<HTML>
<HEAD>
<TITLE>Bảo Long</TITLE>
<style type="text/css"><!--
  BODY { font-family: verdana, arial } 
  .container { position: relative; left: 2px; top: 2px; color: #CCC; }
  .text { position: absolute; left: -2px; top: -2px; color: #000000;} 
 //--></style>
<STYLE type="text/css">
<!--
BODY {
scrollbar-face-color: #DEE3E7;
	scrollbar-highlight-color: #FFFFFF;
	scrollbar-shadow-color: #ccffff;
	scrollbar-3dlight-color: #D1D7DC;
	scrollbar-arrow-color:  #006699;
	scrollbar-track-color: #ffffff;
	scrollbar-darkshadow-color: #98AAB1;
}
-->
</STYLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY background="../bg_main.gif">
<table border=0 cellpadding=7 cellspacing=1 width=100% height=100% style="border-collapse: collapse">
<tr>
<td valign=top>
<h4 class="container">
Crown Prince Bảo Long<font color="#ffffff" class="text">Crown Prince Bảo Long</font></h4>
</td></TR>
<TR>
<TD ALIGN=left VALIGN=MIDDLE> 
<font face="arial" color="DDDDDD">
<P align="justify">
<b>I</b></font><font face="arial" size=2 color="DDDDDD">n 1936 the last Emperor and Empress of Viet Nam gave birth to their first child, Nguyen Phuc Bao Long. At the time the monarchy was secure and hopes were bright that the new monarch, Emperor Bao Dai, would lead Viet Nam into a new era of prosperity and independence. Few people could have imagined that the newborn child would be the last heir to the throne of the Nguyen Imperial Dynasty that had reigned over the land of the Ascending Dragon for over a hundred years.
<P align="justify">The young royal’s first official engagement came on March 7, 1939 when, at the age of three, he was invested and proclaimed Crown Prince of Viet Nam, the official heir to the throne in an ancient traditional Confucian ceremony. Little did he know that the future which seemed so bright was on the verge of collapse as Viet Nam slipped slowly into the grasp of the Communist insurgents. 
<P align="justify">During World War II, Japan had occupied French Indochina with the blessing of the French government in Vichy. After the surrender of Japan Viet Nam fell into political chaos with no one able to exercise government control. During the August Revolution of 1945 the Communists, under the leadership of Ho Chi Minh, seized control of the northern half of Viet Nam and forced Emperor Bao Dai to abdicate the Golden Throne. In one month, 5,000 years of traditional monarchy in Viet Nam was brought to a sudden end. The future role of the Emperor was uncertain, as was the fate of the rest of the Imperial Family. The French colony in Cochin china (South Viet Nam) had managed to survive the Communist Revolution and some favored establishing independence under a monarchy headed by Crown Prince Bao Long. However, the Empress refused to consider this and totally opposed the measure since it would have given imperial approval of the division of the country and since Emperor Bao Dai was still the one and only legitimate ruler of Viet Nam. 
<P align="justify">However, Crown Prince Bao Long was certainly not inactive during this period, despite his young age. Due to the confusion and violence of the post-war nation and the exile of the Emperor, Empress Nam Phuong left Viet Nam with the Crown Prince and his brother and three sisters in 1947. They took up residence in the châteaux Thorencz outside of Cannes, France. Little did they know, none of them would ever see their homeland again. Since the Empress was a devout Christian of the Roman Catholic Church, Crown Prince Bao Long was sent to receive his education in some of the most renowned Catholic schools of France, such as Roches School in Normandy. For his higher education Crown Prince Bao Long went to Paris where he studied law and political science. By this time, the Emperor had returned as leader of the anti-communist national government and these studies would serve the Crown Prince well for his future role in state affairs.
<P align="justify">As part of the effort of the Free World to support the government of Emperor Bao Dai, in 1953 Crown Prince Bao Long was invited to attend the coronation of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II in London to represent the Vietnamese Imperial Family. When the State of Viet Nam came under attack by the Communist forces Emperor Bao Dai formed the first official Vietnamese national army since the the beginning of French colonialism to defend the Saigon government. Crown Prince Bao Long was anxious to do his part in defending the country and volunteered to join the fighting forces, however, Emperor Bao Dai, fearing for his son’s safety and the future of the Dynasty, refused to allow him in the service of a rapidly escalating war. Still eager to do his duty, Crown Prince Bao Long instead joined the French Army on October 6, 1954. He spent two years at St Cyr Military Academy before attending the world-renowned Saumer Military Academy from which he graduated as a lieutenant. By this time the French had withdrawn their forces from Viet Nam and the Emperor had been deposed by his American-backed Prime Minister who established himself as President of the Republic of Viet Nam. 
<P align="justify"> Nevertheless, after finishing his officer training Crown Prince Bao Long saw service in the French colonial war in Algeria. During the campaign he highly distinguished himself, receiving the Cross of Military Valor with three stars for his courage in battle. This decoration was added to those he had already received, including the Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit, the Decoration of the Golden Gong 2nd class, the Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Cambodia, the Order of the Million Elephants and White Parasol of Laos and a commemorative medal for attending the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. He remained as an officer in the French army for ten years before leaving the service. He then took his current job with a bank in Paris. Crown Prince Bao Long remains unmarried and lives alone in an apartment in Paris. In his younger days he enjoyed riding horses, car racing, reading and playing chess. His favorite author is Jules Verne. Since the Communist takeover in Viet Nam Crown Prince Bao Long was careful to avoid public attention and remained a very private person. His last public announcement came in 1997 when the Emperor Bao Dai passed away in a Paris military hospital. Crown Prince Bao Long inherited the position of head of the Nguyen Dynasty and released a video taped statement on the occasion of the Emperor’s funeral in which he expressed to the Vietnamese community his feelings and memories of their last Emperor. While others in the Vietnamese Imperial Family continue to oppose the Communist government and lobby the world community for support in bringing democracy and human rights to Viet Nam, Crown Prince Bao Long has expressed his desire to stay out of all political discussions and spend his golden years in quiet seclusion. Given the amount of turmoil he has been witness to, and the amount of sacrifice endured by his family for most of his life, his peers understood and respected his desire for a little peace and quiet.
</p></font>
</td>
</tr></table>
</BODY>
</HTML>