The mysterious connection between King Bao Dai and the number 13

Bao Dai, whose real name was Nguyen Phuc Vinh Thuy, was the last king of the Nguyen Dynasty. He abdicated in 1945 after the August Revolution succeeded. His abdication also marked the end of the monarchy in Vietnam. He died in France in 1997.

Bao Dai - the last king of Vietnam

Apart from his role as the last king, Bao Dai's life is most often mentioned for his hedonistic lifestyle and love affairs with many beautiful women. In addition, when talking about him, people also find it strange because of his attachment to the fateful number 13.

Numbers 13 in the life of King Bao Dai

The following are the numbers 13 related to the last monarch of Vietnam:

1. Bao Dai was born in Hue capital in 1913., October 22. He was the son of King Khai Dinh and the palace maid Hoang Thi Cuc (also known as Queen Mother Tu Cung, official title is Queen Mother Doan Huy). To this day, many scholars still have big questions about Bao Dai's background, about who his real father is, because according to historical records, King Khai Dinh was infertile and did not like to be around women.

2. King Bao Dai ascended the throne at the age of 13.. At the age of 9, exactly on April 28, 1922, Prince Vinh Thuy was established as Crown Prince. He then became the adopted son of the former Resident General of Central Vietnam, Jean François Eugène Charles and his wife, and was sent to France to study.

On November 6, 1925, King Khai Dinh passed away. He returned to the country to mourn and on January 8, 1926, Vinh Thuy ascended the throne. However, only 2 months later, the king returned to France to continue his studies, and did not return to the country until 1932 to begin his reign.

3. With the succession of Khai Dinh,Bao Dai became the 13th king of the Nguyen Dynasty.This dynasty began with Gia Long and the following kings included Minh Mang, Thieu Tri, Tu Duc, Duc Duc, Hiep Hoa, Kien Phuc, Ham Nghi, Dong Khanh, Thanh Thai, Duy Tan, Khai Dinh, Bao Dai.

King Bao Dai sits on the throne in Thai Hoa Palace.

4. Bao Dai reigned for 13 years.From the time he was crowned king (after his father passed away) until he abdicated, Bao Dai was on the throne for 19 years. However, his official reign was only 13 years, from 1932 when he finished his studies abroad and returned to the country from France to take charge. In 1945, King Bao Dai abdicated, became citizen Nguyen Phuc Vinh Thuy, and accepted to be an advisor to the Government of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. His famous saying during this period was "I would rather be a citizen of a free country than be king of a slave country".

5. There are 13 recorded children.: Bao Dai was the only king of the Nguyen Dynasty who did not have a concubine. One of the conditions that Queen Nam Phuong put forward to accept the marriage proposal was that the king must agree to "monogamy".

However, with his amorous nature, he had many lovers, including two very close beauties who people still called concubines - Mrs. Phi Anh and Mrs. Mong Diep. After Queen Nam Phuong passed away, Bao Dai had many other women but only married Mrs. Monique Marie Eugene Baudot of France in 1982.

Queen Nam Phuong and her 5 children with King Bao Dai

To date, there are 13 known children of King Bao Dai, including 5 official children born by Queen Nam Phuong. The illegitimate children are of Mrs. Mong Diep (2 boys, 1 girl), Phi Anh (1 boy, 1 girl), Hoang Tieu Lan - Chinese (1 girl), Vicky - French (1 girl) and another unknown child. In addition, the concubine Mong Diep said that in the family book of King Bao Dai kept by Mrs. Tu Cung, there is information about another child but it does not record who the mother is.

6. Burial at 13:00:The last king of Vietnam passed away at 5:00 a.m. on July 31, 1997 at Val-de-Grâce Military Hospital (Paris, France). On August 6, he was buried at Passy Catholic Cemetery (Paris). That day the sky was very clear, but when the burial time was approaching, it suddenly rained and the grave was flooded. Fearing that they would be late, everyone tried their best to drain the water and when the water had dried up and the rain had stopped, the clock struck 13:00. The former king was buried at that moment.

Another interesting piece of information is that King Bao Dai's Rolex Reference 6062 watch broke the record for the most valuable Rolex in the world at an auction in Geneva (Switzerland) on May 13, 2017. It was sold for 5.066 million USD, equivalent to 113 billion VND at that time.

According to VTC News