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The Trưng sisters ( (), 𠄩婆徵, literally "Two Ladies
amed Amed or AMED may refer to: *Amed (Bali), a town in Bali, Indonesia *Amedisys Home Health and Hospice Care, a home health and hospice care company in the US, NASDAQ abbreviation AMED * Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development *Amed Ber, a t ...
Trưng", 14 – c. 43) were Luoyue military leaders who ruled for three years after commanding a rebellion of Luoyue tribes and other tribes in AD 40 against the
first Chinese domination of Vietnam The First Era of Northern Domination refers to the period of Vietnamese history during which present-day northern Vietnam was under the rule of the Han dynasty and the Xin dynasty as Jiaozhi province and Jiaozhou province. It is considered the ...
. They are regarded as national heroines of Vietnam. Their names were Trưng Trắc (;
chữ Hán ( , ) are the Chinese characters that were used to write Literary Chinese in Vietnam, Literary Chinese (; ) and Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary in Vietnamese language, Vietnamese. They were officially used in Vietnam after the Red River Delta region ...
: ; Chinese
pinyin Hanyu Pinyin, or simply pinyin, officially the Chinese Phonetic Alphabet, is the most common romanization system for Standard Chinese. ''Hanyu'' () literally means 'Han Chinese, Han language'—that is, the Chinese language—while ''pinyin' ...
: ''Zhēng Cè'';
Wade–Giles Wade–Giles ( ) is a romanization system for Mandarin Chinese. It developed from the system produced by Thomas Francis Wade during the mid-19th century, and was given completed form with Herbert Giles's '' A Chinese–English Dictionary'' ...
: ''Cheng1 Ts'e4'';
Old Chinese Old Chinese, also called Archaic Chinese in older works, is the oldest attested stage of Chinese language, Chinese, and the ancestor of all modern varieties of Chinese. The earliest examples of Chinese are divinatory inscriptions on oracle bones ...
: ''*trəŋ- sək'') and Trưng Nhị (;
chữ Hán ( , ) are the Chinese characters that were used to write Literary Chinese in Vietnam, Literary Chinese (; ) and Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary in Vietnamese language, Vietnamese. They were officially used in Vietnam after the Red River Delta region ...
: ; Chinese
pinyin Hanyu Pinyin, or simply pinyin, officially the Chinese Phonetic Alphabet, is the most common romanization system for Standard Chinese. ''Hanyu'' () literally means 'Han Chinese, Han language'—that is, the Chinese language—while ''pinyin' ...
: ''Zhēng Èr '';
Wade–Giles Wade–Giles ( ) is a romanization system for Mandarin Chinese. It developed from the system produced by Thomas Francis Wade during the mid-19th century, and was given completed form with Herbert Giles's '' A Chinese–English Dictionary'' ...
: ''Cheng1 Erh4'';
Old Chinese Old Chinese, also called Archaic Chinese in older works, is the oldest attested stage of Chinese language, Chinese, and the ancestor of all modern varieties of Chinese. The earliest examples of Chinese are divinatory inscriptions on oracle bones ...
: ''*trəŋni s''). Trưng Trắc was the first female monarch in Vietnam, as well as the first
queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...
in the history of Vietnam (
Lý Chiêu Hoàng Lý Chiêu Hoàng ( vi-hantu, 李昭皇, September 1218 – 1278), personal name Lý Phật Kim (李佛金) later renamed to Lý Thiên Hinh (李天馨), was the ninth and last sovereign of the Lý dynasty, empress of Đại Việt f ...
was the last woman to take the reign and is the only
empress regnant A queen regnant (: queens regnant) is a female monarch, equivalent in rank, title and position to a king. She reigns '' suo jure'' (in her own right) over a realm known as a kingdom; as opposed to a queen consort, who is married to a reigni ...
), and she was accorded the title Queen Trưng ( chữ Quốc ngữ: ,
chữ Hán ( , ) are the Chinese characters that were used to write Literary Chinese in Vietnam, Literary Chinese (; ) and Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary in Vietnamese language, Vietnamese. They were officially used in Vietnam after the Red River Delta region ...
: ) in the ''
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 ...
''. The sisters were born in
Jiaozhi Jiaozhi (standard Chinese, pinyin: ''Jiāozhǐ''), or , was a historical region ruled by various Chinese dynasties, corresponding to present-day northern Vietnam. The kingdom of Nanyue (204–111 BC) set up the Jiaozhi Commandery (; , ch� ...
(Giao Chỉ), a
commandery In the Middle Ages, a commandery (rarely commandry) was the smallest administrative division of the European landed properties of a military order. It was also the name of the house where the knights of the commandery lived.Anthony Luttrell and G ...
of the Chinese
Han dynasty The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...
in modern-day
northern Vietnam Northern Vietnam or '' Tonkin'' () is one of three geographical regions in Vietnam. It consists of three geographic sub-regions: the Northwest (Vùng Tây Bắc), the Northeast (Vùng Đông Bắc), and the Red River Delta (Đồng Bằng Sôn ...
. The dates of their births are unknown, but Trưng Trắc was older than Trưng Nhị. The exact dates of their deaths are also unknown but both died around 43 AD after battling against the punitive expedition force led by
Eastern Han The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...
general
Ma Yuan Ma Yuan may refer to: * Ma Yuan (Han dynasty) (馬援; 14 BC – 49 AD), general of the Han dynasty * Ma Yuan (painter) (馬遠; 1160–1225), painter of the Song dynasty * Ma Yuan (judge) (:zh:馬原 (政治人物), 馬原; born 1930), a former V ...
.


