111 BC: China conquered the northern part of present-day Vietnam. Over the next several centuries Vietnamese culture was strongly influenced by that of China.

Although the terms of the peace agreement were less than the communists had hoped for, the accords did permit them to participate in the new government legally and recognized their right to control certain areas.

With negotiations making little progress, the United States military commander in Saigon, General Creighton W. Abrams, who had held that post since mid-1968, requested and was given permission by President Richard M. Nixon to launch secret bombing attacks, beginning March 18, 1970, on what were described as Vietnamese communist sanctuaries and supply routes inside Cambodia.

In mid-1967 the costs of the war mounted daily with no military victory in sight for either side. Against this background, the party leadership in Hanoi decided that the time was ripe for a general offensive in the rural areas combined with a popular uprising in the cities.

Hanoi's response to the fall of the Diem regime was a subject of intense debate at the Ninth Plenum of the VWP Central Committee held in December 1963.

In 1961 the rapid increase of insurgency in the South Vietnamese countryside led President John F. Kennedy's administration to decide to increase United States support for the Diem regime.

By 1959 some of the 90,000 Viet Minh troops that had returned to the North following the Geneva Agreements had begun filtering back into the South to take up leadership positions in the insurgency apparatus.

The Geneva Agreements were viewed with doubt and dissatisfaction on all sides. Concern over possible United States intervention, should the Geneva talks fail, was probably a major factor in Hanoi's decision to accept the compromise agreement.

With Beijing's promise of limited assistance to Hanoi, the communist military strategy concentrated on the liberation of Tonkin and consigned Cochinchina to a lower priority. The top military priority, as set by Giap, was to free the northern border areas in order to protect the movement of supplies and personnel from China.

In the summer of 1945, popular discontent reached a climax and revolutionary action involving both political and armed struggle proliferated throughout the country, from north to south, in villages and cities, and among the ethnic minorities in the mountainous regions.

On August 13, 1945, the ICP Central Committee held its Ninth Plenum at Tan Trao to prepare an agenda for a National Congress of the Viet Minh a few days later.

In early 1940, Ho Chi Minh returned to southern China, after having spent most of the previous seven years studying and teaching at the Lenin Institute in Moscow.

The signing of the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression pact in August 1939, caused France immediately to ban the French Communist Party and, soon afterwards, to declare illegal all Vietnamese political parties including the ICP.

On August 31, 1858, a French naval squadron attacked Danang, launching several episodes of a war of colonial conquest waged by French imperialism between 1858 and 1884 and resulting in the total annexation of the country.

The signing of the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression pact in August 1939, caused France immediately to ban the French Communist Party and, soon afterwards, to declare illegal all Vietnamese political parties including the ICP.

The year 1925 also marked the founding of the Viet Nam Thanh Nien Cach Menh Dong Chi Hoi (Revolutionary Youth League) in Guangzhou by Ho Chi Minh.

By the turn of the century, a whole generation of Vietnamese had grown up under French control. The people continued, as in pre-colonial times, to look to the scholar-gentry class for guidance in dealing with French imperialism and the loss of their country's independence.

Not all Vietnamese resisted the French conquest, and some even welcomed it. The monarchy, through decades of repression, had lost the support of the people; and Tu Duc, in the eyes of large segments of the peasantry, had lost his mandate to rule.

By 1857 Louis-Napoleon had been persuaded that invasion was the best course of action, and French warships were instructed to take Tourane without any further efforts to negotiate with the Vietnamese.

In June 1802, Nguyen Anh adopted the reign name Gia Long to express the unifying of the country--Gia from Gia Dinh (Saigon) and Long from Thang Long (Hanoi).

The Tay Son Rebellion (1771-1802), which ended the Le and Trinh dynasties, was led by three brothers from the village of Tay Son in Binh Dinh Province.

The degenerated Le dynasty, which endured under ten rulers between 1497 and 1527, in the end was no longer able to maintain control over the northern part of the country, much less the new territories to the south.

Towards the end of the 14th century, a great crisis shook the country. The Ming court, then reigning in China, took advantage of this to invade Dai Viet and to impose a form of direct rule which was to last for twenty years (1407-1427). However, the invaders encountered stiff resistance from the beginning, and national independence was eventually wrested back in 1427 by Le Loi, the founder of the Le Dynasty.

As early as JuIy 1407, the Ming emperor had incorporated Dai Viet into the Chinese empire under the title of Giao Chi Province, set up a central administration, and divided the country into phu and chau, trying to reach down to village level by 1419.

The oppressive occupation soon triggered fierce resistance. As early as the end of 1407, many uprisings began to occur. A descendant of the Tran Dynasty proclaimed himself king in 1407, taking the name Gian Dinh and setting up his headquarters in Nghe An Province.

The Ho lasted for 7 years, from 1400 to 1407, with two kings: - Ho Quy Ly (1400) - Ho Han Thuong (1401 - 1407)

In 1225 the Tran family, which had effectively controlled the Vietnamese throne for many years, replaced the Ly dynasty by arranging a marriage between one of its members and the last Ly monarch, an eight-year-old princess.

Following the death of Dinh Bo Linh in 979, the Song rulers attempted to reassert Chinese control over Vietnam.

Le Dai Hanh (980-1005) Dynastic title: Thien Phuc (980-988); Hung Thong (989-993); Ung Thien (994-1005) Le Trung Tong (1005) Le Long Dinh (1005-1009)

Dinh Tien Hoang (968-979) Dynastic title: Thai Binh (970-979)

Ngo King (939-944) Later Ngo King (950-965)

Having driven out the Chinese, Ngo Quyen defeated a series of local rival chiefs and, seeking to identify his rule with traditional Vietnamese kingship, established his capital at Co Loa, the third century B.C. citadel of An Duong Vuong.

The sixth century was an important stage in the Vietnamese political evolution toward independence. During this period, the Vietnamese aristocracy became increasingly independent of Chinese authority, while retaining Chinese political and cultural forms.

In order to facilitate administration of their new territories, the Chinese built roads, waterways, and harbors, largely with corves labor (unpaid labor exacted by government authorities, particularly for public works projects).

Metal Age (about 4,000 years ago): Vietnam 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) from Bronze Age to Iron Age. These three major cultural centers had close and long mutual relationship, contributed to specific traditional culture of Vietnam. It's unity in abundance.

Prehistoric Era of Vietnam include: Pre-Paleolithic Age and Neolithic Age.

At the beginning of the Bronze Age, the Viet tribe groups had settled down in the North and in the north of Central Vietnam. There were about 15 groups of Lac Viet tribesmen living mainly in the northern highland and delta and a dozen Au Viet groups of tribesmen living in Viet Bac, the northern region of old Vietnam.