Nguyễn Trung Trực
Born | 1838 |
---|---|
Died | October 27, 1868 | (aged 29–30)
Other names | Quản Chơn Quản Lịch[2] Ông Soái[3] |
Organization | Nguyễn dynasty |
Notes | |
Provincial Military Lead of Hà Tiên |
Nguyễn Trung Trực (1838
Biography
Nguyễn Trung Trực was born in 1838 in Nghề hamlet, Bình Nhựt village, Cửu Cư Hạ canton, Cửu An district,
When he was young, he had the name "Chơn". His name Chơn, along with his straightforward personality, so he was given another name Trung Trực (straightforward) from his teacher.[c]
French invasion
The process of
In 1861, the resistance leaders in the Gò Công area delegated Định to travel to Biên Hòa to seek permission from imperial military commissioner Nguyễn Bá Nghi to "turn around the situation".[14] Định's men were armed with bladed spears, fire lances, knives, sabers, bamboo sticks and swords,[8][14][15] trained and on call as necessary.[8][15] Trực was one of the partisan leaders who assisted Định.[16] Trực's partisan band was based at Tân An[13] The French were aware of his activities, with an intelligence dossier calling him a "likable and intelligent man".[17]
Strategy
In the initial phase of the conflict, the local militias concentrated on evacuating the populace from areas that had been taken over by the French, while urging those who chose to stay to not cooperate with the Europeans.
One of the main objectives of the resistance was to disrupt the transport of
Sinking of L'Espérance
The Nhật Tảo canal connected the eastern and western branches of the
The attack against L'Espérance started at midday at Nhật Tảo village, 10 km southwest of Tân An. Today the site is the location of An Nhựt Tân village in
After Nhượng's men had attacked the village, Lieutenant Parfait, commander of the lorcha, instructed his troops to follow them to nearby villages. Trực's group, who had disguised themselves as rice merchants, travelled in five boats and approached the French vessel under the pretext of applying for travel permits. (some sources said that they disguised as wedding boats)
When Lieutenant Parfait returned, he attempted to retaliate against the surrounding villages. However, the villagers had been aware of events and had already been evacuated, so the French officer managed only to burn and destroy the houses, livestock and rice fields.[23]
In this battle, the French army suffered a great loss: L'Espérance was sunk, 17 soldiers and 20 Vietnamese associates were killed, only eight people escaped, including 2 French soldiers and 6 Tagal soldiers (mercenaries from Philippines). The Vietnamese army won but there were 4 people sacrificed and they all were honored by Tự Đức.[citation needed]
The attack buoyed local Vietnamese morale and gave them the belief that they could fight against French naval forces. The French Inspector of Indigenous Affairs at Thủ Dầu Một, Grammont, stated that "This event made a big impression on the Vietnamese. They considered it as a destined turn of their fortune."[23] The sinking earned the specific praise of Emperor Tự Đức, who described the incident as "most outstanding".[24] This prompted the emperor to promote Trực to be the Provincial Military Lead (Chinese: 領兵, Vietnamese: Lãnh binh) of Hà Tiên.[24][25]
Later career
However, the overall Vietnamese military performance was not as successful. On 5 June 1862, the court's plenipotentiary
Death
In mid-1868, Quản Lịch successfully attacked the French fortress at
Bao giờ Tây nhổ hết cỏ nước Nam, thì mới hết người Nam đánh Tây.
Nguyễn Trung Trực was beheaded by the French at Rạch Giá on October 27, 1868, at the age of 30.[30][31]
Despite ordering the partisans to respect the Treaty of Saigon and stop fighting the French in the south,[32] Tự Đức praised the "righteousness" of Nguyễn Trung Trực and his men. Following his death, the emperor composed a poem in his honor.[33] Although Nguyễn Trung Trực was disobeying Tự Đức's orders to stop the insurgency, the emperor still viewed his actions as a service to the monarchy.[34]
The ex governor (Vietnamese: Tuần phủ) of Hà Tiên province, Huỳnh Mẫn Đạt , a famous scholar of Cochinchina, wept for Nguyễn Trung Trực with a Lüshi verse[30]
(Chinese)
吊阮忠直
勝負戎場不足論,
頹波砥柱憶漁民。
火紅日早轟天地,
劍白堅江泣鬼神。
一旦非常標節義,
兩全無畏報君親。
英雄強脛芳名壽,
羞殺低頭未死人。
(Sino-Vietnamese)
Điếu Nguyễn Trung Trực
Thắng phụ nhung trường bất túc luân,
Đồi ba để trụ ức ngư dân.