Historical background

The former Qin commander
Zhao Tuo Zhao Tuo (), rendered as Triệu Đà in Vietnamese language, Vietnamese, was a Qin dynasty Chinese general and first emperor of Nanyue. He participated in the conquest of the Baiyue peoples of Guangdong, Guangxi and Northern Vietnam. After ...
(''Trieu Da'' in Vietnamese) established the state of
Nanyue Nanyue ( zh, c=南越 or 南粵, p=Nányuè, cy=, j=Naam4 Jyut6, l=Southern Yue, , ), was an ancient kingdom founded in 204 BC by the Chinese general Zhao Tuo, whose family (known in Vietnamese as the Triệu dynasty) continued to rule until ...
in 204 BC and had conquered
Âu Lạc Âu Lạc (chữ Hán: 甌貉 (Peripheral Records/Volume 1:6a): "王既併文郎國,改國號曰甌貉國。""The King then annexed the Văn Lang nation, changed the nation's name to Âu Lạc nation."/甌駱; (Volume 113): "且南方卑濕� ...
in 180 BC, incorporating the Vietnamese realm into his own. In 112 BC,
Emperor Wu of Han Emperor Wu of Han (156 – 29 March 87BC), born Liu Che and courtesy name Tong, was the seventh Emperor of China, emperor of the Han dynasty from 141 to 87 BC. His reign lasted 54 years – a record not broken until the reign of the Kangxi ...
dispatched soldiers against Nanyue and the kingdom was annexed in 111 BC during the ensuing
Han conquest of Nanyue The Han conquest of Nanyue was a military conflict between the Han Empire and the Nanyue kingdom in modern Guangdong, Guangxi, and Northern Vietnam. During the reign of Emperor Wu, Imperial Han military forces formally launched a punitive campa ...
. Nine commanderies were established to administer the region, three of which were located in what is now northern Vietnam. Revolts of local tribes against the Han began in 40 AD led by the Trưng sisters.


