Vietnam´s official travel and tourism guide

HISTORY

Prehistoric Era
Paleolithic Age
Human life started in Viet Nam a very long time ago. In fact, archaeologists have found vestiges of Homo Erectus, in the caves of Lang Son, Nghe An and Yen Bai provinces, as well as the discovery of some artifacts at Do Mountain (Thanh Hoa Province), Than Sa (Thai Nguyen Province), Son Vi (Phu Tho Province) between 10,000 to 30,000 years ago. In the Pre-Palaeolithic Age, the popula­tion was rather large and widespread. People living at this time, used trimmed pebbles as tools.
Neolithic Age
Known as the Hoa Binh, Bac Son Culture (between 6,000 to 10,000 years ago), people used trimmed stone tools and axes, made pottery goods, and cultivated fields.
Formation of Viet Nam
Metal Age (about 4,000 years ago) From Bronze Age to Iron Age, Viet Nam existed three major cultural centers: Phung Nguyen -Dong Son (the North), Long Thanh - Sa Huynh (the Centre) and Cau Sat, Doc Chua -Dong Nai (the South). These three major cultural centers had close and long mutual relationship, contributed to specific traditional culture of Viet Nam. It's unity in abundance.
Van Lang and Au Lac Nations
It was only during the Dong Son period that a state first emerged. Evidence of the unified culture, prevailing in the region between the Sino-Vietnamese border in the North and the bank of the Gianh River in the South, made it clear that a nation of the ancient Viet people had existed. At that time, the Hung Kings ruled the Van Lang Nation.
Later, in third century BC, An Duong Vuong founded the Au Lac Nation. Records of this nation can be found in the annals written by Chinese historian Xi Ma Tin. Remains of the Co Loa Citadel, which was built during the An Duong Vuong period, can still be seen today.
Champa Nation
During the Iron Age, the Pre-Sa Huynh culture evolved in South-Central Viet Nam, between Thua Thien and the Dong Nai River Delta. During this time, people were buried in tombs along with many iron tools and
jewellery made of agate and jasper. The Sa Huynh culture was founded by the ancestors of the Cham.
Chinese Domination Period
In 207 BC, Au Lac was conquered by Zhao Juo, the King of Nan Yue, who was then occupied by the Han Empire. Dominated by Han in 111 BC, Au Lac was divided into districts. Viet Nam remained under Chinese cultural hegemony for the next eleven centuries.
During this period, a series of insurrections were organized to gain independence. The start was the Trung Sisters' insurrection (40 AD - 43 AD), Ba Trieu (248). In 542, Ly Bi raised an army to rebel against another one of those pesky Chinese dynasties, the Luong rulers. He was successful and gained inde­pendence. He came to the throne in 544. The country was renamed Van Xuan Country, but only for a short time. During the domination of the Chinese empire, a series of insurrections were organized such as: the Mai Thuc Loan (722); Phung Hung (766 - 791) had gained independence for 7 years; Khuc Dynasty (905 - 923); Duong Dinh Nghe (931-938). Ngo Quyen insurrections against Nam Han, in 938, in the Bach Dang River marked the end of more than 1,000 years of Chinese domination and the independence of the country resumed.
Stage of Independence
A new page in Vietnamese history was turned at the beginning of the 10'h century when the Ngo (939-965), Dinh (968-980), and Pre-Le (980-1009) dynasties strove to consolidate, maintain, and protect a unified and independ­ent nation. The victory of the resistance led by Le Hoan in 981 against the Sung invasion was a compelling proof of these objectives.
Ly and Iran Dynasties
From the 11 * century to the 14* centuries, during the Ly (1009- 1225) and Tran (1226-1400) dynasties, Viet Nam became a power­ful nation. The government had a strong army including regional and court forces.
Agriculture developed. Building dikes and ploughing virgin soils were focused on. Villages specializing in producing either pottery, bronze, or iron objects formed. Merchant ships from China and other south-eastern Asian countries came to trade at the Hoi Thong and Van Don ports.
During the Ly and Tran dynasties, Buddhism prevailed and had a great impact on literature and arts. Confucianism also started to develop around this time. Van Mieu (Temple of Literature) was built in Ha Noi to worship Confucius at the end of the 11th century. Confucianism examinations were held regu­larly during the Tran Dynasty. There were more and more bureaucratic class come from Confucianism. The Norn script was used widely in literary works, and the first documents on the country's history were compiled. The independence of the country was maintained thanks to the successful resistance against the Sung (1075-1077), led by Ly Thuong Kiel, and against the repeated assaults of the Mongols, led by the Tran kings and Tran Hung Dao in 1258,1285, and 1288.
