The Sea in the Geopolitical Structure of Minh Mệnh’s Đại Nam

Abstract

This article seeks to explore the role and operation of the maritime factor in the geopolitical framework of Đại Nam under the Emperor Minh Mệnh reign. If Gia Long was the monarch who completed the process of territorial unification, his son, Minh Mệnh, played a particularly crucial role in shaping administrative integration and establishing new unified identities for the S-shaped land. The sea-especially the possession of the entire eastern coastline of mainland Southeast Asia, stretching over 3,000 km - was one of the central elements in the geopolitical operation of Đại Nam under the Minh Mệnh rule. The sea participated in the establishment of administrative structures; shaped resource exploitation, trade, communication, and transportation; and defined territorial policy, sovereignty, national security, and international relations. Thus, positioning the sea in early 19th-century geopolitical thought carries great significance. It not only helps us better understand the functioning of this newly consolidated territorial-political space but also serves as a key to exploring the meaning of the sea in the rise of a “great state” and the formation of Vietnam’s political identity in the 19th century.