Grand Tutor Cuong Quoc Cong Nguyen Xi - Outstanding general and minister

(Baonghean) -During his life as an official serving four Le kings for 37 consecutive years, from 1460 to 1497 (Le Thai To, Le Thai Tong, Le Nhan Tong and Le Thanh Tong), Grand Tutor Cuong Quoc Cong Nguyen Xi was not only a talented general but also an outstanding mandarin. In recognition of his contributions, in 1990, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism issued a decision to recognize his temple in Nghi Hop commune (Nghi Loc district) as a national historical relic. Every year, the Nguyen Xi temple festival is held from January 29 to February 1 (Lunar calendar) and is one of the major festivals in Nghe An to commemorate Nguyen Xi's merits.

Nguyen Xi was born in the year of Dinh Suu (1397) in Thuong Xa village, Chan Phuc district (now Nghi Hop commune, Nghi Loc district). Nguyen Xi's father was Nguyen Hoi and his mother was Vu Thi Hach. They had two sons: Nguyen Bien was the older brother and Nguyen Xi was the younger brother.

At the age of 9, Nguyen Xi lost both his parents, so he had to leave his homeland and follow his brother to Lam Son, Thanh Hoa. The country was in the midst of the Ming invasion. In 1416, Le Loi rose up to fight against foreign invaders by taking the Lung Nhai oath with 18 comrades. Both brothers Nguyen Bien and Nguyen Xi were present. At the beginning of the year of Mau Tuat (1418), the uprising flag was raised high in Lam Son, and the brothers Nguyen Bien and Nguyen Xi officially became insurgents. That year, Nguyen Xi was 21 years old, and together with his brother and comrades, he made the first achievements in the battles of Lac Thuy, Muong Thoi, and My My in the upper reaches of the Chu River. Le Loi trusted him to command the battles of utmost importance. In particular, after the victory of Chi Lang, Xuong Giang ended in victory, the country was completely liberated after 20 years of being under the domination of the Ming invaders. In 1428, King Binh Dinh Le Loi ascended the throne with the reign name Thuan Thien. Nguyen Xi at that time became one of the first founding heroes and was promoted by the king to the title "Long Ho Thuong Tuong Quan, Suy Trung Bao Chinh Cong Than" and was given the national surname of Le, called Le Xi.



Nguyen Xi Temple Festival 2012.

During the Le dynasty, Nguyen Xi held many important positions, making great contributions to building the country and consolidating the Le dynasty. In particular, when the Le dynasty was in turmoil (1459), Nguyen Xi plotted to pretend to be blind to eliminate the rebels. He suppressed his anger and trampled his underage son to death to dispel the rebels' suspicions, and accomplished a great feat: he put Le Tu Thanh, also known as Le Thanh Tong, on the throne (first with the reign name Quang Thuan, then changed to Hong Duc). From then on, the Le dynasty entered a new page of history, and was evaluated by history books as the most comprehensive dynasty in the feudal regime of our country.

During his life as an official serving the four Le dynasties for 37 consecutive years from 1460 to 1497, Nguyen Xi was not only a talented military general but also an outstanding politician in domestic and foreign affairs during that period. In the feudal history of our country, there was rarely a subject who was respected and cared for by the king until the last days of his life like him. Le Thanh Tong also wrote a Che edict dedicated to Nguyen Xi with extremely respectful words: "... Considering Nguyen Xi here, he has a dignified demeanor and a strong personality. He helped Cao Hoang when he opened the country, through hundreds of difficult battles. He assisted the prophet when he defended the citadel, wholeheartedly helping the enemy. He entered and exited all positions of civil and military general. Before and after, he kept his loyalty as a subject and a son. He kept himself moral, innocent as jade, never showing off. He had a serious face at court, majestic as a newly drawn sword. All the officials admired his demeanor. All the four seas looked up to his reputation...".

On the day of Giap Thin, October 30, At Dau year (1465), Nguyen Xi passed away at the age of 69. When the king heard the news, he skipped three days of court and lamented: "Since the founding of the country, no one has been like you." His coffin was placed in Kinh Thien Palace. Before the funeral, all the civil and military mandarins gathered to perform the state funeral ritual. After that, his coffin was transferred to his hometown in Thuong Xa for burial. The king also posthumously awarded him the title of Grand Master of the National Palace, Thuy Nghiep Vuc. Later kings continued to award him the highest title of "Thuong Thuong Dang Ton Than".

With his great contributions to the country and the people, Nguyen Xi was honored not only during his lifetime with various important titles, but after his death, his achievements still shone. Two years after his death, the king ordered the construction of a temple to worship him according to the National and International regime, and ordered the first-ranking scholar Nguyen Truc to write the stele to be engraved on the stele. Nguyen Xi's temple was restored on the largest scale in the 20s of the 20th century under the direction of the clan leader, Bachelor of the Academy Nguyen Huy Con. Currently, this is the most magnificent relic site in Nghe An, ranked as a National Historical - Cultural Relic by the Ministry of Culture in 1990. The celebration ceremony to commemorate the outstanding mandarin of the nation, Cuong Quoc Cong Nguyen Xi, is held annually on the occasion of January 30, February 1 and 2 of the lunar calendar and has been upgraded to a major festival of Nghe An. In 1997, on the occasion of the 600th anniversary of Nguyen Xi's birth, Nghe An province coordinated with the National Center for Social Sciences and Humanities to organize a conference about him. In 2005, Vietnam Television made a film about Nguyen Xi with the title "The twice-founding nation". In 2011, Nghe An Publishing House and the Nguyen Dinh Family Council republished the book "The Genealogy of Duke Nguyen Xi and Appendix" for the second time. On the occasion of the Nguyen Xi Temple Festival 2012, the tombs of his father, mother and Grand Tutor Duke Nguyen Xi were upgraded to be larger and more beautiful with a budget of over 2 billion VND from his descendants and visitors from near and far.

Thanh Thuy