The difficult lives of two queens of the Nguyen Dynasty

Queen Thua Thien Cao followed King Gia Long for more than 20 years, traveling everywhere to build a career, while Queen Nam Phuong lived an unhappy life and died alone in a foreign land.

The Nguyen Dynasty existed for 143 years, through 13 reigns of kings, but only the first and last two queens were crowned while they were still alive. They were Thua Thien Cao Queen Tong Thi Lan, wife of King Gia Long, and Nam Phuong Queen Nguyen Huu Thi Lan, wife of King Bao Dai. The lives of the two queens, both named Lan, had many ups and downs. Until now, history books have not explained why, from the time of King Minh Mang onwards, the position of head of the harem was left vacant, only the highest title of royal noble concubine was granted, to help the queen mother look after food and manage internal affairs.

The wife who shared weal and woe with King Gia Long

Queen Thua Thien Cao (1762-1814), whose real name was Tong Thi Lan, was the first wife of King Gia Long. She traveled everywhere with him to rebuild the Nguyen Lord's empire. In 1778, she followed her father, Duke Tong Phuc Khuong, and her family to Gia Dinh. When she was 18 years old, Nguyen Phuc Anh personally brought gifts to ask for her hand in marriage and made her his first wife. She was a careful and well-mannered person, so she was loved by her husband's family.

The tomb of King Gia Long and the tomb of Queen Thua Thien Cao are placed parallel to each other in Thien Tho mausoleum. Photo: Dac Duc.

When being pursued by the Tay Son dynasty, Nguyen Phuc Anh asked for help from the Siamese army, and also took his 3-year-old son, Prince Nguyen Phuc Canh, to the priest Pigneau de Behaine as a hostage, and went to France to ask for more foreign aid. Separated and not knowing when they would reunite, he cut the gold bar in half, kept one half and gave the other half to his wife, saying, "Our son is gone, I will also go, please take care of the Queen Mother (mother-in-law). Not knowing where and when we will meet again, take this gold as a token." She swallowed her tears, accepted the responsibility of taking care of her mother-in-law and taking care of the family during that time.

Although Nguyen Phuc Anh was able to get 50,000 Siamese reinforcements, he was still crushed by the Tay Son Dynasty. Mrs. Tong Thi Lan and her mother-in-law took refuge on Phu Quoc Island, waiting for news every day. When Nguyen Phuc Anh recaptured Gia Dinh citadel, he immediately sent someone to pick up his mother and wife. From then on, she always followed him to take care of everything.

In 1793, Nguyen Phuc Anh asked her to be the foster mother of Prince Nguyen Phuc Dam (King Minh Mang) even though the prince's biological mother, concubine Tran Thi Dang (Queen Thuan Thien Cao), was still healthy. She agreed on the condition that her husband had to write a contract. Nguyen Phuc Anh agreed, and from then on, Prince Dam lived with her permanently.

In 1802, Nguyen Phuc Anh completely overthrew the Tay Son dynasty, ascended the throne with the reign name Gia Long. A year later, she was made queen and in 1806, she was crowned queen. The king had more than a hundred concubines but only crowned her as queen. Unfortunately, the happiness did not last long as the queen passed away in 1814 at the age of 53. King Gia Long was so sad that he cried bitterly and mourned her for a year according to the ceremony. The queen was buried right next to King Gia Long's tomb in the Thien Tho mausoleum. This is the only tomb of the Nguyen dynasty where the king and queen's tombs are placed side by side.

Queen Thua Thien Cao gave birth to two sons but both died early, before King Gia Long conquered the country. The life of the first queen of the Nguyen Dynasty encountered many difficulties. Her descendants, although belonging to the direct line (eldest child) of King Gia Long, also suffered no less bitterness, sinking in the consolidation of royal power under Minh Mang when some died and some were demoted to commoners.

Her eldest son, Prince Canh, at the age of 3, followed Pigneau de Behaine as a hostage, drifting to the ends of the earth. Later, after being crown prince for a short time, he contracted smallpox and died at the age of 21, leaving behind his wife and two sons. Later, King Gia Long did not choose his eldest grandson Nguyen Phuc My Duong, Prince Canh's eldest son, to succeed him to the throne, but passed the throne to Prince Nguyen Phuc Dam.

During the reign of King Minh Mang, the daughter-in-law and grandchildren of Queen Thua Thien Cao were sentenced to adultery, some were drowned to death, some had to return the seal, were demoted to commoner status, and some died of illness. Later, her great-grandson was granted a title to take care of the worship of Crown Prince Anh Due (Prince Canh). The suffering was not over yet, in 1836, the court continued to discuss the crime, forcing Prince Canh's descendants to be demoted to commoner status before they could have temporary peace.

Talking about the life of Empress Thua Thien Cao, history doctor Nguyen Khac Thuan commented that forcing Nguyen Phuc Anh to sign a contract when adopting Nguyen Phuc Dam as her adopted son was a manifestation of her caution towards Empress Thuan Thien Cao, and also her caution towards her husband. Unfortunately, that caution was not enough. According to Dr. Thuan, at that time there were two crimes that were considered unforgivable: disloyalty and immorality. If the eldest son of Prince Canh did not show any signs of disloyalty, Minh Mang, wanting to settle on the throne, would have to accuse My Duong of the immoral crime of adultery with his mother.

"King Minh Mang... was raised by Empress Thua Thien Cao since childhood, and was like a brother to Prince Canh, yet he was willing to kill his sister-in-law and torture his brother's children. Someone said that an emperor cannot forgive the eldest son of his family. The degree of right and wrong is unclear for everyone, but for King Minh Mang, it was very reasonable," he assessed..

