#Old Photo#The first wife of Bao Dai, the last emperor of the Nguyen Dynasty of Vietnam, Empress Nam Phuong. Empress Nam Phuong's real name was Nguyen Youthi Lan, and her father was a wealthy merchant. She was sent to France to study at the age of 12, and after completing her studies at the age of 18, she returned to Vietnam and met King Bao the Great of Annam. In order to pursue Nguyen Youthi Lan, who had received Western ideological education, Bao Dai made a decision against his ancestors: to abolish the "seven concubines" rights of the Vietnamese emperor and pursue monogamy.
In 1934, Bao Dai married Nguyen Thi Lan and made her empress on the fourth day after the wedding. It must be known that in the history of the Nguyen Dynasty, the wife of the reigning monarch could only be posthumously crowned empress by the son who succeeded her until the death of her husband. Therefore, Nguyen Youthi Lan is also the first monarch since the establishment of the Nguyen Dynasty to be named "empress" when he was still in power.
However, the emperors are basically big pig's trotters. The following year, Bao Da married another woman and entered the palace. In 1945, Bao Dai was forced to abdicate and began a life of exile. In 1955, Nguyen Youthi Lan was disappointed with her husband, who was everywhere, and left Baoda with his five children to live in the countryside in southern France. The two have not interacted since. In 1963, Nguyen Youthi Lan died of illness at the age of 49.
