Canvuong

(“in defense of the emperor”), a liberation movement in northern and central Vietnam from 1885 to 1896. It was a response to the treaty of 1884 between France and Vietnam establishing a French protectorate. Participants in the movement fought for national independence, supporting the monarchy and the traditional feudal order.

The can vuong movement was led by representatives of the class of feudal lords and of the feudal intelligentsia (van than). The movement began with a rebellion in Hue (Quang Tri Province) led by Ton That Thuet and supported by numerous popular actions. The major centers of rebellion formed in the provinces of Huu Nguyen, Thanh Hoa, and Nghe An. All the demonstrations were suppressed by French punitive forces. However, the struggle of the Vietnamese people continued and became a broad anti-French peasant movement, under the leadership of De Tham, which lasted until 1913.