Eyewitness History of the World 2.0

VIETNAM

The Vietnamese people occupied the northern half of modern-day 
Vietnam from ancient times. The legendary Hong Bang dynasty ruled 
for thousands of years, before being overthrown by the rival 
Thuc ruler, who founded the kingdom of Au Lac. This was short-lived, 
and in 207 BC, after the collapse of the Chin dynasty in China, 
a former commander of Chinese armies founded the independent 
kingdom of Nam-Viet. From 111 BC Nam-Viet came gradually under 
the control of Han China, and despite occasional uprisings, remained 
a Chinese tributary state until about AD 900.
DAI-VIET
In the 900s the Ly dynasty established the kingdom of Dai-Viet. 
Chinese influence remained very strong in government and public 
life, but Dai-Viet resisted Chinese and Mongol attempts at conquest 
for the next 800 years.
THE CHAMS
South Vietnam was part of the Funan kingdom from AD 100 to 500, 
when it was conquered by the Champa kingdom, who ruled central 
Vietnam. The Chinese regained control of Dai-Viet in 1407. They 
were expelled in 1427 by Le Loi (died 1443), who founded the 
Le dynasty. Dai-Viet annexed Cham lands in 1471, although remnants 
of the kingdom lasted until about 1700.
UNIFICATION
Between 1690 and 1790 the Vietnamese expanded south into the 
Mekong delta, eventually annexing territory that belonged to 
the declining Khmer Empire. The Tay-Son Rebellion of the 1770s 
attempted to overthrow the various ruling families and to modernize 
the country, but it failed. In 1802 Emperor Gia Long (17621820) 
unified the whole of modern-day Vietnam under one ruler.
FRENCH CONQUEST
French missionaries first settled in Vietnam in the 1600s. Partly 
to protect its missionaries from ongoing persecution, and partly 
to pursue colonial ambitions, the French occupied the Mekong 
delta and Saigon in the 1860s. They renamed it Cochin China. 
In 1884 they established the protectorates of Tonkin and Annam 
in the north, leaving the emperor on the throne but without power. 
French Indochina, which included Laos and Cambodia, was formed 
in 1887.
JAPANESE OCCUPATION
Japanese forces occupied Indochina from 1940, leaving the French 
in administrative control. The Vietminh, an alliance of communist 
and nationalist movements, was founded in exile in China by the 
Vietnamese leader, Ho Chi Minh (18901969). The Japanese army 
overthrew the French in 1945, but were soon defeated by the Vietminh 
resistance. The Vietminh declared independence before the Allied 
forces arrived.
NORTH AND SOUTH DIVISION
The French wanted to keep control of Vietnam. They fought against 
Vietminh guerrillas for eight years, before admitting defeat 
in 1954. The peace settlement temporarily divided the country 
along the 17th parallel. However, planned elections were not 
held, and the country remained split into the communist North, 
and the U.S-supported South.
U.S. INVOLVEMENT
Ruled by President Ngo Dinh Diem (19011963), the South Vietnamese 
regime was corrupt and unpopular. Communists in the south formed 
a national liberation army, the Viet Cong, and received assistance 
from North Vietnam. Diem sought help from the United States, 
which became involved in a long and bloody conflict. U.S. troops 
did not leave Vietnam until 1975. Saigon, the South Vietnamese 
capital, fell to the communists.
INVASION OF CAMBODIA
In 1976 Vietnam was reunified under communist rule as the Socialist 
Republic of Vietnam. Saigon was renamed Ho Chi Minh City. Vietnam 
joined the United Nations in 1977. In January 1979 Vietnamese 
troops invaded Cambodia, and set up a pro-Vietnamese government. 
China responded with a month-long invasion of Vietnam. Great 
numbers of people tried to escape from Vietnam by sea. Vietnam 
withdrew from Cambodia in 1990. The United States reestablished 
diplomatic relations with Vietnam in 1995.

Copyright 1995, 1998 Dorling Kindersley
