Ỷ Lan
Encyclopedia
Ỷ Lan or Empress Mother Linh Nhân (Vietnamese
: Linh Nhân thái hậu, Hán tự: 灵仁太后) was the imperial concubine of Lý Thánh Tông
, the third emperor and the natural mother of Lý Nhân Tông
, the fourth emperor of the Lý Dynasty
. Being of commoner origin, Ỷ Lan was favoured by Lý Thánh Tông because she not only gave birth to his first child but also successfully acted the regency for him during the emperor's military campaign in the kingdom of Champa
. After the death of Lý Thánh Tông, Ỷ Lan one more time took the position of regent by having the Empress Mother Thượng Dương and her servants killed after an order of Ỷ Lan's son Lý Nhân Tông. For her achievements, Ỷ Lan was considered one of the most important figures during the early Lý Dynasty and one of the few women who held significant political power in the dynastic time of the History of Vietnam
.
, the birthyear of Ỷ Lan was unknown, she was born in the Thổ Lỗi (later changed to Siêu Loại) village, now Dương Xá commune, Gia Lam
, Hanoi
. It was said that the Emperor Lý Thánh Tông
was unable to have his own child up to the age of 40, therefore he paid visit to Buddhist
pagodas all over the country to pray for a child, naturally the escort of Lý Thánh Tông often attracted attention of people. In 1063, the emperor passed the Thổ Lỗi village where he saw a girl of commoner origin leaning on an orchid tree (Vietnamese: ỷ lan) and paid no curiosity to the escort of the emperor like others, afterwards Lý Thánh Tông decided to choose the girl as his concubine with the title Lady Ỷ Lan (Ỷ Lan phu nhân).
On 25th of the first month in 1066, Lady Ỷ Lan gave birth to Lý Càn Đức, the first child of Lý Thánh Tông. Right after the birth, Lý Càn Đức was entitled crown prince
of the Lý Dynasty while Lady Ỷ Lan was granted the title Imperial Concubine (Nguyên phi or Thần phi). To celebrate the event that lifted the emperor's constraint of dying without issue, Lý Thánh Tông changed his era name from Chương Thánh Gia Khánh (彰聖嘉慶) to Long Chương Thiên Tự (龍章天嗣) and gave out a general amnesty for prisoners. In the second month of 1068, Ỷ Lan had a second son who was later entitled Prince Minh Nhân (Minh Nhân vương). In the second month of 1069, Lý Thánh Tông personally led a military campaign against the kingdom of Champa
and left the regentship for Ỷ Lan. Ngô Sĩ Liên
in Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư recounted that after an unsuccessful period of attack, the emperor wanted to abandon the campaign but in hearing the stability of the country under the regency of the imperial concubine, Lý Thánh Tông continued to carry on his campaign, finally he was able to capture the king of Champa Rudravarman IV and fifty thousand people of Champa. During that time, Ỷ Lan accomplished her regentship by bringing the harmony to Đại Việt people and propagating Buddhism in the country, therefore Ỷ Lan was called by the name "Quan Âm".
. After his coronation, Lý Nhân Tông gave the former empress Thượng Dương the title Empress Mother (Hoàng thái hậu) while his natural mother Ỷ Lan was granted the lower title Imperial Concubine Mother (Hoàng thái phi). Because the new emperor was only six years old, Empress Mother Thượng Dương held the regency for Lý Nhân Tông while the chancellor Lý Đạo Thành
took charge in the royal court.
Furious at the fact that she did not have the regentship despite being the real mother of the emperor, Ỷ Lan influenced her son to dismiss the Empress Mother Thượng Dương that ultimately resulted in the imprisonment of the Empress Mother and 76 imperial maids in the Thượng Dương palace. Later both the Empress Mother Thượng Dương and her servants were killed and buried in the tomb of Lê Thánh Tông. After the event, Ỷ Lan was entitled Empress Mother Linh Nhân and replaced the Empress Mother Thượng Dương in the position of regent for the emperor. About this event, the historian Ngô Sĩ Liên commented that although having a devotion for Buddhism, Ỷ Lan was too ruthless in killing the innocent empress mother, he also remarked that the chancellor Lý Đạo Thành was transferred to a position in the southern border likely because he advised against the act of Ỷ Lan and the emperor.
