Hue Flag Tower (Ky Dai)

The three-tiered flag platform on the Citadel's southern wall, facing Ngo Mon across the moat and visible from almost anywhere along the Perfume River.

Ky Dai was first raised in 1807 under Emperor Gia Long and has been rebuilt several times after storms and war, most recently after 1968. Three stacked brick terraces, together some 17 metres high, support a flagpole of a further 37 metres, making it one of the tallest in Vietnam. In the Nguyen era it flew the royal standard and signalled ceremonies and alarms with flags and cannon; today the national flag flies here permanently, and the tower anchors the skyline of the old city. You cannot climb it, but the lawns and moat-side paths around the base are a favourite spot for local evening strolls, kite flying and photographs of the Citadel. It is at its best at dusk, when the riverfront lights come on and the tower is floodlit, and it pairs naturally with a walk across Trang Tien Bridge.