Story. Antiquity and the Middle Ages of Vietnam. Short story

24.09.2019

Laquiet, Vanlang

Vanlang map, 500 BC e.

Wanlang was a matriarchal society, similar to other ancient Southeast Asian societies. At excavations in North Vietnam, metal tools of that time were found. The most famous are bronze drums, possibly used in religious ceremonies, on which images of warriors, houses, birds, and animals were engraved in concentric circles.

The people from Wanlang are known as the La Viet.

Much information about the life of that time can be gleaned from ancient legends. The Story of the Banh Tungs is about a prince who wins a culinary tournament and later the throne by inventing rice cakes; this legend reflects the importance of the main part of the then economy, rice growing. "The Story of Zyong" tells the story of a young man who goes to war to save the country. Zyong and his horse wear iron armor, and Zyong himself takes an iron staff, which indicates the presence of developed metallurgy. The magic weapon from the "story of the magic bow" can shoot thousands of arrows, which proves the active use of bows at that time.

Appearance of the Auvietes, Aulac

By the third century BC. e. another group of Viet, the Auviet (甌越), came from the south of what is now China to the Red River Delta (Hongha) and mixed with the Vanlang population. In 258 BC. e. appeared union state Auviets and Lakviets - Aulac. King An duong-vyong built around his capital, Koloa (Vietnamese CổLoa ) , many concentric walls. Skilled aulak archers stood on these walls.

An duong-vyong fell victim to espionage: the Chinese commander Zhao Tuo ( Triệu Đà, cheu da) kidnapped his son Chong Thuy ( Trọng Thủy) after he married the daughter of An Duong Vuong.

Chieu Dynasty, Nam Viet

Map of the Sino-Vietnamese state of Nanyue (Nam Viet).

Dynasty Later Le

In 1428 Le Loi himself became emperor of Dai Viet and founded the Later Le dynasty. Relying on a strong army, his authority as a commander and reforming officials in his environment, he carried out major reforms in the country. Le Nyan Tong, who succeeded him, continued the land reform, as a result, by the end of the 1450s, land ownership in Dai Viet stabilized. The next emperor, Le Thanh Thong, is considered the most successful monarch in the country's history. Le's reforms were supplemented and partly reinforced by the creation of the Thanh Tong Code, "Hongduk". The army and state apparatus received a more harmonious organization, a new administrative reform was carried out, a system of educational institutions and competitive examinations for official positions was established, and a monetary reform was carried out.

In 1471, a carefully prepared military campaign of Dai Viet against Champa took place, culminating in the capture of part of the Cham territories. In 1479-1480, Dai Viet attacked Lan Xang in a similar way, as a result of which Lan Xang fell into vassal dependence on Dai Viet for some time, and its eastern regions became part of the Vietnamese state. At the same time, all the tribes that lived in the mountains to the west of the Viet valleys became tributaries of Dai Viet, and the mountainous regions in the north, which they had long controlled, received the status of provinces; they already had a significant Viet population, although the population of the new areas had not yet completely merged with the Viet.

After the "golden age" of the "Hong-deuk" era, decline came. The beginning of the 16th century was one of the most disastrous periods in the history of the country. Expensive undertakings, extensive wars and an inefficient administrative apparatus ruined the peasants, tax revenues decreased, and the centralized apparatus itself became increasingly weak. The development of agriculture was not given attention, irrigation facilities were in disrepair; instead of dams, idle rulers built palaces. Driven to complete ruin, the peasants raised uprisings. In 1516, one of the largest uprisings in the history of Vietnam began in the province of Quang Ninh, led by the peasant leader Tran Cao. The rebel army led by Chang Kao captured the capital Thanglaung in two attempts. The Le court was forced to flee to Thanh Hoa. The rebels continued to operate until 1521, until they were defeated as a result of a counteroffensive by the faithful of the Le Force dynasty.

Mak dynasty

In 1521-1522, other uprisings were suppressed, but the central government was never able to recover from their powerful blows. In 1527, the feudal faction of Mak Dang Dung, who had been in the military service at the court of Le for many years, defeated his rivals and pushed the legitimate claimants to power in the province of Thanh Hoa. Having proclaimed himself emperor in 1527, Mak Dang Zung sent a mission to China in 1529 with rich gifts and the message that "no one from the house of Le is left and the family of Mak temporarily rules the country and people." Having received the recognition of his dynasty from the Minsk court, Mak Dang Zung passed the throne to his son Mak Dang Zoan, who ruled for 10 years (1530-1540).

Reborn Le Dynasty

Supporters of the Le dynasty, trying to restore their protege to power, sent one mission after another by sea to China asking for help in restoring the legitimate dynasty overthrown by the "usurper Mak". Mak Dang Zaung, in order to avoid an unfavorable development of events, declared that he “puts himself at the mercy of the Ming emperor” and sent a request to China “to conduct an investigation”, and in 1540 he personally appeared at the Namkuan border outpost for trial (at that time the country was ruled his other son is Mac Fook Hai). China took advantage of the situation, and in 1541 issued an investiture recognizing the right of the House of Mac to rule Dai Viet, and declaring Le an ambiguous person whose origin has yet to be proven. However, Vietnam was deprived of the status of a state and declared a governorship ( Annam dothong shi ti) provincial (Guangxi) subordination with the need for the traditional payment of tribute to China.

