Trần Tự Khánh
Encyclopedia
Marquis Chương Thành Trần Tự Khánh (Hán tự: 陳嗣慶) (died 1223) was a general of the Lý Dynasty
during the reigns of Lý Cao Tông
and Lý Huệ Tông. He was son of Trần Lý, head of the Trần clan, and brother of Trần Thừa
and Trần Thị Dung
who married to Lý Huệ Tông. Renowned as a skilled general, Trần Tự Khánh was one of the most prominent figures during the turbulent time at the end of Cao Tông and the beginning of Huệ Tông's rule. He had many victories on the battlefield and was responsible for putting down several revolts against the Lý Dynasty. Although died before the coronation of his nephew Trần Thái Tông
, Trần Tự Khánh was considered one of the main factors that led to the rising position of the Trần clan in the royal court and ultimately the overthrowing of the Lý Dynasty by Trần Thủ Độ to create the Trần Dynasty.
). He had an elder brother Trần Thừa
, who was father of the future first emperor of Trần Dynasty Trần Thái Tông
, and a younger sister Trần Thị Dung
. During the troubled time under the reign of Lý Cao Tông
, the Crown Prince Lý Sảm sought refuge in Trần Lý's family and decided to marry his beautiful daughter Trần Thị Dung in 1209.
; therefore he was awarded the title Count Thuận Lưu (Vietnamese
: Thuận Lưu bá). One year after, the Crown Prince Lý Sảm was enthroned as Lý Huệ Tông after the death of Lý Cao Tông
, by then the Trần clan's position began to rise in the royal court. After his coronation, Huệ Tông ordered Trần Tự Khánh to bring his sister to royal palace, the mission was successfully conducted by Trần Tự Khánh's subordinate Phùng Tá Chu who also helped general Tô Trung Từ pacify the revolt of Đỗ Quảng near Thăng Long. As a result, Tô Trung Từ was promoted to Regent of the Emperor while Trần Tự Khánh was also granted the title Marquis Chương Thành (Chương Thành hầu).
Besides the revolt of Đỗ Quảng, there were many warlords who rose up their troops against the rule of the Lý Dynasty. One of them, Đoàn Thượng, even self-entitled as Prince (Vương) and was so powerful that no generals of the Emperor could put down his revolt. These revolts with the incapability of the royal court made the ruling Lý Dynasty gradually weaken. In February 1213, afraid that his sister was ill-treated by the Empress Mother Đàm, Trần Tự Khánh led his army to the royal palace with the petition of receiving the Emperor, Trần Tự Khánh's action made Lý Huệ Tông suspected that he in fact wanted to overpower the Emperor, Huệ Tông thus ordered an issue of imprisoning Trần Tự Khánh and downgrading his sister Trần Thị Dung from Royal Consort (nguyên phi) to palace maid (ngự nữ). The imprisonment of Trần Tự Khánh was not carried out and he one more time brought troops near Thăng Long in January 1214 with the same petition. Afraid that Trần Tự Khánh had a conspiracy against the royal family, Lý Huệ Tông decided to escape from Thăng Long to Lạng Sơn
, always with the pursuit of Trần Tự Khánh. Only after Trần Tự Khánh put down the revolt of Đinh Khả and Bùi Đô in May 1214, the Emperor restored his sister as Lady Thuận Trinh (Thuận Trinh phu nhân). However, she was still distrusted by the Empress Mother Đàm who tried to force Trần Thị Dung commit suicide several times and finally Lý Huệ Tông had to escape with Lady Thuận Trinh to the garrison of Trần Tự Khánh in Cửu Liên Marsh (now Yên Mỹ
, Hưng Yên). The first child of Huệ Tông and Lady Thuận Trinh, Princess Thuận Thiên
was born here in June 1216.
In December 1216 Lady Thuận Trinh was entitled as Empress of Lý Dynasty, hence Trần Tự Khánh was appointed for the position of Regent of the Emperor and commander in charge of military training and preparing. Being a skilled general, Trần Tự Khánh was able to improve the military situation of the Lý Dynasty's army. During that time, Huệ Tông's health declined rapidly and so the power in the royal court was gradually fallen into the hand of the Trần clan led by Trần Tự Khánh. Outside the royal palace, Đại Việt was still in a chaotic situation by the revolts Nguyễn Nộn, Đoàn Thượng, and mountainous people in Chương Mỹ
. After his failure of pacifying the revolt in Chương Mỹ, Trần Tự Khánh advised the Emperor to pardon Nguyễn Nộn and appoint him to take charge of putting down the Chương Mỹ's revolt.
