Lê Văn Duyệt

LÃÂª VÃÂn DuyÃ¡Â»Ât (1763 or 1764 Ã¢ÂÂ 30 July 1832) was a Vietnamese general who helped NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnhÃ¢ÂÂthe future Emperor Gia LongÃ¢ÂÂput down the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n wars, unify Vietnam and establish the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân dynasty. After the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân came to power in 1802, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât became a high-ranking mandarin, serving under the first two NguyÃ¡Â»Ân emperors Gia Long and Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng.

Born into a family of peasants in what is today's ÃÂÃ¡Â»Âng ThÃÂ¡p, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât joined Prince NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh in fighting the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n peasant rebellion. Because of DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's military ability, he quickly rose through the ranks of the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân army and became a marshal when the hostilities ended. After the foundation of the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân dynasty, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât served as a high-ranking mandarin and, later, viceroy of the southern part of Vietnam, ruling from Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh (modern-day Saigon).

His governance greatly stabilized and helped develop the southern Vietnam, turning it into a wealthy and peaceful region. In addition, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât opposed Emperor Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng's ascension and defended Christian missionaries and converts from the emperor's isolationist and Confucian policies. These attitudes brought DuyÃ¡Â»Ât into conflict with Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng and led to the posthumous desecration of DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's tomb, which provoked his adopted son LÃÂª VÃÂn KhÃÂ´i to revolt against the court the following year in 1833. Later, Emperors ThiÃ¡Â»Âu TrÃ¡Â»Â and TÃ¡Â»Â± ÃÂÃ¡Â»Â©c, son and grandson of Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng, rehabilitated the general's honor and restored his tomb.

Early life

LÃÂª VÃÂn DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was born in either 1763 or 1764 in ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh TÃÂ°Ã¡Â»Âng (present day ÃÂÃ¡Â»Âng ThÃÂ¡p), a quaint part of the Mekong Delta, in southern Vietnam. His parents were peasants whose ancestors came from QuÃ¡ÂºÂ£ng NgÃÂ£i in central Vietnam during the southwards expansion of the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân Lords. DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was born in a poor family, and he tended buffaloes during his childhood. Attracted by the possibilities of the "New South", the family then moved to Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh.

General of NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh

In 1780, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât became a eunuch of the 18-year-old Prince NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh, the nephew of the slain NguyÃ¡Â»Ân Lord and the most senior member of the family who survived the revolt by the three TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n brothers, who seized power in southern Vietnam from the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân in 1777. As a result, NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh and a few loyalists fled into the dense jungles of the Mekong Delta in the far south. Later, NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh made DuyÃ¡Â»Ât a Cai CÃÂ¡ ("Commander") of his bodyguards. From 1777 onwards, the military balance between the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n and the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân fluctuated, as the forces came in conflict with each other frequently.

In 1782, the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n attacked Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh again and forced NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh to flee to the island of PhÃÂº QuÃ¡Â»Âc under DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's escort. It was one of many times when Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh changed hands. In 1787, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât began organizing and commanding his own unit, and individually recruiting his own men. In 1788, the balance shifted in favor of the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân following the involvement of Pigneau de Behaine, a French Catholic priest who supported NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh and helped recruit French military officers, partly motivated by the hope of securing future privileges for Catholicism. In 1788, the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân recaptured Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh and never relinquished it again. From then on, NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh transformed the city into a fortress and his powerbase and began consolidating his hold on surrounding areas, before attacking the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n with a view to eliminate them.

In 1789, NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh made DuyÃ¡Â»Ât a general. From this point on, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât accompanied his lord on military campaigns against the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n. Continuous warfare then ensued, mostly centred near Nha Trang and Qui NhÃÂ¡n on the south central coast, where the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân besieged the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n's strongholds.

