Journey through the people, cities and ideas that shaped Vietnam, from early communities to contemporary Vietnam.
Follow early communities, ancient kingdoms, imperial dynasties, French colonial rule, independence, war, reunification and contemporary Vietnam.
Explore 13 historical periods, the rulers and heads of government, and 79 chapters of territorial change.
Kings and emperors, regional authorities, governors and viceroys, heads of state and prime ministers of the lands of Vietnam.
A Journey Through the Ages
Vietnam connects early communities and ancient kingdoms with imperial dynasties, colonial rule, independence, war and reunification. Explore 518 events across thirteen periods.
500,000 BCE – 258 BCE
Hunter-gatherers and later copper-using farmers preceded the Dong Son bronze culture of the Red River Delta, dated roughly 1000 BCE to 100 CE. Later chronicles name the Hung Kings of Van Lang, though modern historians place real statehood in the second half of the first millennium BCE.
257 BCE – 938
Thuc Phan's Au Lac fell to Zhao Tuo's Nanyue in 179 BCE and the Han annexed the region in 111 BCE, creating Jiaozhi, Jiuzhen and Rinan. Revolts by the Trung sisters, Lady Trieu and Ly Bi punctuated Chinese rule until Ngo Quyen's victory at Bach Dang in 938.
939 – 1009
Ngo Quyen declared himself king in 939, and Dinh Bo Linh adopted the name Dai Co Viet in 968 with his capital at Hoa Lu. Le Hoan halted a Song invasion in 981, sacked the Cham capital Indrapura in 982 and was named King of Giao Chi by the Song.
1010 – 1225
Ly Thai To moved the capital to Thang Long in 1010, and the court organised 24 lo and a tributary relationship with the Song. Ly Thuong Kiet pre-empted a Song attack and halted it at Nhu Nguyet in 1077, while a 1069 campaign won three northern Cham districts.
1226 – 1400
Tran Canh replaced the Ly in December 1225, and the dynasty repelled Mongol invasions in 1258, 1285 and 1287-88, culminating at Bach Dang in 1288. A 1306 marriage alliance brought Thuan and Hoa from Champa, but Che Bong Nga's raids ended only with his death in 1390.
1401 – 1527
Ho Quy Ly's Dai Ngu (1400-07) enacted land and currency reforms before the Ming conquest of 1406-07 turned the country into the province of Jiaozhi. Le Loi's rebels ended Ming rule in 1428, and Le Thanh Tong's 1471 capture of Vijaya reduced Champa to a small remnant.
1528 – 1770
Mac Dang Dung's usurpation (1527) was followed by the Le restoration and the rise of the Trinh lords in the north and the Nguyen lords in the south. The Trinh-Nguyen wars of 1627-73 left a long division, while Nguyen settlers pushed through Champa lands and the Mekong Delta by 1757.
1771 – 1857
The Tay Son revolt began in 1771, overthrew the Nguyen and Trinh and defeated Siam in 1785 and the Qing in 1789. Nguyen Anh took Thang Long in 1802 as Gia Long, and Minh Mang annexed Panduranga in 1832 and Cambodia in 1834, reaching the dynasty's largest extent.
1858 – 1944
France attacked Da Nang in 1858 and took Cochinchina by 1862-67, then imposed the 1883 and 1884 treaties creating the Annam and Tonkin protectorates inside the 1887 Indochinese Union. Nationalist and communist movements grew, Japan entered in 1940, and the famine of 1944-45 killed an estimated 400,000 to 2 million.
1945 – 1954
Ho Chi Minh declared independence on 2 September 1945 after the Japanese coup and Bao Dai's abdication. War with France began in December 1946, the State of Vietnam was set up in 1949, and the Geneva Accords of 21 July 1954 divided the country at the 17th parallel.
1955 – 1975
The Republic of Vietnam was proclaimed in October 1955 under Ngo Dinh Diem while the North pursued land reform and, later, war in the South. American combat forces arrived in 1965, the Paris Accords followed on 27 January 1973, and Saigon fell on 30 April 1975.
1976 – 1999
The Socialist Republic of Vietnam was proclaimed on 2 July 1976, followed by the Cambodian intervention of 1978-89, a border war with China in 1979 and the exodus of boat people. The Doi Moi reforms of 1986 opened the economy, and relations with the United States were restored in 1995.
2000 – present
Vietnam and China signed the Gulf of Tonkin delimitation in December 2000, and Vietnam joined the WTO in 2007, while Hanoi's 2008 enlargement and the 2025 mergers reshaped administration into 34 units. The 2019 census counted 96,208,984 people, and about 102.3 million were estimated for 2025.
From Dong Son and Au Lac to Dai Viet, Dai Nam, French Indochina and the Socialist Republic, 500,000 years ago – 2026
From Hoa Binh hunters and the bronze drums of Dong Son to Au Lac, Nanyue and the Chinese provinces, Champa and Funan, Dai Viet under the Ly, Tran, Later Le, Mac, Trinh and Nguyen, the Tay Son, French Indochina, the partition of 1954 and the Socialist Republic. Watch the lands of Vietnam change year by year with their neighbours and overlords; dashed shapes mark approximate zones, and the demilitarised zone, the Paracels and the Spratlys are flagged overlays that show a location, not a verdict on sovereignty.
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River valleys, inland routes and maritime exchange connected diverse communities across the region.
Ancient kingdoms and imperial dynasties shaped cities, cultural traditions and political authority.
Colonial rule, independence movements, war, reunification and economic reform shaped contemporary Vietnam.
Events and ruler profiles retain the references supplied with the dataset. Structural and display checks do not establish historical accuracy. The research report records unverified ruler links, single-source events, gaps and conflicting dates; recent events remain subject to revision.
The supplied map retains its credits, references and territorial caveats. Historical states, context layers and approximate zones distinguish regional authority from modern borders. Kashmir is shown through administered and proxy outlines, with disputes identified in the map; East Vietnam is included in its historical context.
Population estimates describe differing territories and periods. Ranges for an ancient city or a whole civilisation are not treated as counts for modern Vietnam. Images are pending; this microsite uses a gradient and a generic ruler placeholder.
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