Duy Tân
At the time, The Emperor of Vietnam was Duy Tân, who was still a boy and French colonial authorities had hoped that he would be a pliant puppet who would not seek to inspire revolt among the populace. However, Duy Tân was to prove more troublesome than his father Thành Thái, whom the French removed after proving to be too erratic and uncooperative. A few of the mandarins in the court felt that Duy Tân had an independent and inquisitive streak that could be exploited and used as a symbol for an anti-French revolt in the central provinces. At the time, the Vietnamese soldiers who had been recruited by the French for domestic purposes were also restive; there was a general fear that with the outbreak of World War I, they would be sent to the frontline in Europe.