The Early Lê dynasty or the Former Lê dynasty ( vi, Nhà Tiền Lê;
Hán Nôm: ; ) was a
dynasty of Vietnam that existed from 980 to 1009. It followed the
Đinh dynasty Dinh is a Vietnamese surname. In Vietnam, the surname is spelled Đinh or Đình but ''Đình'' is very rare in Vietnamese.
Notable people
* Andy Dinh, Team SoloMid owner, player
* Dan Dinh, ''League of Legends '' player, brother of Andy Dinh
* ...
and was succeeded by the
Lý dynasty. It comprised the reigns of three emperors.
Founding
After the assassination of the emperor,
Đinh Tiên Hoàng Dinh is a Vietnamese surname. In Vietnam, the surname is spelled Đinh or Đình but ''Đình'' is very rare in Vietnamese.
Notable people
* Andy Dinh, Team SoloMid owner, player
* Dan Dinh, ''League of Legends '' player, brother of Andy Dinh
* ...
, and the emperor's first son,
Đinh Liễn
Đinh Liễn (丁璉, 940 – October 979) or Đinh Khuông Liễn (丁匡璉), was the eldest son of emperor Đinh Bộ Lĩnh, the founding emperor of Đinh dynasty.
Liễn was granted the title ''Nam Việt vương'' (南越王, "king of Nam Vi ...
, the third son of the emperor,
Đinh Phế Đế
Đinh Phế Đế (974–1001; literally "Overthrown Emperor of the Đinh") was the second and also the last emperor of the Đinh dynasty. His birth name was Đinh Toàn ( 丁 璿) or Đinh Tuệ ( 丁 穗). He was the son of Đinh Tiên Hoàng a ...
, assumed the throne at aged six with the regent
Lê Hoàn
Lê Hoàn (10 August 941 – 18 March 1005), posthumously title Lê Đại Hành, was a Vietnamese emperor and the third ruler of Dai Viet kingdom, ruling from 981 to 1005. He first served as the generalissimo commanding a ten-thousand man arm ...
. During the regency of Lê Hoàn, members of the royal court skeptical of Lê Hoàn's loyalty to the true emperor, such as the Duke of Định
Nguyễn Bặc
Nguyễn Bặc ( vi-hantu, 阮匐, 924 – 15 October 979), also known with the noble title Định Quốc Công (定國公), was a Vietnamese mandarin and general who served as the Grand Chancellor of Đinh dynasty and was the first chancellor i ...
and General Đinh Điền, led an army to the imperial palace in an attempted coup. The failure of the undertaking caused those two figures to be executed.
In 980, the
Song dynasty
The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
of
China under
Emperor Taizong ordered a Chinese army to invade Đại Cồ Việt. Because the young emperor was unable to lead the country to against the invader, the mandarins of the royal court discussed with Empress
Dương Vân Nga
Dương Thị Ngọc Vân (楊氏玉雲, ?–1000) courtesy name Vân Nga (雲娥) was the only empress dowager of the Đinh dynasty and afterwards empress of Lê Đại Hành, the first emperor of the Early Lê dynasty. When her husband Đinh Ti ...
about enthroning the most trusted general and regent, Lê Hoàn. Most of them voted in the affirmative to this proposal; consequently, the empress dethroned her own son and gave the crown to Lê Hoàn. He accepted the emperorship, establishing a new dynasty named the Early Lê dynasty. Lê Hoàn is often referred to with the
posthumous name
A posthumous name is an honorary name given mostly to the notable dead in East Asian culture. It is predominantly practiced in East Asian countries such as China, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, and Thailand. Reflecting on the person's accomplishments ...
Lê Đại Hành.
Lê Đại Hành (980–1005)
Following war threats from
Song China
The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
, Lê Đại Hành made preparations for war while the Song forces advanced toward Đại Cồ Việt. Later at the
Battle of Bạch Đằng River, Lê Đại Hành's forces, under the command of General
Phạm Cự Lượng, were successful at halting the overland advance of the Song forces, although they incurred some losses. Seeking peace, Lê Đại Hành sent emissaries to negotiate for peace; thus the annual show of homage and offerings to the Celestial Emperor of China were resumed as a means to appease the Song dynasty.
In 982, Lê Đại Hành began expeditions to
Champa, a nation south of Đại Cồ Việt.
Lê Đại Hành's army met the combined forces of Champa,
Chenla
Chenla or Zhenla (; km, ចេនឡា, ; vi, Chân Lạp) is the Chinese designation for the successor polity of the kingdom of Funan preceding the Khmer Empire that existed from around the late sixth to the early ninth century in Indoc ...
and
Abbasid
The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib ...
