My journey back to Huế and its past

January 2008
It has been 54 years since I came for the first time to the Ancient City of Huế, and the year was 1954. I was born in Hanoi 4 years earlier but went south after the Geneva Accord splitting Vietnam into North and South. Our family left Hanoi and settled in Huế, the place my father grew up in the An Cưu district and the home of the Nguyễn Đăng family. We stayed there for less than a year under precarious conditions, and moved to Tourane (Đà Nẵng) and finally to Saigon in 1957.

My childhood memory of this place was fragmentary at best, filled with blurred sights of our grandfather's residence. It was a beautiful and solid mansion situated a few miles south of the Imperial City walls where he worked as a Court mandarin under the Nguyễn dynasty. I do remember An Cựu, especially its dormant and unpretentious river, flowing close next to the front garden. I went swimming there during the lazy siestas and dreaded the leeches sticking to my skinny body every time I went down the river bank for a splash.

Nowadays An Cựu has notably expanded in size, with a bustling market which makes the river look even more narrow. On our second day upon arrival, my partner Hoà and I went to Cung An Định, a catchy yellow palace built in 1906 by Emperor Thành Thái. We didn't go in but instead went knocking at the gate of another residence a few houses down the road. We wanted to find the whereabouts of my family property. Inside we met the owner, an 80 year-old lady with aristocratic demeanor and immaculate traits that didn't betray her age. In a soft voice she introduced herself as princess Mẫn, a niece of Đồng Khánh, the 9th emperor of Annam.

We were led into the altar room displaying the pictures of her uncle Đồng Khánh and other members of the Nguyễn royalty, i.e emperor Bảo Đại, and his eldest son Bảo Long. ''My main duty'', she confided, ''is to commemorate their life and uphold their memory.'' Seeing the portrait of the handsome Bao Long in military regalia, I dared ask about him. '' His Imperial Highness just passed away last year in Paris'' she replied. Each year she organized a family reunion to celebrate their memory in An Cựu with members of the Nguyễn imperial family.

Ten years after the disappearance of Bảo Đại in 1997, the pretender to the throne also died at the age of 71 in France. Crown Prince Bảo Long was born in 1936 in Huế. Unlike his father Bảo Đại, a reputed womanizer, he was of a different character, unassuming and serious to the point of austerity. He was in open conflict with his father during the years they spent in exile. Physically and mentally he was closer to his mother, Empress Nam Phương who had high expectation of their oldest son to one day rule Vietnam.

In 1954, by the own account of Nguyễn Mộng Điệp the first mistress of Bảo Đại, Ngô Đình Diệm the main pretender to lead South Vietnam after the Geneva Accord, concocted a plan to win over the Nguyễn dynasty. Without notifying Bảo Đại, he approached Empress Nam Phương asking her to return to South Vietnam and perform the role of Queen Regent. Bảo Long the heir to the throne would then be declared as the new emperor, Bảo Đại's time having long expired in the eyes of Diem. The attractive offer led Nam Phương to go on packing and ready to leave. Her thinking of having Bảo Long becoming the next sovereign at the helm of the nation would be the climax of a dream fulfilled.

Diem always behaved like the perfect traditionalist, having dutifully served (and quit) under Bảo Đại's rule in 1932. He had a profound respect and liking for the Empress which makes his plan even more credible. Unfortunately, the plan never materialized. Perhaps Diem had his wings already well spread over South Vietnam and with his self confidence on the rise, he changed his mind, or it was just a trick with the American acquiescence. The whole episode left an aftertaste of betrayal for the Bảo Đại camp and gave Diem an image of a calculated usurper. Had Bảo Long been able to occupy the throne, Vietnam would have had another chance as a constitutional monarchy, following his father's abdication in 1945.

Rest in peace beloved Prince and harbor no regret. From your Enlightened Tower and with your innocent lenses, the Land of the Dragon was in fact a decrepit world in a distant planet, unfathomable and unforgiving. It would probably make your fate no brighter than your father's in the eyes of History.