Soon after the accession of the Macs, their rivals rose to fight them, also striving, under the pretext of restoring the legitimate Le dynasty, to seize power. In the end, Nguyen Kim (a military commander who served under Le) united all opposition groups and, having captured the provinces of Thanh Hoa and Nghe An in 1542, established his power there (formally calling it the “reborn Le dynasty”). In 1545, all power in this region passed to Nguyen Kim's son-in-law, Chinh Kiem. Thus, the country was divided into two parts: the clan of Poppies ( Buck Chieu, "Northern Dynasty") continued to dominate the Bakbo region (Northern Vietnam) with its capital in Thanglaung, the Chiney clan under the cover of the Le dynasty ( Nam Chieu listen), "Southern Dynasty") controlled the Nghe An-Thanh Hoa region. The struggle between these two houses lasted for more than half a century, as a result, the Southern dynasty defeated the Northern dynasty and returned Le to the throne in Thanglaughna in 1592. The Makov dynasty ceased to play a role in the domestic political life of the country, but they continued to enjoy the patronage of China, which kept them in reserve for another three generations. Fearing the open intervention of China, the Chini did not dare to openly overthrow the Le dynasty. China, perfectly aware of who holds the real power, played a complex political game in this region. In 1599, Chin Tung received personal courtesies from China. It is from this moment that the mode that went down in history under the name of edit officially begins] War of Chiney and Nguyen

In 1558, Nguyen Kim's son, Nguyen Hoang, obtained permission from the Le court to manage the Thuan Hoa region, and from 1570, Quang Nam as well. Since that time, this area has become a stronghold of the Nguyen princes, who then set a course for secession from the rest of Vietnam. So by the beginning of the 17th century, two "centers of power" - Nguyen and Chini - took shape. After the death of Nguyen Hoang in 1613, his son tua Shai (Nguyen Phuc Nguyen) began to behave as a completely independent ruler. As a result, relations between the feudal houses of Chiney and Nguyen resulted in an armed conflict that lasted for a significant part of the 17th century. The wars between Chinh and Nguyen dragged on intermittently until 1672, and the Nghean-Botinh region (Hatinh and Quangbinh provinces) became a constant arena of battles. By 1673, both opponents finally ran out of steam and hostilities ceased. The spontaneously formed truce lasted for about a hundred years. The nation turned out to be split, in the national consciousness such concepts as “southerners” and “northerners” arose and entrenched.

Having divided the country, Chini and Nguyen began to strengthen their positions in the held territories in order to turn each of them into a separate independent state. The appeals of the Nguyen to Qing China in 1702 and later with a request for an investiture that would legalize their rule speak of serious claims to independent statehood. When it became clear that Qing China did not support the Nguyen in their quest to legalize de facto independence from Le and Chin, tua Nguyen Phuc Khoat in 1744 declared himself vyongom and made Fusuan (Hue) the capital without regard to Le and China. However, neither Chini nor Nguyen abandoned the most important task - the unification of the country. Both regimes considered themselves part of a single, temporarily divided Dai Viet.

In 1930, at the initiative of the National Party of Vietnam, modeled after the Chinese National Party (Kuomintang), an armed Yenbai uprising broke out in the area northwest of Hanoi. After its suppression, the resistance movement was led by the Communist Party of Indochina, created in 1930 by Ho Chi Minh. During the period when the Popular Front was in power in France, the Vietnamese communists, together with the Trotskyists, expanded their influence, took part in Cochin and Saigon in local government elections. In -1941, the communists led an unsuccessful uprising in the south and organized unrest in the north.

brief information

In recent years, the Vietnamese government has made efforts to ensure that in the minds of foreigners this country is not associated with the wars of the 20th century. The Vietnamese authorities strive to show everyone the culture of their country and its amazing nature. The Vietnamese are very friendly people. This country has picturesque landscapes, delicious cuisine and excellent beaches. In addition, it is important for tourists that Vietnam is the safest country for travelers in Asia.

Geography of Vietnam

Vietnam is located on the Indochina Peninsula in South-East Asia. Vietnam borders China to the north, Laos to the northwest, and Cambodia to the southwest. In the east, this country is washed by the waters of the South China Sea. total area Vietnam - 331,210 sq. km, including the islands, and the total length of the state border is 4,639 km.

Vietnam owns a lot of islands in the South China Sea. The largest of them is Phu Quoc Island.

About 80% of the territory of Vietnam is occupied by mountains, however, all of them are not very high. The most high peak in Vietnam - Mount Fansipan, whose height reaches 3,143 m.

The Mekong and Hongha rivers flow through the entire territory of Vietnam, which are considered the longest in all of Southeast Asia.

Capital

The capital of Vietnam is Hanoi, which is now home to more than 6.5 million people. Hanoi was built in 1010 by order of the Vietnamese Emperor Li Thai To.

Official language

The official language in Vietnam is Vietnamese, which belongs to the Vietnamese languages of the Austroasiatic language family.

Religion

About 85% of the population of Vietnam profess Buddhism, about 8% are Christians (mostly Catholics, but there are also Protestants).

State structure of Vietnam

According to the current Constitution of 1992, Vietnam is a socialist republic. Its head is the President.

Legislative power belongs to the unicameral parliament - the National Assembly (consists of 498 deputies). The deputies of the National Assembly elect the President from among their members, who appoints the Prime Minister.

The 1992 constitution says that the central role in the political and public life Vietnam belongs to the Communist Party.

Climate and weather

The climate in Vietnam varies from tropical monsoon to temperate. Monsoons have a great influence on the climate in Vietnam. In Hanoi, the average annual air temperature is +23C, in Ho Chi Minh - +26C, and in Hue - +25C.

The cold season in Vietnam falls on November-April, and the hot season in May-October.

Based on weather conditions, the best time to visit North Vietnam (Hanoi) is November-March, Middle Vietnam (Hue) is May-June, and South Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City) is November-April.

Average air temperature in Hanoi, Vietnam:

January - +17С
- February - +18C
- March - +20C
- April - +24C
- May - +28C
- June - +30С
- July - +30С
- August - +29С
- September - +28С
- October - +26C
- November - +22C
- December - +19C

Sea in Vietnam

The shores of Vietnam are washed by the waters of the South China Sea. In August, the sea off the coast of Vietnam warms up to + 29C. The coastline is 3,444 km. It should be noted that from September to January, the sea in Vietnam (and coastal areas) are prone to typhoons. The rest of the time, the sea in Vietnam is very calm and warm, it has a lot of exotic fish and corals.

