The pre-history of Vietnam can be traced back to around 20,000 years ago. The earliest modern human inhabitants of Southeast Asia were Ancient East Eurasian hunter-gatherers that arrived in the area at least c. 40,000 BP, following the Out of Africa migration. Contemporary remnant groups of these earliest inhabitants are usually included under the cover term "Negrito". Archaeological findings from 1965, which are still under research, show the remains of two hominins closely related to the Sinanthropus, dating as far back as the Middle Pleistocene era, roughly half a million years ago.
The Nguyễn dynasty was the last Vietnamese dynasty, which was preceded by the Nguyễn lords and ruled the unified Vietnamese state independently from 1802 to 1883 before being a French protectorate. During its existence, the empire expanded into modern-day southern Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos through a continuation of the centuries-long Nam tiến and Siamese–Vietnamese wars. With the French conquest of Vietnam, the Nguyễn dynasty was forced to give up sovereignty over parts of southern Vietnam to France in 1862 and 1874, and after 1883 the Nguyễn dynasty only nominally ruled the French protectorates of Annam as well as Tonkin. They later cancelled treaties with France and were the Empire of Vietnam for a short time until 25 August 1945.
The Tây Sơn dynasty (Vietnamese:[təjʂəːn], Vietnamese: Nhà Tây Sơn, Chữ Nôm: 茹西山, lit. 'House of Tây Sơn'; Vietnamese: triều Tây Sơn, officially Đại Việt, was a dynasty of Vietnam. It was founded after three Nguyễn brothers from the village of Tây Sơn rebelled against the Lê dynasty, Nguyễn lords, and Trịnh lords. The Tây Sơn were led by these three brothers, referred to by modern Vietnamese historians as the Tây Sơn brothers because of their origin in the district of Tây Sơn. The Tây Sơn was later succeeded by the Nguyễn dynasty.
The Lê dynasty, also known in historiography as the Later Lê dynasty, officially Đại Việt, was the longest-ruling Vietnamese dynasty, having ruled from 1428 to 1789, with an interregnum between 1527 and 1533. The Lê dynasty is divided into two historical periods: the Initial Lê dynasty before the usurpation by the Mạc dynasty, in which emperors ruled in their own right, and the Revival Lê dynasty, in which emperors were figures reigned under the auspices of the powerful Trịnh family. The Revival Lê dynasty was marked by two lengthy civil wars: the Lê–Mạc War (1533–1592) in which two dynasties battled for legitimacy in northern Vietnam and the Trịnh–Nguyễn Wars between the Trịnh lords in North and the Nguyễn lords of the South.
The Nguyễn lords, also known as the Nguyễn clan, were a feudal nobility clan that ruled southern part of Đại Việt during the Revival Lê dynasty and ancestors of Nguyễn dynasty's emperors. The territory they ruled was known contemporarily as Đàng Trong and known by Europeans as Kingdom of Cochinchina and by Imperial China as Kingdom of Quảng Nam, in opposition to the Trịnh lords ruling northern Đại Việt as Đàng Ngoài, known as Kingdom of Tonkin by Europeans and Kingdom of Annam by Imperial China in bilateral diplomacy. They were officially called King of Nguyễn in 1744 when lord Nguyễn Phúc Khoát self-proclaimed himself to elevate his status equally to Trịnh lords's title known as King of Trịnh . Both Nguyễn and Trịnh clans were de jure subordinates and fief of the Lê dynasty. However, the de jure submission of the Nguyễn lords to the Trịnh lords ended in 1600.
Vietnamese clothing is the traditional style of clothing worn in Vietnam by the Vietnamese people. The traditional style has both indigenous and foreign elements due to the diverse cultural exchanges during the history of Vietnam. This all eventually led to the birth of a distinctive Vietnamese style of clothing, including the birth of the unofficial national dress of Vietnam, the áo dài.
The Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư is the official national chronicle of the Đại Việt, that was originally compiled by the royal historian Ngô Sĩ Liên under the order of the Emperor Lê Thánh Tông and was finished in 1479 during the Lê period. The 15-volume book covered the period from Hồng Bàng dynasty to the coronation of Lê Thái Tổ, the first emperor of the Lê dynasty in 1428. In compiling his work, Ngô Sĩ Liên based on two principal historical sources which were Đại Việt sử ký by Lê Văn Hưu and Đại Việt sử ký tục biên by Phan Phu Tiên. After its publication, Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư was continually supplemented by other historians of the royal court such as Vũ Quỳnh and Phạm Công Trứ. Today the most popular version of Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư is the Nội các quan bản edition which was completed in 1697 with the additional information up to 1656 during the reign of the Emperor Lê Thần Tông and the Lord Trịnh Tráng. Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư is considered the most important and comprehensive historical book. The chronicle, which was modeled after Sima Qian’s Records of the Grand Historian, provides a chronological history beginning with the legendary Hồng Bàng dynasty and continuing to the founding of the house of Lê in 1428.
