Tran Hung Dao

c. 1228 – 1300

Tran Hung Dao (c. 1228 - 1300), born Tran Quoc Tuan, was a royal prince and supreme military commander of Dai Viet under the Tran dynasty. He commanded the Vietnamese forces that repelled the second and third Mongol-Yuan invasions, culminating in the decisive victory at the Bach Dang River in 1288. He is venerated in Vietnam as a national hero and, in folk religion, as a saintly figure.

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Life events

Born Tran Quoc Tuan, son of Prince Tran Lieu
c. 1228

He was born around 1228 into the Tran royal family; his father Tran Lieu was the elder brother of Emperor Tran Thai Tong.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Received an elite education in classics and military arts
c. 1240

As a royal prince he was schooled in literature and strategy, becoming known for both scholarship and generalship.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Married Princess Thien Thanh
1251

His controversial marriage to Princess Thien Thanh linked him more closely to the imperial line of the Tran dynasty.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Served as a commander during the first Mongol invasion of Dai Viet
1257 – 1258

In 1257-1258 he held border commands as the Mongols first invaded Dai Viet before being driven back.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Appointed supreme commander of the Dai Viet armies
1283

In 1283, facing a renewed Yuan threat, the court made him Quoc cong tiet che, commander-in-chief of all Vietnamese forces.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Wrote the Proclamation to the Officers (Hich tuong si)
c. 1284

Around 1284 he issued his famous exhortation rallying officers and soldiers to resist the impending Mongol invasion, a classic of Vietnamese literature.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Repelled the second Mongol-Yuan invasion
1285

In 1285, after strategic withdrawals, his forces counterattacked and destroyed the Yuan armies under Prince Toghan, retaking the capital Thang Long.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Won the Battle of Bach Dang against the third Mongol invasion
April 1288

In April 1288 he lured the Yuan fleet onto hidden stakes in the Bach Dang River at low tide, annihilating it and ending Mongol attempts to conquer Dai Viet.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Retired to his estate at Van Kiep
c. 1289

After the wars he withdrew to Van Kiep (in present-day Hai Duong), where he advised the court and reputedly compiled works on military strategy.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Died at Van Kiep
1300

Tran Hung Dao died in 1300, counseling the emperor on his deathbed to rely on the people's strength; he was posthumously deified and honored with temples across Vietnam.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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