List of spouses of Vietnamese leaders
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
There have been a number of spouses of the General Secretaries of the Communist Party (Vietnamese: Phu nhân Tổng bí thư) and spouses of the Presidents of Vietnam (Vietnamese: Phu nhân Chủ tịch nước).
These roles were never established or recognized as an official title or office, but their holders often played an important ceremonial role alongside the officeholder.[1][2] Depending on the prominence of the officeholder and their spouse, the latter may be informally referred to as the First Lady of Vietnam (Vietnamese: Đệ nhất Phu nhân Việt Nam). Ngô Phương Ly has been considered the de facto First Lady of Vietnam since Tô Lâm's election as General Secretary in August 2024.[3]
Spouses of the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam
The highest position in Vietnam's political system is the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam and the spouse of the officeholder is considered the de facto "First Lady of Vietnam".[3]
The list only includes spouses of General Secretaries who served after the 1951 re-establishment of the Worker's Party of Vietnam (predecessor of the Communist Party of Vietnam), following which it formally became the ruling party of North Vietnam and later reunified Vietnam.
| No. | Portrait | Name
(Birth–Death) |
Tenure began | Tenure ended | General Secretary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nguyễn Thị Minh
(1912–2001) |
19 February 1951 | 5 October 1956 | Trường Chinh
(1907–1988) | |
| - | Vacant[a] | 5 October 1956 | 10 September 1960 | Hồ Chí Minh
(1890–1969) | |
| 2 | Lê Thị Sương
(?–?) |
10 September 1960 | 10 July 1986 | Lê Duẩn
(1907–1986) | |
| - | Nguyễn Thụy Nga[b]
(1925–2018) | ||||
| (1) | Nguyễn Thị Minh
(1912–2001) |
14 July 1986 | 18 December 1986 | Trường Chinh
(1907–1988) | |
| 3 | Ngô Thị Huệ
(1918–2022) |
18 December 1986 | 28 June 1991 | Nguyễn Văn Linh
(1915–1998) | |
| 4 | Tạ Thị Thanh
(?–?) |
28 June 1991 | 26 December 1997 | Đỗ Mười
(1917–2018) | |
| 5 | Nguyễn Thị Bích
(?–?) |
26 December 1997 | 22 April 2001 | Lê Khả Phiêu
(1932–2020)[5] | |
| 6 | Lý Thị Bang
(1942-2010) |
22 April 2001 | 24 October 2010† | Nông Đức Mạnh
(born 1939[6]) | |
| - | Vacant | 24 October 2010 | 19 January 2011 | ||
| 7 | Ngô Thị Mân[7] 1949 – |
19 January 2011 | 19 July 2024 | Nguyễn Phú Trọng
(1944–2024) | |
| 8 |  |
Ngô Phương Ly 1970 – |
3 August 2024 | Incumbent | |
| Tô Lâm
(born 1956[8]) | |||||
Spouses of the Presidents of Vietnam
| Spouse of the president of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam | |
|---|---|
| Style | Her Excellency[9] Madam[10] |
| Status | de facto |
| Residence | Presidential Palace, Hanoi |
| Inaugural holder | Đoàn Thị Giàu |
| Formation | 2 September 1969 |
| Unofficial names | First Lady of Vietnam |
| Salary | Undisclosed |
| Website | Office of the President |
There have been 12[c] people holding this title since 1969.[d] The current spouse of the president since April 2026 is Ngô Phương Ly, the wife of incumbent President Tô Lâm.
The role of the president's spouse is not an official position, and so they are not given a salary or official duties. Nonetheless, the spouse usually participates in humanitarian and charitable work, and accompanies the president in state visits and entertaining foreign leaders.
