Emperor Đồng Khánh’s First State Letter (Quốc Thư 國書)

The period from 1883-1885 was a dramatic time in Vietnamese history. The troubles began with the passing of Nguyễn Dynasty Emperor Tự Đức, an emperor who had ruled for over 35 years.

In the two years that followed, four emperors would rise and fall before Emperor Đồng Khánh ascended the throne and ruled or for four years, a comparatively long reign in those troubled times.

Emperor Đồng Khánh thus brought some stability to the Nguyễn Dynasty, but the conditions in which he ruled were different from those of his predecessors.

Most importantly, shortly before ascending the throne, the French had defeated the Qing Dynasty in the Sino-French War, and in so doing, they forced the Qing to abandon their claim of suzerainty over the Nguyễn realm, thereby bringing to an end to a hierarchical political relationship that had been in place since the founding of the dynasty in 1802.

At the same time, the French made moves to extend their own control and influence into the affairs of the Nguyễn Dynasty. In the process, they established a new hierarchical relationship that was, at least at the conceptual level, very similar to the one that the Nguyễn had maintained with the Qing Dynasty.

This is something I’ve been thinking about as I’ve been reading documents from the Đồng Khánh era. Take for instance the following document. It is a “state letter” (quốc thư 國書) that Đông Khánh (supposedly) wrote and presented to the French officials in Vietnam at that time.

State letters were official letters between rulers that were used for different purposes, but in this instance it was for the newly crowned Emperor Đồng Khánh to thank the French.

In particular, in this letter, Đông Khánh thanks the French for their assistance in suppressing the unrest that had proceeded Đông Khánh’s ascension to the throne, unrest that Đông Khánh blames two court officials for instigating: Nguyễn Văn Tường and Tôn Thất Thuyết.

Similar to the style of the letters that earlier Nguyễn emperor’s sent to the Qing court, in this the letter Đông Khánh speaks in hierarchical terms, referring to France as “the precious kingdom” (quí quốc 貴國) and to his own kingdom as “the pitiful kingdom” (tệ quốc 敝國). In the following translation I have placed the word “precious” and “pitiful” in brackets, because I don’t think they were meant to be understood literally. Instead, they were polite/humble terms used to refer to someone else/oneself, respectively. Nonetheless, I put them in brackets so that readers can see when they appear in the text.

Finally, the more I look at documents from this period, the more I realize how different the Nguyễn Dynasty worldview was, and what a poor job all of us historians (in at least the past 80+ years) have done in seeking to understand the Nguyễn Dynasty worldview. I’m going to write more about this in the days and weeks ahead, but in the following translation I’ve highlighted words that were critical for the way Đồng Khánh saw the world, but which are no longer important today. These are the type of ideas/concepts that I would argue historians have not examined well, and haven’t made essential for understanding the past (but they are essential!!).

Let us know look at the state letter that Đồng Khánh presented to French officials in 1885.

Relying on [your] auspicious kindness [sủng linh 寵靈], the revered Altar to the Soil [and Grains] [tôn xã 尊社] has been protected, and the kingdom preserved [tồn quốc 存國] in the face of destruction [tang vong 喪亡]. Such great compassion [huệ 惠]! Thank you [kính tạ 敬謝]. Thank you.

Our [pitiful] kingdom [tệ quốc 敝國] and your [precious] kingdom [quí quốc 貴國] have long been fond of each other. At the time of the Restoration [trung hưng 中興] of the Eternal Forefather and Great Emperor [i.e., Gia Long], your [precious] kingdom truly provided much assistance. And right up to the time of the Sheltering Ancestor and Outstanding Emperor [i.e., Tự Đức], for more than 20 years we reached agreement and cultivated friendship. There was not a single dispute. This was witnessed by the myriad kingdoms [vạn quốc 萬國] All Under Heaven [Thiên hạ 天下].

