Annam Command

The Annam Command, Annan Command or Annan Dutongshisi (Chinese: 安南都統使司; Vietnamese: An Nam Đô thống sứ ty), was an administration of the Chinese Ming dynasty in modern-day Vietnam created in 1540.

In 1527, Mạc Đăng Dung usurped the throne of the Later Lê dynasty and established the Mạc dynasty, with the capital still in Thăng Long. At the time, Nguyễn Kim, a former general of the Later Lê dynasty, fled to Ai Lao with his family and recruited soldiers in a bid to restore the Later Lê dynasty.

In order to counter the remaining forces of the Later Lê dynasty, on 30 November 1540, Mạc Đăng Dung and dozens of his ministers bound themselves and knelt before the Ming officials at the Zhennan Pass, surrendering and requesting to be governed by Ming China as the Annam Command.

History

In 1532, Nguyễn Kim found and crowned the young son of Lê Chiêu Tông, Lê Ninh, as the new emperor, known as Lê Trang Tông. This led to a conflict between the southern region of Thanh Hóa and the northern region of the Mạc dynasty, causing chaos in Vietnam.

In late 1529, Mạc Đăng Dung abdicated his throne to his son, Mạc Đăng Doanh. The following year, Mạc Đăng Doanh officially became the new emperor, known as Mạc Thái Tông, and changed the era name to Đại Chính. Mạc Đăng Dung declared himself as the retired emperor. In 1537, Lê Trang Tông sent envoys to Beijing to report the Mạc dynasty's usurpation and requested the Ming dynasty to attack them.

The next year, the Jiajing Emperor appointed Qiu Luan as the commander-in-chief and Mao Bowen as the military advisor, stationed troops at Zhennan Pass, and prepared to invade the Mạc dynasty. Under the pressure of the Ming army, in March 1539, Mạc Đăng Dung sent envoys to Zhennan Pass to surrender and offered the land and household registers of Annam (An Nam quốc) to the Ming dynasty.

On 30 December 1540, Mạc Đăng Dung and dozens of his officials surrendered to the Ming officials at Zhennan Pass, and the Ming dynasty demoted Annam from a vassal state to a subordinate territory, dividing it into thirteen Xuanfusi (宣撫司; Tuyên phủ ty) with officials such as Xuanfu (宣撫; Tuyên phủ), Tongzhi (同知; Đồng tri), Fushi (副使; Phó sứ), and Qianshi (僉事; Thiêm sự), all under the authority of the Dutong (都統; Đô thống).

The Mạc dynasty was given the title of dutongshi (都統使, commandant) with a rank of second class, hereditary succession, and a tribute system of once every three years. In name, Vietnam was once again under Chinese rule. However, Mạc Đăng Dung seemed to have no qualms about this and continued to call himself emperor and use his own era name. As a result, he has been condemned by Vietnamese historians as a "traitor to the country" (Quốc tặc).

In 1592, after the restoration of the Later Lê dynasty in Vietnam, Lê Thế Tông sent envoys to the Ming dynasty of China to request the restoration of the title "King of Annam" for the Vietnamese ruler. However, the Ming dynasty refused, citing the unstable situation, and instead granted the title of "Commandant of Annam". From then until the decline of the Ming dynasty, the Vietnamese region remained as an autonomous administrative unit within the Ming Empire. Additionally, the Ming dynasty also ordered the Later Lê dynasty to cede the Cao Bằng and Thái Nguyên regions of Vietnam to the descendants of the Mạc dynasty.

Despite the reluctance of the officials and ministers of the Lê dynasty, they were forced to allow the Mạc clan to rule over Cao Bằng. For five generations, the Mạc clan held control over Cao Bằng until 1677 when the Trịnh lord launched an attack and took over Cao Bằng, citing the Mạc clan's alliance with the traitor Wu Sangui.

The title of "Commandant of Annam" (Chinese: 安南都統使; Vietnamese: An Nam Đô thống sứ) was used until the end of the Ming dynasty, when the Southern Ming emperors restored the title of "King of Annam" (安南國王; An Nam Quốc Vương) to the Later Lê dynasty.