In 1801, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât engineered a naval victory in ThÃ¡Â»Â NÃ¡ÂºÂ¡i, which was a turning point of the war and heralded the complete collapse of the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n. In the same year, a close colleague, Tong Viet Phuc was killed in battle by the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n, this reportedly provoked DuyÃ¡Â»Ât into a state of extreme anger, during which he killed enemy soldiers indiscriminately, prompting a rebuke from NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh. Shortly thereafter, NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh exploited the absence of most of the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n's army, which was attempting to recapture Quy Nhon, to lead his army in an attack on PhÃÂº XuÃÂ¢n, the capital of the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n. However, the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân encountered heavy resistance from TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n forces around the Tu Dung sea gate, the entrance into the citadel of PhÃÂº XuÃÂ¢n. Seeing that the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân forces could not breach the defense by frontal attacks, NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh ordered Duyet to lead a naval division to attack the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n defense complex from the rear. LÃÂª VÃÂn DuyÃ¡Â»Ât and his deputy Le Chat then defeated the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n army and forced their commander, Prince Consort Nguyen Van Tri, to flee. This paved a way for the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân to assault the citadel of PhÃÂº XuÃÂ¢n.

In 1802, NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh, who had declared himself Emperor Gia Long after capturing PhÃÂº XuÃÂ¢n (HuÃ¡ÂºÂ¿), appointed DuyÃ¡Â»Ât to the position of KhÃÂ¢m Sai ChÃÂ°Ã¡Â»Âng TÃ¡ÂºÂ£ QuÃÂ¢n Dinh BÃÂ¬nh TÃÂ¢y TÃÂ°Ã¡Â»Âng QuÃÂ¢n ("Marshal of King's Left Division, TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n Pacification General") and ordered him to attack TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n-controlled northern Vietnam. In October 1802, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât captured the north, and then renamed it from BÃ¡ÂºÂ¯c HÃÂ ("Northern River") to BÃ¡ÂºÂ¯c ThÃÂ nh ("Northern Citadel") thus marking ultimate victory of the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân against the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n.

DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's strategy, along with the French military tactics and technology recruited by Pigneau, played an important role in NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh's success and the foundation of the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân dynasty.

Mandarin of the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân dynasty

From 1802 to 1812, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât served as a high-ranking general in the new imperial capital HuÃ¡ÂºÂ¿ in Annam (central Vietnam). In 1812, Emperor Gia Long appointed DuyÃ¡Â»Ât as the viceroy of Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh. At this time, the viceroy of Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh held jurisdiction not only over Cochinchina (southern Vietnam) but also over Cambodia.

The post of viceroy had significant powers; although no precise description of the head of Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh's responsibilities survives to this day, the rights of his northern counterpart included the power "...to decide lawsuits; and to appoint and dismiss officials at his own will. It is enough only to report to the court after acting at his own discretion." Gia Long trusted DuyÃ¡Â»Ât and his fellow southerners; all of the viceroy's lheading deputies were locally bred men, whereas many of those who ran the north were not. This allowed DuyÃ¡Â»Ât and his entourage to develop a strong support base with the grassroots population and gave them more gravitas with which to rule. He also tried to expand the support base for the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân in the south by appointing newly arrived Chinese refugees who had fled their homeland after the fall of the Ming dynasty as well as former rebels and bandits, to administrative posts if they were qualified, and encouraging their integration into and participation in society. Under the system of the time, military governors such as DuyÃ¡Â»Ât moved to different posts with individual units that they had commanded for years, so he could count on their fidelity.

In 1812, a Siamese-supported young brother of Ang Chan, the King of Cambodia, rose up and seized the throne, which forced the incumbent to flee to Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh. In 1813, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât, with the approval of Gia Long, entered Cambodia with an army of 10,000 troops and forced the Siamese army to retreat. He reinstated Ang Chan and built two citadels, Nam Vang and La Liem on Cambodian territory in order to maintain Vietnamese jurisdiction over the nation, which was formally made a protectorate, adding to his prestige. In addition, Duyet's domestic governance was effective and stabilized the south, which prompted the people to give him the sobriquet CÃ¡Â»Âp GÃ¡ÂºÂ¥m ÃÂÃ¡Â»Âng Nai ("White Tiger of ÃÂÃ¡Â»Âng Nai"). As Gia Long's most trusted mandarin, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât often acted as a conduit between the emperor and the European merchants and government delegates who visited Vietnam. In the early 1820s, Duyet dispatched a delegation to seek out British officials in an attempt to buy arms, but the party got lost in storms and were arrested after washing up in Burma. Duyet remained an advocate of hawkish foreign policy after the protectorate over Cambodia was entrenched, advocating an alliance with Burma against Siam, and expressing confidence that Vietnam could defeat Siam and dominate Southeast Asia.