During her second regentship, Ỷ Lan continued to proved her ability in successfully ruling the country together with the chancellor Lý Đạo Thành and the commander-in-chief Lý Thường Kiệt. When Lý army led by Lý Thường Kiệt continuously operated in the border regions and Lý Đạo Thành died in 1081, it was Ỷ Lan who looked after the agriculture and developing education in Đại Việt. At that time, the first imperial examination
based on Confucian
learning was organized with Lê Văn Thịnh
becoming the first first-rank laureate in history of imperial examination in Vietnam. Since Đại Việt had a long period of peace and prosperity, Ỷ Lan began her plan of spreading Buddhism in the country by order to build over one hundred pagodas. It was believed that Ỷ Lan went into Buddhism and had build pagodas because she felt regret for the death of the Empress Mother Thượng Dương and her servants. Nevertheless, she still cared about the life of her people, for example in the Spring of 1103, she granted money for poor women in the country who had to sell themselves to be wives of widowers. In the second month of 1117, Ỷ Lan brought out the law of prohibiting people from killing buffaloes, she reasoned that buffalo was essential for farming, a buffalo being killed would cause serious effect on many people, therefore the criminal of killing buffalo and his accomplice had to be heavily punished.
On 25th of the seventh month in 1117, Ỷ Lan deceased, she was given the posthumous name
Phù thánh linh nhân hoàng thái hậu (扶聖靈仁皇太后) and was buried in the imperial tomb Thọ Lăng which was located in Thiên Đức prefect (now Từ Sơn District, Bắc Ninh
), the native land of the Lý Dynasty.
, a street in Gia Lam near her birthplace is also named in honour of Ỷ Lan. Each year, people in her native district Gia Lam organizes a festival to commemorate the feats of Ỷ Lan on the 3rd of the third month in lunar calendar. A bigger festival to commemorate Ỷ Lan is held in the Ghềnh Temple (Đền Ghềnh) in Văn Lâm District, Hung Yen from 5th to 16th of the third lunar month. In 1997, a national committee was established in order to select a list of distinguised women in history of Vietnam, Ỷ Lan was one of the first choices and the only representative of the list who was well-known for her political activities. Besides, Ỷ Lan is also considered the first woman who taught Vietnamese the embroidery
technique. In culture, Ỷ Lan is one of the main characters in the chèo
play Bài ca giữ nước (The Song of Defending the Country), the most famous work of the writer Tào Mạt.
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...
: Linh Nhân thái hậu, Hán tự: 灵仁太后) was the imperial concubine of Lý Thánh Tông
Lý Thánh Tông
Lý Thánh Tông was the posthumous title of the third emperor of the Lý dynasty of Vietnam. Like his father, he was considered as one of the most talented and benevolent kings in Vietnamese history.-Genius Crown Prince:...
, the third emperor and the natural mother of Lý Nhân Tông
Ly Nhan Tong
Lý Nhân Tông , given name Lý Càn Đức , was the fourth emperor of the Lý Dynasty, reigning over Đại Việt from 1072 to his death in 1127...
, the fourth emperor of the Lý 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...
. Being of commoner origin, Ỷ Lan was favoured by Lý Thánh Tông because she not only gave birth to his first child but also successfully acted the regency for him during the emperor's military campaign in the kingdom of Champa
Champa
The kingdom of Champa was an Indianized kingdom that controlled what is now southern and central Vietnam from approximately the 7th century through to 1832.The Cham people are remnants...
. After the death of Lý Thánh Tông, Ỷ Lan one more time took the position of regent by having the Empress Mother Thượng Dương and her servants killed after an order of Ỷ Lan's son Lý Nhân Tông. For her achievements, Ỷ Lan was considered one of the most important figures during the early Lý Dynasty and one of the few women who held significant political power in the dynastic time of the History of Vietnam
History of Vietnam
The history of Vietnam covers a period of more than 2,700 years. By far Vietnam's most important historical international relationship has been with China. Vietnam's prehistory includes a legend about a kingdom known as Van Lang that included what is now China's Guangxi Autonomous Region and...
.
During Lý Thánh Tông's reign
According to Từ điển Bách khoa toàn thư Việt NamTừ điển Bách khoa toàn thư Việt Nam
Từ điển Bách khoa toàn thư Việt Nam is a state-sponsored encyclopedia that was published in 2005. It also is the first state encyclopedia of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam...
, the birthyear of Ỷ Lan was unknown, she was born in the Thổ Lỗi (later changed to Siêu Loại) village, now Dương Xá commune, Gia Lam
Gia Lam
Gia Lâm is a district of Hanoi, the capital city of Vietnam. Gia Lam Airport is located in the district. At one time Vietnam Airlines's headquarters were on the airport property....
