Nguyen Hoang
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Nguyễn Hoàng 1525 - 1613; ruled the southern provinces of Vietnam from 1558 - 1613.
Nguyễn Hoàng is first of the Nguyễn Lords who ruled south Vietnam from a series of cities: Ai Tu (1558-1570), Tra Bat (1570-1600), and Dinh Cat (modern-day Hue) (1600-1613).
Nguyen Hoang was the second son of Nguyen Kim. When his father was assassinated by a Mac supporter, his brother-in-law Trinh Khiem took command of the Royal (Nguyen-Trinh) army. Sometime after his older brother (Nguyen Uong) died (believed to have been poisoned), Nguyen Hoang asked for, and received permission to rule over the southern-most province of Vietnam. This land was formerly Champa territory which had been conquered by Le Thanh Tong. Nguyen Hoang took over the province in 1558.
In 1573 he was given the title Grand Master (Thai-pho) by Emperor Le The Ton. Later he was given the title Prince Mon (Mon Cong). In 1592, when Hanoi was captured by Trinh Tung, Nguyen Hoang came north with both money and soldiers. The Nguyen army joined with the Royal (Trinh) army and helped destroy the remainder of the Mac army.
For reasons that are mysterious, when a new king, Lê Kinh Tông, took the throne in Hanoi, Nguyen Hoang refused to recognize the new king and instead took for himself the new title of Good Prince (Huu Vuong) in 1600. Perhaps an explanation is found in that his sister's son Trinh Tung had been given a similar title just one year earlier: Peaceful Prince (Binh An Vuong).
Nguyen Hoang had many children (10 sons) and was succeeded by his 6th son Nguyen Phuc Nguyen upon his death in 1613. He had ruled the south for 55 years.
The enmity between the Trinh and the Nguyen dates from this time. Several stories are told to explain this. One story says that Nguyen Hoang's older brother was in fact killed under orders from Trinh Khiem [1]. Another story says that Nguyen Hoang had to pretend to be insane to avoid being murdered [2]. Neither story explains why Trinh Khiem appointed Nguyen Hoang to rule over the southern province of Vietnam at a time (1558) when the Royal (Trinh) army was strong and winning the war against the Mac. Another story says that the Trinh attacked the Nguyen in 1571 in a short campaign [3]. Left unexplained is why the Nguyen Hoang went north with an army in 1592 and helped the Trinh defeat the Mac. The reason for the break in relations in 1600 is completely mysterious, revolts in Ninh Binh Province are offered but by itself it means little. The Trinh-Nguyen War did finally begin but it was 15 years after Nguyen Hoang's death (and five years after Trinh Tung's death).
| Preceded by none |
Ruler of South Vietnam 1558-1613 |
Succeeded by Nguyen Phuc Nguyen |
See also Le Dynasty.
[edit] Sources
- Encyclopedia of Asian History, Volumn 3 (Nguyen Lords) 1988. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York.
- Genealogy of the Royal Nguyen Family
- Annam and it Minor Currency Chapter 16 (downloaded May 2006)