In 1815, Emperor Gia Long summoned him back in order to suppress widespread rebellions in central Vietnam. In 1819, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was in NghÃ¡Â»Â An and Thanh HÃÂ³a in northern Vietnam putting down revolts for Gia Long. During this time, he joined forces with a former rebel leader from a highlands minority group in Cao BÃ¡ÂºÂ±ng. This man became DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's adopted son under the name LÃÂª VÃÂn KhÃÂ´i and his men also rallied to the court. Khoi was then propelled directly into a high-ranking post in Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh. During the final four years of Gia Long's reign, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât ascended to the highest rank in the court, and he and Pham Dang Hung, another southerner, were the only people present as the emperor died. Gia Long decreed that DuyÃ¡Â»Ât take command of five royal regiments.

After pacifying central Vietnam, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was reappointed to be the viceroy of southern Vietnam and Cambodia in 1820 by Emperor Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng, Gia Long's successor. The emperor further enhanced DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's powers by allowing him the power to oversee all foreign trade coming into his area, and collect taxes in Cambodia and on imports and exports at his discretion. This gave DuyÃ¡Â»Ât control over the vast economic resources in the fertile agricultural and lumber-rich region and most importantly, land development. The southern area had only been populated by ethnic Vietnamese in recent centuries and immigration, clearing and development of land was rapid.

At the beginning of his second period as viceroy, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât suppressed a revolt of the local Khmer people and enlisted ten thousand new taxpayers, thereby generating a large new revenue source for the court. He supervised the renovation of the VÃÂ©nh TÃ¡ÂºÂ¿ Canal, an important waterway in southern Vietnam. Moreover, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was successful in suppressing unrest and criminal activity, and increasing foreign trade in southern Vietnam and Cambodia . DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's works greatly stabilized and developed southern Vietnam, turning it into a wealthy and peaceful region. As recognition for DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's service, Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng rewarded DuyÃ¡Â»Ât with a belt made of jadeÃ¢ÂÂa prestigious gift in the Confucian system usually given to an emperor as a tribute, or by a monarch to an official to honour a great serviceÃ¢ÂÂand betrothed a princess to DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's adopted son as a wife.

DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was also involved in internal palace machinations. He became involved in a bitter rivalry with General Nguyen Van Thanh, the viceroy of northern Vietnam and commander of the Center Division; Thanh was another of Gia Long's leading generals. DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was assisted in this dispute by Nguyen Huu Nghi, who had been a former confidant of Thanh before defecting. Later, another soldier who had served Thanh was caught mingling in DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's military camp and was captured. DuyÃ¡Â»Ât claimed that the man confessed to being sent by Thanh to assassinate him.

On another hand, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was the mandarin who charged former Crown Prince CÃ¡ÂºÂ£nh's wife for having an incestuous relationship with her eldest son and then executed her by drowning in 1824. DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's action effectively ended the claim to Vietnam's throne by Prince CÃ¡ÂºÂ£nh's descendants. According to one report however, Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng had already been informed from another quarter of the affair. Choi Byung Wook, a Korean historian, described this event as a "most dramatic event illustrating LÃÂª VÃÂn DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's loyalty to Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng".

Conflict with Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng

There was a lot of tension between Duyet and Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng. Although Gia Long had enlisted European support to claim the throne and allowed missionaries to function in Vietnam in gratitude to Pigneau, he ran a classical Confucian administration. He also expressed dismay at the Catholic condemnation of the traditional ancestral worship, a basic tenet of Vietnamese culture; Crown Prince CÃ¡ÂºÂ£nh had been converted by Pigneau and subsequently refused to bow down to his ancestors, instead desecrating a shrine with feces.

As Crown Prince CÃ¡ÂºÂ£nh had died of smallpox during the war against the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n, it was assumed that CÃ¡ÂºÂ£nh's son would succeed Gia Long, but in 1816 NguyÃ¡Â»Ân PhÃÂºc ÃÂÃ¡ÂºÂ£m, the son of Gia Long's second wife, was appointed instead. Gia Long chose him for his strong character and his deeply conservative aversion to Westerners, whereas CÃ¡ÂºÂ£nh's lineage had converted to Catholicism and had shunned Confucian traditions such as ancestor worship. Gia Long told his son to treat the EuropeansÃ¢ÂÂespecially the FrenchÃ¢ÂÂrespectfully, but not to grant them any position of preponderance.

Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng disliked DuyÃ¡Â»Ât because he was one of many high-ranking mandarins who opposed Gia Long's succession plan. DuyÃ¡Â»Ât and many of his southern associates tended to be favourable to Christianity, and supported the installation of NguyÃ¡Â»Ân PhÃÂºc CÃ¡ÂºÂ£nh's descendants. As a result, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was held in high regard by the Catholic community. Historian Mark McLeod said that "As the head of a region enjoying substantial autonomy, LÃÂª VÃÂn DuyÃ¡Â»Ât had good reason to prefer that the empire be ruled after Gia-long's death by an immature or malleable monarch." According to McLeod, as DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was not from a scholar-gentry background and lacked a classical Confucian education, he did not place a great emphasis on tradition and was more concerned with military needs, and that as a result, he would be more interested in maintaining strong relations with Europeans so that he could acquire weapons from them, rather than worrying about the social implications of Westernization. There was also speculation that Gia Long was worried that CÃ¡ÂºÂ£nh's 18-year-old heir was too young and could have been manipulated, and that he would forget his Eastern roots, whereas the more mature Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ngÃ¢ÂÂaged 26Ã¢ÂÂwould not. Gia Long was aware of the fact that Catholic clergy were opposed to the installation of Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng.

Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng began to place restrictions on Catholicism. He enacted "edicts of interdiction of the Catholic religion" and condemned Christianity as a "heterodox doctrine". He saw the Catholics as a possible source of division, especially as the missionaries were arriving in Vietnam in ever-increasing numbers.

Because of the role of Westerners in the war between the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân and the TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n, and Pigneau's role in recruiting European assistance, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât protected Vietnamese Catholic converts and Westerners from Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng's isolationalist and Confucian policies by disobeying the emperor's orders. In defense of the Christians, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât wrote to Ming MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng, "We still have between our teeth the rice which the missionaries gave us when we were starving." This came in response to an imperial edict that ordered missionaries to leave their areas of operation and move to the imperial city, ostensibly because the palace needed translators, but in reality to stop the Catholics from proselytizing. Whereas the government officials in central and northern Vietnam complied, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât disobeyed the order and Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng was forced to bide his time. In the meantime, southern Christians were still publicly identifying themselves as such and praticising their beliefs without facing any obstacles from local officials. Choi said that "From the point of view of Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng and his men, the land of Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh was thoroughly sheltered by LÃÂª VÃÂn DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's prestige."

DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's policy towards criminals and former rebels also courted conflict with Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng. In the early-19th century, the nascent years of the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân dynasty were plagued by incessant revolts, particularly in northern and central Vietnam. This resulted in a large number of rebels being captured along with common criminals and bandits. Such people were usually internally exiled to the opposite part of the country, so a large number ended up in southern Vietnam. These included many former rebels who were spared the death penalty after being defeated by DuyÃ¡Â»Ât in northern and central Vietnam during his pacification campaigns in the late 1810s, and had sworn loyalty towards the general personally. These men were sent south with their wives and children to remove them from potentially rebellious areas and to punish them, but another objective was to start military colonies to help develop southern Vietnam, which had only recently been acquired by ethnic Vietnamese. The convicts were given equipment to work on the land and some were later pardoned. DuyÃ¡Â»Ât and Gia Long had employed surrendered TÃÂ¢y SÃÂ¡n officers in positions of authority, and this policy had continued due a shortage of manpower until Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng came to power. DuyÃ¡Â»Ât wanted to continue this policy and wrote to Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng for permission, but was rejected. The emperor replied that such a policy was "like releasing a monkey to climb up a tree". For Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng, the placement of former convicts and rebels in positions of power was contrary to the Confucian system of order and debauched the prestige of the state, whereas Duyet was only concerned with practicality.

