The yearbook of King Bao Dai's reign proves Vietnam's sovereignty over Hoang Sa

• August 6, 2012 15:00

A series of documents, books, royal decrees, minutes... from the 18th century to the reign of King Bao Dai, published in the Hoang Sa Chronicle, all prove the continuous state management of Vietnam in this archipelago..

The directive of the Deputy Prime Minister of the Tay Son Dynasty, General of the Military and Civil Affairs, dated February 14, year 9 of Thai Duc (1786), ordered the Captain of Hoang Sa to ride 4 fishing boats across the sea straight to Hoang Sa and the envoys of the islands at sea, to collect gold, silver, copper, and cannons, small cannons, tortoiseshell, and seashells to bring back to the capital, and collect them according to the rules.

The document was discovered in My Loi village, Phu Loc district, Thua Thien - Hue province, with the content of handling a lawsuit between My Toan ward (now My Loi village, Vinh My commune) and An Bang ward (Vinh An commune) regarding the dispute over a ship hull of the Hoang Sa team that drifted ashore on the border between the two wards. The document shows that in 1760, under the reign of King Le Hien Tong (1740 - 1786), there was a Hoang Sa team leader in charge of managing and exploiting products in the Hoang Sa archipelago. The original in Chinese characters was written on a do paper.

The order of the Dang family in Ly Son island (Quang Ngai) consists of four pages, 36cm long, 24cm wide and intact, clearly stating that on April 15, the 15th year of Minh Mang (1834), the Quang Ngai provincial mandarin sent a fleet of three boats to guard Hoang Sa island. According to researchers, although only a few pages long, this order contains a lot of valuable information, clearly stating the identity and hometown of each soldier who obeyed the court's orders to join Hoang Sa, not only in Ly Son island district but also in other coastal areas in Quang Ngai.

The report of the Ministry of Public Works dated July 13, the 18th year of Minh Mang (1837) stated: On this trip to Hoang Sa, except for the Kinh-appointed naval commander Pham Van Bien, the province must guide Vo Van Hung, Pham Van Sanh, and the attack force Luu Duc Truc...

The Ministry of Public Works' report dated June 21, the 19th year of Minh Mang (1838) on the survey and mapping of Hoang Sa. The report stated that the people sent to Hoang Sa were led by the Ministry of Public Works Do Mau Thuong and the Royal Guard Le Trong Ba, and the tour guide Vu Van Hung. Mr. Hung said that Hoang Sa had a total of 4 places that needed to be surveyed, and this time they were able to go to 3 places.

Decree No. 10, dated February 29, 1938, of King Bao Dai administratively annexed the Hoang Sa archipelago from Quang Ngai province to Thua Thien province.

The minutes with the approval in red ink of King Bao Dai dated December 27, the 13th year of Bao Dai, i.e. February 3, 1939, affirmed the continuation of administrative management as well as the sending of soldiers to Hoang Sa.