Biography

The Trưng sisters were daughters of a wealthy aristocratic family of Lạc ethnicity (The Lac were sorts of a confederation of multi-ethnic peoples). Their father had been a Lạc lord in Mê Linh district (modern-day Mê Linh District,
Hanoi Hanoi ( ; ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Vietnam, second-most populous city of Vietnam. The name "Hanoi" translates to "inside the river" (Hanoi is bordered by the Red River (Asia), Red and Black River (Asia), Black Riv ...
). Trưng Trắc's husband was Thi Sách (Shi Suo), was also the Lạc lord of Chu Diên (modern-day Khoái Châu District,
Hưng Yên Province Hưng Yên (/hɨŋ˧˧:iən˧˧/) is a province in the Red River Delta of Northern Vietnam. History Dynastic period The area of the province of Hưng Yên has been inhabited for millennia. Under the Ngô dynasty, it was called Dang Chau. It wa ...
). Su Ding, the Chinese governor of
Jiaozhi Jiaozhi (standard Chinese, pinyin: ''Jiāozhǐ''), or , was a historical region ruled by various Chinese dynasties, corresponding to present-day northern Vietnam. The kingdom of Nanyue (204–111 BC) set up the Jiaozhi Commandery (; , ch� ...
province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
at the time, is remembered by his cruelty and tyranny. According to the ''
Book of the Later Han The ''Book of the Later Han'', also known as the ''History of the Later Han'' and by its Chinese name ''Hou Hanshu'' (), is one of the Twenty-Four Histories and covers the history of the Han dynasty from 6 to 189 CE, a period known as the Lat ...
'', Thi Sách was "of a fierce temperament", and Su Ding attempted to restrain him with legal procedures, literally to behead him without trial. Trưng Trắc stirred her husband to action and became the central figure in mobilizing the Lạc lords against the Chinese. In March of 40 AD, Trưng Trắc and her younger sister Trưng Nhị, led the Lạc Việt to rise up in rebellion against the Han. The ''
Book of the Later Han The ''Book of the Later Han'', also known as the ''History of the Later Han'' and by its Chinese name ''Hou Hanshu'' (), is one of the Twenty-Four Histories and covers the history of the Han dynasty from 6 to 189 CE, a period known as the Lat ...
'' recorded that Trưng Trắc launched the rebellion to avenge the killing of her husband. It began at the
Red River Delta The Red River Delta or Hong River Delta () is the flat low-lying plain formed by the Red River and its distributaries merging with the Thái Bình River in Northern Vietnam. ''Hồng'' (紅) is a Sino-Vietnamese word for "red" or "crimson". T ...
, but soon spread to other Lạc and non-Han peoples from an area stretching from Hepu Commandery to Rinan. Chinese settlements were overrun, and Su Ding fled. The uprising gained the support of about sixty-five towns and settlements. Trưng Trắc was proclaimed as
queen regnant A queen regnant (: queens regnant) is a female monarch, equivalent in rank, title and position to a king. She reigns ''suo jure'' (in her own right) over a realm known as a kingdom; as opposed to a queen consort, who is married to a reigning ...
. The status of Trưng Nhị was not mentioned in ''
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 ...
''. According to ''
Việt Nam sử lược ( vi-hantu, 越南史略, , lit. "Outline History of Vietnam"), was the first history text published in the Vietnamese language and the Vietnamese alphabet. It was compiled by Vietnamese historian Trần Trọng Kim. It covered the period from ...
'', Trưng Nhị jointly reigned as co-king/queen but according to  folk literature, Trưng Nhị became a vice-king/queen. In 42 AD, the
Emperor Guangwu of Han Emperor Guangwu of Han (; 15 January 5 BC29 March AD 57), born Liu Xiu (), courtesy name Wenshu (), was a Chinese monarch. He served as an emperor of the Han dynasty by restoring the dynasty in AD 25, thus founding the Eastern Han dynasty. He ...
commissioned general
Ma Yuan Ma Yuan may refer to: * Ma Yuan (Han dynasty) (馬援; 14 BC – 49 AD), general of the Han dynasty * Ma Yuan (painter) (馬遠; 1160–1225), painter of the Song dynasty * Ma Yuan (judge) (:zh:馬原 (政治人物), 馬原; born 1930), a former V ...
to suppress the rebellion with 20,000 troops. The rebellion of the two sisters was defeated in the next year as Ma Yuan captured and decapitated Trưng Trắc and Trưng Nhị, then sent their heads to the Han court in
Luoyang Luoyang ( zh, s=洛阳, t=洛陽, p=Luòyáng) is a city located in the confluence area of the Luo River and the Yellow River in the west of Henan province, China. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zheng ...
. The
Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...
poet and
calligrapher Calligraphy () is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instruments. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "the art of giving form to signs in an exp ...
Huang Tingjian Huang Tingjian (; 1045, Jiangxi province, China–1105, Yizhou ow Yishan Guangxi) was a Chinese calligrapher, painter, and poet of the Song dynasty. He is predominantly known as a calligrapher, and is also admired for his painting and poetry. H ...
(1045–1105) compared the Trưng sisters to Lü Jia, the prime minister of
Nanyue Nanyue ( zh, c=南越 or 南粵, p=Nányuè, cy=, j=Naam4 Jyut6, l=Southern Yue, , ), was an ancient kingdom founded in 204 BC by the Chinese general Zhao Tuo, whose family (known in Vietnamese as the Triệu dynasty) continued to rule until ...
who resisted Emperor Wu's army in 112 BCE:
Lü Jia refused treasonous bribe;
Trưng Trắc raised her shield to resist oppression