Mercenaries in Đồ Bàn, (
Quảng Nam province today) and be able to defeated all of them. Champa king
Paramesvaravarman I
Parameswaravarman I was a Pallava emperor who ruled in South India in the latter half of the 7th century, 670-695 AD. He ascended to the throne after the death of his father Mahendravarman II in 670 CE. His grandfather Narasimhavarman I had al ...
had been beheaded and Champa capital of
Indrapura was sacked by the Vietnamese. The new king of Champa agreed to be a
vassal state
A vassal state is any state that has a mutual obligation to a superior state or empire, in a status similar to that of a vassal in the feudal system in medieval Europe. Vassal states were common among the empires of the Near East, dating back to ...
of Đại Cồ Việt in 983.
Some domestic achievements of Lê Đại Hành include constructing new monuments and galvanizing agricultural and handicraft production in order to make economic progress. Many spiritual etiquettes were developed, and Lê Đại Hành's government was the model for that of the succeeding dynasty.
Lê Đại Hành died in 1005 at the age of 65 and after 25 years of rule. In his will, Lê Đại Hành gave the throne to his youngest son, Lê Long Việt.
The succession crisis
Lê Long Việt (1005)
Out of his many princes, Lê Hoàn appointed his first prince
Lê Long Thâu as the crown prince in the early years of his rule. Thâu died in 1000, and Lê Hoàn was forced to choose another crown prince.
The fifth prince Duke of Khai Minh,
Lê Long Đĩnh
Lê Long Đĩnh (; 黎 龍 鋌, 15 November 986 – 19 November 1009), also known as Lê Ngọa Triều (黎臥朝), was the last emperor of the Early Lê family of the kingdom of Đại Cồ Việt, ruling from 1005 to 1009. After killing his ...
, nominated himself as crown prince. According to the
Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư
The ''Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư'' ( vi-hantu, 大越史記全書; ; ''Complete Annals of Đại Việt'') is the official national chronicle of the Vietnamese state, that was originally compiled by the royal historian Ngô Sĩ Liên under ...
, Lê Hoàn viewed him as the favourable to become the next emperor, but royal court mandarins suggested him not to do it because they viewed other candidates as more viable. Lê Hoàn followed the advice and chose his older brother Lê Long Việt, the duke of Nam Phong.
In 1005, Lê Hoàn died after reigning for 24 years at Trường Xuân Palace.
After the death, there was a succession dispute between the princes Lê Long Đĩnh, Lê Long Tích, and Lê Long Kính and crown prince Lê Long Việt, preventing a government to take control over the entire country for eight months. In the winter of 1005, Lê Long Tích was defeated by crown prince Lê Long Việt. He fled to Thạch Hà province, now
Hà Tĩnh Province
Hà is a Vietnamese surname. The name is transliterated as He in Chinese and Ha in Korean.
Ha is the anglicized variation of the surname Hà. It is also the anglicized variation of Hạ.
Notable people with the surname Hà
* Hà Kiều Anh, ...
, and ordered the massacre of the locals there. After a few months, Lê Long Việt was able to proclaim himself emperor
Lê Trung Tông but was assassinated after ruling for three days by Lê Long Đĩnh, who replaced him as emperor.
Lê Long Đĩnh (1005–1009)
Lê Long Đĩnh mustered large military forces, defeating the other princes.
After stabilizing his rule through war, he enhanced foreign relations with the
Song dynasty
The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
with a gentle and friendly policy. The emperor gave full support for Buddhism and sought Chinese Buddhist canon and scripture for practice in Vietnam.
He also supervised the national economy and began the construction of bridges, roads, and other infrastructure for easy transportation of people and commodities, especially water. In 1009, he established the exchange of goods and products in
Nanning with the
Song dynasty
The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
, albeit it was limited as the Song emperor only allowed Vietnamese businessmen to trade at specific locations near the border like
Hepu County
Hepu (), alternately romanized as Hoppo, Hopu or Hop'u, is a county under the administration of Beihai City in southeastern Guangxi, China. It borders Lianjiang (Guangdong) to the southeast, Bobai County to the northeast, the Gulf of Tonkin to ...
,
Guangxi.
Hemorrhoids
The emperor was famous for suffering from hemorrhoids, which made him unable to sit on the throne and instead forced him to lie on his throne. His famous lying sessions earned him the name
Lê Ngọa Triều throughout his reign, meaning "the one who rules while lying on the throne."
