VietNamNet Bridge – The Nguyen dynasty was the last feudal dynasty in Vietnam, existing from 1802 to 1945. In its 143-year history, this reign experienced many ups and downs, especially the invasion of the French in the mid-19th century. Here are the rare photos of some emperors of the Nguyen Dynasty

King Gia Long (1762 - 1820)

Emperor Gia Long, born Nguyen Phuc Anh, often referred to simply as Nguyen Anh, was the first Emperor of the Nguyen Dynasty. Unifying what is now modern Vietnam in 1802, he founded the Nguyễn Dynasty, the last of the Vietnamese dynasties.

As a nephew of the last Nguyen Lord who ruled over southern Vietnam, Nguyen Anh was forced into hiding in 1777 as a fifteen-year-old when his family was slain in the Tay Son revolt. After several changes of fortune in which his loyalists regained and again lost Saigon, he befriended the French Catholic priest Pigneau de Behaine. 

Pigneau championed his cause to the French government and managed to recruit volunteers when this fell through to help Nguyen Anh regain the throne. From 1789, Nguyen Anh was once again in the ascendancy and began his northward march to defeat the Tay Son, eventually moving by 1802 to the border with China, which had previously been under the control of the Trinh lords. When this was over, he had reunited Vietnam after centuries of internecine feudal warfare with a greater land mass than ever before.

Prince Canh, Emperor Gia Long's son.

Gia Long's rule was noted for its Confucian orthodoxy. He repealed Tay Son and reinstated the classical Confucian education and civil service system. He moved the capital from Hanoi south to Hue as the country's populace had also shifted south over the preceding centuries, and built up fortresses and a palace in his new capital. Using French expertise, he modernized Vietnam's defensive capabilities. In deference to the assistance of his French friends, he tolerated the activities of Roman Catholic missionaries. Under his rule, Vietnam strengthened its dominance in Indochina.

Minh Mang (1791-1841)

Minh Mang, born Nguyen Phuc Dam, also known as Nguyen Phuc Kieu, was the second emperor of the Nguyen dynasty, reigning from 1820 until his death, on 20 January 1841. He was well known for his opposition to French involvement in Vietnam and his rigid Confucian orthodoxy.

Prince Nguyen Phuc Dam was the fourth son of Emperor Gia Long (reigned 1802–20) and thus was not in line for the throne. He was chosen by Gia Long as his successor, however, because of his outspoken criticism of Europeans.

The seal of Emperor Minh Mang

Minh Mang succeeded his father as emperor at the age of twenty-nine. Over his two-decade rule (1820-1841), he led an administrative reorganization of Vietnam, and oversaw enlargement of programs for civil service exams and education.

Emperor Minh Mang was also important as a poet and writer. In regard to other nations, he rejected official diplomatic relations with both France and the United States but tolerated French commerce.

Minh Mang tomb in Hue City

Minh Mang also proved suspicious of Western missionaries and prohibited the practice of Christianity in Vietnam, and there was some persecution of Christians. These attitudes and policies were the result of his strong advocacy of morality and his desire to protect Vietnamese culture.

Thieu Tri (1807-1847)

Nguyen Phuc Mien Tong was the third emperor of the Nguyen Dynasty taking the era name of Thieu Tri. He was the eldest son of Emperor Minh Mang, and reigned from 1841 until his death on 4 November 1847.

Emperor Thieu Tr was much like his father, Minh Mang, and carried on his conservative policies of isolationism and the entrenchment of Confucianism. 

Tu Duc (1829-1883)

Tu Duc's wives

Emperor Tu Duc (Nguyen Phuc Hong Nham and also Nguyen Phuc Thi) was the fourth emperor of the Nguyen Dynasty and reigned from 1847–1883, the longest among Nguyen kings.

Ham Nghi (1872-1943)

Emperor Ham Nghi (born Nguyen Phuc Ung Lich) was the eighth emperor of the Nguyen Dynasty. He reigned for only one year (1884–1885).

On 4 July 1885, a nationwide insurrection against the French broke out under the leadership of the two regents Nguyen Van Tuong and Ton That Thuyet. 

The French stormed the palace and Ton That Thuyet took Emperor Ham Nghi and three empresses into hiding. Ham Nghi went to the hills and jungles around Laos along with Ton That Thuyet's force. 

The wedding photos of Emperor Ham Nghi with a woman in Algerie in 1904

While they waged guerrilla warfare against the French occupation forces, the French replaced Ham Nghi with his brother, Dong Khanh, who was enthroned as the Son of Heaven. 

In October 1888, after a series of setbacks, Ham Nghi was hiding in an isolated house near the spring of the Nai River, with Ton That Thiep, the second son of Ton That Thuyet, and only a few attendants. 

The tomb of Ham Nghi in Thonac Village, France

A photo of Ham Nghi at De la Nauche castle in France

There, he was betrayed by the head of his Muong guards and captured on 1 November, while Thiep was killed. 

In December 1888, he was exiled to Algeria. There he married a French Algerian woman named Marcelle Laloë on 4 November 1904. They had three children, Prince Minh Duc, Princess Nhu May and Princess Nhu Ly. He died in 1943 and was buried in Thonac cemetery, near Sarlat, Dordogne, France.

Dong Khanh (1864-1889)

Emperor Dong Khanh (born Nguyen Phuc Ung Ky, also known as Chanh Mong), was the ninth emperor of the Nguyen Dynasty. He reigned three years between 1885 and 1889.

Dong Khanh was the eldest son of Prince Nguyen Phuc Hong Cai. As his uncle, Emperor Tu Duc, had no children, Dong Khanh was adopted and made the Duke of Kien Giang. 

He came to the throne in the aftermath of the events starting from 4 July 1885, when Nguyen Van Tuong and Ton That Thuyet took the young Emperor Ham Nghi from the Purple Forbidden City of Hue to the mountains as the figurehead of a revolutionary movement against the French.

 To take away the legitimacy of Ham Nghi, the French enthroned Prince Ung Ky - Ham Nghi's elder half brother. He took the era name of Dong Khanh.

Thanh Thai (1879-1954)

Thanh Thai's brothers

Thanh Thai with his brothers and their teachers

Thanh Thai's wives

Thanh Thai's concubine

Thanh Thai's mother - Queen Mother Tu Minh

Thanh Thai and his brother

Thanh Thai and his brother

Emperor Thanh Thai 

Emperor Thanh Thai during his last visit to Hue in 1953

Emperors Bao Dai (left) and Thanh Thai in Saigon in 1953

Emperor Thanh Thai was born as Prince Nguyen Phuc Buu Lan, son of Emperor Duc Duc and Empress Dowager Tu Minh. He reigned for 18 years, from 1889 to 1907.

When Emperor Dong Khanh came to power, Prince Dong Khanh was put under house arrest with his mother for having connections with those who opposed him. When Dong Khanh died, however, the French colonial authorities and the high-ranking mandarins decided that Dong Khanh was the ideal successor. He was enthroned as the new emperor, Emperor Thanh Thai.

Compiled by Thanh Van