Trần Tự Khánh died in December 1223 and was posthumously entitled as Prince Kiến Quốc (Kiến Quốc đại vương). Although unable to witness the successful plot to overthrow the Lý Dynasty and found Trần Dynasty by his cousin Trần Thủ Độ in 1225, Trần Tự Khánh was still considered as one of the main figures that led to the collapse of the Lý Dynasty and the creation of the Trần Dynasty.
Lý Dynasty
The Lý Dynasty , sometimes known as the Later Lý Dynasty , was a Vietnamese dynasty that began in 1009 when Lý Thái Tổ overthrew the Prior Lê Dynasty and ended in 1225 when the queen Lý Chiêu Hoàng was forced to abdicate the throne in favor of her husband, Trần Cảnh. They ruled Vietnam for a...
during the reigns of Lý Cao Tông
Lý Cao Tông
Lý Cao Tông , born Lý Long Trát or Lý Long Cán, was the seventh king of the Lý dynasty, ruling for 35 years. Some consider his reign being the beginning of the falling into decay of the Lý Dynasty because of erroneous determinations made by him...
and Lý Huệ Tông. He was son of Trần Lý, head of the Trần clan, and brother of Trần Thừa
Trần Thừa
Trần Thừa was the head of the Trần clan and a high-ranking mandarin during the reign of Lý Huệ Tông and Lý Chiêu Hoàng. After the overthrow of the Lý Dynasty by Trần Thủ Độ, Trần Thừa's second son Trần Cảnh was enthroned as Trần Thái Tông, the first emperor of the Trần Dynasty...
and Trần Thị Dung
Trần Thị Dung
Mother of the Nation Lady Linh Từ Trần Thị Dung was the last empress and the last empress mother of the Lý Dynasty...
who married to Lý Huệ Tông. Renowned as a skilled general, Trần Tự Khánh was one of the most prominent figures during the turbulent time at the end of Cao Tông and the beginning of Huệ Tông's rule. He had many victories on the battlefield and was responsible for putting down several revolts against the Lý Dynasty. Although died before the coronation of his nephew Trần Thái Tông
Trần Thái Tông
Trần Thái Tông, born name: Trần Cảnh , July 17, 1218-May 4, 1277) was the first emperor of the Trần Dynasty, seated on the throne for 33 years , being Grand Emperor for 19 years.-Biography:...
, Trần Tự Khánh was considered one of the main factors that led to the rising position of the Trần clan in the royal court and ultimately the overthrowing of the Lý Dynasty by Trần Thủ Độ to create the Trần Dynasty.
Background
Trần Tự Khánh was born as the second son of Trần Lý who made his great fortune by fishing in Lưu Gia village (now Hưng Hà, Thái BìnhThai Binh
Thái Bình is a city in the Red River Delta of northern Vietnam. It is the capital of Thai Binh province. It is located 110 km from Hanoi. The city area is 67.7 square km, with a population of 210,000 people . Before the prime minister declared it a city in June of 2004, it was officially a town....
). He had an elder brother Trần Thừa
Trần Thừa
Trần Thừa was the head of the Trần clan and a high-ranking mandarin during the reign of Lý Huệ Tông and Lý Chiêu Hoàng. After the overthrow of the Lý Dynasty by Trần Thủ Độ, Trần Thừa's second son Trần Cảnh was enthroned as Trần Thái Tông, the first emperor of the Trần Dynasty...
, who was father of the future first emperor of Trần Dynasty Trần Thái Tông
Trần Thái Tông
Trần Thái Tông, born name: Trần Cảnh , July 17, 1218-May 4, 1277) was the first emperor of the Trần Dynasty, seated on the throne for 33 years , being Grand Emperor for 19 years.-Biography:...
, and a younger sister Trần Thị Dung
Trần Thị Dung
Mother of the Nation Lady Linh Từ Trần Thị Dung was the last empress and the last empress mother of the Lý Dynasty...
. During the troubled time under the reign of Lý Cao Tông
Lý Cao Tông
Lý Cao Tông , born Lý Long Trát or Lý Long Cán, was the seventh king of the Lý dynasty, ruling for 35 years. Some consider his reign being the beginning of the falling into decay of the Lý Dynasty because of erroneous determinations made by him...
, the Crown Prince Lý Sảm sought refuge in Trần Lý's family and decided to marry his beautiful daughter Trần Thị Dung in 1209.
History
In March 1210 Trần Tự Khánh with his army of Trần's house servants helped the Crown Prince return to the capital, Thăng LongHanoi
Hanoi , is the capital of Vietnam and the country's second largest city. Its population in 2009 was estimated at 2.6 million for urban districts, 6.5 million for the metropolitan jurisdiction. From 1010 until 1802, it was the most important political centre of Vietnam...
; therefore he was awarded the title Count Thuận Lưu (Vietnamese
Vietnamese language
Vietnamese is the national and official language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population, and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam...
