The ceremony at the Yen The Uprising relic site in Yen The district, was also to open the Yen The Festival. 

Chairman of the district People’s Committee Vu Tri Hai said the festival aims to honour the significant history of the uprising and pay homage to the uprising’s leader, Hoang Hoa Tham, and his troops who fought the French colonialists for nearly three decades, from the late 19th century to the early 20 th century. 

The festival also features a host of cultural and sports activities such as a martial arts competition, tug of war, human chess, cheo (traditional opera), quan ho (love duet) performances, and water puppetry. An exhibition on the Yen The Uprising is also open for visitors. 

The Yen The Uprising broke out in 1884 in Bac Giang and later expanded to other northern provinces such as Bac Ninh, Vinh Phuc, Thai Nguyen and Lang Son. 

The uprising, which lasted until 1913, is considered as the biggest and longest armed rebellion staged by farmers before the Communist Party of Viet Nam was founded and led the country’s revolution. 

The Yen The Festival was organised for the first time on March 16, 1984 - the 100th anniversary - to commemorate the revolt. 

To preserve and promote the movement’s values, nine sites of the Yen The Uprising were listed as national special relics in 2012. The Yen The Festival was also recognised as part of the national intangible cultural heritage.