Promoting the independent spirit of the Khuc family in the contemporary struggle for national sovereignty

Abstract

After the failure of An Duong Vuong’s fight to protect national independence in 179 BC, our country was placed under the domination of northern feudal dynasties for centuries. With the spirit of patriotism and independence, Khuc Thua Du, Khuc Hao and Khuc Thua My cleverly led a flexible struggle against northern domination and gradually gained independence in 905. Their victory laid the foundation for Ngo Quyen to fight back the Southern Han invasion in 938 and constructed a new state in the periods that followed. In today’s Vietnam, the experiences of the Khuc family’s spirit of patriotism and independence in the 10^th century are essential for the efforts to protect our national sovereignty. This paper illustrates some of the lessons in terms of skilful diplomatic struggle, using “the soft to win over the hard” of the Khuc family that can be applied in the contemporary issue of the Eastern Sea (Bien Dong) in particular and the protection of 21^st century Vietnam’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity in general.