Vũ Văn Mẫu (25 July 1914 – 20 August 1998) was a South Vietnamese diplomat and politician, who was the last

Prime Minister of South Vietnam This is a list of leaders of South Vietnam, since the establishment of the Autonomous Republic of Cochinchina in 1946, and the division of Vietnam in 1954 until the fall of the Republic of Vietnam in 1975, and the reunification of Vietnam in 19 ...

, serving under President

Dương Văn Minh Dương Văn Minh (; 16 February 19166 August 2001), popularly known as Big Minh, was a South Vietnamese politician and a senior general in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) and a politician during the presidency of Ngô Đình Diệm. ...

's leadership.

Early life and career

Vũ Văn Mẫu was born in 1914 in

Hanoi Hanoi or Ha Noi ( or ; vi, Hà Nội ) is the capital and second-largest city of Vietnam. It covers an area of . It consists of 12 urban districts, one district-leveled town and 17 rural districts. Located within the Red River Delta, Hanoi is ...

Tonkin Tonkin, also spelled ''Tongkin'', ''Tonquin'' or ''Tongking'', is an exonym referring to the northern region of Vietnam. During the 17th and 18th centuries, this term referred to the domain ''Đàng Ngoài'' under Trịnh lords' control, includi ...

French Indochina French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China),; vi, Đông Dương thuộc Pháp, , lit. 'East Ocean under French Control; km, ឥណ្ឌូចិនបារាំង, ; th, อินโดจีนฝรั่งเศส, ...

. He earned a doctorate in law from the

University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...

and practiced law in Hanoi. After Vietnam’s partition in 1954, he moved to

Saigon , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

with his family and joined the Faculty of Law at the University of Saigon, where he became the Dean of the Faculty. He was recognized as an expert in civil and historical law. After several years as a professor he then became a local Saigon judge, rising through the ranks to become Judge of the Saigon Superior Court. During his legal career and even during retirement and exile, he authored a number of books, including one entitled ''Vietnamese Civil Law''.

Political career

After carrying out the referendum of South Vietnam in 1955, deposing the Head of State

Bảo Đại Bảo Đại (, vi-hantu, , lit. "keeper of greatness", 22 October 191331 July 1997), born Nguyễn Phúc Vĩnh Thụy (), was the 13th and final emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty, the last ruling dynasty of Vietnam. From 1926 to 1945, he was em ...

and the

State of Vietnam The State of Vietnam ( vi, Quốc gia Việt Nam; Chữ Nôm: 國家越南; french: État du Viêt-Nam) was a governmental entity in Southeast Asia that existed from 1949 until 1955, first as a member of the French Union and later as a country ...

. Then Prime Minister

Ngô Đình Diệm Ngô Đình Diệm ( or ; ; 3 January 1901 – 2 November 1963) was a South Vietnamese politician. He was the final prime minister of the State of Vietnam (1954–1955), and then served as the first president of South Vietnam (Republic of ...

established a new government,

Republic of Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam ( vi, Việt Nam Cộng hòa), was a state in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975, the period when the southern portion of Vietnam was a member of the Western Bloc during part of th ...

which Diệm proclaimed himself as president and invited Mẫu to hold the position of Foreign Minister of the Republic of Vietnam. He held this position for eight years, from 1955 to 1963. During the Buddhist crisis of 1963, he resigned on August 22, 1963, shaving his head like a monk in protest. He strongly opposed the fierce repressive measures of the Ngô Đình Diệm's government against

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

. When he attempted to leave the Republic of Vietnam to join a pilgrimage to

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, he was arrested and placed under house arrest. Mẫu was South Vietnam's ambassador to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, and the

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in the mid- to late 1960s. In the early 1970s, he was elected Senator of the Republic where he became a prominent national politician.

Prime Minister of
South Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam ( vi, Việt Nam Cộng hòa), was a state in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975, the period when the southern portion of Vietnam was a member of the Western Bloc during part of th ...
(1975)

In 1975, he became Prime Minister of the Republic of Vietnam under President

. During his tenure, he was always active in the movement for peace and reconciliation for the nation. Therefore, when General Dương Văn Minh became president, he was nominated for the post of Prime Minister of the

for the purpose of participating in negotiations to end the war. However, he was only in office for only two days when the Republic of Vietnam collapsed before the advancing army of the

National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam , , war = the Vietnam War , image = FNL Flag.svg , caption = The flag of the Viet Cong, adopted in 1960, is a variation on the flag of North Vietnam. Sometimes the lower stripe was green. , active ...

. He had to join President

and Vice President

Nguyễn Văn Huyền Nguyễn Văn Huyền (9 December 1911 – 1995) was a Vietnamese lawyer and politician, who served as the last Vice President of South Vietnam in 1975.Hoàng Cơ Thụy. ''Việt sử khảo luận''. Paris: Nam Á, 2002. tr 3396 He took the p ...

in declaring their unconditional surrender to avoid further bloodshed.

Post-
Fall of Saigon The Fall of Saigon, also known as the Liberation of Saigon by North Vietnamese or Liberation of the South by the Vietnamese government, and known as Black April by anti-communist overseas Vietnamese was the capture of Saigon, the capital of ...
and exile

Like General Dương Văn Minh, he was a moderate, supporting the policy of handing over the government to the Liberation Army. Therefore, the Revolutionary government only implemented monitoring measures, not being strict with him. After the situation stabilized, Mẫu was allowed to leave the country to immigrate to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in 1988 and settled there for the rest of his life. He died on August 20, 1998 in Paris, aged 84.

Personal life

Mẫu was married and had five children, whom all resided in France. His daughter, Ms. Vũ Thị Việt Hương, followed her father's profession in law, by obtaining a

Doctorate of Law A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor (LL. ...

at Saigon Law University. After graduating she returned to her old school to teach, specializing in

International Law International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...

and

Comparative Law Comparative law is the study of differences and similarities between the law (legal systems) of different countries. More specifically, it involves the study of the different legal "systems" (or "families") in existence in the world, including the ...

. Mẫu was a great scholar of Vietnamese law, a veteran scholar, he knows many languages and was fluent in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

, French,

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

, and

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

and was very highly regarded as a professor of law. His work is also cited by

René David René David (January 12, 1906 in Jura, France – May 26, 1990 in Le Tholonet, France) was a French Professor of Law. His work has been published in eight different languages. He was, in the second half of the 20th century, one of the key represen ...

and John E.C. Brierley in the famous book on comparative law ''Major Legal Systems in the World Today.''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vu, Van Mau 20th-century Vietnamese lawyers Prime Ministers of South Vietnam Vietnamese anti-communists 1914 births 1998 deaths People from Hanoi Ambassadors of South Vietnam to the United Kingdom Ambassadors of South Vietnam to Belgium Ambassadors of South Vietnam to the Netherlands