Mạc Đăng Dung

Mạc Đăng Dung （Hán tự: posthumous name Mạc Thái Tổ Hán tự: 莫太祖; 1483？－1541) was a king of Vietnam and the founder of the Mac Dynasty. Previously the bodyguard of one of the Le Dynasty kings, he gradually rose to a position of great power. Mạc eventually deposed the last Le king and became king himself.

From Bodyguard to King

Mac Dang Dung got his start as a bodyguard to the cruel and depraved King of Vietnam, Le Uy Muc. Mac Dang Dung was famous for his strength and cunning. (For more information see the article on the Le Dynasty). Note that while some sources claim Mac Dang Dung was a Confucian Scholar (government administrator) this seems to be the result of confusion with another notable Vietnamese scholar whose family name was also Mac. Mac Dang Dung was a military man who rose through the ranks ("Vietnam, Trials and Tribulations of a Nation" D. R. SarDesai, p37, 1988).

Despite several assassinations (both Le Uy Muc and his successor Le Tuong Duc were assassinated) Mac Dang Dung continued to gain power and rank in the military. With the enthronment of the young king Le Chieu Tong in 1516, a power struggle in the court ensued. On the one side was Mac Dang Dung and his supporters (Mac was now the top general of the armies of Vietnam). On the other side were two noble families of Vietnam, the Trinh and the Nguyen, led by Nguyen Hoang Du and Trinh Duy Dai and Trinh Duy San.

Around 1520?, the power struggle broke into civil war. The young king fled south to Thanh Hoa province along with the Trinh and the Nguyen families. Mac Dang Dung soon proclaimed the king's younger brother, Prince Xuan, was now the true king of Vietnam and had him installed under the name Le Cung Hoang. Meanwhile, armies fought along the border of Thanh Hoa province.

In 1524, forces loyal to Mac Dang Dung captured and executed the original king Le Chieu Tong along with the leaders of the revolt (Nguyen Hoang Du, Trinh Duy Dai, and Trinh Duy San). The revolt by the Trinh and the Nguyen was defeated for the moment.

King Minh Duc

Three years later, in 1527, Mac Dang Dung removed and killed his figurehead king and proclaimed that now he was the king of Vietnam under the name Minh Duc. Using ruthless methods, he forced the Le officials to recognize his dynasty and he murdered the members of the Le family who still remained in the north. Some government officials committed suicide rather than acknowledge Mac Dang Dung as king, but others fled south and joined the resistance.

Yet another rebellion was launched, this time under the leadership of Nguyen Kim and his son-in-law Trinh Khiem. Appeals from the Trinh and Nguyen were made to the Chinese government to send in an army to remove the usurper. However Mac Dang Dung, using submissive behavior and many gifts, managed to obtain a temporary recognition of his rule from the Chinese government in 1528.

The killing of the Le King provoked unrest and the Trinh and the Nguyen revolted against the rule of Mac Dang Dung. Nominally the Trinh and the Nguyen were fighting on behalf of another Le king, "Le Trang Tong", but in reality, this king (and all future Le kings) had no power.

In 1529 Mac Dang Dung abdicated to his son, Mac Dang Doanh, (Vietnamese: Mạc Đăng Doanh) thus establishing his dynasty.

Retirement and Rule Again

Mac Dang Dung lived on as a retired king while his son had to deal with the continuing revolt by the Trinh and the Nguyen. His son was not the equal of his father and as a result of several defeats, he lost control of the provinces south of the Red River. In 1533, the Nguyen-Trinh army conquered the Winter Palace and proclaimed Lê Trang Tông the new Le King of Vietnam.

Adding to the problems of military defeats, an official Chinese delegation determined that Mac Dang Dung's usurpation was not justified and so, in 1537 a very large army was sent to restore the Le family to power. In the summer, with the Chinese invading the north, Dung's son Doanh died and so Dung resumed his former position as king.

Mac Dang Dung managed once again by skillful negotiation to parry the Chinese menace. The Chinese accepted him as ruler over a part of Vietnam while he claimed to accept Le rule over the southern part of Vietnam. The Chinese withdrew north without fighting. But the Nguyen and the Trinh refused to accept this division and so the war continued in the south.

Mac Dang Dung finally died in 1541 and was succeeded by his grandson Phuoc Hai.

Despite the Chinese recognition and his rule over much of Vietnam, later Vietnamese historians question the legitimacy of his reign. The usurpation by Mac Dang Dung split the kingdom, with the Mac dynasty reigning in the north, and the Le dynasty continuing in the south, supported by the Trinh Lords and the Nguyen Lords.

References

*Coedes, G. (1962). "The Making of South-east Asia." London: Cox & Wyman Ltd.
* [http://art-hanoi.com/toda/18.html Coins of Vietnam] - with historical context
* [http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Den/5908/history/glimpse.html A glimpse of Vietnamese History] - not completely reliable