Duong Van Nga

Who was Duong Van Nga?

Dương Vân Nga was the only empress dowager of the Đinh Dynasty and afterwards empress of Lê Đại Hành, the first emperor of the Early Lê Dynasty. When her husband Đinh Tiên Hoàng was assassinated in 979, Dương Vân Nga became the Empress Dowager of the Đinh Dynasty as her son Đinh Phế Đế succeeded the throne. During the short-lived reign of Đinh Phế Đế, Dương Vân Nga and the general Lê Hoàn jointly held the regentship for the 6-year-old emperor, later it was Dương Vân Nga and general Phạm Cự Lượng who decided to cede the Đinh Dynasty's throne for Lê Hoàn in 980 so that Đại Cồ Việt could stand the Song Dynasty's invasion with a capable ruler. Subsequently, Lê Hoàn entitled Dương Vân Nga as his empress, hence she became the first woman in the history of Vietnam to be married to two emperors.