South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam, was a country in Southeast Asia from 1955 to 1975, with first international recognition in 1949 as the State of Vietnam. Its capital was located in Saigon, a city in Southern Vietnam. It was a member of the anti-communist and capitalist Western Bloc during the Cold War. With the division of Vietnam on 21 July 1954, South Vietnam was bordered by North Vietnam to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and Thailand across the Gulf of Thailand to the southwest. In 1955, it became a republic. In 1975, it was succeeded by the Republic of South Vietnam, which was de facto controlled by the communist North. On 2 July 1976, South Vietnam and North Vietnam merged to form the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
Bảo Đại, born Nguyễn Phúc (Phước) Vĩnh Thụy, was the 13th and final emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty, the last ruling dynasty of Vietnam. From 1926 to 1945, he was emperor of Annam and de jure monarch of Tonkin, which were then protectorates in French Indochina, covering the present-day central and northern Vietnam. Bảo Đại ascended the throne in 1932.
The Việt Minh is the common and abbreviated name of the League for Independence of Vietnam, which was a communist-led national independence coalition formed at Pác Bó by Hồ Chí Minh on 19 May 1941. Also known as the Việt Minh Front, it was created by the Indochinese Communist Party (ICP) as a national united front to achieve the independence of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
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.
Articles related to Vietnam and Vietnamese culture include:
The national flag of Vietnam, formally the National Flag of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and locally recognized as the Gold-Starred Red Flag or the Flag of Fatherland, was designed in 1940 and used during an uprising against the French and Japanese in Southern Vietnam that year. The red background symbolizes revolution and bloodshed. The golden star symbolizes the soul of the nation and the five points of the star represents the five main classes in Vietnamese society—intellectuals, farmers, workers, entrepreneurs, and soldiers.
The August Revolution, also known as the August General Uprising, was a revolution led by the Việt Minh against the Empire of Vietnam from 16 August to 2 September 1945. The Empire of Vietnam was led by the Nguyễn dynasty and was a puppet state of Japan within the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. The Việt Minh, a league de facto led by the communists, was created in 1941 and designed to appeal to a wider population than what the communists could command.
Áo dài is a modernized Vietnamese national garment consisting of a long split tunic worn over silk trousers. It can serve as formalwear for both men and women. Áo translates as shirt and dài means "long". The term can also be used to describe any clothing attire that consists of a long tunic, such as nhật bình.
The State of Vietnam was an associated country within the French Union from 8 March 1949 to 4 June 1954, then an independent country until 1955. It was the predecessor of the Republic of Vietnam in South Vietnam. It claimed authority over all of Vietnam during the First Indochina War, although large parts of its territory were controlled by the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
Bình Xuyên Force, often linked to its infamous leader, General Lê Văn Viễn, was an independent military force within the Vietnamese National Army whose leaders once had lived outside the law and had sided with the Việt Minh. During its heyday, Bình Xuyên funded itself with organized crime activities in Saigon while effectively battling Communist forces.
The Empire of Vietnam was a short-lived puppet state of Imperial Japan between March 11 and August 25, 1945. It was a member of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. It was led by the Nguyễn dynasty and created when Emperor Bảo Đại declared independence for Vietnam from French protection. At the end of its existence, on 14 August 1945, the empire also successfully reclaimed Cochinchina as part of Vietnam.
Lê Văn Hoạch was a Vietnamese doctor and politician who served as prime minister of Cochinchina from 1946 to 1947.
The National Emblem of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam or simply the Emblem of Vietnam, has been one of the official national symbols representing the Socialist Republic of Vietnam since 1976. It is designed circular and based on the symbolism of the Vietnamese national flag, having a red background and a yellow star in the middle which represent the five main classes in Vietnamese society—intellectuals, farmers, workers, business people and military personnel; the revolutionary history and bright future of Vietnam. The cog and crops represent the cooperation of agriculture and industrial labor.
Dương Thị Ngọc Vân courtesy name Vân Nga (雲娥) was the only empress dowager of the Đinh dynasty and afterwards empress of Lê Đại Hành, the first emperor of the Early Lê dynasty. When her husband Đinh Tiên Hoàng was assassinated in 979, Dương Vân Nga became the Empress Dowager of the Đinh dynasty as her son Đinh Phế Đế succeeded the throne. During the short-lived reign of Đinh Phế Đế, Dương Vân Nga and the general Lê Hoàn jointly held the regentship for the 6-year-old emperor, later it was Dương Vân Nga and general Phạm Cự Lượng who decided to cede the Đinh dynasty's throne for Lê Hoàn in 980 so that Đại Cồ Việt could stand the Song dynasty's invasion with a capable ruler. Subsequently, Lê Hoàn entitled Dương Vân Nga as his empress, hence she became the first woman in the history of Vietnam to be married to two emperors.
The following is a list of political organizations and armed forces in Vietnam, since 1912:
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 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 abdication of Bảo Đại took place on 25 August 1945 and marked the end of the 143-year reign of the Nguyễn dynasty over Vietnam ending the Vietnamese monarchy. Emperor Bảo Đại abdicated in response to the August Revolution. A ceremony was held handing power over to the newly established Democratic Republic of Vietnam, which was established during the end of World War II in Asia as Vietnam had been occupied by French and later Japanese imperialists.
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.
The government of the Nguyễn dynasty, officially the Southern dynasty and commonly referred to as the Huế Court, centred around the emperor as the absolute monarch, surrounded by various imperial agencies and ministries which stayed under the emperor's presidency. Following the signing of the Patenôtre Treaty the French took over a lot of control and while the government of the Nguyễn dynasty still nominally ruled the French protectorates of Annam and Tonkin, in reality the French maintained control over these territories and the Nguyễn government became subsidiary to the administration of French Indochina. During World War II the Japanese launched a coup d'état ousting the French and establishing the Empire of Vietnam which was ruled by the Nguyễn government. During the August Revolution the Nguyễn government was abolished in the aftermath of World War II.