Historiography

The primary historical source for the sisters is the 5th century ''
Book of the Later Han The ''Book of the Later Han'', also known as the ''History of the Later Han'' and by its Chinese name ''Hou Hanshu'' (), is one of the Twenty-Four Histories and covers the history of the Han dynasty from 6 to 189 CE, a period known as the Lat ...
'' compiled by historian Fan Ye, which covers the history of the Eastern Han dynasty from 6 to CE 189. Other Chinese sources are the '' Shui Jing Zhu'' (6th cen), ''
Book of Sui The ''Book of Sui'' () is the official history of the Sui dynasty, which ruled China in the years AD 581–618. It ranks among the official Twenty-Four Histories of imperial China. It was written by Yan Shigu, Kong Yingda, and Zhangsun Wuji, ...
'' (7th century), ''
Tongdian The ''Tongdian'' () is a Chinese institutional history and encyclopedia text. It covers a panoply of topics from high antiquity through the year 756, whereas a quarter of the book focuses on the Tang dynasty. The book was written by Du You from ...
'' (8th century), ''Book of the Southern Barbarians'' (written in 862 by Fan Chuo),... The secondary source, but the primary popular source, is the ''
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 ...
'' (Complete Annals of
Dai Viet Dai may refer to: Names * Dai (given name), a Welsh or Japanese masculine given name * Dai (surname) (戴), a Chinese surname * Bảo Đại (保大), Emperor of Vietnam from 1926 to 1945 Places and regimes * Dai Commandery, a commandery of ...
) compiled by
Ngô Sĩ Liên Ngô Sĩ Liên (吳士連) was a Vietnamese historian of the Lê dynasty. Biography Ngô Sĩ Liên was the main compiler of the '' Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư'', a chronicle of the history of Vietnam and a historical record of an Annamese ...
under the order of the Emperor
Lê Thánh Tông Lê Thánh Tông (黎聖宗; 25 August 1442 – 3 March 1497), personal name Lê Hạo, temple name Thánh Tông, courtesy name Tư Thành, was an emperor of Đại Việt, reigning from 1460 to 1497, the fifth and the longest-reigning empero ...
and finished in 1479.


Chinese sources

The Chinese traditional historical accounts on the Trưng sisters are remarkably brief. They are found in several different chapters of the ''
Book of the Later Han The ''Book of the Later Han'', also known as the ''History of the Later Han'' and by its Chinese name ''Hou Hanshu'' (), is one of the Twenty-Four Histories and covers the history of the Han dynasty from 6 to 189 CE, a period known as the Lat ...
'', the history for the
Eastern Han dynasty The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...
, against which the Trưng sisters had carried out their uprising.


