Le Loi statue in front of the City Hall of Thanh Hoa province. Lê Lợi, Emperor of Vietnam and founder of the Later Lê dynasty. Photo by Nguyễn Thanh Quang.
In 1418, the Chinese invaded Vietnam. One day during that very same year, the Chronicles say that a simple fisherman LeLoy, casting his net into the lake Hoan Kien Ho, pulled up a marvelous sword, which was all resplendent.
LeLoy saw in the event a sign that he was invested with the supernatural mission of freeing his people. With that conviction, carrying the marvelous sword, he unleashed a relentless war against the Chinese, expelling them ten years later. LeLoy was then rightfully named Emperor.
Sword Lake in Hanoi. Photo by Benoît Prieur (Agamitsudo) – CC-BY-SA.
In Lake Hoan Kien Ho, on a little island called “the mountain of the lights,” a monument was erected to celebrate the finding of the providential sword.
On the small bridge leading to the island, one may read this statement: “This way goes to water in the mountains. It is the entrance to marvelous regions.”
Crusade for a Christian Civilization July-August 1975
Short Stories on Honor, Chivalry, and the World of Nobility—no. 501