, Hanoi
Hanoi
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...
. It was said that the Emperor Lý Thánh Tông
Lý Thánh Tông
Lý Thánh Tông was the posthumous title of the third emperor of the Lý dynasty of Vietnam. Like his father, he was considered as one of the most talented and benevolent kings in Vietnamese history.-Genius Crown Prince:...
was unable to have his own child up to the age of 40, therefore he paid visit to Buddhist
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
pagodas all over the country to pray for a child, naturally the escort of Lý Thánh Tông often attracted attention of people. In 1063, the emperor passed the Thổ Lỗi village where he saw a girl of commoner origin leaning on an orchid tree (Vietnamese: ỷ lan) and paid no curiosity to the escort of the emperor like others, afterwards Lý Thánh Tông decided to choose the girl as his concubine with the title Lady Ỷ Lan (Ỷ Lan phu nhân).
On 25th of the first month in 1066, Lady Ỷ Lan gave birth to Lý Càn Đức, the first child of Lý Thánh Tông. Right after the birth, Lý Càn Đức was entitled crown prince
Crown Prince
A crown prince or crown princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....
of the Lý Dynasty while Lady Ỷ Lan was granted the title Imperial Concubine (Nguyên phi or Thần phi). To celebrate the event that lifted the emperor's constraint of dying without issue, Lý Thánh Tông changed his era name from Chương Thánh Gia Khánh (彰聖嘉慶) to Long Chương Thiên Tự (龍章天嗣) and gave out a general amnesty for prisoners. In the second month of 1068, Ỷ Lan had a second son who was later entitled Prince Minh Nhân (Minh Nhân vương). In the second month of 1069, Lý Thánh Tông personally led a military campaign against the kingdom of Champa
Champa
The kingdom of Champa was an Indianized kingdom that controlled what is now southern and central Vietnam from approximately the 7th century through to 1832.The Cham people are remnants...
and left the regentship for Ỷ Lan. Ngô Sĩ Liên
Ngô Sĩ Liên
Ngô Sĩ Liên was an historian of the Lê Dynasty. He is best known for being the principal compiler of the Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư, a comprehensive chronicle of the history of Vietnam and the oldest official historical record of a Vietnamese dynasty that remains today...
in Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư recounted that after an unsuccessful period of attack, the emperor wanted to abandon the campaign but in hearing the stability of the country under the regency of the imperial concubine, Lý Thánh Tông continued to carry on his campaign, finally he was able to capture the king of Champa Rudravarman IV and fifty thousand people of Champa. During that time, Ỷ Lan accomplished her regentship by bringing the harmony to Đại Việt people and propagating Buddhism in the country, therefore Ỷ Lan was called by the name "Quan Âm".
During Lý Nhân Tông's reign
In the first month of 1072, Lý Thánh Tông deceased and was succeeded by the crown prince Lý Càn Đức, now Lý Nhân TôngLy Nhan Tong
Lý Nhân Tông , given name Lý Càn Đức , was the fourth emperor of the Lý Dynasty, reigning over Đại Việt from 1072 to his death in 1127...
. After his coronation, Lý Nhân Tông gave the former empress Thượng Dương the title Empress Mother (Hoàng thái hậu) while his natural mother Ỷ Lan was granted the lower title Imperial Concubine Mother (Hoàng thái phi). Because the new emperor was only six years old, Empress Mother Thượng Dương held the regency for Lý Nhân Tông while the chancellor Lý Đạo Thành
Lý Đạo Thành
Lý Đạo Thành was a member of the Lý royal family and the chancellor in the royal court of Lý Thánh Tông and Lý Nhân Tông. Highly appreciated for his ability and righteousness, Lý Đạo Thành had a major role in the stability and prosperity of Đại Việt during the early years of Lý Nhân Tông's reign...
took charge in the royal court.
Furious at the fact that she did not have the regentship despite being the real mother of the emperor, Ỷ Lan influenced her son to dismiss the Empress Mother Thượng Dương that ultimately resulted in the imprisonment of the Empress Mother and 76 imperial maids in the Thượng Dương palace. Later both the Empress Mother Thượng Dương and her servants were killed and buried in the tomb of Lê Thánh Tông. After the event, Ỷ Lan was entitled Empress Mother Linh Nhân and replaced the Empress Mother Thượng Dương in the position of regent for the emperor. About this event, the historian Ngô Sĩ Liên commented that although having a devotion for Buddhism, Ỷ Lan was too ruthless in killing the innocent empress mother, he also remarked that the chancellor Lý Đạo Thành was transferred to a position in the southern border likely because he advised against the act of Ỷ Lan and the emperor.
