page_title: Trịnh lords
section_title: The Trịnh–Nguyễn War
hierarchical_section_title: Trịnh lords / The Trịnh–Nguyễn War
caption_attribution_description: Tiếng Việt: Mô hình thuyền chiến của Đại Việt. Trưng bày tại Chùa Keo, Thái Bình English: Model of a warship by Dai Viet. Shown in Keo Pagoda, Thái Bình Province, Việt Nam
context_page_description: The Trịnh lords, formal title Trịnh princes, also known as Trịnh clan, House of Trịnh were a noble feudal clan who were the de facto rulers of northern Vietnam while Nguyễn lords ruled southern Vietnam during the Later Lê dynasty. Both of two rulers were referred to by their people as Chúa and controlled their countries while the Later Lê emperors did not have any real power, only maintained their title. The Trịnh lords traced their descent from Trịnh Khả, a friend and advisor to the 15th-century Vietnamese Emperor Lê Lợi. The Trịnh clan had officially 12 lords that ruled Northern Vietnam and the royal court of Later Lê dynasty for more than 2 centuries.
context_section_description: In 1620, after the enthronement of another figurehead Lê Emperor (Lê Than Tông), the new Nguyễn leader, Nguyễn Phúc Nguyên, refused to send tax money to the court in Đông Đô. In 1623, Trịnh Tung died, he was succeeded by his oldest son Trịnh Tráng. After five years of increasingly hostile talk, fighting broke out between the Trịnh and the Nguyễn in 1627. While the Trịnh ruled over much more populous territory, the Nguyễn had several advantages. First, they initially were on the defensive and rarely launched operations into the north. Second, the Nguyễn were able to take advantage of their contacts with the Europeans, specifically the Portuguese, to produce advanced cannons with the help of European engineers (for more details, see Artillery of the Nguyễn lords). Third, the geography was favorable to them, as the flat land suitable for large organized armies is very narrow at the border between the Nguyễn lands and the Trinh territories – the mountains nearly reach to the sea. After the first offensive was beaten off after four months of battle, the Nguyễn built two massive fortified lines that stretched a few miles from the sea to the hills. These walls were built north of Huế (between the Nhật Lệ River and the Sông Hương River). The walls were about 20 feet tall and seven miles long. The Nguyễn defended these lines against numerous Trịnh offensives that lasted (off and on) from 1631 till 1673, when Trịnh Tạc concluded a peace treaty with the Nguyễn Lord, Nguyễn Phúc Tần, dividing Vietnam between the two ruling families. This division continued for the next 100 years.
caption: The model of naval battle ship during Trịnh's era in XVII.
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