兹者憑藉寵靈，保護尊社，存國於喪亡之餘，甚大惠也。敬謝敬謝，且敝國與貴國相好久矣。世祖高皇帝中興之初，貴國實多助焉，迨【】翼尊英皇帝，講好修睦二十餘年，毫無釁隙，此在天下萬國之所見聞也。

But unfortunately, August Heaven [Hoàng Thiên 皇天] did not take pity on my ancestors [Ngã hoàng khảo 我皇考], and suddenly discarded the terrain-and-cosmos [khu vũ 區宇]. The dominating officials [quyền thần 權臣], Nguyễn Văn Tường and Tôn Thất Thuyết, duplicitously usurped power [quốc bính 國柄] and acted recklessly. This year, on the 23rd day of the fifth lunar month, the capital was lost and the imperial carriage wandered adrift [thừa dư bá thiên 乘輿播遷]. These two men were truly the path to troubles [lệ giai 厲階].

Fortunately relying on your [precious] kingdom’s vast strength, and not bearing to see the line of succession broken and the land stolen, the people [nhân dân 人民] caused [sử 使] unworthy me [quả cung 寡躬] to ascend the throne, as the lord of the Altar of Soil and Grains [xã tắc chủ 社稷主].

不幸皇天弗弔我皇考，奄棄區宇，權臣阮文祥，尊室說等，假弄國柄，率意忘為。本年五月二十三日京城失守，乘輿播遷。此二人者，實為厲階。幸賴貴國恢弘之量，不忍絕其嗣，奪其土地，人民使寡躬入繼大位，為社稷主。

And thanks to [precious] Grand Minister Commander-in-chief de Courcy, Grand Minister Assistant Commander-in-chief Prudhomme, Grand Minister Imperial Emissary Champeaux, and Grand Minister and Minister of the Ministry of Personnel Sylvestre, all of whom made concerted and appropriate efforts, the mountains, rivers, grass and trees of Đại Nam can once again see the light of day. All of this is due to your [precious] kingdom’s compassion. A righteous act undertaken out of benevolence, and acclaimed by the myriad kingdoms; how can this [pitiful] kingdom alone be the recipient of this?

This [pitiful] kingdom occupies a remote corner, and in the past all matters were fine. However, there were officials and people who were deluded and disturbed. I was sincerely afraid that your [precious] kingdom would not tolerate this. Now having captured [the land], your [precious] kingdom has given it back, and is even protecting it. From this we can see that your [precious] kingdom has no intent to take Đại Nam, but wishes to see Đai Nam become ever more prosperous and powerful [phú cường 富强], and to become known as such to All Under Heaven. How can there be such devotion to common interests as this?

However, unworthy me, I have limited talent and am lacking in virtue. I deeply fear that I cannot bear to shoulder the burden. From morning to evening I contend with matters, but I do not know what to do. I only wish that your [precious kingdom] will protect [tí 庇] and help, so that we can enjoy together the blessings of peace. This is my great hope!

又賴貴都統大臣姑貲，副都統大臣巴惟躭，欽使大臣參逋，吏部尚書大臣生碧，貴列協【】力周還事事妥帖，大南山河草木，復有今日，皆為貴國之惠也。仁心義舉，萬國同稱，豈惟敝國實感載之。且敝國僻在一隅，向來和好一事，惟臣若民每每疑阻，誠恐貴國不相容耳。今貴國方取之，隨與之，又從而保護之，然後知貴國本無爭取大南之心，且欲大南富强日進，並列於天下，其公心為何如。獨是寡躬才涼德薄，深恐不堪負荷，潮夕競業，不知所爲，惟願貴國庇之，助之，俾得共享和平之福，是大望也。

In addition to presenting French officials with the above letter, Emperor Đồng Khánh also granted the following official Nguyễn Dynasty titles to these same men:

de Courcy = “the Protecting Commander Prince” [Bảo hộ quân vương 保護君王];

Prudhomme = “the Protecting Duke” [Bảo hộ công 保護公];

Champeaux =  “the Kingdom-Safekeeping Duke” [Bảo quốc công 保國公];

Sylvestre = “the Kingdom-Guarding Duke” [Hộ quốc công 護國公].

表貴都統大臣姑貲【Cô Ti = Courcy】為保護君王，副都統大臣巴惟躭【Ba Duy Đam = Prudhomme】為護國公。欽使大臣參逋【Xam Bô = Champeaux】為保國公，吏部尚書大臣生碧【Sanh Bích = Sylvestre】為護國公

Needless to say, this is a very interesting document, and there is a lot that can be said about it. . . but for now, I’m just going to offer this translation first.