Rivers and lakes

The Mekong and Hongha rivers flow through the entire territory of Vietnam, which are considered the longest in all of Southeast Asia. In the valleys of these rivers, the Vietnamese grow rice. Thus, in the Mekong Valley, more than 10,000 square kilometers are allocated for rice cultivation.

History of Vietnam

The first states on the territory of modern Vietnam appeared around the 3rd century BC. In 111 BC. The state of the Vietnamese became part of the Chinese Empire. By the beginning of the 10th century, Vietnam received autonomy within the Chinese Empire.

Vietnam during the reign of the Tran dynasty repelled three invasions of the Tatar-Mongolian troops. At the same time, Buddhism became the state religion in Vietnam.

In the 16th century, the political life of Vietnam was characterized by an intensification of the struggle for power. During this period, Vietnam is engulfed by several civil wars.

In the middle of the 19th century, France intensified its colonial policy towards Vietnam. As a result, Vietnam becomes a French colony (i.e. Vietnam became part of French Indochina).

French dominance in Vietnam continued until World War II, when Japanese forces invaded French Indochina in 1941. During World War II, the communist movement became widespread in Vietnam. As a result, in September 1945, the Democratic Republic of Vietnam was formed.

Then, with US support, the Republic of Vietnam was established in southern Vietnam. Between the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, which was helped by the USSR, and the Republic of Vietnam (it was helped by the USA), hostilities broke out. In 1965, the United States was forced to send its troops to the territory of southern Vietnam, because. Vietnamese communists won a number of major victories there.

The United States continued the war in Vietnam until 1973, losing several tens of thousands of soldiers and officers killed in it. Only in 1973, in accordance with the Paris Peace Agreement, did the US withdraw its troops from Vietnam.

The Vietnamese Unification War ended in April 1975 after North Vietnamese troops entered Saigon.

In 1977, Vietnam became a member of the UN.

Culture of Vietnam

Until the 1980s, most Vietnamese lived in villages. Now in Vietnam there are already several megacities with a population of more than 1 million people (Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Haiphong and Cant Tho).

The traditions of Vietnam are based on respect for parents and ancestors. The head of a Vietnamese family is its oldest man. Parents choose wives or husbands for their children based on their own ideas of what is best for their child.

However, the French brought Western values to Vietnam (individual and sexual freedom, for example), and this began to undermine the traditional way of life of the Vietnamese. Now the Vietnamese authorities are striving to fight Western influence on traditional Vietnamese culture.

Art (ceramics, pottery) among the inhabitants of Vietnam appeared in the Neolithic era. Buddhism contributed to the development of ceramics (Buddhist statues were made from ceramics).

In Vietnam, there are still craftsmen who are engaged in wood carving. We advise tourists in Vietnam to definitely buy any items made by these masters.

Festivals are an essential part of Vietnamese life. Several dozen large and small festivals are held annually in this country. The most popular of them are Huong Pagoda Festival, Da Lat Flower Festival, Dak Lak Province Elephant Festival, Da Nang Fireworks Festival, Holy Whale Festival, Do Son and Baba Bullfights.

Separately, you need to remember about the Vietnamese New Year according to the lunar calendar - Tet. In terms of scale, nothing can compare with this holiday in Vietnam.

Kitchen

We are sure that any, even the most demanding traveler, will like Vietnamese dishes. When cooking, the Vietnamese often use lemongrass, mint, ginger, and soy sauce. Traditionally, Vietnamese people add very little oil to their dishes. Therefore, Vietnamese cuisine can be safely called one of the healthiest in the world.

The main food products in Vietnam are rice, vegetables, meat (pork, beef, poultry), fish and seafood. Note that many Vietnamese are supporters of vegetarian cuisine, adhering to Buddhist precepts.

Pho soup rice noodles, filled with chicken broth, with green onions and aromatic herbs;
- Nem - a pancake with the most different stuffing(meat, fish, shrimp);
- Ban Cuon - Vietnamese dumplings made from rice dough, which are steamed;
- Banh Trang - pancakes made from rice dough with various fillings;
- Ka Kho To - fish in caramel sauce;
- Ka Ran Chua - fried fish with sweet and sour sauce.

The traditional Vietnamese soft drink is green tea (Tra). The Chinese drink tea hot (Tra Nam) and cold (Tra Da). Green tea in Vietnam is most often drunk in rural areas, and black tea in cities.

As for alcoholic drinks in Vietnam, we recommend trying (in moderation, of course) local wine, Lua Moi vodka (its strength is 45 degrees), HA NOI vodka (its strength is 29.5 or 33.5 degrees), as well as Vietnamese rum.

Sights of Vietnam

The history of Vietnam goes back many centuries. During this time, the Chinese, Japanese, French, and Americans visited Vietnam (and were expelled from there). Many countries tried to impose their traditions and customs on Vietnam. However, despite this, Vietnam has remained an original country, in which there are a lot of different attractions. The top ten Vietnamese attractions, in our opinion, may include the following:

Thien Mu Pagoda in Hue
Pillar Pagoda in Hanoi
White Horse Temple in Hanoi
"Palace of Supreme Harmony" in Hue
Imperial Tombs in Hue
Seven-tiered Vinh Nghiem Pagoda in Ho Chi Minh City
Turtle Tower in Hanoi
Guerrilla Tunnels in Cu Chi
Museum of Emperors Bao-Tang-Ku-Wat in Hue
Cot Co Tower in Hanoi

Cities and resorts

The largest Vietnamese cities are Hanoi (more than 6.5 million people), Ho Chi Minh City (more than 7.4 million people), Hai Phong, Kant Tho, Danang (more than 900 thousand people), and Bien Hoa (more than 800 thousand people). . pers.).

There are many great beach resorts in Vietnam that have created good conditions for recreation, including fishing, diving and excursions. The most popular beach resorts in Vietnam are Phan Thiet, Nha Trang, Phu Quoc, Da Nang, Vung Tau and Halong.