Cycling along the An Cựu river, we finally arrived at the site of my grandfather's villa. After much asking around to no avail, it appears that the place had disappeared. The road next to the river and the whole area are packed with mingling merchants and people on their daily routine, and our bicycles could hardly clear a path. Dwellings, roads and river melted into one. The An Cựu river shore is eaten up and its opaque filthy water seems to flow from a large ditch.

I recall the high walls around a massive gate entrance with bougainvillea flower plants on top, heading towards a double stairways that led to the main reception room of an elegant and sturdy mansion. For an innocent lad, time stood still during those days, a peaceful and quiet place to live, in an idyllic environment, far from the anxiety of adulthood. It was a rude awakening that our grandparents estate is now just a pile of rubbish, chaotic beyond words to describe. A new apartment building in tacky blue color competes and wrestles with sagging shelters for the same space. What's left from the old glorious villa? Only part of the kitchen roof and some traces of the concrete foundation are left protruding.

My return to Huế served 2 main motives. First, a trans-Vietnamese north-south journey to refresh myself with the past by visiting the different cities I have spent part of my childhood. From Hanoi, the craddle city I came to life, passing through Hué, the sentimental spot of my early years, and finally Saigon, the last leg of my displacements before I left in 1968. And second, to retrace my grandfather's past shedding some light into his illustrious career we heard about but hardly knew.

We checked into a government run hotel called Thành Nội , situated next to the Imperial Fortress itself. December and January are the best months to visit Huế, the weather seems to cool down markedly and the sun is ever present . In the evening, the hotel spacious courtyard was more than pleasant , with a pagoda-like pillared pavilion intended as a restaurant where guests could sip a coconut drink or have a light meal watching the sunset vanishing beneath the fortified walls of the Imperial City.

We made acquaintance with 2 French couples during one of the visit to Minh Mạng tomb outside of the Imperial City. They came to Huế for sightseeing after a tour of North Vietnam and stayed at our hotel. Both of them were retired commanding officers in the French Army. We became close friends since then. We even went to visit them in France afterward. That evening we got together, in the second day of our stay and having a long and protracted meal in the courtyard, the six of us. The aromatic quality of Vietnamese cuisine seems to create consensus among people, local and foreign, a good manner to lighten any topic of discussion when it becomes too hard pursuing.

Huế's raison d'être is historically connected to the Nguyễn dynasty which came into being with Gia Long, its founder who started his reign in 1802. After Gia Long's death in 1820, Minh Mạng his second son came to power. His reign lasted 21 years and was the high point of the whole dynasty. He was infused with the sacred mission of empowering and solidifying the monarchy. Imbued by Confucian doctrine but possessing an inner drive, he launched a vast program of revitalizing the machinery of state, from top to bottom and created a kind of administration equal to his image as a dynamic and effective sovereign.

Minh Mạng had a very clear objective: strengthening the institutions of the land-which he renamed Đại Nam (the big South)-in order to defend it against foreign influence, a clear message to expansionist powers like France, Britain and even the USA, that he meant business. He was dead set against the pernicious influence of Christianity, having been in Court well before becoming emperor, and observing the precarious position of Gia Long who had to rely on France to unify Vietnam after years of civil war against the Tây Sơn clan.

His tomb at 12 km from Huế on the west bank of the Perfume River exemplifies the perfect combination of harmony, beauty and grandeur. Harmony deriving from the concept of ''phong thủy'' (geomancy) or landscape optimization, whereby man made undertaking and nature magnificence coexist, creating an environment of peace and serenity. Beauty as an unrelenting quest from people of learning with an innate sense of Esthetics. And grandeur for autocrats like him, lusting for power and relishing eternal greatness.

A few observations about the three royal tombs I visited in Huế. Minh Mạng, like emperor Tự Đức and Khải Định, planned well in advance his burial site when he just came to the throne in 1820. He personally commissioned his courtiers to search for a site 6 years into his reign and it took until 1840, 14 years later to find a suitable location. These rulers wanted to demonstrate that whatever accomplishments they made during their reign should be extended beyond. There should be a continuum, as their lifetime achievements inevitably fell short of their own expectations . As a corollary, the worse their reign turned out to be, the more sumptuous their tomb would be achieved.