| No. | Portrait | Name | Tenure began | Tenure ended | President |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spouses of the president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam | |||||
| — | Vacant[e] | 2 September 1945 | 2 September 1969 | Hồ Chí Minh | |
| — | Nguyễn Thị Sắt[11] 1881 – 1953 |
29 May 1946 | 21 October 1946 | Huỳnh Thúc Kháng (Acting) | |
| 1 | Đoàn Thị Giàu[1] 1898 – 1974 |
2 September 1969 | 25 May 1974† | Tôn Đức Thắng | |
| — | Vacant | 25 May 1974 | 2 July 1976 | ||
| Spouses of the president of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam | |||||
| — | Vacant | 2 July 1976 | 30 March 1980 | Tôn Đức Thắng | |
| — | Dương Thị Chung 1922 – 2018 |
30 March 1980 | 4 July 1981 | Nguyễn Hữu Thọ | |
| Spouses of the chairman of the Council of State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam | |||||
| 2 | Nguyễn Thị Minh 1912 – ? |
4 July 1981 | 18 June 1987 | Trường Chinh | |
| 3 | Phan Thị Nể ? – ? |
18 June 1987 | 22 September 1992 | Võ Chí Công | |
| Spouses of the president of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam | |||||
| 4 | Võ Thị Lê 1928 – 2016 |
23 September 1992 | 24 September 1997 | Lê Đức Anh | |
| 5 | Nguyễn Thị Vinh ? – |
24 September 1997 | 27 June 2006 | Trần Đức Lương | |
| 6 | Trần Thị Kim Chi[12] ? – |
27 June 2006 | 25 July 2011 | Nguyễn Minh Triết | |
| 7 | Mai Thị Hạnh[13] 1956 – |
25 July 2011 | 2 April 2016 | Trương Tấn Sang | |
| 8 | Nguyễn Thị Hiền[14] 1958 – |
2 April 2016 | 21 September 2018 | Trần Đại Quang† | |
| — | Vacant[f] | 21 September 2018 | 23 October 2018 | Đặng Thị Ngọc Thịnh (Acting) | |
| 9 | Ngô Thị Mân[7] 1949 – |
23 October 2018 | 5 April 2021 | Nguyễn Phú Trọng | |
| 10 | Trần Thị Nguyệt Thu[15] 1956 – |
5 April 2021 | 18 January 2023 | Nguyễn Xuân Phúc | |
| — | Vacant[g] | 18 January 2023 | 2 March 2023 | Võ Thị Ánh Xuân (Acting) | |
| 11 | Phan Thị Thanh Tâm[16] 1976 – |
2 March 2023 | 21 March 2024 | Võ Văn Thưởng | |
| — | Vacant[h] | 21 March 2024 | 22 May 2024 | Võ Thị Ánh Xuân (Acting) | |
| 12 | |
Ngô Phương Ly 1970 – |
22 May 2024 | 21 October 2024 | Tô Lâm |
| 13 |  |
Nguyễn Thị Minh Nguyệt ? – |
21 October 2024 | 7 April 2026 | Lương Cường |
| 14 |  |
Ngô Phương Ly 1970 – |
7 April 2026 | Incumbent | Tô Lâm |
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Historical
First Lady of South Vietnam
| First Lady of South Vietnam | |
|---|---|
| Residence | Independence Palace, Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City) |
| Inaugural holder | Trần Lệ Xuân |
| Formation | 26 October 1955 |
| Abolished | 30 April 1975 |
The spouse of the President of South Vietnam is informally referred to as the First Lady.[i]
| No. | Portrait | Name | Tenure began | Tenure ended | President |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Trần Lệ Xuân[j] Madame Nhu 1924 – 2011 |
26 October 1955 | 2 November 1963 | Ngô Đình Diệm | |
| — | Vacant | 2 November 1963 | 31 October 1967 | Military junta | |
| 2 | Nguyễn Thị Mai Anh Madame Nguyễn Văn Thiệu 1930 – 2021 |
31 October 1967 | 21 April 1975 | Nguyễn Văn Thiệu | |
| 3 | Lưu Thị Triệu Madame Trần Văn Hương 1900 – ? |
21 April 1975 | 28 April 1975 | Trần Văn Hương | |
| — | Vacant | 28 April 1975 | 30 April 1975 | Dương Văn Minh | |
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| Second Lady of South Vietnam | |
|---|---|
| Residence | Independence Palace, Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City) |
| Inaugural holder | Đặng Tuyết Mai |
| Formation | 31 October 1967 |
| Abolished | 30 April 1975 |
Second Lady of South Vietnam
The spouse of the Vice President of South Vietnam is informally referred to as the Second Lady.
| No. | Portrait | Name | Tenure began | Tenure ended | Vice President |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | Vacant | 18 December 1956 | 2 November 1963 | Nguyễn Ngọc Thơ | |
| — | Vacant | 2 November 1963 | 31 October 1967 | Military junta | |
| 1 | Đặng Tuyết Mai Madame Nguyễn Cao Kỳ 1941 – 2016 |
31 October 1967 | 29 October 1971 | Nguyễn Cao Kỳ | |
| 2 | Lưu Thị Triệu Madame Trần Văn Hương 1900 – ? |
31 October 1971 | 21 April 1975 | Trần Văn Hương | |
| — | Vacant | 21 April 1975 | 30 April 1975 | Nguyễn Văn Huyền | |
Notes
- Tăng Tuyết Minh was allegedly married to Hồ Chí Minh in 1926 but the pair was separated in 1927 when Hồ went into hiding following the anti-communist coup in Shanghai
- Lê Duẩn married vi:Nguyễn Thụy Nga in 1950 during his revolutionary leadership in the south despite having previously married to Lê Thị Sương in 1929
- Not including the two first ladies of South Vietnam
- Hồ Chí Minh, the first president (1945-1969), was a bachelor during his presidency.
- Tăng Tuyết Minh was allegedly married to Hồ Chí Minh in 1926 but the pair was separated in 1927 when Hồ went into hiding following the anti-communist coup in Shanghai
- The spouse of the vice president never appeared publicly during her acting presidency
- The spouse of the vice president never appeared publicly during her acting presidency
- The spouse of the vice president never appeared publicly during her acting presidency
- Madame Nhu was the wife of Ngô Đình Nhu, who was the brother and chief advisor to President Ngô Đình Diệm. Since Diệm was a lifelong bachelor, Madame Nhu assumed the de facto first lady title.
- Madame Nhu was the wife of Ngô Đình Nhu, who was the brother and chief advisor to President Ngô Đình Diệm. Since Diệm was a lifelong bachelor, Madame Nhu assumed the de facto first lady title.