In recent years, foreigners have increasingly begun to come to Vietnam, appreciating the beaches of this country.

Nha Trang - the beaches of this resort are recognized as one of the best in all of Vietnam. This is favorite place divers, because there are a lot of fish and corals in its vicinity. Nha Trang has 5-star hotels and many entertainment options, including an amusement park.

Another popular beach resort in Vietnam is Phan Thiet. It is located 3 hours drive from Ho Chi Minh City. Wealthy foreigners and residents of Ho Chi Minh City come to Cape Mui Ne beach near Phan Thiet to relax on the unusual pink dunes.

However, many tourists admit that the best beaches in Vietnam are on the island of Phu Quoc, which is located in the west of the country. The sand on the beaches of Fukuoka is fine white.

It should be noted that almost every hotel in Vietnam offers spa services to its guests. In Nha Trang, for example, there is a very large spa center with mud-salt baths, the Center for Traditional Medicine operates in Hanoi, there are excellent spa hotels in Kimboi (located on mineral waters). In general, mud therapy is very developed in Vietnam.

Spa treatments in Vietnam are developed according to French standards, and, of course, French cosmetics are used.

Separately, mention should be made of the resort of Sapa, located in the north-west of Vietnam. It belongs to the mountain-climatic resorts, and it is no less popular with tourists than beach resorts.

Souvenirs/Shopping

Tourists from Vietnam usually bring silk or cotton clothes, handicrafts, Vietnamese hats, bronze Buddhist bells, traditional Vietnamese musical instruments(for example, a flute and a jew's harp), souvenirs reminiscent of the Vietnamese-American war, tea and much more.

Office Hours

Banks:
Mon-Fri: 08:00-16:00
Banks are open until noon on Saturday.

The shops:
Mon-Sat: 08:00-20:00 (or until 21:00).

The flourishing country, known to us as Vietnam, was mastered by man in the Paleolithic era. By the end II millennium BC a significant part of the current state turned out to be inhabited by various tribes, in which modern anthropologists see relatives of the current Khmers and inhabitants of the islands of Southeast Asia.

At that very time, in the far north, in the lower reaches of the great Chinese Yangtze River, lived a people who were destined not only to take possession of the hot lands of the south, but also to give them their current name. Representatives of this nationality called themselves La Viet. In the middle II millennium BC the Laviet quickly settled on the fertile plains of the Red River Delta. As often happens in history, weaker predecessors were partly driven out and partly assimilated.

Somewhat later, the ancestors of modern Thais came to Vietnam, entrenched in the mountains in the north of the country. The tribes that left under the onslaught of the Laviets to the south eventually gave rise to many peoples of modern Indochina, primarily the Chams (or Tyams).

In 2879 BC a powerful leader (Vuong) named Hung (Hung Vuong) managed to unite the independent La Viet clans into a single tribal union Vanlang. It is believed that it was thanks to him that the state of Vietnam appeared on the world map many centuries later. Although Hung Vuong was more of a military leader than a monarch, he managed to retain power for his offspring, giving rise to many noble families of ancient Vietnam.

In 257 BC Vanlang was defeated by the inhabitants of the north. The leader of the victors, An Duong (most historians consider him a Chinese), created the Au Lac state with its capital in Koloa, a “snail fortress”, in the northern regions of present-day Vietnam. Although the era of Au Lak quickly declined, it is considered the time of the final formation of the statehood and culture of the La Viet. Au Lak soon became part of the Namviet (or Nan Yue) state, which occupied the territory of both modern North Vietnam and vast areas of South China. Interestingly, the capital of Nam Viet was located on the site of the famous southern Chinese city of Guangzhou.

The power of the Nam Viet, which was more than enough to conquer Au Lak, turned out to be insignificant in comparison with the power of the Chinese Han Empire, which easily swallowed up the small southern kingdom in the end. III in. BC. This event marked the beginning of a long period of complete dependence of Vietnam on its vast northern neighbor. Before VII in. the area of the former Nam Viet was called Giaoti (in China - Jiaozhi), and then acquired the well-known historical name Annam, which means "peaceful south" in translation.

Although at first the Chinese, like the Mongols in Russia, did not interfere in the internal affairs of the conquered people, limiting themselves to the regular collection of tribute, their dominion was accompanied by resistance that did not fade for a minute. It was in those days that the fighting qualities of the Vietnamese were formed, which so struck the aggressors of modern times. Not only men, but also women resisted. Sometimes the fearless Vietnamese even stood at the head of the uprisings. In the 40s. AD the warrior sisters Chyng Chak and Chyng Ni succeeded in expelling the Chinese from the country for three years. Two centuries later, an uprising broke out under the leadership of the heroine Chieu. Alas, the inequality of forces sooner or later doomed all the performances of the Vietnamese to defeat. As a result, by the I-II centuries. AD the country lost the last grains of independence and China began to exert a strong influence on the culture, economy, politics and religion of the conquered country - an influence that is still felt at every step.

For eight long centuries, Vietnam was under Chinese rule. If the Middle Kingdom at that time was gradually weakening, losing control over its vast territories, then Vietnam, on the contrary, rallied and accumulated strength. In 938, the Vietnamese feudal lord Ngo Kuyen raised an uprising and threw off the hated foreign yoke. The new ruler again proclaimed the capital city of Koloa and restored the spirit and traditions of Vietnamese antiquity at the court. To XI c., when the Li dynasty comes to power, the country, which changed its name to Dai Viet (Great Viet), is no longer inferior in terms of development to the most powerful powers of the Far East. At this time, Thang Long became the capital of Vietnam for the first time - modern Hanoi. By expelling the Chinese, the victors borrow much from their statecraft. Back in 1070, a temple of Confucius was erected in Thang Long, a national academy(Khan Lam) and introduced a Chinese-style state examination system. AT XII in. Confucianism finally becomes the state religion of Vietnam, while Buddhism and Taoism begin to play the role of folk beliefs. A strengthened state fully restores its lost positions - at the end XIII in. it successfully repels the invasion of the Mongols and even expands its possessions by adding the northern mountainous regions and the lands of the southern Chams.