Book of Later Han; 5th century AD

Chapter eighty-six of the ''Book of the Later Han'', entitled ''Biographies of the Southern and the Southwestern Barbarians,The use of the word ''barbarians'' is historical, and is translated as used in the original Chinese texts.'' has this short passage:
In the 16th year of the Jianwu era (40 AD),
Jiaozhi Jiaozhi (standard Chinese, pinyin: ''Jiāozhǐ''), or , was a historical region ruled by various Chinese dynasties, corresponding to present-day northern Vietnam. The kingdom of Nanyue (204–111 BC) set up the Jiaozhi Commandery (; , ch� ...
(交阯; WD: Chiao-chih) woman Zheng Ce (徵側; SV: Trưng Trắc) and her younger sister Zheng Er (徵貳; SV: Trưng Nhị) rebelled and attacked the commandery s strongholds As for Zheng Ce, she was the daughter of the Luo general of Miling prefecture (麊泠; SV: Mê Linh). She was married as wife to Shi Suo (詩索; SV: Thi Sách), a man in Zhouyuan (朱鳶; SV: Chu Diên). She/he(?) was/They were(?) remarkably heroic and courageous. Su Ding (蘇定; WD: Su Ting), the administrator of Jiaozhi restrained her (them?) with law; Ce became infuriated, rebelled, and attacked. Thus, the barbarians in
Jiuzhen Jiuzhen (Vietnamese: Cửu Chân, Chinese: 九真) was a Chinese commandery within Jiaozhou. It is located in present-day Thanh Hóa Province, Vietnam. Michel Ferlus (2012) and Frédéric Pain (2020) propose that 九真 Old Chinese *''kuˀ-ci ...
(九眞; WD Chiu-chen), Rinan (日南; WD:Jih-nan), Hepu (合浦; WD: Hop'u) all supported her. All in all, she took sixty-five strongholds and established herself as
queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...
.
Jiaozhi Jiaozhi (standard Chinese, pinyin: ''Jiāozhǐ''), or , was a historical region ruled by various Chinese dynasties, corresponding to present-day northern Vietnam. The kingdom of Nanyue (204–111 BC) set up the Jiaozhi Commandery (; , ch� ...
's governor and administrators could but defend themselves. (Emperor) Guangwu thus decreed that
Changsha Changsha is the capital of Hunan, China. It is the 15th most populous city in China with a population of 10,513,100, the Central China#Cities with urban area over one million in population, third-most populous city in Central China, and the ...
(長沙; WD: Ch'ang-sha), Hepu, and Jiaozhi, all must furnish chariots and boats, repair roads and bridges, dredge obstructed waterways, and store foods and provisions. In the 18th year (42 CE), he dispatched Wave-Subduing General
Ma Yuan Ma Yuan may refer to: * Ma Yuan (Han dynasty) (馬援; 14 BC – 49 AD), general of the Han dynasty * Ma Yuan (painter) (馬遠; 1160–1225), painter of the Song dynasty * Ma Yuan (judge) (:zh:馬原 (政治人物), 馬原; born 1930), a former V ...
(馬援; WD: Ma Yüan), Tower-ship General Duan Zhi (段志; WD: Tuan Chih) nd Household General Liu Long (劉隆; WD: Liu Long)Liu Long was not mentioned here, yet Hou Hanshu'
Account of Liu Long
recorded that he also participated in this campaign against Trưng Trắc, and that he caught Trưng Nhị at the Forbidden Gorge (禁谿), beheaded over 1,000, and subdued over 20,000 rebels
who led over 10,000 troops from Ch'ang-sha,
Guiyang Guiyang; Mandarin pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, alternatively as Kweiyang is the capital of Guizhou, Guizhou province in China. It is centrally located within the province, on the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau, eastern part of the Yun ...
(桂陽; SV: Quế Dương); Lingling (零陵; SV: Linh Lăng); Cangwu (蒼梧; SV: Thương Ngô) on a punitive expedition. Summer next year (43 CE), in the fourth month, Ma Yuan devastated Jiaozhi, beheaded Zheng Ce, Zheng Er, and others; the rest all surrendered or scattered. He advanced and attacked the Jiuzhen's rebel Du Yang (都陽; SV: Đô Dương) and others, routing and subduing them. He exiled over 300 rebel leaders to Lingling. Thus the regions beyond the Ridge were entirely pacified.
Chapter twenty-four, the biographies of Ma and some of his notable male descendants, had this parallel description:
Then Jiaozhi woman Zheng Ce and eryounger sister Zheng Er rebelled; heyattacked and the commandery was lost. The barbarians in Jiuzhen, Rinan, Hepu all supported he Zheng sisters The rebels captured over sixty strongholds beyond the Ridge; Ce established herself as queen. Then a sealed decree honored Yuan as Wave-Subduing General, assigned Fule Marquis Liu Long as his assistant, dispatched Tower-ship general Duan Zhi, etc. southwards to attack Jiaozhi. When the army reached Hepu, Zhi fell ill and died; he Emperordecreed that Yuan command his hi'ssoldiers also. Then uan's armyadvanced along the coastline and the mountains, opening a path over thousands of li long. In the spring of the 18th ianwuyear (40 CE), uan'sarmy reached up to Langbo (浪泊; SV: Lãng Bạc), fought with the rebels, routed them, decapitated thousands, ndover tens of thousands surrendered. Yuan chased Zheng Ce to the Forbidden Gorge (禁谿; SV: Cấm Khê); defeated many times, the rebels then scattered and fled. The first month of next year (43 CE), Zheng Ce and Zheng Er were beheaded, their heads sent to
Luoyang Luoyang ( zh, s=洛阳, t=洛陽, p=Luòyáng) is a city located in the confluence area of the Luo River and the Yellow River in the west of Henan province, China. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zheng ...
. Yuan was enfeoffed as
Marquis A marquess (; ) is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German-language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman with the rank of a marquess or the wife (or wido ...
of Xinsi, isfief ontainingthree-thousand households. Yuan then slaughtered oxen, and distilled wines, and rewarded the soldiers ndofficers or theirhard work... Yuan commanded over 2,000 tower-ships big and small, over 20,000 soldiers, advanced and attacked the bandit Zheng Ce's remnants Du Yang (都羊, SV: Đô Dương) et al., from Wugong (無功; SV: Vô Công) to Jufeng (居風, SV: Cư Phong), beheading rcapturing over 5,000;
south South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...
of the
mountains A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher ...
everywhere aspacified. Yuan reported that Xiyu prefecture (西於; SV: Tây Ư) had 32,000 households, its boundaries
ere Ere or ERE may refer to: * ''Environmental and Resource Economics'', a peer-reviewed academic journal * ERE Informatique, one of the first French video game companies * Ere language, an Austronesian language * Ebi Ere (born 1981), American-Nigeria ...
over thousands of li from the court; he requested that iyu prefecturebe divided into two prefectures: Fengxi (封溪, SV: Phong Khê) and Wanghai (望海; SV: Vọng Hải); he requestwas granted. Yuan immediately seized the momentum, established commanderies and prefectures, repaired the strongholds and ramparts, dredged the irrigation canals, and benefited the people. uanreported o the EmperorYue law and Han law differed in more than ten rules; towards the Yue people, the old rules were clarified in order to restrain them. Henceforth, the Luoyue (駱越) obeyed General Ma's laws. Autumn of the 20th year (44 CE), a Yuanbrought the troops back to the capital; the troops had been suffering from miasma and epidemic, four to five died out of ten. Yuan was bestowed a military carriage; in court-meetings, eranked among the
Nine Ministers The Nine Ministers or Nine Chamberlains () was the collective name for nine high officials in the imperial government of the Han dynasty (206 BC–220 AD), who each headed one of the Nine Courts and were subordinates to the Three Councillors o ...
.


