Lý Tài ( vi-hantu, 李才,
Wade–Giles
Wade–Giles () is a romanization system for Mandarin Chinese. It developed from a system produced by Thomas Francis Wade, during the mid-19th century, and was given completed form with Herbert A. Giles's '' Chinese–English Dictionary'' o ...
: ''Li Tsai'', ?–1777) was a general during the
Tây Sơn Rebellion.
Lý was a Chinese merchant. After the Tay Son rebellion broke out, he organized an army named ''Hòa Nghĩa Quân'' (和義軍, "Harmony Army") to join in the rebellion. All members of this army was from
Qing China in Chinese costume.
The
Trịnh lords
The Trịnh lords ( vi, Chúa Trịnh; Chữ Nôm: 主鄭; 1545–1787), formal title Trịnh Viceroy (; ), also known as Trịnh clan (鄭氏, ''Trịnh thị'') or the House of Trịnh, were a noble feudal clan who de facto ruled Northern Viet ...
, who ruled the northern half of the country, sent a large army to attack in 1775, which forced
Nguyen
Nguyễn () is the most common Vietnamese surname. Outside of Vietnam, the surname is commonly rendered without diacritics as Nguyen. Nguyên (元）is a different word and surname.
By some estimates 39 percent of Vietnamese people bear this s ...
king
Nguyễn Phúc Thuần
Định Vương Nguyễn Phúc Thuần (1754–1777) was one of the Nguyễn lords who ruled over the southern portion of Vietnam from the 16th–18th centuries. The collapse of the house of Nguyễn lords intensified during Thuần's reign, many ...
to flee to
Quảng Nam.
Nguyễn Phúc Dương
Nguyễn Phúc Dương (died 18 September 1777) was one of the Nguyễn lords who ruled over the southern portion of Vietnam from the 16th-18th centuries. Duong was the first son Nguyễn Phúc Hiệu, who is the son of lord Nguyễn Phúc Khoát ...
, who was the crown prince of Nguyen, was captured by Lý Tài, and taken to
Hội An
Hội An (), formerly known as Fai-Fo or Faifoo, is a city with a population of approximately 120,000 in Vietnam's Quảng Nam Province and is noted as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1999. Along with the Cu Lao Cham archipelago, it is part ...
. Dương was used by Tay Son rebels to gain popularity among Southern Vietnameses.
The Tay Son army was defeated by Trinh lord in Cẩm Sa (a place in mordern
Hòa Vang District,
Quảng Nam). Meanwhile, Nguyễn Phúc Thuần entrenched himself in the south and tried to regain the lost territory.
Nguyễn Nhạc
Nguyễn Nhạc ( vi-hantu, 阮岳, died 1793) was the founder of the Tây Sơn dynasty, reigning from 1778 to 1788.
From 1778 to 1788, Nguyễn Nhạc proclaimed himself Emperor Thái Đức ( vi-hantu, 泰德). In 1788 after his younger bro ...
had to be reconciled with Trinh, and directed their fire at Nguyen lord, forcing Thuần to flee to
Long Xuyên
Long Xuyên () is the capital city of An Giang province, in the Mekong Delta region of south-western Vietnam.
History
In 1789, a group of explorers established a small outpost in the Tam Khe canal, naming it Dong Xuyen. Sooner after a marketpl ...
.
Nguyễn Phúc Dương escaped and fled to Gia Dinh (mordern-day
Ho Chi Minh City) in 1776, Lý Tài betrayed Tay Son army in the same time. He installed Dương as the new Nguyen lord, and was granted a title named ''Bảo giá đại tướng quân'' ( vi-hantu, 保駕大將軍, ''the great general who escorts the king'') by Dương.
Lý Tài came into conflict with another important general
Đỗ Thanh Nhơn
Đỗ Thanh Nhơn (died 1781) was an 18th-century Vietnamese military commander.
Early life
Details of Đỗ Thanh Nhơn's early life are unknown except that he was a low-ranking naval officer of lord Nguyễn Phúc Thuần.
The Dong Son army
...
, forced him to flee to Vĩnh Long (in mordern-day
Bến Tre). Nhơn set up a defensive position there. In midspring of 1777, the Tây Sơn defeated the Nguyễn and captured Gia Dinh. Lý Tài fled, and was captured and killed by Đỗ Thanh Nhơn.
1777 deaths
Tây Sơn dynasty generals
Mandarins of the Nguyễn lords
Chinese diaspora in Vietnam
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