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Khúc Thừa Dụ () or Khúc Tiên Chủ () (830–907) was a ''
jiedushi The ''jiedushi'' (, Old Turkic: Tarduş) or jiedu, was a regional military governor in China; the title was established in the Tang dynasty and abolished in the Yuan dynasty. The post of ''jiedushi'' has been translated as "military commissi ...
'' of Tĩnh Hải quân, nominally under the Chinese
Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...
, in the early 10th century. Khúc Thừa Dụ was the head of the Khúc family in
Hải Dương Hải Dương () is a city in Vietnam. It is the capital of Hải Dương Province, Hải Dương, an industrialized province in the Hanoi Capital Region and the Red River Delta in Northern Vietnam. The city is at the midpoint between the capita ...
and was well known by people in the region for his wealth and benevolence. Khúc Thừa Dụ began to rule the region when the Tang dynasty entered its final stage of collapse, and is considered the ruler who marked the beginning of an independent Vietnam, which had until then been ruled by China. When he died in 907, his position was inherited by his son
Khúc Hạo Khúc Hạo (860–917; ) was the Vietnamese self-declared jiedushi of northern Vietnam ( Tĩnh Hải quân) from 907 to 917 succeeding his father Khúc Thừa Dụ. During his reign, Khúc Hạo made several important social and administrativ ...
who continued to strengthen the autonomy and prosperity of the region.


History

According to '' Từ điển Bách khoa toàn thư Việt Nam'', the date of birth of Khúc Thừa Dụ was unknown but he was from Hồng Châu, Cúc Bồ (now Ninh Giang, Hải Dương,
Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
). The Khúc family of which Khúc Thừa Dụ was a member was a powerful clan with a long history and tradition in Hồng Châu. It was said that Khúc Thừa Dụ was known for his hospitality and generosity that made him an admired figure by people in the region. Keith Weller Taylor in his ''The Birth of Vietnam'' wrote that this background information about Khúc Thừa Dụ appeared in the 18th century in an unofficial source (''dã sử'') therefore one cannot draw firm conclusions from it. In the early 10th century, the
Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...
began to fall into chaos and could not hold its authority in Tĩnh Hải quân (now northern Vietnam) when the Chinese ''jiedushi'' Zeng Gun with his soldiers had to abandon the region in 880. From 880 to 905, the Tang appointed a series of short-term governors, none of whom actually held power in the region. Eventually, Khúc Thừa Dụ claimed the position ''
jiedushi The ''jiedushi'' (, Old Turkic: Tarduş) or jiedu, was a regional military governor in China; the title was established in the Tang dynasty and abolished in the Yuan dynasty. The post of ''jiedushi'' has been translated as "military commissi ...
'' of Tĩnh Hải quân which marked the beginning of the independence of Vietnam. While Vietnam still nominally belonged to the Tang dynasty, it was now autonomous with a native ruler who could decide matters without any interference from China. As the Tang dynasty did not have any more strength to begin a military campaign against Tĩnh Hải quân, the Tang emperor had to accept the autonomy of that region by giving Khúc Thừa Dụ the title of chancellor (''đồng bình chương sự''), as well as his position of ''jiedushi'' in the first month of 906. This appointment was recorded in
Sima Guang Sima Guang (17 November 1019 – 11 October 1086), courtesy name Junshi, was a Chinese historian, politician, and writer. He was a high-ranking Song dynasty scholar-official who authored the ''Zizhi Tongjian'', a monumental work of history. B ...
's ''
Zizhi Tongjian The ''Zizhi Tongjian'' (1084) is a chronicle published during the Northern Song dynasty (960–1127) that provides a record of Chinese history from 403 BC to 959 AD, covering 16 dynasties and spanning almost 1400 years. The main text is ...
'', and it was the first time Khúc Thừa Dụ was mentioned in Chinese historical records. Khúc Thừa Dụ died in the seventh month of 907 and was succeeded by his son
Khúc Hạo Khúc Hạo (860–917; ) was the Vietnamese self-declared jiedushi of northern Vietnam ( Tĩnh Hải quân) from 907 to 917 succeeding his father Khúc Thừa Dụ. During his reign, Khúc Hạo made several important social and administrativ ...
who continued to consolidate the autonomy of Tĩnh Hải quân. For his achievement, Khúc Thừa Dụ was respectfully called by people Khúc Tiên chủ or Khúc Tiên chúa () and he is still worshipped in a temple dedicated to him in his native province. On the other hand, in old historical books such as '' Đại Việt sử lược'' or ''
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 Đại Việt, that was originally compiled by the royal historian Ngô Sĩ Liên under ...
'', it was Khúc Hạo, instead of Khúc Thừa Dụ, who was mentioned as the first member of the Khúc family holding the position ''jiedushi''. According to ''Đại Việt sử lược'', he took over the title from another ''jiedushi'' named Dugu Sun while in ''Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư'', Khúc Hạo appointed himself ''jiedushi'' after starting a revolt that took control of Tĩnh Hải quân.
Trần Trọng Kim Trần Trọng Kim (; chữ Hán: 陳仲金, Kanji pronunciation: ''Chin Jūkin''; ; 1883 – December 2, 1953; courtesy name Lệ Thần (, chữ Hán: 隸臣) was a Vietnamese scholar and politician who served as the Prime Minister of the sho ...
in his '' Việt Nam sử lược'' believed that it was Khúc Thừa Dụ who started a revolt and claimed the title. Keith Weller Taylor argued that since the power was smoothly transferred from Khúc Thừa Dụ to his son Khúc Hạo and there was no indication of political conflict between 880 and 906, one can reason that the Khúc family was actually in control of the country throughout those years.


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* * * * , - style="text-align: center;" , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Khuc, Thua Du 907 deaths Tang dynasty jiedushi of Jinghai Circuit Year of birth unknown 9th-century births People from Hải Dương province