Bao Long, Crown Prince of Vietnam

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Crown Prince Bao Long invested at the Can-Chanh Palace, Hue, Vietnam

Crown Prince Bảo Long (Chữ nôm 保隆) of Vietnam (born January 4, 1936) is the head of the Nguyễn Dynasty, the now deposed Emperors of Vietnam.

[edit] Biography

Bảo Long was born at Kien-Trung Palace, Huế on January 4, 1936, to parents Emperor Bảo Đại and Empress Nam Phuong (born Marie-Therese Nguyen Huu Thi Lan) of Vietnam. On March 7, 1939, he was invested and proclaimed Crown Prince of Vietnam, the official heir to the throne in an ancient Confucian ceremony at Can-Chanh Palace, Huế, Vietnam.

In 1947, Empress Nam Phuong left Vietnam with the Crown Prince and his siblings. They lived at the Chateau Thorenz outside of Cannes, France. Crown Prince Bảo Long grew up as a devout Christian of the Roman Catholic Church, and he received his education at the Roches School in Normandy. He then went to Paris and studied law and political science to prepare him to serve in the capacity on state affairs.

In 1953, Crown Prince Bảo Long was invited to attend the coronation of HM Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom in London to represent the Vietnamese Imperial Family.

Crown Prince Bảo Long served in the French Foreign Legion in the Algerian War of Independence and he highly distinguished himself, earning the Croix de Guerre (Cross of Military Valor) with three stars for his courage in battle. His other decorations are the Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit, the decoration of the Golden Gong 2^nd Class, the Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Cambodia, the Order of the Million Elephants and White Parasol of Laos and a commemorative medal for attending the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.

After 10 years of service in the French Foreign Legion, he returned to France where he worked in a bank. He has not married and currently does not have any children.

In 1997, when the Emperor Bảo Đại died, Bảo Long inherited the position of head of the Nguyễn Dynasty. He has remained out of politics and lives quietly in Paris although political organizations such as the Vietnamese Constitutional Monarchist League wish to restore the Nguyễn Dynasty to the throne under a constitutional monarchy, as in Cambodia and Thailand.

He has been working with Prince Bảo Vang who serves under him as the Grandmaster of the Order of the Dragon of Annam. The position is non-political in Vietnamese politics and the role of the royal family under the leadership of Crown Prince Bảo Long is for humanitarian, educational, and cultural endeavors of the people of Vietnam. [1]