Nguyễn Văn Tường
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Nguyễn Văn Tường ( vi-hantu, , 1824–1886) was a
mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...
of the
Nguyễn dynasty The Nguyễn dynasty (chữ Nôm: 茹阮, vi, Nhà Nguyễn; chữ Hán: 阮朝, vi, Nguyễn triều) was the last Vietnamese dynasty, which ruled the unified Vietnamese state largely independently from 1802 to 1883. During its existence, ...
in Vietnam. He is known for installing and dethroning three emperors in 1883–84:
Dục Đức Dục Đức (, ; born Nguyễn Phúc Ưng Ái, 23 February 1852 – 6 October 1883), was Emperor of Vietnam for three days, from 20 to 23 July 1883. He was the fifth emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty and father of Emperor Thành Thái, who ruled f ...
, Hiệp Hoà, and
Kiến Phúc Kiến Phúc (, 12 February 1869 – 31 July 1884) was a child emperor of Vietnam, who reigned for less than 8 months, 1883–1884, as the 7th emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty. Biography Born in 1869, also known as Nguyễn Phúc Ưng Đăng, he ...
.


Biography

Tường was born in
Quảng Trị Quảng Trị () is a district-level town in Quảng Trị Province in the North Central Coast region of Vietnam. It is second of two municipalities in the province after the provincial capital Đông Hà. History The Sino-Vietnamese name Quả ...
, in central Vietnam, to a peasant family. His father had been involved in a revolt against the
Nguyễn dynasty The Nguyễn dynasty (chữ Nôm: 茹阮, vi, Nhà Nguyễn; chữ Hán: 阮朝, vi, Nguyễn triều) was the last Vietnamese dynasty, which ruled the unified Vietnamese state largely independently from 1802 to 1883. During its existence, ...
rule, so he was barred from competing in the national examinations that were used to select mandarins and court officials.Chapuis, p. 22. On 29 October 1848, Emperor
Tự Đức Tự Đức (, vi-hantu, 嗣 德, lit. "inheritance of virtues", 22 September 1829 – 19 July 1883) (personal name: Nguyễn Phúc Hồng Nhậm , also Nguyễn Phúc Thì) was the fourth emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty of Vietnam; he ruled ...
ascended the throne. The imperial records do not record how Tường initially came into contact with Tự Đức, but they do show that under the emperor's protection, Tường was able to pass the national examinations with the highest honours. Private records from Tuong's family history indicated that Tuong was a (bastard) son of Tu Duc, who was conceived when Tu Duc met Tuong's mother during one of the emperor's unofficial journeys through the countryside. In the old days, kings or emperors would occasionally go on trips, sometimes in disguise, in order to assess and gauge their citizens’ life. It was during one of these times that Tu Duc met his mother. In 1852, Tường was assigned to serve in the ministry of justice. In accordance with Confucian tradition, following the death of his father in 1862, Tường had to retire for a five-year mourning period before resuming his administrative career.Chapuis, p. 2. Since 1858, France had been steadily making inroads into Vietnamese sovereignty. In 1873, Tự Đức gave Tường the responsibility of negotiating with the French. Despite his record of reaching agreements, the French regarded him as a cheat. After signing the Philastre treaty and recovering possession of Hanoi following the attack by
Francis Garnier Marie Joseph François Garnier ( vi, Ngạc Nhi; 25 July 1839 – 21 December 1873) was a French officer, inspector of Indigenous Affairs of Cochinchina and explorer. He eventually became mission leader of the Mekong Exploration Commission in 19th ...
, Tường was promoted to be of Minister of Domestic and Foreign Affairs. In 1881, he became head of the cabinet. When Tự Đức died, Tường was made regent together with Trần Tiễn Thành and
Tôn Thất Thuyết Tôn Thất Thuyết ( 尊 室 説; 12 May 1839 in Huế – 1913 in Longzhou) was the leading mandarin of Emperor Tự Đức of Vietnam's Nguyễn dynasty. Thuyết later led the Cần Vương movement which aimed to restore Vietnamese i ...
. Thuyết and Tường dominated the court and had much more power than Thành. The regents were not the only ones with power behind the throne. Dowager Empress
Từ Dụ Từ Dụ or Từ Dũ ( vi-hantu, 慈裕, 20 June 1810 – 22 May 1901), born Phạm Thị Hằng, was a Vietnamese empress, the wife of Thiệu Trị and mother of Tự Đức. Life Hằng was a daughter of . She was granted the title Empres ...
, the mother of Tự Đức, along with the two imperial consorts
Trang Ý Trang Ý ( vi-hantu, 莊懿, 20 June 1828 – 3 June 1902), born Vũ Thị Hài or Vũ Thị Duyên, was the wife of Tự Đức and adopted-mother of Dục Đức. She was a daughter of Vũ Xuân Cẩn. She had no child with Tự Đức, and ...
and Học Phi formed what were known as the "Tam Cung" (or "three harems"), a triumvirate which dabbled in palace intrigue. To complicate things further, Tường was having an affair with Học Phi.Chapuis, p. 15. Tự Đức had no sons, but he had adopted three of his nephews.
