An Duong Vuong
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The Vietnamese Thuc Dynasty has only one ruler, Thuc Phan himself, who proclaimed himself king An Dương Vương. He ruled Au Lac, the new name the new king gave to the country, from 257 BCE to 207 BCE. His longevity, said to be around 100 years, is quite disputed.
Thuc Phan's Origins & History
The Thuc family was an obscure family of generals. Thuc Phan himself was sent by his father first to explore the southern Chinese provinces of Quangxi and Yunnan and second to move his family there to escape from China's turmoil at that time (see details below) during the latter stage of the Warring States Period and rise of Ch'in. Thuc Phan came upon the Au Lac territory (modern-day North Vietnam, Guangdong, and Guangxi province). After assembling an army, he defeated King Hung Vương XVIII, the last ruler of the Hồng Bàng Dynasty around 257 BCE. He proclaimed himself An Dương Vương, "King An Dương". He then renamed his newly acquired state from Van Lang to Au Lac and established the new capital at Phong Khe in the present-day Phú Yên Province in North Vietnam. Co Loa Thánh(Co Loa Citadel), the spiral-shaped fortress/barricade which he also built, lies approximately ten miles north of that new capital.Thuc Phan and Au Lac’s Administration
There is not much recorded and or written about how the new Au Lac was administered and organized. Historians admit there are a lot of writings about other Vietnamese National dynasties such as the Lê, Lý, Trần, Hồ, etc. except for the period of 257 BCE to 207 BCE, which was under his rule. Nonetheless, based on Thuc Phan's accomplishments, he must have been an astute, clever, and significant figure. Certainly he was a talented general who knew how to exploit the confusion and turmoil in China during that period, not only to grab a piece of land for himself but also to secure his state's prosperity and survival. Around that same time, circa 260 BCE - 250 BCE, when Thuc Phan ascended to power, further north in China, various states are fighting each other to take control of China. Eventually, the Ch'in state (nha Tan) dynasty rose to power and unified China under Emperor Ch'in Shi Huang Ti. Upon Ch'in Shi Huang Ti's ascension to the imperial throne, he descended into paranoia-fueled Legalist practices. Hoping to prevent potential civil unrests and rebellions, he ended up ordering the burning of millions of books, other significant official documents from previously conquered warring states, and forced thousands of intellectual officials to be buried alive. Ch'in Shi Huang Ti also ordered the beginning of the construction of the Great Wall at the cost of millions of conscripted citizens. The Chinese boasted about the Great Wall and yet nobody knew that around the same time, further south An Dương Vương had begun the construction of a spiral-shaped fortress called Co Loa Thánh to fend off future northern invasions and attacks.The Legend of Co Loa Thánh and the Magic Crossbow
Co Loa Thánh and Au Lac
After Thuc Phan defeated the last Hung Vương King and ascended to the throne as An Dương Vương, he renamed Van Lang to Au Lac and established Co Loa as the new capital. He saw the strategic and geographic importance of Co Loa. On two of its sides, Co Loa was surrounded by impenetrable mountains and forests. There was also a river flowing by. Why did An Dương Vương favor its spiral, shell-like shape? No one knows, but legend has it that the construction of Co Loa Thánh was extremely tough, and difficult to complete. Each time it seemed it was almost done, it was undone at night by a coalition of spirits which were thought to be allied to the son of a previous king.The Legend of Co Loa and the Magic Crossbow
An Dương Vương burnt incens, prayed, made offerings, and evoked all the gods of those days to help him. One night, in a dream, a very, very old and venerable man with long, white hair came to him and told him the only person who could help him out of this conundrum was a golden turtle that lived somewhere around Co Loa.A few days later, while wandering in a boat on the river and thinking about the meaning of his dream, a gigantic golden turtle appeared suddenly at the surface of the water. The golden turtle told An Dương Vương that he would need one of its claws in order to accomplish anything in his life. Pulling out one of its claws and throwing it to An Dương Vương, the turtle vanished.
An Dương Vương had Co Lo, his weaponry engineer, build a crossbow incorporating this claw. It is said a single arrow shot from this crossbow of the Golden Tortoise could kill hundreds, even thousands of enemies. Indeed right after obtaining this claw, An Dương Vương saw his fortunes change. His capital started taking shape. His kingdom prospered and soon was coveted by neighboring states. Among one of those who coveted his territory was Zhao Tuo (Triệu Đà in Vietnamese), a Ch'in general under the reign of Ch'in Shi Huang Ti and his successor. For a period of ten years around 217 BCE to 207 BCE, Triệu Đà attempted many invasions to conquer Au Lac state, but failed each time due to An Dương Vương's military skills and defense tactics.
Triệu Đà's Scheme
Triệu Đà having been beaten several times, devised a new plan. Keeping to himself that it was just a temporary ploy to buy time, he negotiated a peace treaty with Au Lac state. He set out to determine where lay the strength and strategies of his foe. He even went so far as to propose marriage between An Dương Vương’s daughter, Princess My Chau (Mei Zhou) and his son Trong Thuy (Zhong Shu'i). In time Triệu Đà found out through his daughter-in-law My Chau that An Dương Vương had a magic crossbow that made him almost invincible. In reality, the secret military technology of bronzed-cast arrows with some kind of fire-attachment invention by the Au Lac state was one of their famous arsenals that was used again the Ch'in armies and soundly defeated them on many occasions in the past. Eventually, Triệu Đà figured out a new scheme to infiltrate the war arsenal secrets and military tactics of Au Lac was when he told his son Trong Thuy to sneak into his father-in-law's armory and steal this "magic crossbow", replacing it with a fake. Triệu Đà, with the magic crossbow in his hands, launched a final, decisive attack on his foe and in-law An Dương Vương.The loss of Co Loa and the Magic Crossbow
Miraculously enough, Co Loa fortress fell into Triệu Đà's hands. For An Dương Vương this was a major disaster. He grabbed My Chau, his only daughter, and fled the scene of the battle. Riding on his horse with My Chau behind him he called out in despair, “What happened to my crossbow? It does not work anymore! Why? Why?” At that very moment, the giant golden turtle An Dương Vương had not seen for years and years, suddenly reappeared in the river. He replied to An Dương Vương, “The person responsible for this disaster, the enemy you are looking for, is sitting right behind you, your majesty!”An Dương Vương reined in his horse and confronted his daughter, who was in tears. Angered, feeling betrayed by his daughter and son-in-law, the king slew his daughter. Then he jumped into the river with the giant golden turtle. Some say he drowned himself; some say his faithful servant the golden turtle took him to the depths of the river.
Trong Thuy, searching for his beloved wife, arrived a few minutes later at the scene. The body of his beloved wife was lying in a pool of blood and his father-in-law was nowhere to be seen. In accordance with conjugal fidelity and devotion, he drew his sword and killed himself as well, in order to be with his wife forever and eternity.
Having achieved the defeat of his rival, Triệu Đà annexed the newly conquered territory to his own, ascended to the throne, and proclaimed himself a new emperor, founding the Triệu Dynasty (207 BCE-111 BCE).
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