Nguyen Anh
Nguyen Anh, 1762-1820
Overview of Chapter N : Contrasting political and economic crises in eighteen century Vietnam and France, this chapter narrates the life of the founder of the Nguyen dynasty in Vietnam and explores new historiography about Louis XVI, Versailles, and the debt crisis that helped precipitate the French Revolution. The chapter also specifically discusses the Tay Son Uprising, French colonialism in Asia, Chinese influence on Vietnamese culture, and conflicts between Buddhism and Confucianism in Vietnam.
additional resources and scholarship
Discussion Questions and Writing Prompts
1. Assess the extent to which Prince Canh was accepted at Versailles. How much difference did his being a child make?
2. This chapter discusses three kings: Rama I in Siam/Thailand, Louis XVI in France,and Gia Long in Dai Viet /Vietnam. What is the nature of kingship as measured by the reigns of these men?
3. Nguyen Anh fought a civil war for decades before winning the unification of Vietnam. Compare this experience with that of another extended civil war in history. What makes these wars so hard to win? Why do these wars linger in historical memory so much?
Classroom Activities:
1. Create a visual aid to explain Nguyen Anh's movements during the conflict with the Tay Son.
2. Using principles of Confucianism and feng shui, design a tomb complex for a Vietnamese king.
Links to New Scholarship
• Vu Hong Van, Nguyen Xuan Phong, and Pham Duy Hoang, "The Influence of Confucianism in the Law Code of the Nguyen Dynasty of Vietnam," Journal of Advances in Education and Philosophy, May 17, 2020, Open Access, Research Gate and Google Scholar, https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Vu_Van6/publication/341448448_The_Influence_of_Confucianism_in_the_Law_Code_of_the_Nguyen_Dynasty_of_Vietnam/links/5ec1d375a6fdcc90d67dfe97/The-Influence-of-Confucianism-in-the-Law-Code-of-the-Nguyen-Dynasty-of-Vietnam.pdf
Photo Gallery for chapter n
Map for Chapter N: This map by the author is in the print edition of the book and shows the important places in Southeast Asia to Nguyen Anh.
Map for Chapter N: This map by the author is in the print edition of the book and shows the five different invasion routes the Burmese took in against Siam in their 1785-1786 war.
In 1793, John Barrow visited modern Vietnam and recorded his impressions of its history and current situation. This is one of the illustrations from that book and one of the few depictions of the Tay Son. This water color was done by William Alexander.
From: John Barrow, A Voyage of Cochinchina in the Years 1792 and 1793 (London: T. Cadell and W. Davies, 1806), 285, Google Books.
The court at Versailles was quite taken with Nguyen Anh's eldest son, Prince Canh, in early spring 1787. This portrait of the prince shows him dressed in a very un-Vietnamese turban. Marie Antoinette's hairdresser Léonard created a new hairstyle, le chignon à la cochinchinoise, as a result of the prince's presence at the Palace.
"Prince Canh," oil painting, 1787, courtesy of Société des Missions étrangères de Paris, PHGCOM, and Wikimedia Commons. PHGCOM reports: "Own photograph made by Uploader at the Paris Foreign Missions Society, 2008."
These photographs will walk the viewer through Gia Long's burial complex. The complex consists of two major areas, which both follow a linear progression. The first area is the Temple Complex; the second is the Tomb Complex.
View 1a: The Temple Complex is accessed from this broad staircase, which is divided into three sections by four dragon balustrades.
Photograph courtesy of Erin and Connor Van Gessel, January 2013.
View 2a: At the top of the dragon staircase, there is viewing platform. This is the view from that platform, looking south. This view shows a large a lotus pond and some of the surrounding hills. These hills protect the site from evil spirits and showcases the site's feng shui.
Photograph courtesy of Erin and Connor Van Gessel, January 2013.