At the beginning of XV in. the country is once again in deep crisis. Taking advantage of the strife that arose as a result of the unpopular transformations of Emperor Li Ho Kyui, the troops of the Chinese Ming dynasty in 1407 again captured the country. This time, Chinese rule does not last long - after only 20 years, the united nation again drives out enemies. The rebel leader Le Loi proclaims the creation of the Later Le dynasty (1428-1788) and implements reforms that began the "golden age" of medieval Vietnam.

In the 30s. XVII in. the state of Dai Viet, formally still headed by the kings of the Le dynasty, split into two rival destinies belonging to the Trinh and Nguyen clans. The top of each kind generously distributed land holdings to their supporters. The amount of land at the disposal of the treasury was rapidly decreasing, while the need for money for military expenses, on the contrary, was growing every day. To solve this problem, the leaders of the clans resorted to the old method - without further ado, they increased the exactions from the population. The result of the ruthless extortion of taxes was a peasant war, known as the "Teishon Rebellion" and broke out in 1771. The rebels were led by three brothers, one of whom, Nguyen Hue, proclaimed himself emperor in 1788. The last king from the Le dynasty was forced to seek help from his "brother" - the militant Chinese emperor Qianlong from the Qing dynasty. He willingly responded to the call, and the Chinese troops again invaded the country, but the Teishons quickly inflicted a crushing defeat on them in the battle near Thang Long on January 5, 1789. It seemed to everyone that after such a success, the power of the "people's" emperor would be unshakable, but after all three years Nguyen Hue suddenly died. This was immediately taken advantage of by the head of the Nguyen clan, commander Nguyen Phuc Anh. Having gathered their own squads and relying on the help of France, the Nguyen managed to defeat the rebels. In 1804, Nguyen Phuc Anh took the throne name of Gia Long, moved the capital to Hue and became the first emperor of the dynasty, which remained on the throne until 1945.

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Story

Early history

The origin of the Vietnamese people is unknown. Recent archaeological finds indicate that the very first inhabitants of northern Vietnam appeared here about 500,000 years ago. Monuments preserved on the territory of central Vietnam material culture Lower Paleolithic; Mesolithic and Neolithic cultures existed in northern Vietnam as early as 10,000 years ago and the local population may have been engaged in primitive agriculture as early as 7000 BC In the Mesolithic and Early Neolithic there was a peculiar Bakshon-Khoabinskaya culture. During the advanced Neolithic period, Vietnam entered the region of cultures characterized by the use of the "shoulder ax" and pottery with stamped ornaments.

Metal tools appeared at the end of the 2nd millennium BC. e., the late stage of the Bronze Age began in the middle of the 1st millennium BC. e. Located on more high level Dong Son culture, dating back to the Bronze Age, arose around the 3rd century BC. BC. At the turn of N. e. transition to the Iron Age. From the 1st to the 6th century AD the south of what is now Vietnam was part of the Indianized state of Funan, which was famous for its sophisticated art and architecture. The Funanese built an intricate system of canals that were used both to transport goods and to irrigate rice fields. The main port city of Funan was Ok-Eo, which was located in the modern province of Kien Giang. Archaeological excavations have provided evidence of Funan contacts with China, Indonesia, India, Persia, and even the Mediterranean. One of the most unusual finds at Oc Eo was a gold Roman medallion dated to 152 AD depicting Antony Pius. In the middle of the 6th century, Funan was attacked by the pre-Angkorian state of Chenla, which gradually annexed the territory of Funan to its own.

The Hindu state of Champa arose around present-day Da Nang at the end of the 2nd century. Like Funan, it underwent Indianization (i.e., the Tyams adopted Hinduism, began to use Sanskrit as sacred language and were strongly influenced by Indian art) through brisk trade relations with India and the arrival of Indian scholars and priests. By the 8th century, Champa had expanded its territory southward to what is now Nha Trang and Phan Rang. Champa was a semi-pirate state and lived partly by raiding the entire coast of Indochina. As a result, it was in a constant state of war with the Vietnamese in the north and the Khmer in the west. Magnificent examples of cham sculpture can be seen at the Cham Museum in Da Nang. When the Chinese conquered the Red River Delta in the 2nd c. BC, they discovered here a feudally organized society engaged in slash-and-burn agriculture, hunting and fishing. These proto-Vietnamese also traded with other peoples in the region. Over the next few centuries, a significant number of Chinese settlers, officials and scientists arrived in the Red River Delta, seizing large plots earth. The Chinese tried to introduce a centralized state system among the Vietnamese and carried out the forced sinicization of their culture, but the local rulers staunchly resisted these efforts.

