Pierre Joseph Georges Pigneau

Pierre Pigneau de Behaine was a French Catholic priest who played a significant role in the history of Vietnam. He left France in 1765 and went to establish a seminary in southern Vietnam, then known as Cochinchina. He faced many difficulties and dangers, such as imprisonment, piracy, war, and disease. He became the bishop of Adran in 1774 and befriended Nguyễn Ánh, a young prince who was fighting against the Tây Sơn rebels. Pigneau de Behaine supported Nguyễn Ánh's cause and helped him to obtain military and financial aid from France. He also acted as his diplomat and adviser, and accompanied him in many battles and campaigns. He was instrumental in negotiating the 1787 Treaty of Versailles, which recognized Nguyễn Ánh as the legitimate ruler of Vietnam and granted France exclusive trade and missionary privileges. He died in 1799, before Nguyễn Ánh became Emperor Gia Long and founded the Nguyễn dynasty. Pigneau de Behaine is regarded as a hero by some Vietnamese and a traitor by others. He is also remembered for his contributions to Vietnamese culture and language, such as his Annamite-Latin dictionary, his translation of catechism books, and his promotion of quốc ngữ (the Latin-based script for Vietnamese). He was buried in Qui Nhơn, where his tomb still stands today.