Nguyễn Hữu Bài ( vi-hantu, 阮有排; 28 September 1863 – 10 July 1935) was a
Minister of Personnel (''Lại bộ Thượng Thư'' / 吏部尚書, similar to a minister of the interior) of the
Nguyễn dynasty
The Nguyễn dynasty (, chữ Nôm: 茹阮, chữ Hán: 朝阮) was the last List of Vietnamese dynasties, Vietnamese dynasty, preceded by the Nguyễn lords and ruling unified Vietnam independently from 1802 until French protectorate in 1883 ...
, serving under the
Bảo Đại Emperor.
[Andre N. Van Chau. The miracle of hope: Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan, political prisoner, prophet of peace. 2003.]
Bài was raised in
Confucian
Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China, and is variously described as a tradition, philosophy, religion, theory of government, or way of life. Founded by Confucius ...
ideals but was a
Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
. He had taught
Ngô Đình Diệm
Ngô Đình Diệm ( , or ; ; 3 January 1901 – 2 November 1963) was a South Vietnamese politician who was the final prime minister of the State of Vietnam (1954–1955) and later the first president of South Vietnam ( Republic of ...
when he was a member of the royal court in the imperial capital of
Huế
Huế (formerly Thừa Thiên Huế province) is the southernmost coastal Municipalities of Vietnam, city in the North Central Coast region, the Central Vietnam, Central of Vietnam, approximately in the center of the country. It borders Quảng ...
, Vietnam. When the 13-year-old Bảo Đại Emperor returned to his studies in France after ascending the throne in 1926, Nguyễn Hữu Bài resumed leadership of the council of ministers of
Annam, the protectorate occupying the central two thirds of French Indochina.
File:Nguyen Huu Bai après 1907.jpg
File:Vua-khai-dinh.jpg, Nguyễn Hữu Bài in royal costume (second) from right
File:Tôn Thất Hân &.jpg, Tôn Thất Hân (left) and Nguyễn Hữu Bài in court dress, 1910s.
Lý Thường Kiệt Street in Hanoi (modern
Nguyễn Thái Học Street) became known as phố Sinh Từ ("Living Temple Street"), due to a temple built to honour Bài while he was still alive, until 1908 when it was renamed Rue Duvillier by the French.
References
Bibliography
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Vietnamese Roman Catholics
1863 births
1935 deaths
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