Triệu Việt Vương (
Chữ Nôm
Chữ Nôm (, ; ) is a logographic writing system formerly used to write the Vietnamese language. It uses Chinese characters ('' Chữ Hán'') to represent Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary and some native Vietnamese words, with other words represent ...
趙越王, 524–571), born Triệu Quang Phục (趙光復), was a king of the Vietnamese
Early Lý dynasty
The Early Lý dynasty ( vi, nhà Tiền Lý; Hán Nôm: ), also called the Former Lý dynasty or Anterior Lý dynasty, was a dynasty which ruled Vietnam from AD 544 to 602. Its founder Lý Bí assumed the title of "Southern Emperor" ('). ...
in the 6th century. He was co-ruler alongside Lý Thiên Bảo from 548 until Lý Thiên Bảo's death in 555, upon which Triệu Việt Vương became sole king until his death in 571. Unlike the other rulers of the early Lý Dynasty, Triệu Việt Vương did not belong to the Lý family, and instead obtained his high position by being the commanding general of
Vạn Xuân , where he was best known for leading a resistance against the
Liang dynasty
The Liang dynasty (), alternatively known as the Southern Liang () in historiography, was an imperial dynasty of China and the third of the four Southern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties period. It was preceded by the South ...
that tried to regain Vạn Xuân. He was a pioneer in waging guerrilla war tactics.
Early life
Little is recorded about Triệu Việt Vương's (born Triệu Quang Phục) early life other than the fact that he was the son of Triệu Tục, a senior military leader under
Lý Nam Đế
Lý Nam Đế ( chữ Hán: 李南帝, 503 – 13 April 548), personal name Lý Bí or Lý Bôn (李賁), was the founder of the Early Lý dynasty of Vietnam, ruling from 544 to 548.
Overview
Lý Bôn (李賁, sometimes read as Lý Bí) was a lo ...
.
He was born in 26 January 524 in Zhu Jian (today
Hưng Yên
Hưng Yên () is a city in Vietnam. It is the provincial capital of Hưng Yên Province and is a third-graded city according to Vietnam's city classification table.
Geography
*Hưng Yên is a delta city. It is located in the south of Hưng Yên ...
province).
Rise to power
During the 530s, Vietnam was a province of the Chinese
Liang dynasty
The Liang dynasty (), alternatively known as the Southern Liang () in historiography, was an imperial dynasty of China and the third of the four Southern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties period. It was preceded by the South ...
. It was governed by Xiao Zi (蕭諮), a nephew of the Liang emperor. Xiao Zi's rule was marked by corruption and cruelty.
[Taylor 136] In late 540, a local magistrate,
Lý Bôn
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 te ...
rallied local Việt officials and soldiers to support his cause for independence. Among them was Triệu Tục, who joined them because he too tired of Xiao Zi's incompetence. Lý Bôn's forces sacked the provincial capital Long Biên (now Hanoi) within months in the spring of 541. Xiao Zi managed to escape back to the Liang dynasty.
In 544, Lý Bí announced Vietnam's secession from the
Liang empire and proclaimed himself emperor of
Vạn Xuân.
[Woods 28]
After hearing news of the rebellion,
Emperor Wu, the Liang Emperor, sent an army southward in attempt to crush the rebellion led by Lý Bí.
Lý Bôn made use of
tactical withdrawals against the Liang forces, who were defeated by Lý's army according to historical Chinese sources. In 548, Lý Bôn was killed by Lǎo (ms. 獠) tribesmen (a
Tai-Kadai ethnic group) while on retreat from the
Hong River Plain. Facing inevitable defeat and dwindling military supplies, Triệu Túc realized he could not endure the long campaign and therefore he appointed his trusted son Triệu Quang Phục to lead the resisting forces after the emperor's death. By this time, Triệu Quang Phục had followed his father's footsteps as a notable resistance leader in the Hong River Plain.