Minh Mạng tomb's overview resembles a butterfly with its unevenly spread wings splitting an idyllic lake in 2 equal halves. As visitors, we first encounter the Đại Hồng Môn Gate, a three door main entrance. The Emperor's corpse went through the middle door on his burial day and it had been closed since. Only the left and right doors remain open to the public. Beyond the Đại Hồng Môn, we contemplate a leveled honor courtyard lined up with life size civilian, military courtiers and animal statues: elephants, horses, even dragon under an iron cupola in one corner.

At the end of the courtyard lie straight ahead the stairs leading up to the stele pavilion, on a mound, square and well proportioned. Passing through it, we face the Hiền Đức Gate, mounted by a miniature balcony, an exquisite and endearing site! Still walking directly ahead, we now face the Sùng Ân Temple, a majestic ensemble for its width, with marvelous yellowish tiles on its roof, with red portico and golden painted supports.

Comes across another gate, the Hoàng Trạch and in front on higher ground, the Minh Lâu Pavilion surges ahead so that we could reach through the Trung Đạo bridge dividing an inviting pond filled with lotus and marine plants. And finally, in a distance we could contemplate the richly decorated gateway that invites the mysterious Emperor's tomb on a mound, surrounded by a tall circular wall. Like the Forbidden City, here lies the undisturbed resting place of Minh Mạng. A visitor's pilgrimage comes to an end and begins an off limit paradise reserved for a king.

It took 3 years from 1840 to 1843 and 5000 coolies to finish the building project and one could imagine the direct hand of the Emperor behind its design during the last year of his reign. What struck me was the basic geometrical lines of the whole architecture. Circular, square and rectangular lines are the rule and even the stylish roofs are not so convoluted compared to most other pagodas or temples. The basic underlying tenant of Minh Mạng mausoleum is the straight line, from the main entrance to the final burial site. Straightforwardness, simplicity, symmetry, serenity and strength. What a classic example of harmony and lasting beauty! Well done Majesty.

Emperor Tự Đức's tomb is no less spectacular by its sheer size and elaborate construction. Located in a narrow valley, 8km from Huế, it was built also to reflect the personality of this monarch. With a complex and refined ensemble of monuments and buildings, more than 50, the place matched his longing for tranquility and isolation, far away from the animated Court with its artifice and superficial practices. He built the place not only as a burial site but to spend time there, an oasis for hunting or fishing, reading or writing poetry.

The lush vegetation, placid water and an atmosphere of eerie tranquility made it the ideal place for a royal retreat. Frangipani trees the ''flowers of temples'' standing guard among the wandering souls vie for their best spot. But the undertaking was built with blood and tears from 4000 coolies who sacrificed their lives during 3 years. It triggered the Chày Vôi revolt which consequently forced Tự Đức to change its name from Vạn Niên Cơ to Khiêm Cung or Modesty Palace. The Emperor knew how to spin and care about his image. The entire surrounding does breath an air of decay and decrepitude with moss grown monuments, eroding surface and fading paint. It makes the site an emblematic and apt metaphor of his reign.

Upon entering the compound through the main gate, the visitor walks down a long path paved with ceramics from Bát Tràng, the finest in Vietnam. The Lưu Khiêm Lake is on the right with the Xung Khiêm Pavilion well entrenched on its shore. Beyond the Tiên Khiêm bridge, Emperor Kiến Phúc's tomb looms ahead in a corner of the vast domain, in its simple and solemn surrounding walls. It was a modest tomb indeed for a modest short lived emperor.

Tự Đức mausoleum is preceded by the huge stele inside a pavilion which contains his famous epitaph Khiêm Cung Ký, a 4935 words summary of his reign. It's a 22 tons stone tablet which took 4 years to transport from the quarry to its final destination. Beyond life, the Emperor seemed resolute to justify his actions with contrition and remorse. And the story of his tomb took an interesting twist. In fact, his body was not buried there for fear of being desecrated. And rumors were circulating that he brought down his treasure with him to be hidden somewhere while 200 workers assigned on his burial site were beheaded keeping the secret of his whereabouts intact.