The happy and sad life of Queen Nam Phuong

Queen Nam Phuong (1914-1963), wife of King Bao Dai, real name Nguyen Huu Thi Lan, was famous for her gentle beauty, virtue and talent.

King Bao Dai and Queen Nam Phuong. Photo archive.

In 1932, King Bao Dai returned to Vietnam after 10 years of studying in France. The handsome young king, who loved sports and hunting, became the ideal husband for the girls of noble families. According to researcher Nguyen Dac Xuan, the first person chosen to be Bao Dai's wife was not Mrs. Nam Phuong but Miss Bach Yen, daughter of Mr. Pho Bang Nguyen Dinh Tien from Phong Dien (Thua Thien-Hue). Miss Yen was taught music, singing, and rituals to prepare for the palace but in the end was not chosen.

Under the arrangement of Charles and his wife - former Resident General of Central Vietnam, Bao Dai met the beautiful Lan, who had won the Miss Indochina title three times, the granddaughter of Huyen Sy, the richest man in the South at that time, at a party in Da Lat. The young emperor was attracted by the girl wearing a black silk ao dai, with a pure face without makeup. They often met again "unexpectedly" after that first meeting.

When Bao Dai proposed, Lan agreed to marry him with three conditions: to be crowned queen right at the wedding; to keep the Catholic religion; all children born must be baptized and keep the religion; this marriage must be approved by the Holy See, the two people must keep two different religions, no one must force the other about religion.

The marriage was met with much discussion and violated the hundreds of years of etiquette of the previous dynasty. However, with the determination of the king who had studied in the West, the wedding was still held on March 20, 1934 at Can Chanh Palace - where the king held court. For the first time in the history of the Nguyen Dynasty, a woman appeared in the court, wearing orange-yellow robes - a color reserved only for the emperor. Immediately after the wedding, Bao Dai crowned Nguyen Huu Thi Lan as queen. Her title name Nam Phuong means "fragrance of the South".

The King also renovated the interior of the ancient Kien Trung Palace into a modern place with many amenities such as many bedrooms, dining rooms, and offices. Having studied abroad for many years, Queen Nam Phuong helped her husband with diplomacy, receiving foreign guests, communicating with the French, and promoting education in the country, helping the poor. She gave birth to King Bao Dai with 5 children including Crown Prince Bao Long, Princess Phuong Mai, Phuong Dung, Phuong Lien and Prince Bao Thang..

Queen Nam Phuong when she was still studying in France. Photo archive.

Queen Nam Phuong had a peaceful youth, entered a seemingly perfect marriage but then it fell apart. She lived unhappily in her later years and died alone in a foreign land.In August 1945, King Bao Dai abdicated and went to Hanoi to serve as an advisor to the Provisional Government of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam at the invitation of President Ho Chi Minh. Mrs. Nam Phuong and her children moved to An Dinh Palace, on the banks of the An Cuu River, to live.

Leaving behind the luxurious life of a queen, she devoted herself to raising her children, contributing gold and silver, and mobilizing the people of Hue to raise funds for the new government. In the name of the former queen of Vietnam, she represented 13 million Vietnamese women to send a message calling on women around the world to denounce the French colonialists' plot to re-invade Vietnam.

Although he publicly stated before the court that he was "against the polygamy of Vietnamese kings", former Emperor Bao Dai still had countless mistresses outside.Unhappy family and national affairs forced the former queen and her children to move to France to live while Bao Dai remained in Vietnam.In 1949, unable to bear the hardships and challenges of the situation, he returned to collaborate with the French.In 1955, when he took power in the South, Ngo Dinh Diem confiscated the former emperor's family's assets in Saigon and France. Bao Dai was indignant, left home to hunt, and pursue his lover. Father and son, husband and wife were separated, causing Mrs. Nam Phuong to suffer.

Queen Nam Phuong and her children, behind is a portrait of King Bao Dai. Photo archive.

The former queen lived quietly in the village of Chabrignac, a rural area of ​​France. Bao Dai rarely visited her, only a few times and each time was very short. Queen Nam Phuongpassed away on September 14, 1963. That day, she felt tired, called the doctor and was diagnosed with mild sore throat, only needing to take medicine for a few days. But after the doctor had only been gone for a few hours, she had difficulty breathing and passed away that same night, at the age of 49. The last queen of the Nguyen Dynastylived an unhappy life, died alone, with no relatives beside her except her maids. At that time, her children were all studying and working in Paris.

Queen Nam Phuong's funeral was held at the Chabrignac church, with all the villagers who admired her. Her sons and daughters all came to mourn their mother, but her husband Bao Dai was nowhere to be seen. Shewas buried right next to the tomb of Count De La Besse's family. The Countess was Princess Nhu Ly (daughter of King Ham Nghi). When she heard the news, she sadly said, "We lived next to each other for 5 years but did not know each other. Only when our nephew Nam Phuong passed away did we know. What a pity."

The tomb of the last queen of the Nguyen Dynasty is simple, on the stone stele is written in Chinese characters Dai Nam Nam Phuong Hoang Hau Chi Lang, on the back is written in French, translated as This is the resting place of the queen of An Nam, maiden name Maria Therese Nguyen Huu Thi Lan. According to Mr. Nguyen Dac Xuan, because of love for her, people buried her with precious jewelry. But this had bad consequences as thieves repeatedly dug her up to find gold.

Chabrignac villagers consider the tomb of Queen Nam Phuong one of the three precious heritages of the village.

According to Ngoisao.net