During the 1820s, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's continued cultivated of relations with the immigrant Chinese community that had settled in southern Vietnam in large numbers brought him into conflict with Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng. The general had adopted a Chinese immigrant merchant as his son and gave him favours, including appointing him to position of the body that regulated trade. The Japanese historian Shimao concluded that DuyÃ¡Â»Ât and his entourage were given financial rewards and gifts from the Chinese merchants in return for favourable treatment by government officials. It was also pointed out that another of Duyet's men was himself a businessman who had a Chinese agent. At the time, southern Vietnam was producing rice in plentiful quantities but export was banned by Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng, but prices in Vietnam, which were lower than those overseas, kept rising by 50Ã¢ÂÂ100% in various parts of the country in five years. In the meantime, the opium supply kept on increasing. It was thought that Chinese merchants, whom DuyÃ¡Â»Ât patronised, were illegally exporting rice at higher prices, and then bringing back opium during return journeys along with incoming immigrants. For his part, the general disagreed with the prevailing view held by the emperor, and said that people of both races were engaging in illegal trading, as well as blaming the incoming immigrants' personal addictions rather than the Chinese merchants for bringing in opium. The historian Nola Cooke said that Duyet's viewpoint was more plausible and speculated that the emperor's stance was borne more out of a fear of the consequences of a disproportionate Chinese influence on the country than the reality of illegal trading. DuyÃ¡Â»Ât wanted to further give tax concessions to newly arrived Chinese immigrants that were deemed to be impoverished to encourage immigration and speed up development of the region, something that the emperor was sceptical of, on the reasoning that it was difficult to genuinely determine who was in need and that the concession system was therefore open to rorting. Nevertheless, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât disobeyed Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng and tax concessions were granted. Because of their involvement in the illegal exportation of rice and importation of opium, Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng tried to ban the Chinese from engaging in sea trade in 1827, but this was easily circumvented by the merchants, who exploited their contacts with DuyÃ¡Â»Ât and used fraudulent registrations, often under the name of Vietnamese wives. It was not until DuyÃ¡Â»Ât died that Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng was able to crack down on fraudulent sea trade.

For a time, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's attitude and stature in the south forced Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng to moderate his policies and allow the preaching of Christian missionaries. However, it also increased the tension between the pair and Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng was anxious to curtail the autonomy that his father had granted to DuyÃ¡Â»Ât and the southerners. The emperor began to slowly wind back their military powers, in an attempt to wear down DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's power base by gradually removing the general's close aides.

In 1821, Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng sent two of his aides from central Vietnam to serve as education officials in the south. One of the objectives was that they would oversee the imperial examination process and education system, which would allow them to determine who would serve in the government as mandarins and therefore fill the southern ranks with men acceptable to the court. However, their attempts were either blocked or circumvented by DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's incumbent officials and they returned to the capital two years later in failure. In 1823, one of DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's closest subordinates Tran Nhat Vinh, was indicted by one of Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng's officials from HuÃ¡ÂºÂ¿, who charged him with trading rice on the black market and operating a brothel. DuyÃ¡Â»Ât put a stop to the legal proceedings and angrily tried to turn the tables, calling on the emperor to execute the accusing official. This ended in a stalemate, but a few years later, Vinh was transferred to northern Vietnam and later imprisoned while Duyet was unable to do anything about the matter in the south; Vinh's position was taken by one of the emperor's men. In 1826, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât resisted the removal of a regional official by the palace, leading the emperor to criticise him in a proclamation declaring that court appointments came under the purview of HuÃ¡ÂºÂ¿. The following year, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât executed convicted criminals without informing the capital, leading the emperor to criticise him again, saying that "the ultimate authority to decide questions of life and death belongs to the court."

In 1829, Duyet suffered another blow when Nguyen Van Thoai, an ally whom he appointed to run Cambodia for him died. The general nominated another subordinate to replace his colleague Nguyen Van Xuan, but Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng overruled him and instead appointed one of his mandarins Bui Minh Duc to the post. Although the emperor formally asked Duc to cooperate with Duyet, Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng then appointed Duc to the post of Minister of the Board of War, putting him above the general in the chain of command, effectively making Duyet irrelevant with regards to the running of the protectorate. In 1831, just before Duyet's death, Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng began to dismantle his military infrastructure and sending his component units to other parts of Vietnam, and sent a loyalist General Nguyen Van Khue to Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh, allowing him to dilute the viceroy's power. In addition, no government reports could be officially approved and sent to the capital until it was countersigned by civil officials sent south by the emperor. These moves against southern autonomy gradually increased the resentment and regionalist sentiments among the local population.