The most famous act of resistance during this period was the rebellion of the Trung sisters (Hai Ba Trung). In 40 AD the Chinese executed one high-ranking feudal lord. His widow and her sister rallied the tribal leaders around them, raised an army, and started an uprising, forcing the Chinese governor to flee. After that, the sisters declared themselves queens of the new independent Vietnamese state. However, in 43 AD. the Chinese again invaded the country and defeated the Vietnamese; the Trung sisters chose to throw themselves into the Hat Giang river and perish instead of surrendering. The early Vietnamese learned a lot from the Chinese, including the use of metal for plowing and animal domestication, dam building, and irrigation work. These innovations made possible the formation of a culture based on rice farming, which remains the basis of the Vietnamese way of life to this day. Since there was much more food, the population also grew, forcing the Vietnamese to look for new land to grow rice. During this period, Vietnam was the main port on the sea route between China and India. Chinese scholars who came to Vietnam as officials and refugees introduced the Vietnamese to Confucianism and Taoism. Indians sailing east brought Theravada (Hinayana) Buddhism to the Red River Delta, while Chinese travelers introduced Mahayana Buddhism to the Vietnamese. Buddhist monks brought with them scientific and medical knowledge civilizations of India and China; as a result, Vietnamese Buddhists soon developed their own renowned doctors, botanists, and scientists. In the 3rd - 6th centuries, there were numerous large and small uprisings against Chinese rule, which was characterized by tyranny, forced labor and irrepressible demands for tribute, but they were all suppressed. In 679, the Chinese named this country Annam, which means "Pacified South." From that date on, the collective memory of those early attempts to shake off the Chinese yoke began to play an important role in shaping the Vietnamese identity. The Tang Dynasty in China ended at the beginning of the 10th century, and shortly thereafter the Vietnamese rebelled against Chinese rule. In 938, Ngo Quyen defeated the Chinese armies at the Battle of the Bat Dang River, ending 1,000 years of Chinese domination. He lured them into a cunning trap by planting iron-studded stakes at the bottom of the river, which pierced and sank the Chinese ships. Ngo Quyen formed an independent Vietnamese state, but after his death, Vietnam fell into anarchy. This continued until 968, when the politically astute and powerful Din Bo Lin took the throne as emperor. According to the tradition of those times, he reached the following agreement with China - in return for recognizing its de facto independence, Vietnam recognized Chinese sovereignty and agreed to pay tribute as respect for three years. Ngo Kuen's successors, the Dinh dynasty, named the new independent state Dai Viet. In 968 they founded Hoaly (about 100 km north of Hanoi), making it the capital, but in 1009 another Ly dynasty moved the capital to Thanglong (Hanoi). This period was marked by a stable rule, as evidenced by the construction of many beautiful pagodas and the flourishing of the arts, and in particular the Temple of Literature (Vietnam's first university).

Chinese invasion

The Li dynasty also expanded its territory to the south at the expense of places previously occupied by the Chams. In the middle of the 13th century, the Li dynasty was replaced by the Chan dynasty, whose main task was to repel the huge army of the Mongol invaders in the North. The Vietnamese used the same ruse that Ngo Quyen did in 938. This time, the Chinese nightmare was Tran Hung Dao, who successfully sank the fleet of the Mongol Khan Kublai Khan in 1288. After 120 years, the Chinese returned, this time in the form of a mighty dynasty The Ming, and again ruled Vietnam from 1407 to 1427. Another hero was needed, and he appeared again, this time in the person of Emperor Le Loi. He spent ten years fighting the Ming, using a form of guerrilla warfare that would serve as an important lesson for future generations of Vietnamese. The tales of Le Loem's expulsion of the Chinese from Vietnamese soil have become myths and many popular legends about that time. The most famous is the legend of Le Loi's magic sword, with which he defeated the Chinese. It says that when he sailed on one of the many lakes of Hanoi after his solemn return, a huge turtle and seizing his sword, plunged into the water. The emperor took this as a sign of peace, and that the sword had returned to its guardian spirit. In honor of this incident, the emperor renamed this lake "Ho Hoankiem" - the Lake of the Returned Sword.

Expansion

Le Loi's reign was marked by further southward Vietnamese expansion by both he and his successors, which ultimately led to the defeat of the Champa state in 1471. This rapid advance soon led to the loss of effective government of the country, which became impossible exercise from Hanoi. As a result, the country was actually divided into two parts - the Chinh feudal clan ruled in the north, and the Nguyen clan ruled in the south. Ultimately, this feudal division was ended in 1771 as a result of an uprising led by three brothers from the village of Taishon. The Taishon Rebellion, as it came to be called, covered all more places as the rebels moved south, and in 1783 they captured Saigon, killing the leaders of the Nguyen clan who sought refuge there, as well as 10,000 Chinese living in Cholon. Only one Prince Le Anu managed to escape to Thailand, where he began to ask for military assistance from the Thais. In 1788, one of the brothers, Nguyen Hue, declared himself emperor and changed his name to Quang Trung. Meanwhile, the Chinese used this to invade the North. Quang Trung, like his illustrious predecessors, deceived the Chinese by launching an offensive during Tet, the Vietnamese New Year, while the Chinese were celebrating it outside of Hanoi. This once again was a lesson for them, which the Vietnamese will repeat in the future.

Nguyen dynasty. French rule.

Quang Trung died unexpectedly in 1792 and over the next 10 years, the surviving members of the Nguyen feudal clan reasserted their control with the help of Prince Nguyen Anh, the only survivor of the Nguyen clan. With the help of the French, he declared himself Emperor Gia Long and in 1802 made Hue the official capital of a new country, Vietnam. Thus began the Nguyen dynasty, which ruled the country from 1802 to 1945. This period of Vietnamese history is marked by the increasing intervention of France, which saw the country as quite ready to be turned into a colony and exploited. For many years the French had been sending priests and missionaries to Vietnam, but now they were considering the potential of Vietnam, with its untapped resources and labor force, as a French colony. Gia Long's successor Emperor Ming Mang became increasingly hostile to Catholicism and Western influences, which he considered degenerate. The persecution of Catholics begun by him was intensified by his successors and reached highest point in the executions and massacres of priests and converts in the 1850s. This gave the French the pretext they were waiting for. In 1859 they occupied Saigon, arguing that they were protecting the Catholic minority. By 1867, France had captured all of southern Vietnam, which became the French colony of Cochin China. In 1884, along with neighboring Laos and Cambodia, Vietnam became a French Protectorate and part of the "Indochinese Union". French colonial rule was characterized by low wages and a situation in which the vast majority of Vietnamese were forced to work in coffee, tea and rubber plantations, as well as in coal mines and zinc and tin mines. The introduction of the French monopoly on alcohol, tobacco, salt and opium at the end of the 19th century made the situation of the population even worse. Against this backdrop, the widespread dissent and uprisings are not surprising, especially given the success of the first revolution in China in 1911 under Sun Yat-sen and then in Russia in 1918 under Lenin.

Fight for independence.

