THE DINH DYNASTY (968-980)
The father of Dinh Bo Linh was Dinh Cong Tru, a mandarin under the reigns of Ngo Quyen (939-944) and Ngô Xuong Van (950-954). Dinh Cong Tru died while Bo Linh was still very young. His mother then took him back to her village to live with her family. There Dinh Bo Linh attended the village school and in his free time rode atop water buffaloes and played games with other kids. When he reached adulthood he joined Tran Lam, one of the Thap Nhi Su Quan (12 lords fighting each other) who made him a general due to his skills and talents.
DINH TIEN HOANG
Dinh Bo Linh He defeated one by one or subdued the other 11 lords. His multitude victories over other lords earned him the Van Thang Vuong which means “King of Ten Thousand Victories”. After unifying the country in 968 and bringing peace back to the land, he proclaimed himself Dinh Tien Hoang De. He renamed the country “Dai Co Viet.” Worried that his country was still weak (where outside influences can be easily made) he sought to strengthen the government with by appointing military men to important positions. Among his top generals were Nguyen Bac, his oldest son Dinh Lien, Le Hoan,… This latter was be a major figure for the Dinh Dynasty succession and the rise of the Anterior Le Dynasty.
The end of Dinh Tien Hoang’s reign was marked by the following successive events. He removed his oldest son Dinh Lien from the throne as he had decided to have his second son, Dinh Hang Lang, succeed him. His infant son, Dinh Tue, would be next in line. One night in 980, as Dinh Tien Hoang and his son Dinh Lien were having a party, a mandarin official sneaked into the palace and killed both father and son.
DINH PHE DE ( 980)
The fate decreed that the infant son Dinh Tue would inherit the kingdom. Because of his age, his mother the Dowager Empress Duong Thai Hau assumed the role of regent. While all of these events were taking place, to the north, China was enduring some dynastic changes. The Song Dynasty had reunified the country for the first time since the fall of the Tang. The Song Dynasty would last until the end of the 13th century; when they in turn were overrun by the Mongol Yuan Dynasty under Gengis Khan. The turmoil of succession of Dinh Tien Hoang in their southern border gave the Chinese Song a pretext to meddle and interfere into the matters of the Vietnamese, to invade the country and subjugate it again to their rule.
END OF DINH DYNASTY
Appalled by this new threat, the Dowager Empress Duong Thai Hau threw her support to Le Hoan who was now commander-in-chief of the army. To confront the Song army who had already arrived at the border, the Empress Dowager agreed to recognize Le Hoan and let him step up to the throne as a new king. With the crowning of Le Hoan, the Anterior Le Dynasty was founded. As Le Hoan was being crowned Emperor, the Song army approached the boundary of the 2 countries.