Family and personal life

LÃÂª VÃÂn DuyÃ¡Â»Ât had a wife named ÃÂÃ¡Â»Â ThÃ¡Â»Â PhÃ¡ÂºÂn. Apart from LÃÂª VÃÂn KhÃÂ´i, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât had another adopted son named LÃÂª VÃÂn YÃ¡ÂºÂ¿n who had married princess Ngoc Nghien, a daughter of Gia Long.

DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was typically described as a stern, hot-tempered but fair man, which made him both feared and respected by people. Many lower-level bureaucrats and military officers were loath to speak to him directly, as were some higher officials. Some later accounts have portrayed his strict ways in a more negative light. According to the later imperial official Phan Thuc Truc, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât sometimes fatally beat dogs and beheaded senior local officials for no reason. DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was also regarded as an eccentric; he raised 30 members of the Montagnard hill tribes to act as servants, and kept exactly 100 chickens and 100 dogs at his home. Whenever he returned to his official residence after an assignment, he ordered a tiger and 50 dogs to march after him. In 1825, Michel-Duc Chaigneau, the nephew of Gia Long's French military mandarin Jean-Baptiste Chaigneau, visited Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh on a government mission and said that DuyÃ¡Â»Ât "has great talent both in battle and administration. People fear him, but he is heartily loved by people here because he is fair."

He was also famous for his love of cockfighting, hÃÂ¡t bÃ¡Â»Âi (Vietnamese classical opera) and court dancing, all of which were popular with the common Vietnamese southerner. He reportedly gave a long speech praising cockfighting, in a joking manner, to Emperor Gia Long and sometimes beat the drum himself in order to encourage the actors and actresses of the hÃÂ¡t bÃ¡Â»Âi troupes when they were performing for him. He was also known for his patronage of goddess spirits that were popularly venerated by local southerners in folk religions. In addition, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was the instructor of three ÃÂÃÂ¬nh formalities, a code of ceremonial conduct and customs that were copies of royal rituals.

George Finlayson, a representative of the British government who visited Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh in 1822, described DuyÃ¡Â»Ât as a man who liked to dress plainly, almost in a manner similar to his peasant constituents. Finlayson said that DuyÃ¡Â»Ât "has an intelligent look, and may be esteemed to possess considerable activity both of mind and body: his face is round and soft, his features flabby and wrinkled; he has no beard, and bears considerable resemblance to an old woman: his voice, too, is shrill and feminine."

DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's informal manner caused him difficulties during Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng's administration, as the second emperor's government was more oriented towards classical Confucianism than that of his father. The younger mandarins regarded DuyÃ¡Â»Ât and his southern entourage as uncultured, and the older military officials felt more uncomfortable in the court as time went by. Gia Long was also seen a direct and frank man in his dealings, while Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng was seen as being vague in expressing his thoughts to his bureaucrats. This was attributed to Gia Long's dependence on military officers during the war years, which required him to be blunt and assertive, whereas Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng grew up dealing with court scholars after the establishment of the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân dynasty, and was regarded as a quiet and studious monarch. After a visit to the capital in 1824, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât found the imperial court to be an uncomfortable surrounding and confided in a colleague:

DuyÃ¡Â»Ât and fellow southern general Le Chat then resigned their positions, but the emperor rejected their offers. DuyÃ¡Â»Ât wanted a post in the capital, but was not given one, in part of suspicions among the court that the general could launch a palace coup, not unlike many insurrections in Vietnam's past. DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was sent back to southern Vietnam, far from the royal seat.

Death and legacy

On 30 July 1832, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât died in the Citadel of Saigon at the age of 68. He was buried at BÃÂ¬nh HÃÂ²a, Gia ÃÂÃ¡Â»Ânh (present day Ho Chi Minh City). His tomb was called LÃÂng ÃÂng BÃÂ ChiÃ¡Â»Âu ("Tomb of the Marshal in Ba Chieu") by the local people.

DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's death opened the way for Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng to apply his policies in the south, as the viceroy's subordinates lacked the influence to defy the court. The emperor also tried to reduce DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's followersÃ¢ÂÂ political power by abolishing the post of viceroy and putting the south under his direct rule, thus making DuyÃ¡Â»Ât the last holder of the post. Soon after DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's death, Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng's new appointees arrived and took over the local administration. The new officials then launched an investigation and reported that DuyÃ¡Â»Ât and his aides had engaged in corrupt and abusive practices.