Emperor Quang Trung or Nguyễn Huệ, also known as Nguyễn Quang Bình, or Hồ Thơm was the second emperor of the Tây Sơn dynasty, reigning from 1788 until 1792. He was also one of the most successful military commanders in Vietnam's history. Nguyễn Huệ and his brothers, Nguyễn Nhạc and Nguyễn Lữ, together known as the Tây Sơn brothers, were the leaders of the Tây Sơn rebellion. As rebels, they conquered Vietnam, overthrowing the imperial Later Lê dynasty and the two rival feudal houses of the Nguyễn in the south and the Trịnh in the north.
Đại Việt, was a Vietnamese monarchy in eastern Mainland Southeast Asia from the 10th century AD to the early 19th century, centered around the region of present-day Hanoi. Its early name, Đại Cồ Việt, was established in 968 by the ruler Đinh Bộ Lĩnh after he ended the Anarchy of the 12 Warlords, until the beginning of the reign of Lý Thánh Tông, the third emperor of the Lý dynasty. Đại Việt lasted until the reign of Gia Long, the first emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty, when the name was changed to Việt Nam in 1804. Under rule of bilateral diplomacy with Imperial China, it was known as Principality of Giao Chỉ (975–1164) and Kingdom of Annam (1164–1804) when Emperor Xiaozong of Song upgraded Đại Việt's status from principality to kingdom.
The Đại Việt sử ký is the official historical text of the Trần dynasty, that was compiled by the royal historian Lê Văn Hưu and was finished in 1272. Considered the first comprehensive account of the history of Vietnam, the 30-volume book covered the period between 207 BC to 1225 AD in Vietnamese history, from Triệu Đà, the first king of the Triệu dynasty, to Lý Chiêu Hoàng which was the empress regnant and the last ruler of the Lý dynasty. Although it was lost during the Fourth Chinese domination in Vietnam, the contents of the Đại Việt sử ký, including Lê Văn Hưu's comments about various events in the history of Vietnam, were used by other Vietnamese historians as a base for their works, notably the Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư by Ngô Sĩ Liên.
The Đại Việt sử lược or Việt sử lược is an historical text that was compiled during the Trần dynasty. The three-book work was finished around 1377 and covers the history of Vietnam from the reign of Triệu Đà to the collapse of the Lý dynasty. During the Fourth Chinese domination of Vietnam, the book, together with almost all official records of the Trần dynasty, was taken away to China and subsequently collected in the Siku Quanshu. The Đại Việt sử lược is considered the earliest chronicle about the history of Vietnam that remains today.
Following is the family tree of Vietnamese monarchs from the autonomous period of the Khúc clan (905–923) to the reign of Bảo Đại (1926–1945), the last emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty. Emperors, kings and lords of each monarch are denoted by different colours with the period of their reigns.
Throughout the history of Vietnam, many names were used in reference to Vietnam.
Lê Thuần Tông birth name Lê Duy Tường was the thirteenth and fourth-last emperor of the Vietnamese Lê dynasty under the domination of the Trịnh lords. He reigned from 1732 to 1735 and was succeeded by Lê Ý Tông.
The House of Nguyễn Phúc, also known as the House of Nguyễn Phước, was a ruling family of Vietnam. It ruled from the city of Huế in central Vietnam beginning in 1636. As the Nguyễn lords, they often fought with the Trịnh lords, who were based in Hanoi. They were overthrown by the Tây Sơn dynasty in 1776.
The Revival Lê dynasty, also called the Later Lê Restoration in historiography, officially Đại Việt, was a Vietnamese dynasty that existed between 1533 and 1789. The Primal Lê dynasty (1428–1527) and the Revival Lê dynasty (1533–1789) collectively formed the Later Lê dynasty.
The áo giao lĩnh, referred to as the giao lãnh y in Literary Chinese texts. Folk often call it áo tràng vạt or áo tràng xiên, referred to as áo tràng, was a traditional cross-collared robe worn by Vietnamese before the 19th century. It was influenced from Han Chinese clothing and was typically worn by the royalty, the aristocracy, the nobility, and the commoners. During the Nguyễn dynasty, the áo ngũ thân was commonly worn and the áo giao lĩnh was only worn in formal occasions.
The seals of the Nguyễn dynasty can refer to a collection of seals specifically made for the emperors of the Nguyễn dynasty, who reigned over Vietnam between the years 1802 and 1945, or to seals produced during this period in Vietnamese history in general.
The Military of the Nguyễn dynasty were the main military forces of the Nguyễn dynasty from 1802 to August 1945 when it was dismantled by the August Revolution. The Nguyễn military force was initially formed by Nguyễn Hoàng as a division of the military of the Revival Lê dynasty in 1558 starting out with 3000 soldiers. During this period it was the military forces of the domain of the Nguyễn lords and commonly fought the Trịnh lords who controlled northern Vietnam. During the Tây Sơn Rebellion it was expelled out most of the county by the Tây Sơn dynasty. After the exiled Nguyễn Phúc Ánh returned and defeated the Tây Sơn rebels he crowned himself as the Gia Long Emperor and the Nguyễn military became the national military of Vietnam.