Up to Minh Mạng and Thiệu Trị era, the second and third reign of the Nguyễn, unified Vietnam was under control, with law and order maintained and an administration performing its tasks unperturbed. With Tự Đức, the fourth reign and those of his three successive sons, Dục Đức, Hiệp Hoà and Kiến Phúc, the nation was swept into an unprecedented period of turbulence and tragedy, one of the heart-wrenching parts of Vietnamese history. Historians are unanimous to conclude that Vietnam's fortune as a nation began to unravel and it lost its independence then. The episode demonstrates an inescapable fact: one needs looking no further to find all the nonsenses of the monarchist regime.

Tự Đức maintained the longest rule of the Nguyễn, from 1847 to 1883. After him, his three adopted sons didn't last a year altogether. Dục Đức, his immediate successor lasted 3 days, Hiệp Hoà 3 months 29 days and Kiến Phúc 6 months 29 days. It was the ''Tứ Nguyệt Tam Vương'' calendar (3 kings in 4 months). Incidentally, the list of world monarchs with the shortest reign in history is revealing. Vietnam holds the world record in 2 categories: 8 kings reigned less than a year and 3 kings reigned less than a week.

His Majesty Tự Đức like his predecessors, maintained the political orthodoxy line: a staunch imported Confucianism i.e unflinching opposition to foreigners and innovation. That type of ultra-conservatism was nurtured by his father Thiệu Trị, himself molded by his own father Minh Mạng to uphold absolutism and divine rule. No deviation from the rigid and perennial values of one man rule is imaginable. These were the code of conduct of ancient Vietnam, fashioned by an obscurantist and xenophobic attitude elevated as a model i.e an ideology for the whole elite class.

Tự Đức was a sensitive and an obedient son to his parents, and an accomplished poet with deep subtle knowledge of Confucian philosophy. The unfortunate part of his life which already decided his miserable rule was his poor health. Physically he's a wreck and emotionally he's unstable which makes him a pathological whiner. His existence was a litany of misfortunes. From early illness, which brought him family setbacks (being unable to have children), followed by internal revolts and finally foreign invasion by the French, culminating with the loss of territorial integrity, the ultimate humiliation. Shakespeare couldn't have found a better subject for his plays.

The disastrous reign he led was described in his epitaph that he wrote it himself, a bad omen for a ruler who has no family successor. He described his failures which were numerous and boasted his successes which were few. His epitaph filling the 2 sides of the enormous bearing inscription on his burial site, betrayed a shortsighted and indecisive leader, hampered by prejudice. He surrounded himself with inept and manipulative mandarins, lusting for power. His writings, beautiful as they are, were a therapeutic exercise of mea culpa, begging his subjects for forgiveness. The low prospect for his adopted offsprings sank even further after his demise.

Married at 15, he had subsequently many wives but was unable to procreate due to smallpox which kept him impotent. Since 1865, he was planning already for his succession by selecting 3 nephews as potential candidates: Ưng Thi born 1864, later as emperor Đồng Khánh, Ưng Ái, born in 1853, the name changed to Ưng Chân, who became his successor in 1883 as Dục Đức and Ưng Đăng, born in 1869, becoming emperor Kiến Phúc that same year.

His rule coincided with the start of French invasion and occupation in Vietnam. In 1858, the French navy attacked Đà Nẵng, assaulted Gia Định and three cities of the Eastern region, forcing Tự Đức through his envoy Phan Thanh Giản, an illustrious imperial officer to sign a peace treaty in 1862. While the fighting went on and kept worsening, Tự Đức stubbornly hung in the hope that his troops would reverse the setbacks and was in no mood to compromise with the invaders.