As a result, Bach Xuan Nguyen, who led the investigation, ordered the posthumous humiliation of DuyÃ¡Â»Ât. This resulted in the desecration of his tomb, the execution of sixteen relatives, and the arrests of his colleagues. Minh MÃ¡ÂºÂ¡ng's attitude led Duyet's adopted son Khoi to break out of prison and start a revolt against the emperor on 10 May 1833.

After suppressing the revolt, which was supported by a Siamese invasion, lasted three years and briefly took control of the south, the emperor had DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's tomb desecrated and had a stele with the inscription "ÃÂÃÂ¢y chÃ¡Â»Â tÃÂªn lÃ¡ÂºÂ¡i cÃÂ¡i lÃ¡Â»Âng quyÃ¡Â»Ân LÃÂª VÃÂn DuyÃ¡Â»Ât chÃ¡Â»Âu phÃÂ©p nÃÂ°Ã¡Â»Âc" ("Here lies the eunuch LÃÂª VÃÂn DuyÃ¡Â»Ât who resisted the law") placed over the ruins. The tomb remained in disrepair until the reign of next emperor, ThiÃ¡Â»Âu TrÃ¡Â»Â, who rehabilitated DuyÃ¡Â»Ât and restored his tomb. Then, Emperor TÃ¡Â»Â± ÃÂÃ¡Â»Â©c turned the tomb into a national monument.

After the establishment of the colony of Cochinchina, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was continuously venerated despite French policies of dismantling the Vietnamese imperial system and its ritual customs. DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's yearly celebrations were attended by politicians of Cochinchina. This was allowed to continue despite a legend in southern Vietnam that DuyÃ¡Â»Ât had appeared in the dreams of Nguyen Trung Truc, a fisherman who famously led a peasant army against French colonization, and advised him on how to fight foreigners. In 1937, thanks to donations from a number of colonial government officials and members of the business elite, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's tomb was renovated and extended. Under South Vietnamese rule, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was considered a great national hero and his image appeared on banknotes, while prominent streets were named after him. In contrast, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was held in low regard by the current Vietnamese Communist Party government because of his role in the expansion of French influence in Vietnam, in line with the communist designation of the NguyÃ¡Â»Ân dynasty as "feudal" and "reactionary". After the fall of Saigon in 1975, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's tomb became dilapidated because of the lack of state maintenance and streets named in his honour were renamed. This attitude remained unchanged until 2008, when the current government had DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's tomb renovated and allowed a play portraying his life to be performed publicly.

Nevertheless, DuyÃ¡Â»Ât is widely regarded by southern Vietnamese people as the most important local hero. Choi described DuyÃ¡Â»Ât's popularity as follows: "No matter whether they are indigenous Vietnamese or Chinese settlers, Buddhists or Christians, residents of Saigon have long paid enthusiastic tribute to one favorite southern, local heroÃ¢ÂÂLÃÂª VÃÂn DuyÃ¡Â»ÂtÃ¢ÂÂwhose gorgeous shrine is located on Dinh Tien Hoang Street in Binh Thanh District. You will not able to find any other place in HuÃ¡ÂºÂ¿ or Hanoi where the residents, regardless of ethnic or religious backgrounds, regard their own local hero with such reverence".

In popular culture

LÃÂª VÃÂn DuyÃ¡Â»Ât, along with Nguyen Van Truong, Nguyen Van Nhon, Nguyen Huynh Duc and Truong Tan Buu (all of them were NguyÃ¡Â»Ân ÃÂnh's generals) was called NgÃÂ© hÃ¡Â»Â tÃÂ°Ã¡Â»Âng ("Five Tiger Generals") in Vietnamese folk culture. Moreover, people usually regard DuyÃ¡Â»Ât as ÃÂÃ¡Â»Â©c TÃ¡ÂºÂ£ QuÃÂ¢n ("His Honorable Left Division's Marshal"), following the office of TÃ¡ÂºÂ£ QuÃÂ¢n ("Marshal of NguyÃ¡Â»Ân dynasty Army's Left Division") which DuyÃ¡Â»Ât was the holder for a time. LÃÂª VÃÂn DuyÃ¡Â»Ât High School in Saigon was named after him.

To Europeans, he has been known as "Great Eunuch."

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