Trịnh Kiểm
Mạc Đăng Dung's seizure of the throne prompted other families of the aristocracy, notably the Nguyễn and Trịnh, to rush to the support of the Lê royalists. With the usurpation of the throne, the civil war broke out anew. Again the Nguyễn and the Trịnh gathered an army and fought against Mạc Đăng Dung, this time under the leadership of [[Nguyễn Kim]] and [[Trịnh Kiểm]]. The Trịnh and the Nguyễn were nominally fighting on behalf of the Lê emperor but in reality, for their own power.