VIETNAM—Timeline of Historical Periods
ca. 3000 BCE
Phung Nguyen culture
ca. 1200 BCE
Development of irrigated rice cultivation
ca. 500 BCE
Dongson culture
ca. 500 BCE
Xa Huynh culture
ca. 200 BCE
Kingdom of Nan Yue encompasses northern area of Vietnam along with what today are the two southern Chinese provinces of Guandong and Guangxi
ca. 111 BCE
China’s Han dynasty emperor Han Wudi conquers Nan Yue and divides it into provinces; northern area of Vietnam called "Chiao Chih"
ca. 111 BCE
Funan major outpost of sea trade; Indian influence strong
40 CE
Trung sisters lead revolt against Chinese domination trying to expel the Chinese but fail. (Their exploits and courage are legendary; Trung Nhac and Trung Nhi were daughters of a local Lac lord; they are believed to have committed suicide rather than submit to the Chinese.)
1st centuries CE
Buddhism enters Chiao Chih from both India and China.
192 CE
Lin Yi establishes Cham kingdom around Hue
Contact with India; spread of Buddhism
570 CE
Ly Phat Tu (Son of the Buddha) establishes local power
617 CE
Tang dynasty established in China; later sets up Protectorate of An Nan ("Annam" in Vietnamese)
939 CE
Ngo Quyen defeats a Chinese force and ends Chinese political domination
939 CE
Champa kingdom
939 CE
Khmer (Cambodian) kingdom of Angkor
1010-1225, Ly dynasty "1st Golden Age"
Ly dynasty of the Viets established in area called Dai Viet;
capital Thang-long ("Emergent Dragon"), today "Hanoi"
Great Buddhist epoch:
• First university established
• Water puppets emerge as dramatic form
• Temple of Literature founded (1070)
• Chu Nom, a set of characters used to write Vietnamese, developed by the Vietnamese
1225-1400
Tran dynasty of Chinese descent replaces the Ly; scholars of classical Chinese learning (Confucianism) and Buddhism of Chinese style brought to capital of Thang-long (present-day Hanoi)
1280s
Mongol invasions repelled
1306
Tran princess marries Champa ruler in Hue; marriage politics
1407-1427
Ming dynasty occupation of Dai Viet
1428-1527, Le dynasty; "2nd Golden Age" in Dai Viet
• Le Loi and Nguyen Trai lead revolt against the Ming (1418-28);
• Independent dynasty established; Confucian-style state with examinations;
• attack on Champa;
• Le Thanh-tong, king who implements changes
1428-1527, Le dynasty; "2nd Golden Age" in Dai Viet
Viets destroy kingdom of Champa
1528-1771, Three families vie for power
• Le family power declines
• Mac and Trinh families compete in north while Nguyen family competes from center and south
• Trinh and Nguyen claim to restore the Le
1528-1771, Three families vie for power
Nguyen compete
1539-1786
Trinh lords
1558-1578
Nguyen lords (also extend Viet influence over Khmer to south); Civil war between Trinh and Nguyen
Tale of Kieu (epic poem in Chu Nom, Vietnamese characters), written by Nguyen Du (1765-1820)
1771-1802
Tay Son Rebellion
Tay Son brothers defeat Nguyen and Trinh and unify country
1802-1945, Nguyen dynasty unites entire country
• established by Nguyen Anh, a southern prince, who fought and defeated the Tay Son to become the Gia-long Emperor; moved the capital to Hue in the center of the country.
• the second Nguyen ruler adopts a Chinese bureaucratic model, with scholar-officials chosen by examinations in the Confucian classics.
1862-1945, French control Vietnam, dividing it into three "pays" (countries)
Tonkin
Annam
Cochin-China
• Hanoi is capital of French Indochina, including Laos and Cambodia
• Romanized script, "Quoc ngu," developed in the 17th century by missionaries to write Vietnamese language, is made official; literacy rate increases
1802-1945, Nguyen dynasty unites entire country
• established by Nguyen Anh, a southern prince, who fought and defeated the Tay Son to become the Gia-long Emperor; moved the capital to Hue in the center of the country.
• the second Nguyen ruler adopts a Chinese bureaucratic model, with scholar-officials chosen by examinations in the Confucian classics.
1862-1945, French control Vietnam, dividing it into three "pays" (countries)
Tonkin
Annam
Cochin-China
• Hanoi is capital of French Indochina, including Laos and Cambodia
• Romanized script, "Quoc ngu," developed in the 17th century by missionaries to write Vietnamese language, is made official; literacy rate increases
1908
Tax revolt in Annam
1925
• Phan Chu Trinh dies
• Phan Boi Chau on trial
• Student activism begins
1930
Indochinese Communist Party formed by Ho Chi Minh to oppose colonial rule
1940-1945, Japanese Invasion and domination
1941: League for the Independence of Vietnam formed by Ho Chi Minh ("Viet Minh")
1945, Japanese defeat
Ho Chi Minh declares Vietnam independent;
Establishes government in the north
French return after Japanese defeat;
United States and Britain support the French
1954
• French defeated at Dien Bien Phu;
• Ho Chi Minh takes control of the north;
• Geneva conference;
• Vietnam divided into North and South;
• elections proposed for 1956 but never held.
1956-1975, Vietnam War
1965: United States involvement in South Vietnam replaces that of the French
1968: Tet offensive
1975, United States and all foreign support leave Vietnam
• North Vietnam takes control of South Vietnam and establishes a unified country
• Name of Saigon changed to "Ho Chi Minh City," after Ho, who died in 1969 before the country united
1976, Socialist Republic of Vietnam proclaimed; capital Hanoi
• 1978 Vietnam invades and occupies Cambodia
• 1979 Sino-Vietnamese border war
• 1985-89 Vietnam removes troops from Cambodia; 1991 formal end
• 1988 Beginning of economic and institutional reforms
• 1995 U.S. and Vietnam establish diplomatic relations
• 1996 Vietnam joins the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
• 2007 Vietnam joins World Trade Organization (WTO)