Records of Jiao Province's Outer Territories, 4th century AD

An older, yet less-known account, from the now-lost ''Records of Jiao Province's Outer Territories'' (交州外域記) was quoted in the 6th-century word '' Commentary on the Water Classic'' (水經注) by
Northern Wei Wei (), known in historiography as the Northern Wei ( zh, c=北魏, p=Běi Wèi), Tuoba Wei ( zh, c=拓跋魏, p=Tuòbá Wèi), Yuan Wei ( zh, c=元魏, p=Yuán Wèi) and Later Wei ( zh, t=後魏, p=Hòu Wèi), was an Dynasties of China, impe ...
geographer Li Daoyuan:
Later, the son of Zhouyuan's Luo general, named Shi (詩; SV: Thi), askedThe two characters "詩索", to be read as 'Shi/Thi asked', were instead misread as the name ''Shi Suo''/''Thi Sách''; 索 "to ask" is the main verb of this sentence "後朱䳒雒將子名詩索𥹆泠雒將女名徵側爲妻" the daughter of Ming𥹆 ''míng'' is possibly a clerical error for 麊 ''mí'' ling's Luo general, named Zheng Ce (徵側; SV: Trưng Trắc), to be his wife. Ce, as a human being, possessed mettle and courage. Alongsides Shi, she uprose and rebelled, attacking and devastating Jiao Province, as well as reducing the Luo generals into subordination. Zheng Ce made erself
queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...
. Starting from Miling prefecture, she occupied two divisions Jiaozhi and Jiuzhen, and for two years taxed the people. Later on, the Han (court) dispatched Wave-Subduing General to lead troops on a punitive expedition. Ce and Shi fled into the Golden Gorge (金溪 SV; Kim Khê). Ma Yuan hunted them down and captured them after three years. Now
rom Rom, or ROM may refer to: Biomechanics and medicine * Risk of mortality, a medical classification to estimate the likelihood of death for a patient * Rupture of membranes, a term used during pregnancy to describe a rupture of the amniotic sac * ...
Western Shu
here were Here may refer to: Music * ''Here'' (Adrian Belew album), 1994 * ''Here'' (Alicia Keys album), 2016 * ''Here'' (Cal Tjader album), 1979 * ''Here'' (Edward Sharpe album), 2012 * ''Here'' (Idina Menzel album), 2004 * ''Here'' (Merzbow album), ...
also troops dispatched on punitive expedition against Ce and Shi and others and all those commanderies and prefectures were pacified; then magistrates were instituted there.
In the 9th month of 19th year of the Jianwu era 3 CE Ma Yuan reported to the Emperor that: 'I prudently added 12,000 crack-troops in Jiaozhi to the main army for a total of 20,000 men; as well as 2,000 vessels and vehicles, ever since entering Jiaozhi; now ur armyhas become
ven Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It comprises an area of , and its popul ...
stronger.' In the 10th month, Yuan entsouthwards and entered
Jiuzhen Jiuzhen (Vietnamese: Cửu Chân, Chinese: 九真) was a Chinese commandery within Jiaozhou. It is located in present-day Thanh Hóa Province, Vietnam. Michel Ferlus (2012) and Frédéric Pain (2020) propose that 九真 Old Chinese *''kuˀ-ci ...
; when he reached Vô Thiết prefecture (無切縣), the rebels' leader surrendered. He advanced and entered Dư Phát (餘發), rebels' leader Chu Bá (朱伯) abandoned the commandery and escaped into the deep jungles and great marshes where rhinoceroses and elephants gathered and goats and buffaloes numbered in the thousands; then, elephants were seen as in herds of several hundreds. Yuan again divided his troops, nd dispatched theminto Vô Biên prefecture (無編縣) – which was the Jiuzhending 九真亭 refectureduring
Wang Mang Wang Mang (45 BCE6 October 23 CE), courtesy name Jujun, officially known as the Shijianguo Emperor (), was the founder and the only emperor of the short-lived Chinese Xin dynasty. He was originally an official and consort kin of the ...
s era When a Yuanreached Cư Phong (風縣), the ebels'leader did not surrender; a Yuanthen beheaded several tens to hundreds. Jiuzhen was then pacified.