Resistance against the Liang dynasty
Recognizing the superior strength of the
Liang army, Triệu Quang Phục often retreated to more favorable terrain, mainly in the swamps and marshlands. He stationed his army in the forests for tactical advantage, where he was able to employ
guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare in which small groups of combatants, such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or Irregular military, irregulars, use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, Raid (military), raids ...
and wage a
war of attrition
The War of Attrition ( ar, حرب الاستنزاف, Ḥarb al-Istinzāf; he, מלחמת ההתשה, Milhemet haHatashah) involved fighting between Israel and Egypt, Jordan, the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and their allies from ...
against the Liang army. Triệu would rest his army during the day and attack the Liang army at night, seizing goods and killing many Chinese soldiers. Afterwards, he would quickly retreat back to his stronghold before the Chinese could reassemble their army to counter-attack.
[Taylor 151]
After the assassination of Lý Nam Đế in 548, his elder brother,
Lý Thiên Bảo, became the de facto ruler of
Vạn Xuân. Lý Thiên Bảo died of an illness in 555 and left no heirs, which prompted the military and officials to elect Triệu Quang Phục as leader and de facto ruler. He took the regnal name Triệu Việt Vương. However, his election was not undisputed as other prominent family members of Lý Nam Đế challenged Triệu Quang Phục's leadership. While Triệu Quang Phục claimed rightful succession through the approval of court officials, military, and the general populace, the Lý family claimed rightful leadership through primogeniture as they were still considered the rightful ruling family.
As strong as the Chinese were, they could not make any headway against Triệu Quang Phục's style of warfare This indecisive period lasted until 557 when finally a respite came for the Lý forces.
Hou Jing
Hou Jing (; died June 552), courtesy name Wanjing (萬景), was a Chinese military general, monarch, and politician. He was a general of Northern Wei, Eastern Wei, and Liang, and briefly, after controlling the Liang imperial regime for several ...
revolted against the Liang dynasty and the leading Liang general in Vietnam,
Chen Batian was recalled back to China to help quell the revolt. The Vietnamese forces, however, had no time to rejoice at the news of this temporary respite.
Civil war
Shortly after Lý Thiên Bảo died, his cousin
Lý Phật Tử
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 te ...
claimed the imperial throne and challenged Triệu Việt Vương. A civil war broke out for the throne with no decisive victory. Wary about engaging in internal fighting that would only frustrate the people, Triệu Việt Vương sued for peace. Subsequently all the lands north of Long Biên would be under Lý Phật Tử's rule and the land south of Long Biên would belong to Triệu Việt Vương.
In 571, Lý Phật Tự broke the truce and attacked Triệu Quang Phục's domain. Since Triệu Quang Phục's domain was not prepared for this assault they were easily defeated. His capital was sacked and burned by Lý Phật Tự's forces, however he managed to escape. During his retreat, Triệu Quang Phục committed suicide. Triệu Quang Phục's remaining forces and territories surrendered and were incorporated into Lý Phật Tự's domains.
[Anh Thư Hà, Hò̂ng Đức Trà̂n ''A brief chronology of Vietnam's history'' - Page 23 2000 "On April 13, 548, Triệu Quang Phục ascended the throne as Triệu Việt Vưong (another name: Dạ Trạch Vương). ... Triệu Việt Vương, Lý Phật Tự proclaimed himself King Lý Nam Đế II, with capital in Phong Châu (Bạch Hạc, Phú Thọ province) ..."]
Notes
References
* Taylor, Keith Weller. (copyright 1983). ''The Birth of Vietnam''. Berkeley: University of California Press.
* Woods, Shelton. (copyright 2002). ''Vietnam: An Illustrated History''. Hippocrene Books, Inc.
* Tran Trong Kim. (1953). Viet Nam Su Luoc.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Trieu Viet Vuong
Early Lý Dynasty Kings
524 births
571 deaths
6th-century monarchs in Asia
Year of birth unknown
6th-century Vietnamese people
Vietnamese monarchs