south, the famous “march south,” which took place gradually and relatively peacefully thanks to the spread of dôn dien. These military colonies were created to support progressive territorial appropriation and defense against bellicose neighbors; in conjunction with the transformation of assimilated land, they were generally reformed into rice paddies. This southward push, similar to the German Drang Nach Osten (eastward push) from the 12th to 14th centuries, consolidated the dominance of the Nguyên lords, who achieved remarkable success in agriculture, crafts, and foreign trade.

However, these achievements were not without internal unrest between palace members and political rivals, including the Trinh in the north and the Tây Son, who led a peasant revolt in 1771 and subsequently founded a new dynasty in 1788. This dazzling triumph was short-lived; following the death of its founder Nguyên Huê (alias Quang Trung), his heir lost the throne to Nguyên Anh (alias Gia Long), who was crowned in 1802 and created the royal Nguyên dynasty.

This second period is further divided into the first national independence (1802–1883) and the French protectorate (1883–1945). During the national independence phase, four emperors ruled: Gia Long (1802–1820), Minh Mang (1820–1841), Thieu Tri (1841–1847), and Tu Duc (1847–1883). This period saw reunification, stability, and a rise in power. At the same time, it was marked by absolutism, immobility, a lack of openness to the West (and to Christianity, which was considered perverse), and a refusal to modernize the country (science and technology were viewed as ingredients of barbarism). Some observers believe these views were pretexts for the French invasion in 1883.

The empire’s closed-door policy, coupled with its persecution of Catholics, finally led Tu Duc to capitulate to the French offensive, ushering in the second phase of the French protectorate. This period saw nine kings: Duc Duc (1883, reigned for three days), Hiep Hoa (1883, assassinated after four months), Kien Phuc (1883–1884), Hàm Nghi (1884–1885), Dong Khanh (1885–1889), Thanh Thai (1889–1907), Duy Tan (1907–1916), Khai Dinh (1916-1925), and finally Bao Dai (1925–1945), the last emperor of the Nguyên dynasty. These puppet kings advocated an assertive collaboration with the French occupation.

This brings us to Dong Khanh. He was the older brother of the young emperor Kien Phuc and the eldest son of Prince Nguyen Phúc Hong Cai (or Kien-Thai-Vuong), who was the 26th son of Emperor Thiêu Tri, brother of Tu Duc. With no heir of his own, Tu Duc adopted Dong Khanh and gave him the title of Duke of Kiên Giang. When the French army captured the imperial city, the young emperor Hàm Nghi went into hiding at the Tan So military base in Quang Binh at the instigation of court regents Nguyen Van Tuong and Ton That Thuyet. The regents had attempted to assassinate General Henri Roussel de Courcy, who, together with the French resident de Champeaux, encouraged the dowager empress Nghi Thiên to place Hàm Nghi’s elder half-brother, Prince Nguyen Phúc Ung Ky, on the throne.

Dong Khanh’s reign of three years, four months, and nine days got off to a sluggish start. He had no authority over foreigners or the ruling class of literati who had joined causes with Regent Thuyet. He was later widely supported by the French authorities, who emphasized his loyalty to fulfilling his obligations to them and the sympathy of his commitments to France. A fine intellectual with a keen interest in literature, the affable young emperor treated his brothers and relatives in perfect harmony with the principles of Confucianism and willingly adopted foreign customs in a way that surpassed that of many of his compatriots.

From his 11 concubines, he obtained nine direct descendants: six sons (including Nguyen Phúc Buu Dao, the future emperor Khai Dinh), and three daughters, including Princess Ngoc Son (Nguyen Phuc Di Hy, often erroneously called Hy Hy). Princess Di Hy was Dong Khanh’s second daughter and the only one to reach adulthood. She married Commander-in-Chief Nguyen Huu Tien, military official of Emperor Khai Dinh and son of academician Nguyen Huu Thang, a high-ranking mandarin of the dynasty. Their union produced a daughter, but the princess soon fell ill and died at the age of 20. Following his wife’s wishes, Prince Consort Tien remarried a royal princess, Princess Thi Tran, daughter of Prince Kien Quan Ung Quyen, younger brother of Dong Khanh. This marriage produced seven children. In 1917, Emperor Khai Dinh posthumously honored his younger sister Di Hy, Princess Ngoc Son, with the title of Trang Nha.

In 1921, not far from the confluence of two rivers – the Dong Ba and the Huong, commonly known as the Perfume River – Nguyen Huu Tien built a garden house in memory of his late wife, where he lived with his wife and their seven children. For over 90 years, Nguyen Huu Tien’s descendants have venerated and preserved this historic site. His granddaughter Nguyen Thi Suong is the current owner, and she continues to protect the house with her husband Phan Thuan An, a famous Hue historian. They have passed this spirit on to their three children, who work in the field of preservation and the city’s heritage.

Today, the garden house can be visited in the company of one of Nguyen Thi Suong’s three children. Phan Thuan Thao, who holds a Doctor of Cultural Studies specializing in imperial chamber music, helped make the case for including the Nha Nhac music of the royal court of Hue on UNESCO’s World Intangible Heritage List. Her sister Phan Thuan Y specializes in preserving the architecture of Hue and its surrounding provinces. Here, you’ll learn about the unique features of a garden house based on the principles of Feng Shui, a model of harmony between architecture and nature, as well as the family’s royal history, while discovering a plethora of exceptional artifacts and archives from the Nguyên dynasty and enjoying a tasting of regional specialties.


ILLUSTRATION CREDITS

- Banner: Nguyen Van Nhan's Court of Annam outfit. Nam Giao Manuscript. Hue, Vietnam, 1902.
- Illustration #1: Hue Imperial Citadel, by Tran Quang Tran, Indochina School of Fine Arts, class of 1932.
- Illustration #2: the emperor Dong Khanh.