АНТОЛОГИЯ ТРАДИЦИОННОЙ ВЬЕТНАМСКОЙ МЫСЛИ. X начало XIII вв.
The rise of the Lý clan
Despite his supposed achievements in diplomacy, religion, infrastructure, and the economy, Lê Long Đĩnh's rule was characterized by debaucheries, wild orgies, and decadence according to ancient sources, although modern historians have dismissed these stories as legend, while other historians compare him to the Roman Emperor Nero
Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 unti ...
as he was well known for his cruelties, not the least of which was sadism
Sadism may refer to:
* Sadomasochism, the giving or receiving of pleasure from acts involving the receipt or infliction of pain or humiliation
* Sadistic personality disorder, an obsolete term proposed for individuals who derive pleasure from the s ...
and torture of not only many types of criminals but also his own relatives, with him only promoting and partaking in these infamous acts.
According to these stories, his favorite execution and torturing methods were immersion, Lingchi, and the burning of live victims, all of which he perceived as entertainment. Although Buddhism played a key role in his life and politics, the emperor often used Buddhist monks for so-called entertainment such as by exfoliating sugar canes atop a monk's head until it began to bleed. Employing many corrupt or otherwise incompetent officials into important court positions only further encouraged these tendencies of the emperor.
As a result of the emperor's poor health, according to some sources, most power was actually controlled by one of the members of the Lý family Lý Công Uẩn
LY or ly may refer to:
Government and politics
* Libya (ISO 3166-1 country code LY)
* Lý dynasty, a Vietnamese dynasty
* Labour Youth of Ireland
* Legislative Yuan, the unicameral legislature of the Republic of China (Taiwan)
Science and tech ...
. High resentment from the public and the imperial court culminated for a long period preceding Lê Long Đĩnh's death. After Lê Long Đĩnh died the court agreed to enthrone the high-rank mandarin and aristocrat Lý Công Uẩn as the new emperor under pressure from the public and from the Buddhist monks, thus ending the Early Lê Dynasty. In its place, the Lý dynasty ushered in a new age for Vietnam, with a combination of Confucian and Buddhist influences recurring in the new dynasty.
Domestic
Administrative centre
The Early Lê Dynasty dynasty modified the traditional government form of the Đinh dynasty Dinh is a Vietnamese surname. In Vietnam, the surname is spelled Đinh or Đình but ''Đình'' is very rare in Vietnamese.
Notable people
* Andy Dinh, Team SoloMid owner, player
* Dan Dinh, ''League of Legends '' player, brother of Andy Dinh
* ...
, although it modified some parts of it. In 980, Lê Hoàn appointed several men to court positions: Hồng Hiến as the grand chancellor, known in Vietnamese as Thái sư; Phạm Cự Lạng as the vice-chancellor, or Thái úy; Từ Mục as grand governor of court, Đại tổng quản; and Đinh Thừa Chinh as royal capital interior military commander, in Vietnamese Nha nội đô chỉ huy sứ.
A major reform, however, was the distribution of specific duties and powers to each mandarin in contrast to the Đinh dynasty's centralizing all power to the emperor.
Rebellion oppression
In the ruling era, Lê emperors often faced the revolts of some local Tribal chief and viceroy, especially in remote areas, retaining the specific authorization to quell them.
In 980, Lê Đại Hành ordered Dương Tiến Lộc to collect taxes from Hoan and Ái province, now Nghệ An Province and Thanh Hóa Province. However, Dương Tiến Lộc opposed it and seized the two provinces, proposing to place them under the control of the Kingdom of Champa, which refused him in order to maintain a friendly relationship with Đại Cồ Việt. Lê Đại Hành led an army to defeat and kill Lộc along with a general massacre of citizens in those two provinces.
This, however, is only an example of rebellion: there were more than ten rebellions against the royal court during a reign of five years.
Transportation
After victory over Champa in 983, Lê Đại Hành merged the seized territory into the country and started to build more roads from the south estuary to Quảng Bình Province at the south of his realm. Then he ordered the dredging of the Đa Cái canal in 1003.
In 1009, the country started the massive construction of transportation infrastructure for trading among the regions and to facilitate travel for soldiers heading south.
Economy
Taxation
The Early Lê dynasty imposed taxation based on land property. Taxes included a public benefit tax, which was ten days' worth of labor for public projects; a household tax on property paid annually; and a military tax added to the household tax specifically for military operations, including public security at home. The taxation on property was borrowed from the Xia
Xia (Hsia in Wade–Giles) may refer to:
Chinese history
* Xia dynasty (c. 2070 – c. 1600 BC), the first orthodox dynasty in Chinese history
* Xia (Sixteen Kingdoms) (407–431), a Xiongnu-led dynasty
* Xia (617–621), a state founded by Dou Ji ...
