Bui Thi Xuan
Encyclopedia
Bùi Thị Xuân was a Vietnamese woman general during the Tây Sơn Rebellion
.
General Xuân was born in Bình Khê District (now Tây Sơn District), Bình Định Province
. She learned martial arts as a child, and was reputedly a strong woman. Legend has it that she once rescued Trần Quang Diệu, who later became her husband, from a tiger. She and Trần Quang Diệu joined the Tây Sơn Rebellion early, and won many battles. She helped the Tây Sơn army train elephants
, which participated in many battles. She became known as one of the five principal women in the Tây Sơn Dynasty.
When Phú Xuân
(Huế
) fell to Nguyễn Ánh, she followed king Cảnh Thịnh to Nghe An, commanded 5000 troops and fought the Nguyễn forces in Trấn Ninh (Quang Binh Province
). In the second month of 1802, the Nguyễn forces became victorious. She joined her husband in Nghe An and they were captured together by the Nguyễn forces. Both of them were executed; her husband was either beheaded or skinned, while she was crushed to death by an elephant
.
Today, she is celebrated as a Vietnamese hero. Many major cities have schools and streets named after her.
Tây Son Dynasty
The name of Tây Sơn is used in many ways to refer to the period of peasant rebellions and decentralized dynasties established between the eras of the Later Lê and Nguyễn dynasties in the history of Vietnam between 1770 and 1802...
.
General Xuân was born in Bình Khê District (now Tây Sơn District), Bình Định Province
Binh Dinh Province
Bình Định is a province of Vietnam. It is located in Vietnam's South Central Coast region.-Administration:Binh Dinh is divided into one city and 10 districts:*An Lão*An Nhơn*Hoài Ân*Hoài Nhơn*Phù Cát*Phù Mỹ*Tuy Phước*Tây Sơn*Vân Canh...
. She learned martial arts as a child, and was reputedly a strong woman. Legend has it that she once rescued Trần Quang Diệu, who later became her husband, from a tiger. She and Trần Quang Diệu joined the Tây Sơn Rebellion early, and won many battles. She helped the Tây Sơn army train elephants
War elephant
A war elephant was an elephant trained and guided by humans for combat. Their main use was to charge the enemy, trampling them and breaking their ranks. A division of war elephants is known as elephantry....
, which participated in many battles. She became known as one of the five principal women in the Tây Sơn Dynasty.
When Phú Xuân
Phú Xuân
Phú Xuân is an historic place in Huế, Vietnam. It was the capital of the Nguyễn Lords, the Tây Sơn Dynasty, and later became a part of the Nguyễn Dynasty’s capital in Huế....
(Huế
Hue
Hue is one of the main properties of a color, defined technically , as "the degree to which a stimulus can be describedas similar to or different from stimuli that are described as red, green, blue, and yellow,"...
) fell to Nguyễn Ánh, she followed king Cảnh Thịnh to Nghe An, commanded 5000 troops and fought the Nguyễn forces in Trấn Ninh (Quang Binh Province
Quang Binh Province
Quảng Bình , formerly Tiên Bình under the reign of Le Trung Hung of the Lê Dynasty, this province was renamed Quảng Bình in 1604) is a province in the North Central Coast of Vietnam....
). In the second month of 1802, the Nguyễn forces became victorious. She joined her husband in Nghe An and they were captured together by the Nguyễn forces. Both of them were executed; her husband was either beheaded or skinned, while she was crushed to death by an elephant
Crushing by elephant
Execution by elephant was a common method of capital punishment in South and Southeast Asia, and particularly in India. Asian Elephants were used to crush, dismember, or torture captives in public executions. The animals were trained and versatile, both able to kill victims immediately or to...
.
Today, she is celebrated as a Vietnamese hero. Many major cities have schools and streets named after her.