In 1930, on the initiative of the Vietnamese National Party (Vietnam Quoc Zan Dang), created on the model of the Chinese National Party (Kuomintang), an armed Yenbai uprising broke out in the area northwest of Hanoi. After its suppression, the resistance movement was headed by the Communist Party of Indochina, formed in 1930 by Ho Chi Minh. During the period when the Popular Front was in power in France, the Vietnamese communists, together with the Trotskyists, expanded their influence and even participated in Cochin and Saigon in local government elections. In 1940-1941, the communists led an unsuccessful uprising in the far south, and organized unrest in the north. The French did not want to leave Vietnam, although in 1940 they actually transferred control of the country to Japan.

From July 1941 to August 1945, Japanese troops occupied all of Vietnam. In 1941, Ho Chi Minh founded the Vietnam Independence League, known as the Viet Minh. At the end of World War II, detachments of the Kuomintang Chinese entered the northern part of the country, and the British entered the territory of South Vietnam. The Viet Minh, led by Ho Chi Minh, made Hanoi their base and formed "People's Committees" throughout Vietnam. After the surrender of Japan in August 1945 and the abdication of Emperor Bao Dai (belonging to the Nguyen dynasty), who enjoyed the favor of China, the Viet Minh as a result of the August Revolution, on September 2, 1945, announced the creation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) and formed an interim government, whose chairman became Ho Chi Minh. In accordance with the Vietnamese-French agreements of 1946, France agreed to recognize the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) as a "free state" with an army and a parliament, as part of the Indochinese Confederation and the French Union. The first president of the DRV was Ho Chi Minh, who simultaneously headed the government as prime minister.

At the end of 1946, France and the Viet Minh accused each other of violating the agreements, and on December 19, Viet Minh detachments attacked French troops. France sought to win over the local population, placing in 1949 the former emperor Bao Dai in charge of a nominally independent government. However, the Việt Minh refused to recognize the new regime, and after 1949 consolidated its position with the support of China. In turn, since 1951 France has received large military and economic aid from the USA. The US had previously assisted Ho Chi Minh in the fight against the Japanese by sending CIA officers to train the Viet Minh. However, they now viewed Vietnam as another country that had "turned red". After the communist successes in Korea in 1948 and China in 1949, the US began to provide financial assistance to the South, hoping to create a favorable regime that was anti-communist in its ideology. The culmination of the struggle for independence from the French came in 1954, when France suffered a military defeat at Dien Bien Phu. Vietnamese troops under the command of General Vo Nguyen Giap lured 16,000 French corps to the remote northwest of the country. Here in the valley the French were trapped and heavily bombarded by the heavy artillery which the Vietnamese had managed to set up on the surrounding heights. This circumstance and the demand of the international community to stop the aggression hastened the conclusion of a peace agreement at the international conference in Geneva. The meeting was attended by representatives of the USA, France, Great Britain, the USSR, China, Laos, Cambodia and two Vietnamese governments: Bao Dai (South Vietnam) and Viet Minh (Northern Vietnam). The agreement on the cessation of hostilities between France and the Viet Minh, signed in July 1954, provided for the temporary division of the country along the 17th parallel; the holding in July 1956 of elections necessary for the reunification of North and South Vietnam; the withdrawal of French military units from the North and the prohibition of the buildup of armaments in any of the zones; the formation of an international commission to oversee the implementation of the agreement. Thus, the existence of two independent states- Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) and Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam).

North Vietnam retained for subsequent years the basic state structures that began to take shape as early as 1946 and proclaimed a line of building socialism under the leadership of the Communist Party and President Ho Chi Minh. AT South Vietnam Ngo Dinh Diem replaced Bao Dai in 1955 and took the presidency. Diem managed to cope with the opposition of the military elite, the Cao Dai and Hoahao sects and the Dai Viet party, and he was re-elected president in 1961. The Saigon authorities tried to discredit the Viet Minh in the eyes of his supporters who remained in the South, but faced active military confrontation in many rural areas, especially in Cochin.

In 1960, opponents of the regime created the pro-communist National Liberation Front of South Vietnam (NLF). In the cities, non-communist opposition groups opposed Diem. Buddhists denounced the regime's discriminatory policies, and several Buddhist monks and nuns even set themselves on fire in protest. On November 1, 1963, the military overthrew Ngo Din Diem, followed by a series of coups. Unrest among Buddhists, Catholics, and students continued until civil rule was restored in late 1964. In June 1965, General Nguyen Van Thieu took the post of head of state, and General Nguyen Cao Kyi took over the post of prime minister. In 1966, a specially elected Assembly adopted a military-approved Constitution, which came into force on April 1, 1967.

In September, presidential elections were held. Thieu and Kee were voted president and vice president respectively. Up to a third of the entire population living in the territory under the control of the NLF did not take part in the election campaign. Meanwhile, the scale of hostilities expanded. American military advisers have been in the South since 1960. In 1965, the United States sent army formations to help the Saigon government, launched the first air strikes on North Vietnamese territory, and intensified the bombardment of rebellious areas in South Vietnam. The NLF received military reinforcements from the North, aided by the USSR and China. By 1968 over 500,000 american soldiers was involved in the fight against the guerrilla army of the Viet Cong (former Viet Minh). The strength of the Viet Cong lay in its dominance in the countryside and among the rural population. Although the Americans controlled the cities, almost 80% of the Vietnamese lived in rural areas. With this support, the Viet Cong could go into hiding and fight American forces on their own terms and when it suited them. January 30, 1968, when the whole country was preparing to celebrate Tet, the Viet Cong simultaneously launched an attack on the main cities in more than 100 places - the effect was crushing, sometimes it seemed that Saigon itself had already fallen. All this, together with the debacle at Khe Sanh (actually, the American Dien Bien Phu), led the American public to oppose the long-term American military presence in the region.

