Strasbourg · Hué · Paris

Patrick-Édouard
Bloch-Carcenac

Youngest son of Bao Dai, the last emperor of Vietnam. A witness, a memory, a book.

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Portrait of Patrick-Édouard Bloch-Carcenac
01

His story

Born on 21 April 1958 in Strasbourg, Patrick-Édouard Bloch-Carcenac grew up in Erstein, Alsace, in the Bloch family. As a child, an elegant man often came to visit his mother. He was told to address him formally. And to call him Majesty.

At eight or nine, he learned the truth by chance: that man was his father. The former Emperor Bảo Đại, living in exile in France. He was his thirteenth and last child.

So began a close father-son bond, built on confidences. To the very end.

“So my father was not the man I thought […] but Emperor Bao Dai, whom I addressed formally and had to call Majesty.”Tu dois l'appeler Majesté · translated from French
Patrick-Édouard Bloch-Carcenac
  1. 21 April 1958Born in Strasbourg. Childhood in Erstein.
  2. Around 1966The revelation. The family friend is his father.
  3. 1966 – 1997Years of confidences with the Emperor.
  4. 1997His father dies in Paris. He is by his side to the end.
  5. 2021Publication of Tu dois l'appeler Majesté.
  6. TodayHe lives in Alsace and keeps his father's memory alive.
Patrick-Édouard with his father, Emperor Bảo Đại
With his father, Emperor Bảo Đại.
Father and son

Born in Alsace. Heir to a memory from Huế.

Patrick-Édouard still lives in Alsace, a region his father loved. Journalists, historians, Vietnam enthusiasts and members of the Vietnamese community get in touch with him. For one simple reason: he heard the Emperor tell his story.

02

Bảo Đại, his father

Born in Huế in 1913, Vĩnh Thụy ascended the throne of Annam in 1926 as Bảo Đại. He was the thirteenth and last ruler of the Nguyễn dynasty.

Before becoming the exiled “Son of Heaven”, he reigned from the Forbidden City in Huế. He titled his memoirs Le Dragon d'Annam (The Dragon of Annam).

  1. 1913Born in Huế.
  2. 1926Ascends the throne.
  3. 1945Abdication.
  4. 1949 – 1955Head of the State of Vietnam.
  5. 1955Exile in France.
  6. 1997Dies in Paris.
Portrait of Emperor Bảo Đại
Portrait colourised by Hoàng Việt

Archives

Young Bảo Đại beside his father, Emperor Khải Định
As a boy, beside his father, Emperor Khải Định.
The young Emperor Bảo Đại on the throne
The young emperor on the throne.
Bảo Đại at a train window, greeted by a crowd
At a train window, greeted by a crowd.
Bảo Đại and Léon Pignon in Ban Mê Thuột
With High Commissioner Léon Pignon in Ban Mê Thuột, in the Annam highlands.
100-đồng banknote bearing the portrait of Bảo Đại
A 100-đồng banknote bearing his portrait, 1950s.
Bảo Đại in France
In France, after exile.
03

Le livre

Cover of the book Tu dois l'appeler Majesté

Tu dois l'appeler Majesté

“You Must Call Him Majesty” · in French

A memoir by the youngest son of Bao Dai, the last emperor of Vietnam.

A childhood with a secret. A revelation. Then years of conversations with a father who, all his life, kept a reserved and discreet public face. Here Bao Dai speaks openly: about his reign, politics, philosophy.

  • The revelation in the lift
  • A love story between Mother and His Majesty
  • Liberating journeys
  • With my father, His Majesty Bao Dai
  • The Emperor's death
  • Now I live happy days
Published October 2021Printed by Créaprint, StrasbourgISBN 979-10-699-7906-2160 pages

Now out of print.

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04

In the media

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▶
France 3 · 13 October 2021

Enquêtes de régions

A programme about Patrick-Édouard and Bao Dai. In French.

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▶
France 3 Grand Est · January 2025

The last emperor's Alsatian son

A France 3 Grand Est report. In French.

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▶
TV Erstein · 2025

The son of the last emperor of Vietnam

A report by local television in Erstein, his childhood town. In French.

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Memories, photos, archive documents. The conversation continues in his Facebook group.

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