Hoả hồng Nhật Tảo oanh thiên địa,
Kiếm bạch Kiên Giang khấp quỷ thần.
Nhất đán phi thường tiêu tiết nghĩa,
Lưỡng toàn vô uý báo quân thân.
Anh hùng cường hĩnh phương danh thọ,[e]
Tu sát đê đầu vị tử nhân.[35]
(English)
Weep for Nguyễn Trung Trực
The bright flames reddening Nhật Tảo cause the earth to quake,
The shiny swords silvering Kiên Giang make the devils wail.[36]
Legacy
The national hero Nguyễn Trung Trực is honored by the people as a major god. People in Southern Vietnam call him by "Cụ Nguyễn" (Sir Nguyễn). Southern people, especially laypeople, followers of Hòa Hảo Buddhism, which is the endogenous religion of the Bửu Sơn Kỳ Hương sect, all set up altars with statues or photos of Sir Nguyễn. All Hòa Hảo Buddhist followers greatly admire and respect the national hero Nguyễn Trung Trực, calling him "Ông Soái" (Sir Marshal).[3]
Nowadays, the establishment of worshiping Nguyễn Trung Trực as the main god is built in 6 provinces in the Mekong Delta, including: Kiên Giang, An Giang, Hậu Giang, Sóc Trăng, Bạc Liêu and Long An. Particularly in Kiên Giang province, there are 13 communal houses worshiping Sir Nguyễn as the main god. Every year, on the occasion of the festival commemorating the death of Sir Nguyễn, people from all over the country make pilgrimages to attend.[3]
Notes
- ^ In a study on historical figures of the South, researcher Trương Minh Đạt, a member of the Vietnam Folklore Association, currently living in Hà Tiên town, published a reliable document about this portrait. According to Mr. Đạt, before 1949 - 1950, there was no book that published this photo of Sir Nguyễn Trung Trực, but "the photo everyone knows today actually appeared around 1951-1952. The photo was printed by a newspaper in Saigon in the form of a supplement for readers. Regarding the origin of the image of Nguyễn Trung Trực, the artist explained that he modeled after other heroes to redraw: nose, ears, mouth of Phan Đình Phùng; Thủ khoa Huân's eyes; Đề Thám's mustache; the face in general is that of a southern farmer".[1]
- ^ According to the book Hỏi đáp lịch sử Việt Nam 4th episode by Nhà xuất bản Trẻ in 2007. Judging from the record of interrogation Nguyễn Trung Trực at Sài Gòn prison in 10 October 1868, Trực said "I'm just 30 years old", then he would be born on 1838. Nguyễn Q. Thắng and Nguyễn Bá Thế, Từ điển nhân vật Việt Nam said that he was born on 1837. Many documents say that he was just 30 years old when he sacrificed himself (1838-1868). However, all the photographs and statues of Nguyễn Trung Trực in Southern Vietnam showing a stubby man with a long beard around 50-60 years old. To explain this, people said that Trực is a talented, young general, in order to build prestige when he mobilizes all classes, especially scholar, Trực must disguise himself as an elderly. On the other hand, the aforementioned disguise also aimed to bypass the eyes of the French henchmen and pointers.[4]
- ^ According to the books Hỏi đáp lịch sử Việt Nam episode 4 (page 46), Sách Hỏi đáp về cuộc khởi nghĩa Nguyễn Trung Trực (Nhà xuất bản QĐND, 2008, tr. 54) and Phan Thành Tài (in Nam Bộ - đất và người, compilated by Hội Khoa học lịch sử TP. HCM, Nhà xuất bản Trẻ, page 167), they all said that when Trực retreated to Hòn Chông, he changed his name to Nguyễn Trung Trực.