Dục Đức Dục Đức (, ; born Nguyễn Phúc Ưng Ái, 23 February 1852 – 6 October 1883), was Emperor of Vietnam for three days, from 20 to 23 July 1883. He was the fifth emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty and father of Emperor Thành Thái, who ruled f ...
was 31 years old and the son of Kien Thoai Vuong, Tự Đức's fourth brother. Chánh Mông (who went on to rule as
Đồng Khánh Đồng Khánh (, vi-hantu, 同 慶, lit. "collective celebration"; 19 February 1864 – 28 January 1889), born Nguyễn Phúc Ưng Kỷ (阮福膺祺) or Nguyễn Phúc Ưng Đường (阮福膺禟), also known as Chánh Mông (正蒙), was the ...
) and Duong Thien (who went on to rule as
Kiến Phúc Kiến Phúc (, 12 February 1869 – 31 July 1884) was a child emperor of Vietnam, who reigned for less than 8 months, 1883–1884, as the 7th emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty. Biography Born in 1869, also known as Nguyễn Phúc Ưng Đăng, he ...
), aged 19 and 14 respectively, were sons of his twenty-sixth brother, Kiên Thái Vương. According to research by the Vietnamese historian Phạm Văn Sơn,
Tự Đức Tự Đức (, vi-hantu, 嗣 德, lit. "inheritance of virtues", 22 September 1829 – 19 July 1883) (personal name: Nguyễn Phúc Hồng Nhậm , also Nguyễn Phúc Thì) was the fourth emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty of Vietnam; he ruled ...
had intended for Kiến Phúc to succeed him, but that the regents installed Dục Đức under pressure from the Tam Cung. Tự Đức had criticized Dục Đức's morality in explaining his appointment of Kiến Phúc, information that the regents deleted from the will at the request of the new monarch. However, the regents were unimpressed by Dục Đức's behaviour after their reprieve and decided to execute him. The treatment of Dục Đức has since raised speculation among historians that it was a vengeance killing due to the monarch's interference in the affair between Tường and Học Phi.Chapuis, p. 16. Tường and his colleagues then installed the 37-year-old Hiệp Hoà. However, the new emperor was aware of their faults, so he decided to steer clear of them. As a result, they wanted to dispose of him. Hiệp Hoà then made a deal with the French so that they would protect him, fearful of the regents. However, when the French were absent, the regents put Hiệp Hoà to death. They then replaced him with Kiến Phúc. Kiến Phúc caught Tường with Học Phi and vowed to kill them for their conduct. Học Phi poisoned Phúc's medicine and he died the next day.Chapuis, p. 17.
Hàm Nghi Emperor Hàm Nghi (, vi-hantu, lit. "entirely right", ar, هام نغي; 3 August 1872 – 4 January 1943), personal name Nguyễn Phúc Ưng Lịch, also Nguyễn Phúc Minh, was the eighth emperor of the Vietnamese Nguyễn dynasty. He reign ...
was eventually installed as the emperor, and Thuyết decided to launch the Cần Vương movement, an uprising against the French. Thuyết took Hàm Nghi to a mountain base at
Tan So Tan or TAN may refer to: Businesses and organisations * Black and Tans, a nickname for British special constables during the Irish War of Independence. By extension "Tans" can now also colloquially refer to English or British people in general, es ...
, and then went to China to hide and seek reinforcements. In the meantime, the French installed
Đồng Khánh Đồng Khánh (, vi-hantu, 同 慶, lit. "collective celebration"; 19 February 1864 – 28 January 1889), born Nguyễn Phúc Ưng Kỷ (阮福膺祺) or Nguyễn Phúc Ưng Đường (阮福膺禟), also known as Chánh Mông (正蒙), was the ...
on the throne.Chapuis, pp. 18, 22. The French gave Tường two months to bring Hàm Nghi to heel, and when the boy emperor continued to resist, they deported Tường on 6 September 1885, to Poulo Condore, along with the father of Thuyết, Tôn Thất Dinh. Tường continued to plot while in prison, and was caught sending out instructions for more revolts. The French resident superior seized his property and found 14.5 million piastres.


Last years and death

On 23 November 1885, Tường was deported to
Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian ; ; previously also known as Otaheite) is the largest island of the Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is located in the central part of the Pacific Ocean and the nearest major landmass is Austr ...
in the Pacific Ocean where he died in February 1886. In July 1886, his body was returned to his family in
Huế Huế () is the capital of Thừa Thiên Huế province in central Vietnam and was the capital of Đàng Trong from 1738 to 1775 and of Vietnam during the Nguyễn dynasty from 1802 to 1945. The city served as the old Imperial City and admi ...
.


Notes


References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tuong, Nguyen Van 1824 births 1886 deaths Nguyen dynasty officials