: Thuận Lưu bá). One year after, the Crown Prince Lý Sảm was enthroned as Lý Huệ Tông after the death of Lý Cao Tông
Lý Cao Tông
Lý Cao Tông , born Lý Long Trát or Lý Long Cán, was the seventh king of the Lý dynasty, ruling for 35 years. Some consider his reign being the beginning of the falling into decay of the Lý Dynasty because of erroneous determinations made by him...
, by then the Trần clan's position began to rise in the royal court. After his coronation, Huệ Tông ordered Trần Tự Khánh to bring his sister to royal palace, the mission was successfully conducted by Trần Tự Khánh's subordinate Phùng Tá Chu who also helped general Tô Trung Từ pacify the revolt of Đỗ Quảng near Thăng Long. As a result, Tô Trung Từ was promoted to Regent of the Emperor while Trần Tự Khánh was also granted the title Marquis Chương Thành (Chương Thành hầu).
Besides the revolt of Đỗ Quảng, there were many warlords who rose up their troops against the rule of the Lý Dynasty. One of them, Đoàn Thượng, even self-entitled as Prince (Vương) and was so powerful that no generals of the Emperor could put down his revolt. These revolts with the incapability of the royal court made the ruling Lý Dynasty gradually weaken. In February 1213, afraid that his sister was ill-treated by the Empress Mother Đàm, Trần Tự Khánh led his army to the royal palace with the petition of receiving the Emperor, Trần Tự Khánh's action made Lý Huệ Tông suspected that he in fact wanted to overpower the Emperor, Huệ Tông thus ordered an issue of imprisoning Trần Tự Khánh and downgrading his sister Trần Thị Dung from Royal Consort (nguyên phi) to palace maid (ngự nữ). The imprisonment of Trần Tự Khánh was not carried out and he one more time brought troops near Thăng Long in January 1214 with the same petition. Afraid that Trần Tự Khánh had a conspiracy against the royal family, Lý Huệ Tông decided to escape from Thăng Long to Lạng Sơn
Lang Son
Lạng Sơn , sometimes Langson, is a city in far northern Vietnam, is the capital of Lang Son province. It is accessible by road and rail from Hanoi, the Vietnamese capital, and it is the northernmost point on National Road 1A.-History:...
, always with the pursuit of Trần Tự Khánh. Only after Trần Tự Khánh put down the revolt of Đinh Khả and Bùi Đô in May 1214, the Emperor restored his sister as Lady Thuận Trinh (Thuận Trinh phu nhân). However, she was still distrusted by the Empress Mother Đàm who tried to force Trần Thị Dung commit suicide several times and finally Lý Huệ Tông had to escape with Lady Thuận Trinh to the garrison of Trần Tự Khánh in Cửu Liên Marsh (now Yên Mỹ
Yen My
Yên Mỹ is a rural district of Hung Yen province in the Red River Delta region of Vietnam. As of 2003 the district had a population of 127,646. The district covers an area of 91 km². The district capital lies at Yen My.-References:...
, Hưng Yên). The first child of Huệ Tông and Lady Thuận Trinh, Princess Thuận Thiên
Thuận Thiên (empress)
Empress Thuận Thiên Empress Thuận Thiên Empress Thuận Thiên (Lý Ngọc Oanh (1216–1248) was the second empress of Trần Dynasty, she succeeded her younger sister Empress Chiêu Thánh in 1237 by an arrangement of Trần Thủ Độ in which Prince Hoài Trần Liễu was forced to give up his 3-month pregnant...
was born here in June 1216.
In December 1216 Lady Thuận Trinh was entitled as Empress of Lý Dynasty, hence Trần Tự Khánh was appointed for the position of Regent of the Emperor and commander in charge of military training and preparing. Being a skilled general, Trần Tự Khánh was able to improve the military situation of the Lý Dynasty's army. During that time, Huệ Tông's health declined rapidly and so the power in the royal court was gradually fallen into the hand of the Trần clan led by Trần Tự Khánh. Outside the royal palace, Đại Việt was still in a chaotic situation by the revolts Nguyễn Nộn, Đoàn Thượng, and mountainous people in Chương Mỹ
Chuong My
Chương Mỹ is a district of Ha Noi in the Red River Delta region of Vietnam....
. After his failure of pacifying the revolt in Chương Mỹ, Trần Tự Khánh advised the Emperor to pardon Nguyễn Nộn and appoint him to take charge of putting down the Chương Mỹ's revolt.
Trần Tự Khánh died in December 1223 and was posthumously entitled as Prince Kiến Quốc (Kiến Quốc đại vương). Although unable to witness the successful plot to overthrow the Lý Dynasty and found Trần Dynasty by his cousin Trần Thủ Độ in 1225, Trần Tự Khánh was still considered as one of the main figures that led to the collapse of the Lý Dynasty and the creation of the Trần Dynasty.