Ho Dynasty
The Ho Dynasty (1400-1407) carried out reforms to overcome the crisis, which began late in the Tran Dynasty. Ho Quy Ly imposed policies to reduce feudal tenure and servants and issued paper notes instead of coins. However, his policies did not bring about many improvements. The people did not support him. King Ho could not organise resistance against the Ming invasion and the Ming Empire conquered the country. Later, Tran Dynasty was in power for 7 years but they also could not defeat Ming invaders.
Le Dynasty
Le Loi led a movement to secure the independence of the country. The resistance in Lam Son, in the Thanh Hoa Province, lasted 10 years. Supported and assisted by the people and excellent leaders, among them was Nguyen Trai, a national hero and activist, the movement led by Le Loi was triumphant. The "Binh Ngo Dai Cao" (Great proclamation) written by Nguyen Trai became an Independence Manifesto.
In the 15* century, agriculture, industry, and trade developed as society became stable. Confucianism became the orthodox ideology. Looking for talents through examinations was regular and a law known as the Hong Due Law was issued; it clearly described the perspective of Viet Nam's political, social, and economical status at that time.
However, the Le Dynasty (1428-1788) started deteriorating and society reached chaos in the 16«i century. In 1527, Mac Dang Dung overthrew the Le King and established the Mac Dynasty. The Trinh clan then mobilized a resistance against the Mac Dynasty. In 1592 Trinh clan conquered Thang Long, and Le
King came back to the throne but the power belonged to the Trinh Lords. Meanwhile, in the South, the Nguyen lords extended their land to the Mekong Delta and carried out a resistance against the Trinh clan. The Trinh -Nguyen War stretched from 1627 to 1772.
During this time, there were many changes in politics as well as in society and economic in Viet Nam. At the end of the 16«i century, Viet Nam developed trade relations with Western countries such as Portugal, Spain, Holland, and Britain, France. At this period, Catholicism started propagating into Viet Nam.
The commodity economy pros­pered so much that many cities developed. Among them: Thang Long, Pho Hien in Dang Ngoai (in the North) and Hoi An, Thanh Ha, Nuoc Man in Dang Trong (in the Central and the South).
Tay Son Dynasty
The Nguyen brothers, Nguyen Nhac, Nguyen Lu, and Nguyen Hue, led the Tay Son insurrection in 1771 and overthrew the Nguyen Dynasty. Thai forces were defeated by the Tay Son army in Rach Gam-Xoai Mut front (on My Tho River) in 1785. Then, the Tay Son army marched to Dang Ngoai (the North) and overthrew the Trinh Dynasty.
Le Chieu Thong, the last king of the Le Dynasty, fled to China and asked for the assistance of the Qin Dynasty. Nguyen Hue took the throne in Phu Xuan, now called Hue, in 1788. He led the army to the North to defeat the Qin troop of 290,000 men in Thang Long during the first lunar month of 1789. Under the Tay Son Dynasty, Quang Trung -Nguyen Hue implemented progressive policies on land and education but he passed away in 1792. At that time, Nguyen Ann, who was supported by the French, returned to the Mekong River Delta to fight the Tay Son army. Tay Son was defeated in 1802, and Nguyen Anh conquered Phu Xuan and established Nguyen Dynasty.
Nguyen Dynasty
In 1802, Nguyen Anh proclaimed himself Emperor Gia Long and founded The Nguyen Dynasty (1802-1945). Gia Long and Minh Mang, the first kings of the Nguyen Dynasty, unified the country and set up a healthy state. In regards to the internal policy, the Nguyen Kings cleared land for cultivation, encourag­ing irrigation. As for the external policy, Minh Mang and Thieu Tri kings sent merchant ships to trade with France, England, Indonesia, and India.
The Nguyen Kings ordered those books on national history and geography be written and printed. These were important books that had a great impact on the national culture. Confucianism was becoming the basis of the Nguyen Dynasty's conservative ideology. The Nguyen Dynasty imposed a closed-door policy and dispelled diplomatic missions who wanted to set up relations with Viet Nam.
French colonization
In the middle of the 19* century, the occiden­tal countries, among which France, were eompeting to conquest new markets in Asia and extend their colonies. As soon as 1843, France sent boats to Da Nang to thread the Nguyen.
Following a succession of strives, the French government sanctioned the decision to con­quer Viet Nam in 1857. However, due to resistance by Vietnamese patriots, it took the French 30 years to establish their domination.
In 1887, Indochina Alliance was established. It consisted of Viet Nam (Bac Ky, Trung Ky, Nam Ky regions), Cambodia and Laos. In the beginning of the 20* century, French social and economic policies were boosted in Viet Nam. The French concentrated investments in the mining industry as well as several other industries. A number of large plantations appeared in addition to rice, and economical crops, such as tea, coffee, and rubber. Agricultural and handicraft products were being considered as commodities. These changes in the Vietnamese economy resulted in a division between the bourgeoisie and working class.
