Emperor Trung Quang

In the old land of Nghệ, a cool wind blew up from the river, and the water glittered in the sun. On the bank, a group of people had come together, all moved by the same love for their homeland. They were not relatives by blood, but in their hearts they shared something worth more than gold. It was loyalty and righteousness. These were the people who raised an emperor to the throne, and the emperor they held so dear was called Emperor Trùng Quang.

His real name was Trần Quý Khoáng. He was a grandson of Emperor Trần Nghệ Tông. His father was Trần Ngạc, the Prince of Trang Định. So in his veins ran the blood of a line of kings who had built a country and kept it safe. Yet what keeps his name remembered is not only his ancestry. It is the way good people came to him and stood around him.

A person, however gifted, can hardly achieve great things alone. Emperor Trùng Quang was fortunate. Around him was a whole circle of friends who gave their hearts to what was right.

The first of them was Đặng Dung. He was the son of an official named Đặng Tất, and he carried on his father's loyal heart. Beside him stood Nguyễn Cảnh Dị, whose father was Nguyễn Cảnh Chân. These two faithful men gathered together in the old land of Nghệ to raise Trần Quý Khoáng to the throne. They chose him not for any gain of their own. They believed that by standing together they could keep alive their love for their home.

And the day came. It was the 17th day of the third lunar month of the year Kỷ Sửu, which was 1409. At Chi La, beside a river of old Nghệ, Trần Quý Khoáng took the throne and chose Trùng Quang as the name of his reign. The two words Trùng Quang sound beautiful. They carry the meaning of light returning, like sunshine bursting out after a long night. The name was like the very morning by the river that day, when every heart turned toward a bright future for the homeland.

The scene was simple. It was not a splendid palace in a capital, but a stretch of land beside a river, with a cool wind and clear sun. Around the young emperor were sincere faces, all of one heart. Đặng Dung had the emperor's trust and held the office of Đồng bình chương sự, sharing the great affairs of the court. Beside him stood Nguyễn Súy and Nguyễn Biểu. People still mention their names with the words for loyalty and righteousness.

These people came together not for wealth, but for a single word, nghĩa, righteousness. Each morning beside the river of Nghệ, they sat down to talk about caring for the people and the land, holding to a faith and a love as clear as the sunshine at the start of the day. Looking back today, the loyal hearts of those people still seem beautiful and warm.

The story of Emperor Trùng Quang is really a story of friendship and trust. The emperor trusted his loyal men, the loyal men trusted the emperor, and all of them trusted in one shared thing, their love for the land they called home. When people turn toward something good together, then however hard things become, they still feel warm because they have each other.

Today, the people of Nghệ have not forgotten him. People worship Trần Quý Khoáng, Emperor Trùng Quang, at a temple called Đền Trung. It stands in Hưng Lộc, in the city of Vinh, in Nghệ An. The temple has an old gate and a tiled roof grown over with moss, and its courtyard lies in the shade of green trees. People of Nghệ still come here to light incense, and a gentle, fragrant smoke rises in the old temple. Each stick of incense is one more time that people of a later age remember an emperor whom loyal people had looked after together.

Some emperors are remembered for palaces and treasure. Others are remembered for the friends who stood around them, all of one heart for what was right. Emperor Trùng Quang is one of these, remembered for hearts turned together toward the homeland, a circle of good people who loved one shared home.