Differences

The traditional Chinese accounts differed from Vietnamese traditional accounts in many places: Chinese accounts do not indicate oppression of the Vietnamese population by the Chinese officials and Su Ding's killing of Trưng Trắc's husband; though Ma Yuan himself confirmed that Su Ding was greedy and cowardly. In the Chinese account, the Trưng sisters did not commit suicide. Chinese sources also contradicted accounts in Vietnamese folk history that the Trưng sisters' retainers followed their examples and also committed suicide.


Vietnamese chronicles


Excerpts from ''Complete Annals of Đại Việt'', 1479

The third book of ''
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 ...
'' (''Complete Annals of Dai Viet''), published in editions between 1272 and 1697, has the following to say about the Trưng Sisters: Lê Văn Hưu (
Trần dynasty The Trần dynasty (Vietnamese language, Vietnamese: Nhà Trần, chữ Nôm: 茹陳; Vietnamese language, Vietnamese: triều Trần, chữ Hán: ikt:朝ikt:陳, 朝wikt:陳, 陳), officially Đại Việt (Chữ Hán: 大越), was a List ...
's historian) wrote: Ngô Sĩ Liên (the Complete Annals chief compiler) wrote:


Cultural significance


Nationalism

The Trưng Sisters are highly revered in Vietnam, as they led the first resistance movement against the occupying Chinese after 247 years of domination. Many temples are dedicated to them, and a yearly holiday in February to commemorate their deaths is observed by many Vietnamese. A central district in
Hanoi Hanoi ( ; ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Vietnam, second-most populous city of Vietnam. The name "Hanoi" translates to "inside the river" (Hanoi is bordered by the Red River (Asia), Red and Black River (Asia), Black Riv ...
called the Hai Bà Trưng District is named after them, as are numerous large streets in major cities and many schools. Their biographies are mentioned in children's school books. The stories of the Trưng Sisters and of another famous woman warrior, Lady Triệu, are cited by some historians as hints that Vietnamese society before
sinicization Sinicization, sinofication, sinification, or sinonization (from the prefix , 'Chinese, relating to China') is the process by which non-Chinese societies or groups are acculturated or assimilated into Chinese culture, particularly the language, ...
was a
matriarchal Matriarchy is a social system in which positions of power and privilege are held by women. In a broader sense it can also extend to moral authority, social privilege, and control of property. While those definitions apply in general English, ...
one, where there are no obstacles for women in assuming leadership roles. Even though the Trưng Sisters' revolt against the Chinese was almost 2000 years ago, its legacy in Vietnam remains. The two sisters are considered to be a national symbol in Vietnam, representing Vietnam's independence. They are often depicted as two women riding two giant
war elephant A war elephant is an elephant that is Animal training, trained and guided by humans for combat purposes. Historically, the war elephant's main use was to charge (warfare), charge the enemy, break their ranks, and instill terror and fear. Elep ...
s. Many times, they are seen leading their followers into battle against the Chinese. The Trưng sisters were more than two sisters that gave their lives up for their country; they are powerful symbols of Vietnamese resistance and freedom. In 1962 during the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
, Trần Lệ Xuân (aka Madame Nhu), sister-in-law of
South Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam (RVN; , VNCH), was a country in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975. It first garnered Diplomatic recognition, international recognition in 1949 as the State of Vietnam within the ...
ese president
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 ...
had a costly statue erected in the capital of
Saigon Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) ('','' TP.HCM; ), commonly known as Saigon (; ), is the most populous city in Vietnam with a population of around 14 million in 2025. The city's geography is defined by rivers and canals, of which the largest is Saigo ...
in memory of the Trưng sisters, with the facial features modeled on herself, and also established the Women's Solidarity Movement, a female paramilitary organization, using the sisters as a rallying symbol. In the aftermath of the 1963 overthrow of Ngô Đình Diệm, the statues of the sisters were demolished by jubilant anti-Ngô Đình Diệm rioters.