, Shang
The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty founded by Tang of Shang (Cheng Tang) that ruled in the Yellow River valley in the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty and f ...
, and Zhou dynasties of China, only collecting goods and not money. Simultaneously, the government implementing trade-promoting policies by not taxing the property of traders except for land owned.
Agriculture
Agriculture was the fundamental element of the economy of Đại Cồ Việt during the Early Lê dynasty. Most of the land of villages was under the control of the royal court and owned by it by law.
Land was given one of four types. The emperor's land was cultivated with a spiritual significance, intended to have the people to take part in agricultural activities, mainly prisoners and peasants, with all products going to the royal court; it was first implemented by Lê Đại Hành in 987. Meanwhile, distributive land was distributed to mandarins for the benefiting and contributing to the country or to princes as an accommodation. It was not private property and was returned to the royal court when the landowner died. Religious land was set aside for the practices of Buddhist monks; private land was owned and sold freely between individuals without government interference. Besides that, the government encouraged subjects to exploit wild and untouched land by settling it, providing property at a lower cost while simultaneously expanding its influence in unsettled regions. Peasants shared the land equally and cultivate it, regularly paying taxes to the government for the government's budget.
Trade
The emperors were focused on an open new trade route through roads and waterways. Records report that such infrastructure projects were undertaken mainly in the years 983, 1003, and 1009.
The main trade partner of Đại Cồ Việt was China, and both sides agreed to establish bilateral exchanging of goods at borders.
Some local high officials supported commercial activity among local parties. A delegation of Đại Cồ Việt acted as a government arbitrator in trade disputes. Some typical exports of Vietnam were gold, silver, and bronze products.[Trương Hữu Quýnh, Đinh Xuân Lâm, Lê Mậu Hãn, sách đã dẫn, tr 112]
Culture
There are not much sources describing the culture under Early Lê dynasty. However, it is known that Buddhism was the most widespread religion, affecting the flourishing of Buddhism in China's Tang dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdom ...
. Monks were given an elevated status in government affairs, being allowed to participate in politics and national planning.
Foreign relations
Song dynasty
Đại Cồ Việt was a tributary state
A tributary state is a term for a pre-modern state in a particular type of subordinate relationship to a more powerful state which involved the sending of a regular token of submission, or tribute, to the superior power (the suzerain). This to ...
of the Song during the Early Lê dynasty, maintaining a delicate balance of peace with China and independence. Lê emperors, however, were sometimes threatened by the nomadic Khitan people in the north of China.
After a failed invasion in 981, the Song emperor accepted Lê Hoàn as the ruler of Đại Cồ Việt but just regarded him as the ''Jiedushi'', or regional military governor, of the Annam protectorate, as the Chinese called the Đại Cồ Việt.
Between 982 and 994, Lê Hoàn sent five tribute-bearing diplomatic envoys to the Song dynasty
The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
requesting title investiture.[
In 986, Emperor Taizong of the Song dynasty appointed Lê Hoàn as ''Annan duhu'', or Superior Prefect of Annam.] At the end of 993, the Song emperor appointed Lé Hoàn as ''Giao Chi Quan Vuong'', or King of Giao Chi
Jiaozhi ( standard Chinese, pinyin: ''Jiāozhǐ''), or Giao Chỉ (Vietnamese), was a historical region ruled by various Chinese dynasties, corresponding to present-day northern Vietnam. The kingdom of Nanyue (204–111 BC) set up the Jiaozhi C ...
, after being convinced of his future loyalty.[
]
Champa
The relation of Đại Cồ Việt in the north and Champa in the south was regarded as hostile. In 981, Lê Đại Hành sent an envoy to Champa, who was captured by them. The diplomatic incident sparked a war between the two countries.
In 982, Lê Hoàn victoriously took part in the campaign against Champa, killing the Cham king at the battlefield. Then he sacked the capital of Cham and captured a hundred soldiers and concubines along with one Indian monk, taking home precious goods such as gold and silver. Moreover, he burned the fortresses and tombs of former Champa kings.
In 992, the Champa king Harivarman II sent an envoy to Đại Cồ Việt to ask for the release of 360 prisoners back to the homeland.
References
*
АНТОЛОГИЯ ТРАДИЦИОННОЙ ВЬЕТНАМСКОЙ МЫСЛИ. X начало XIII вв.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Early Le Dynasty
Early Lê dynasty
States and territories established in the 980s
980 establishments
1009 disestablishments