Key points
- 01 In 40 CE, they led an uprising that drove out the Chinese occupiers and liberated sixty-five cities.
- 02 They raised an army of eighty thousand fighters, most of them women, and established an independent state.
- 03 Defeated in 43 CE, they remain, nearly two thousand years later, enduring symbols of Vietnamese independence.
Han rule over the red river delta
In the 1st century CE, China's Han dynasty controlled the Red River Delta, which it administered as the Prefecture of Giao Chỉ. Han authorities imposed taxes and cultural norms on the Lạc Việt lords, fuelling growing resentment and a desire for independence.
The two sisters of Mê Linh
Trưng Trắc and Trưng Nhị were born in Mê Linh, in the Red River Delta, into a family of local lords. Trưng Trắc married Thi Sách, a regional leader. When Chinese authorities executed him to suppress dissent, she took command of the rebellion and brought her sister to her side.
The uprising of 40 CE
In 40 CE, the two sisters assembled an army to protest new Han taxes and marched on the provincial capital. Their leadership resonated across the Red River Delta, inspiring around sixty-five cities to join their cause.
An army of women
The execution of Thi Sách, Trưng Trắc's husband, ignited the revolt in 40 CE. The two sisters raised an army of nearly eighty thousand people, many of them women, and appointed thirty-six female generals, including their own mother. Within months, they recaptured sixty-five citadels, expelled the Chinese governor, and established an independent state. Trưng Trắc became its queen, the first female ruler in Vietnamese history.
Defeat and legacy
In 42 CE, the Han emperor sent General Ma Yuan to reconquer the territory. Better equipped and battle-hardened, the imperial forces eventually prevailed. Rather than surrender, the two sisters chose death in 43 CE. Nearly two thousand years later, Vietnam still honours them as the first heroines of its independence.
« All the heroes bowed their heads in submission; only the two sisters rose up to avenge their country. »
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