In July 1867, France succeeded in occupying the remaining cities in the west of Cochin China and Phan Thanh Giản his trusted adviser committed suicide. Tự Đức expressed his remorse and went into despair. He wrote in his epitaph:'' My body was sicker each day and my mind numb... Sitting or lying down would make me no less bitter... My face became more pale and wretched. Although not yet 40, my hair already turned white as an old man... I can only pray God in Heaven to finish my task for I didn't get much help from mortals so far...''

Sensing his tenure as a foregone disaster, Tự Đức was obsessed to find a suitable successor to redress the calamitous situation the country was in. He personally wrote a report card for each of the adopted sons. Ưng Chân, the oldest appeared more acceptable although Tự Đức didn't seem enthusiastic about his choice. He wrote '' Ưng Chân obviously is ahead in his studies and adulthood, but his inadequate eyesight may hamper his foresight! And with a promiscuous instinct, this may not be a good sign to fulfill the affairs of state... although the realm is in dire need for a mature person. What can I do? '' The emperor didn't mention the fact that his own mother Từ Dũ has put her support behind the choice of Ưng Chân.

Her Imperial Highness Từ Dũ was highly respected by Tự Đức and the whole Court. She typified the behind the scene regal spouse with the grace and authority to have her own opinion heard on all subjects related to the kingdom. So much so that Tự Đức wrote down her sayings into a book (Từ Huấn Lục), as food for thought. She made unvarnished observations about the dealings of court officials: '' Since forever, greed was their main motivation, a disease no one seemed to find an effective remedy. A public administration that hurts rather than helps its people. And a title at the Royal Court became an open license for personal enrichment. If that wealth didn't belong to the masses, where did it come from?'' With all her wisdom and maternal devotion, she was in no position to reproduce leadership and talent out of rotten blue blood.

A few days before his death, Tự Đức committed another mistake that proved fatal to his successor. On July 17, 1883, his inner circle met to clarify and confirm Ưng Chân as the next ruler. Many officials have reservations about the written report the emperor made criticizing the crown prince i.e his lack of character and his inability to become a good monarch. They wanted to erase the few negative lines that would unduly burden the next ruler. But to the amazement of his entourage, he insisted to keep his statement intact as a reminder for the future king! And that should be read publicly on the enthroning day!

Two days after Tự Đức's death, the royal Court assembled to formally crown Ưng Chân as emperor Dục Đức. Trần Tiễn Thành, a regent official read the defunct's decree about the new monarch, as no one dared to volunteer . At the critical paragraph, he started to cough loudly and tried to conceal the controversial part from the attendance. He didn't realize he fell into a trap set up by some members in the Court that were dead set against Ưng Chân as the new ruler, namely Tôn Thất Thuyết and Nguyễn Văn Tường.

Thuyết, the minister of defense, an infamous and inveterate court intriguer, along with his associate Tường the unscrupulous minister of state, were just waiting for this mishap to happen. Thuyết jumped onto Thành's omission and decried it as maneuver to enthrone an inept king. He had Dục Đức detained along those who supported the new king. The whole scene was obviously been planned well in advance. It was a palace coup from the traditionalists who resisted any negotiated solution with the French. Just 3 days after being nominated, Dục Đức's tenure came to an abrupt end. Thuyết and Tường ordered the deposed king to be poisoned and put to death, but they didn't succeeded.

Dục Đức with all his character failings was the best choice under the circumstances. His sacking was more a sign of deep division and infighting among the Court officials, between those who supported a conciliatory approach towards the French, chief among them was the new emperor himself, and the warmongers who preached armed resistance. Having the audacity to learn French and neglecting the Confucian lessons, his liberal mind and his openness to Western ideas were too much for the ultra conservatives like Thuyết and Tường. They saw Ưng Chân thrust to the throne as a conspiracy of the French and their secret agents inside the Court.

