Chen Tien-pao

Ch’en T’ien-pao (Chinese: 陳添保, Vietnamese: Trần Thiên Bảo) was a powerful Chinese pirate operating from Canton (Guangdong) and throughout the South China Sea in the late 1700s. Later he became a general of Tay Son dynasty of Vietnam.
Chen was born to a fisherman's family in Lianzhou, Guangdong (mordern Hepu County, Guangxi). In October 1780, his fishing vessel was shipwrecked near the northern Vietnam, and he had to stay there.
The Tay Son brothers conquered northern Vietnam, he joined the Tay Son army in 1783. He was good at sailing and later appointed as general. He was the commander of Tay Son navy, helped Tay Son against the threats from the sea. From 1788 to 1799, he ordered his four subordinates, Mo Kuan-fu (莫觀扶), Cheng Chi (鄭七), Liang Wen-keng (梁文庚) and Fan Wen-tsai (樊文才), all Chinese pirates, attacked southern coast of Qing China for many times. The navy of Qing China was very afraid of them.
Chen also played an important role during the civil war between Tay Son and Nguyen lord. After Tay Son army was ulterly beaten by Nguyen lord in 1801, he fled to Guangdong and surrendered to Qing China. Jiaqing Emperor pardoned him and let him live in a place far away from the coast.