Movement of Independence
Vietnamese patriots with different ideologies consecutively struggled to liberate the country. One movement was the Dong Du, which was led by Phan Boi Chau. Phan Chu Trinh and the Dong Kinh Nghia Thuc group followed a policy of raising intellectual standards. Nguyen Thai Hoc and his fellows were sentenced to death. Nguyen Ai Quoc, better known as Ho Chi Minh, founded Viet Nam's Communist Party (or the Indochina Communist Party) in 1930. From that point, Communists were the primary leaders of the national liberation movement.
After World War II and Japan's surrender, the Vietnamese triumphed in the August 1945 Revolution. President Ho Chi Minh read the Independence Manifesto declaring the establishment of the Democratic Republic of Viet Nam at Ba Dinh Square on 2 September 1945.
Following the August 1945 Revolution, the Vietnamese population nevertheless endured several more foreign invasions.
Resistance against the French
In 1946, French colonialists invaded Indochina again. Under the leadership of the Indochina Communist Party (the name of the Vietnamese Communist Party at that time) and President Ho Chi Minh, the Vietnamese carried out a resistance to protect their inde­pendence. The historical victory at Dien Bien Phu ended the first Vietnamese resistance war. The Geneva Accords concluded in 1954 recognized Viet Nam as a reunified and independent country.
American War
After the French colonialists withdrew from the North, Viet Nam was temporarily divided into two parts at the 17* parallel. The North consisted of the Democratic Republic of Viet Nam where reconstruction had started.
Meanwhile, the South Vietnamese had to fight against the US Army and Sai Gon Government. The Vietnamese population led a fierce war for nearly 20 years before gaining national inde­pendence. After the Paris Agreements were signed in 1973, US Army troops withdrew from Viet Nam. The great victory of the Ho Chi Minh Campaign overthrew the Sai Gon Government in April 1975, unifying the country. The Socialist Republic of Viet Nam with Ha Noi as its capital came into being.
Since Reunification
The entire nation overcame the grave consequences of 30 years of war and started rebuilding the country. Now, Viet Nam is entering a new stage of economical develop/ ment and is striving to raise the annual income per capita, solidify the economy.
Political Institutions
The Socialist Republic of Viet Nam (SRVN) is a state of the people, by the people, for the people. All powers of the State belong to the people as an alliance between the working class, the peasantry, and the intellectual. The administrative units of the SRVN are divided into four levels: central, provincial (city), district, and commune.
The political system, a decentralized structure from the Central authorities to the localities, is comprised of the Communist Party, the National Assembly (NA), the Government, the Fatherland Front and the i People's Unions, such as unions of the Youth, the Women, the Worker, the Peasant, the Veteran, etc.
Viet Nam Communist Party
The leading role of the Viet Nam Communist Party is described in Article 4 of the 1992 Constitution of Viet Nam:
The Communist Party of Viet Nam, the Vanguard of the working class of Viet Nam, a truthful representative of the interests of the working class of Viet Nam and of the working people, follows Marxist-Leninism and the thoughts of Ho Chi Minh, is the leading force of the State and of Society. All organizations of the Party function according to the Constitution and the law.
National Assembly (NA)
It is the highest representative organ of the people, the highest authoritative body of the SRVN; the NA is the only body having constituent and law-making authority. The NA decides on basic policies on domestic and foreign affairs in the areas of social-econom­ics, defence, security tasks, main principles in the organization and activities of the State machine, and the social relationships of the citizen. Its role is one of supreme supervision over the activities of the State.
The NA meets for two sessions every year. The management of the every day activities of the NA is entrusted to the "National Assembly Committee in Charge of Day-to-day Business" (or "the National Assembly Standing Committee"). The NA includes several bodies such as the Commission on Ethnic Minorities, the different Committees, etc.
A deputy of the NA serves a five-year term in office (in peaceful periods). The first NA was elected in January 1946, and the 12th was elected in May 2007.
President of the State
The NA elects the President of the State from among the representatives. The President is the highest officer of the State and represents the SRVN in domestic and foreign affairs. The President of the State also serves a five-year term in office.
Government
The Government is the executive body of the NA, the highest State administration of the SRVN. The Government unifies the manage­ment of all political, economic, cultural, social, defence, security and foreign affairs tasks of the State. It secures the efficiency of operation of the State from the Central Authorities to localities and basic institutions; it ensures the respect and implementation of the Constitution and of the law. The Government is overseen by the NA. Thus, the Government reports its activities to the NA, the Standing Committee of the NA, and the President of the State.
It is the duty of the Government to direct the activities of the ministries, the state bodies and all bodies belonging to the Government, and the People's Committees of all levels in the realization of the State Plan. The Government maintains the right to govern the people in order to build and defend the Fatherland, secure living stability, and improve the material and cultural life of the people.
The Government is comprised of the Prime Minister, the Deputy Ministers, the Ministers, and other members. A term in office of the Government is five years, the same as the NA.