Mr. Do Huu Thanh, the translator, introducing the book " Emperor Gia Long"
The book "Emperor Gia Long" by Marcel Gaultier not only described the portrait of the first king of the Nguyen Dynasty, but also gave readers information about domestic and foreign historical events in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries.
The book is a translation of Do Huu Thanh, just published by the The gioi Publishing House and Omega Plus, being included in only 200 pages in Vietnamese, and divided into 4 chapters.
The book is a French-language editorial work by Marcel Gaultier, first published in Saigon in 1933. Marcel Gaultier (1900-1960) was the writer and editor for the Civil Affairs Department of Indochina. He left more than ten works for life, including three novels, the rest are memoirs and historical studies about Nguyen Emperors, including Gia Long, Minh Mang and Ham Nghi.
The editorial work came by chance to Do Huu Thanh, a French language teacher. He read and felt interested in a famous historical figure that started the Nguyen dynasty, so he focused on translating, hoping it would have the opportunity to be launched on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the death of Emperor Gia Long.
Story and photo: Minh Hien