During her second regentship, Ỷ Lan continued to proved her ability in successfully ruling the country together with the chancellor Lý Đạo Thành and the commander-in-chief Lý Thường Kiệt. When Lý army led by Lý Thường Kiệt continuously operated in the border regions and Lý Đạo Thành died in 1081, it was Ỷ Lan who looked after the agriculture and developing education in Đại Việt. At that time, the first imperial examination
Imperial examination
The Imperial examination was an examination system in Imperial China designed to select the best administrative officials for the state's bureaucracy. This system had a huge influence on both society and culture in Imperial China and was directly responsible for the creation of a class of...
based on Confucian
Confucianism
Confucianism is a Chinese ethical and philosophical system developed from the teachings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius . Confucianism originated as an "ethical-sociopolitical teaching" during the Spring and Autumn Period, but later developed metaphysical and cosmological elements in the Han...
learning was organized with Lê Văn Thịnh
Lê Văn Thịnh
Lê Văn Thịnh was an official in the royal court of Lý Nhân Tông, the fourth emperor of the Lý Dynasty. Ranking first in the first imperial examination of the Lý Dynasty, Lê Văn Thịnh was appointed tutor for Lý Nhân Tông and was gradually promoted to the position of chancellor of the Lý Dynasty...
becoming the first first-rank laureate in history of imperial examination in Vietnam. Since Đại Việt had a long period of peace and prosperity, Ỷ Lan began her plan of spreading Buddhism in the country by order to build over one hundred pagodas. It was believed that Ỷ Lan went into Buddhism and had build pagodas because she felt regret for the death of the Empress Mother Thượng Dương and her servants. Nevertheless, she still cared about the life of her people, for example in the Spring of 1103, she granted money for poor women in the country who had to sell themselves to be wives of widowers. In the second month of 1117, Ỷ Lan brought out the law of prohibiting people from killing buffaloes, she reasoned that buffalo was essential for farming, a buffalo being killed would cause serious effect on many people, therefore the criminal of killing buffalo and his accomplice had to be heavily punished.
On 25th of the seventh month in 1117, Ỷ Lan deceased, she was given the posthumous name
Posthumous name
A posthumous name is an honorary name given to royalty, nobles, and sometimes others, in East Asia after the person's death, and is used almost exclusively instead of one's personal name or other official titles during his life...
Phù thánh linh nhân hoàng thái hậu (扶聖靈仁皇太后) and was buried in the imperial tomb Thọ Lăng which was located in Thiên Đức prefect (now Từ Sơn District, Bắc Ninh
Bac Ninh
Bắc Ninh is a city in Vietnam and capital of the Bac Ninh province. The city is the cultural, administrative, and commercial center of the province. The city area is 80.82 square km, with a population of 150,331 . In January, 2006, the town of Bac Ninh was upgraded to city...
), the native land of the Lý Dynasty.
Legacy
There are many shrines and temples dedicated to Ỷ Lan in the northern region of Vietnam, from her village Siêu Loại to the mountainous province Tuyen QuangTuyen Quang
-History:The French post at Tuyen Quang was defended for four months against 12,000 troops of the Yunnan Army and the Black Flag Army by two companies of the French Foreign Legion during the Sino-French War...
, a street in Gia Lam near her birthplace is also named in honour of Ỷ Lan. Each year, people in her native district Gia Lam organizes a festival to commemorate the feats of Ỷ Lan on the 3rd of the third month in lunar calendar. A bigger festival to commemorate Ỷ Lan is held in the Ghềnh Temple (Đền Ghềnh) in Văn Lâm District, Hung Yen from 5th to 16th of the third lunar month. In 1997, a national committee was established in order to select a list of distinguised women in history of Vietnam, Ỷ Lan was one of the first choices and the only representative of the list who was well-known for her political activities. Besides, Ỷ Lan is also considered the first woman who taught Vietnamese the embroidery
Embroidery
Embroidery is the art or handicraft of decorating fabric or other materials with needle and thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as metal strips, pearls, beads, quills, and sequins....
technique. In culture, Ỷ Lan is one of the main characters in the chèo
Chèo
Chèo is a form of generally satirical musical theatre, often encompassing dance, traditionally performed by Vietnamese peasants in northern Vietnam...
play Bài ca giữ nước (The Song of Defending the Country), the most famous work of the writer Tào Mạt.