The deposed king languished in a prison cell and died of mistreatment and hunger. While his life hung by a thread, one guard soldier having pity for the ex monarch did secretly feed him with some palms of rice and water Dục Đức had to press from an tattered shirt. When the soldier's complicit behavior was denounced, the dethroned emperor miserably succumbed out of deprivation. His emaciated body was wrapped inside a straw mat (chiếu) and carried away by two guards, to be buried in An Cựu, near the Tường Quang pagoda. On the way, the improvised coffin snapped and his corpse fell on the ground. Well after his death, his son Thành Thái became emperor in 1889. The tragic saga of a miserable king was put to rest for the last time. His remains were solemnly entombed at a place king Thành Thái named An Lăng (the tomb of eternal rest).

The Thuyết-Tường duo was again scrambling to find another candidate for the vacated throne. Thuyết was leaning towards Hồng Dật, the 29th son of Thiệu Trị and half brother of Tự Đức. To make their selection process more credible, they submitted the idea to Empress Từ Dũ and asked for her support. She deflected the request with her reply: '' we are still mourning our beloved king while on the outside the invaders are getting closer, if people of your generation is unable to deal with the situation, what could I do with my old feeble body? You should choose whoever is suitable to be the next king!''

Having carte blanche and running out of time, Thuyết-Tường amassed the royal males and started the interview process. When Hồng Dật's turn came, he stood up and started crying: '' I am the youngest of my venerated King Father, with mediocre character, a thousand times I can't accept the offer!'' After much wrangling and begging from both sides, he was pronounced King with the name Hiệp Hoà. Being repeatedly threatened by the 2 conspirators and king makers Thuyết and Tường, Hiệp Hoà made a last ditch attempt to make them arrested with the help of French officials. He was forced to commit suicide (on November 29th, 1883) when the plan was uncovered. His reign lasted less than 4 months. Regent official Nguyễn Tiễn Thành who protested this second destitution move by the Thuyết faction, was also murdered that same night.

After the extermination of Hiệp Hoà, Nguyễn Văn Tường's choice Ưng Đăng became the new emperor, Kiến Phúc. He was the youngest of the three adopted sons of Tự Đức. He took the throne at the age of 14, giving Thuyết and Tường de facto power at the Court. It was during his reign that Vietnam formally lost its independence, by the Patenôtre Treaty of June 6, 1884. Vietnam was divided into three administrative regions, Tonkin (North), Annam (Centre) and Cochinchina (South). Then Kiến Phúc suddenly and suspiciously died on July 31, 1884. His reign lasted less than 7 months. The heart breaking epic of ''4 moons and 3 kings'' came to an end. His remains lay inside the surroundings of Tự Đức tomb.

The last site we visited belongs to Khảỉ Định's. He was the 12th emperor, from 1916 to 1925. His tomb is located on the Châu Ê mountain, 10km from Huế. It duly reflects the personality of the monarch, with a blend of Hindu, Gothic, Roman, Buddhist sculpture, an amalgam he cherished. It's a perfect model of a mausoleum, massively constructed and of reasonable small size compared to others. The visitor just climbs up, 127 steps reaching the main honor courtyard , followed by another 37, before reaching the main entrance to the burial site.

The interior decor resembles a museum filled with exhibit artifacts, surrounded by splendid tiled walls, alongside guild bronze and gold statues of the emperor. The whole decoration looked a bit tacky in a surrealist and dubious style inspired by an obviously narcissistic character. Khải Định was no hero in Vietnam, past and present. He's considered a puppet king, weird, weak and at the mercy of the colonialist French, as many of the Nguyễn's rulers were.

Paradoxically, as shabby as their legacy was, without the monuments, palaces and magnificent tombs the city of Huế inherits from its loathed royal rulers, History's verdict on the Nguyễn dynasty would have been far worse.

Footnote:

On November 6, 1925 my grandfather Nguyễn Đăng Tam, in charge of the Cơ Mật (Privy Council) sent a telegram to French representative Pasquier that Khải Định has passed away that early morning. A few days later, he also informed Pasquier that prince Vĩnh Thụy, Khải Định unique son will be the next emperor as Bảo Đại, with Tôn Thất Hân as Regent. The reign of Bảo Đại (1926-1945), the 13th of the Nguyễn dynasty will be the last.