Temples

Temples to the Trưng Sisters or Hai Bà Trưng Temples were found from as early as the end of the Third Era of Northern Domination. The best known Hai Bà Trưng Temple is in Hanoi near Hoàn Kiếm Lake. The temple was constructed by king
Lý Anh Tông Emperor Lý Anh Tông (1136 – 14 August 1175) of Đại Việt () was the sixth emperor of the later Lý dynasty in Vietnamese history, from 1138 until his death in 1175. Since Lý Anh Tông, given name Lý Thiên Tộ ( 李 天 祚), w ...
(r. 1138–1176) in 1158. According to tradition, in that year a devastating drought occurred in the Red River Delta, and the king ordered a Buddhist monk named Cam Thin to conduct a sacrifices rite and pray for rain at the Trung sisters temple. It rained the following day that saved his kingdom from famine. During one night the king dreamed and saw the two sisters appeared and were riding together on an iron horse. When the king awoke, he ordered the temple to be gloriously decorated and performed a sacrifice ritual to the sisters. Later he directed two other temples to worship the sisters, one of which was destroyed by river landslide and one
temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...
which survives today. Other Hai Bà Trưng temples are found in Mê Linh District (
Vĩnh Phúc Province Vĩnh Phúc was a former province in the Red River Delta of northern Vietnam. Administrative divisions Vĩnh Phúc is subdivided into 8 district-level sub-divisions: * 7 districts: ** Sông Lô ** Bình Xuyên ** Lập Thạch ** Tam Đả ...
),
Phúc Thọ District Phúc Thọ is a district of Hanoi, formerly of Hà Tây province, in the Red River Delta region of Vietnam. Geography Phúc Thọ rural district is bordered by Đan Phượng district to the east, Sơn Tây town to the west, Thạch Thất dist ...
(
Hà Tây Province Hà Tây () was a former provinces of Vietnam, province of Vietnam, in the Red River Delta, now part of Hanoi. Geography Hà Tây province was located in the Red River Delta bordering Hanoi municipality, Hưng Yên Province, Hưng Yên, Hà ...
) and Hoàng Hoa Thám Street,
Bình Thạnh District Bình Thạnh is a district of Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam. , the district had a population of 490,618 and a total area of 21 km2. The name of the district was formed from the names of two wards in the old Gò Vấp district, Bình Hòa and ...
, Ho Chi Minh City.


Women's status

According to Keith Taylor, one reason for the defeat is desertion by rebels because they did not believe they could win under a woman's leadership. The fact that women were in charge was blamed as a reason for the defeat by historical Vietnamese texts in which the historians ridiculed and mocked men because they did nothing while "mere girls", whom they viewed with revulsion, took up the banner of revolt. The historical poem containing the phrase "mere girls", which related the revolt of the Trưng Sisters while the men did nothing, was not intended to praise women nor view war as women's work, as it has been wrongly interpreted.


Music

Lưu Hữu Phước wrote the patriotic song ''Hát Giang trường hận'' (Long Hatred on Hát River) between 1942–1943 to dedicate to the Trưng sisters. Later, Phước revised the lyrics in 1946 to create another song (Soul of the Martyred Soldier), which is often used as
lament A lament or lamentation is a passionate expression of grief, often in music, poetry, or song form. The grief is most often born of regret, or mourning. Laments can also be expressed in a verbal manner in which participants lament about something ...
for state funerals, and the lyrics still mentioned the Trưng sisters' rebellion.


Portrayal in video games

In '' Sid Meier's Civilization VII'', Trung Trac is a playable leader.


See also

* Lady Triệu *
Phùng Thị Chính Phùng Thị Chính was a Vietnamese noblewoman who fought alongside the Trưng sisters in order to repel Han dynasty, Han invaders from Vietnam in 43 Common Era, CE. She was pregnant at the time, and was in charge of protecting the central flank. ...
*
Copper columns of Ma Yuan Copper columns of Ma Yuan () were a pair of copper columns erected by General Ma Yuan (Han dynasty), Ma Yuan of Han China after his suppression of the Trung sisters' rebellion in 43 CE. The columns stood at southern frontier of Tượng Lâm (Xiang ...
*
Bùi Thị Xuân Bùi Thị Xuân ( vi-hantu, , d. 1802) was a Vietnamese female general during the Tây Sơn wars. One of the key figures in the Tây Sơn rebellion, known for her exceptional combat skills. She was not only a master swordswoman but also highly ...
*
Matriarchy Matriarchy is a social system in which positions of Power (social and political), power and Social privilege, privilege are held by women. In a broader sense it can also extend to moral authority, social privilege, and control of property. Whil ...
*
Feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...
*
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 ...
* History of Vietnam


Notes


References


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * *


External links


Trưng sisters
Tuyet A. Tran & Chu V. Nguyen {{DEFAULTSORT:Trung Sisters 1st-century Vietnamese people 1st-century women monarchs Deified female monarchs Deified Vietnamese people Han dynasty rebels Monarchs taken prisoner in wartime People executed by Vietnam by decapitation Queens regnant in Asia Sister duos Vietnamese goddesses Vietnamese monarchs Vietnamese rebels Women in 1st-century warfare Women in ancient Chinese warfare Women in war in Vietnam People from Hanoi