- ^ Nhật Tảo is the same as Nhựt Tảo. Southern Vietnamese used to call it Vàm Nhựt Tảo.
- ^ Original Chinese, 脛 / hĩnh / shin NOT 頸 / cảnh / neck when translated to Sino-Vietnamese / English.
References
- ^ Brief introduction about Nguyễn Trung Trực temple: Part 5 - How long has the photo of Nguyễn Trung Trực been ?
- ^ "Career and biography of the national hero Nguyễn Trung Trực". kiengiang.gov.vn/. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
- ^ a b c "Nguyễn Trung Trực - the god of Southern Vietnam". kiengiang.gov.vn. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
- ^ Folk tales about the hero Nguyễn Trung Trực (Vietnamese: Chuyện kể dân gian về anh hùng Nguyễn Trung Trực)
- ^ "Biography of the national hero Nguyễn Trung Trực". nguyentrungtruc.vn. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
- ^ "Nguyễn Trung Trực in folk". baolongan.vn. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
- ^ Chapuis, p. 48.
- ^ a b c d e McLeod, p. 91.
- ^ Marr, p. 27.
- ^ Chapuis, p. 49.
- ^ Lam, p. 11.
- ^ Chapuis, p. 50.
- ^ a b c d e Chapuis, p. 121.
- ^ a b c Nguyen, p. 427.
- ^ a b Marr, p. 31.
- ^ a b Nguyen, p. 267.
- ^ a b c d Nguyen, p. 432.
- ^ McLeod, p. 92.
- ^ Nguyen, p. 430.
- ^ Nguyen, p. 428.
- ^ a b c Nguyen, p. 431.
- ^ Nguyen, pp. 432–433.
- ^ a b c Nguyen, p. 433.
- ^ a b Nguyen, pp. 433–434.
- ^ a b Phạm Văn, Sơn (August 1962). Việt Sử Tân Biên - Volume 5 - French Resistance History. Thư Lâm Ấn Thư Quán. pp. 195–198. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
- ^ Marr, p. 32.
- ^ Karnow, pp. 88–89.
- ^ Chapuis, pp. 49–51.
- ^ a b McLeod, p. 67.
- ^ a b "The immortal death of a hero". kiengiang.gov.vn. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
- ^ Ðịa điểm hành quyết ngay tại miếng đất đối diện chợ nhà lồng Rạch Giá, lúc bấy giờ còn cây da cổ thụ. Trên miếng đất thấm máu Nguyễn Trung Trực, người Pháp cho xây lên Nhà Giây Thép, về sau là Ty Bưu Ðiện tỉnh lỵ. Riêng cây da cổ thụ đã bị đốn vào năm 1947.
- ^ McLeod, pp. 93–98.
- ^ "Hero Nguyễn Trung Trực and doctrine Tứ Ân". diendanpghh.com.
- ^ McLeod, p. 73.
- ^ "Weep for Nguyễn Trung Trực". thivien.net. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
- ^ "Drawn-Bạt or Silvering-Bạc". thpt-nguyentrungtruc.edu.vn/. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
Other publications cited
- Chapuis, Oscar (2000). The last emperors of Vietnam: from Tu Duc to Bao Dai. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. ISBN 0-313-31170-6.
- ISBN 0-670-84218-4.
- Marr, David G. (1970). Vietnamese anticolonialism, 1885–1925. Berkeley, California: University of California. ISBN 0-520-01813-3.
- McLeod, Mark (March 1993). "Truong Dinh and Vietnamese anti-colonialism, 1859–64: A Reappraisal". Journal of Southeast Asian Studies. 24 (1). Singapore: Cambridge University Press: 88–106. S2CID 159512539.
- Nguyen, Thanh Thi (1992). The French conquest of Cochinchina, 1858–1862. Ann Arbor, Michigan: University Microfilms International.
- Truong Buu Lam (1967). Patterns of Vietnamese response to foreign intervention: 1858–1900. Monograph Series No. 11. New Haven, Connecticut: Southeast Asia Studies Yale University.