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Khai Dinh


Khai Dinh was the 12th Emperor of the Nguyen Dynasty, the last of the Vietnamese dynasties, from 1916 till his death. His name at birth was Prince Nguyen Buu Dao. He was the son of the Dong Khanh Emperor, but did not succeed him to the throne immediately. After the Dong Khanh era came the eras of Thanh Thai and Duy Tan, both of whom were exiled by the French for their resistance to the colonial regime. After this trouble, the French decided to enthrone Buu Dao, as he was the son of the monarch who was the most submissive Nguyen collaborator with the colonial regime, standing with the French colonizers and opposing any independence movements.

Nguyen Buu Dao became "Emperor of Annam" in 1916, after the exile of Duy Tan (Nguyen Vinh San) and took the name Khai Dinh for his reign, meaning "auger of peace and stability". He said he wanted to restore the prestige of the empire, but this was not possible with his close collaboration with the French occupiers. Although not satisfied with his position, Khai Dinh enacted a policy of close collaboration with the French government, following all of their instructions to give 'legitimacy' to French policies.

Because of this, Khai Dinh was very unpopular with the Vietnamese people. The nationalist leader Phan Chu Trinh accused him of selling out his country to the French and living in imperial luxury while the people were exploited by France. Nguyen Ai Quoc (later known as Ho Chi Minh) wrote a play about Khai Dinh called "The Bamboo Dragon" that ridiculed him as being all grand appearance and ceremony but a powerless puppet of the French in government.

Emperor Khai Dinh suffered poor health and became a drug addict. His only son was Prince Nguyen Vinh Thuy, who he sent to France to be raised and educated. When he died, most Vietnamese people were totally unconcerned aside from one or two monarchist-funded papers. His tomb, a mixture of French and Vietnamese architecture, is symbolic of his nominal reign.


In 1925, Emperor Khai Dinh died and his son Prince Nguyen Vinh Thuy (Bao Dai) succeeded as the Son of Heaven.

Preceded:
Dong Khanh
Suceded:
Bao Dai

External links

  • Tomb of Emperor Khai Dinh http://www.orientalarchitecture.com/hue/KHAIDINH07.htm
  • Emperor Khai Dinh's tomb http://www.vietscape.com/travel/hue/khaidinh.html



Last updated: 02-09-2005 17:49:32
Last updated: 02-26-2005 04:59:47