In April, peace talks began between US and North Vietnamese representatives. Then began a partial evacuation from the South of American troops, whose number at one time reached 536 thousand people. In the summer of 1969, at free democratic elections in the liberated regions of South Vietnam, a people's revolutionary administration was established. On June 6-8, at the Congress of People's Representatives, the Republic of South Vietnam (RSV) was proclaimed and the Provisional Revolutionary Government (PRG) was created. Ho Chi Minh died the same year. From 1969 to 1971, the South Vietnamese army expanded the area under its control. The United States at that time withdrew its military units from the country, compensating for these steps with air bombardments. In 1971, Thieu was re-elected President of South Vietnam. In the spring and early summer of 1972, the communists organized a major offensive, which proceeded very successfully until it was stopped by the actions of American aircraft and counterattacks by South Vietnamese troops. The United States responded by increasing air raids and carrying out extensive mining of North Vietnamese ports and sea and river routes. At the end of the year, the United States began a massive bombardment of the cities of North Vietnam. On January 27, 1973, the four parties involved in the war signed a peace agreement in Paris that provided for a ceasefire in the South, the recognition of the 17th parallel as a temporary demarcation line, and the withdrawal of American troops from the country. It was supposed to convene the National Council and elections, which were supposed to decide the fate of the South Vietnamese government. The last American formations left Vietnam in April 1973, but the political clauses of the treaty were never implemented. The South was ultimately forced to defend itself, which it failed to do. The Saigon administration tried to run an election campaign on its own, which was opposed by the PRP, which demanded the creation of a tripartite council. All this time, the fighting was not interrupted. In March 1975, the Saigon army was forced to leave the region of the central plateau (Teinguen), after which it disintegrated. A few weeks later, the armed forces of the PRG and North Vietnam surrounded the southern capital. Thieu resigned on 21 April and the Saigon military units capitulated. Saigon eventually fell to communist forces on April 30, 1975 and was soon renamed Ho Chi Minh City. (see Vietnam War)

Post-war period. Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Initially, it seemed that both parts of the country could exist as independent, albeit closely related public entities. However, the communists were in a hurry with the unification process. In the summer and autumn of 1975 they nationalized the banks and large enterprises South. In April 1976, general elections were held for the National Assembly of a united Vietnam. On July 2, 1976, the official reunification of Vietnam and the proclamation of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam took place. During the war, Vietnam was helped by both the USSR and China. In the late 1970s, Vietnam established close ties with the Soviet Union. The socialist transformation of the economy in the South took its toll primarily on the large Chinese community in Vietnam. Its conflicts with the Vietnamese took the form of ethnic strife and had a negative impact on relations between Vietnam and China. In addition, China took the side of the anti-Vietnamese Pol Pot regime in Cambodia.

In December 1978, Vietnamese troops entered Cambodia and by the beginning of 1979 occupied most her territory. In February 1979 there was an armed conflict on the Vietnamese-Chinese border. In 1978-1980, at least 750 thousand people left the country (more than half of them ethnic Chinese). Many returned to their historical homeland by land, and some set off on a journey across the South China Sea by boat. The desire of the Vietnamese authorities to carry out socialist transformations already in the late 1970s led to negative consequences. The government in Hanoi concentrated all its efforts on military actions and was entirely dependent on the assistance of the USSR. The South Vietnamese economy, based on private enterprise, was artificially fueled by large cash infusions. In the 1980s, the government took a more pragmatic course, giving more latitude to local planners, lifting trade restrictions, and allowing farmers to sell some of their produce on the market. However, in the middle of the decade, a huge budget deficit and emission gave rise to rapid inflation.

In 1989, the country adopted a long-term program of radical reforms, including measures to suppress inflationary trends, liberalize banking and other legislation, and stimulate the private sector in industry. The adopted state policy of “renovation” (“doi mei”) was confirmed and further developed at the VII (1991) and VIII (1996) congresses of the CPV. As part of the economic reforms, in January 1991 a law was passed on the admission of private enterprises. The new constitution adopted in 1992 provided for a clearer division of functions between the party and the state, the introduction of a market economy, the strengthening of the role of the private sector and the possibility of private land use. Nevertheless, the country's leadership stated that the course towards socialism with the leading role of the Communist Party is preserved and multi-party democracy will not be established. At the Seventh Congress of the Communist Party in June 1991, Do Myoi, who had previously held the post of head of government, was elected the new general secretary (he was replaced in this post by Wo Van Kiet). The new appointments reflected the balance of power in the party leadership. Before Mooi, a member of the communist movement since 1939, was considered a supporter of the orthodox course, Wo Van Kiet was one of the leading advocates of market reforms.

In June 1992, the government announced the release of all members, advisers and supporters of the former South Vietnamese regime. In the July 1992 National Assembly elections, for the first time, more candidates were nominated than there were seats in parliament. 2 independent candidates were also admitted to the elections. In July 1993, the National Assembly passed a law that allowed peasants to purchase land for use (the state remained the supreme owner of the land). Viet Nam established links with the International Monetary Fund and began to cooperate with it in the implementation of economic policy. In November 1994, the Vietnamese government and the IMF agreed on a medium-term economic program that included real growth in 1994-1996 by 8-8.7% and a decrease in inflation from 10.5 to 7%. In November 1995 Vietnam, international organizations and the creditor states agreed to provide this country in 1996 with assistance in the amount of 2.3 billion dollars. Negotiations continued on the payment of debts on loans provided in the 1970s by Japanese banks. In 1996, Vietnam and Western creditors reached an agreement to restructure $900 million in debt. In 1997, Hanoi was to receive $2.4 billion in aid again. Economic liberalization in the country was not accompanied by the refusal of the Communist Party from its monopoly position in the state. In November 1995, the Supreme Court sentenced to 15 and 18 months' imprisonment two former high-ranking party officials for "abusing the rights to freedom and democracy to the detriment of national security". Both advocated reform and democratization of the ruling party. The Eighth Congress of the Communist Party in June - July 1996 called for the continuation of cautious reforms while maintaining state control over the economy and the political system. In 1997, there was a change of leadership in the country. Due to the National Assembly elections in July, all three leading leaders were replaced: general secretary Communist Party Do Myoi, President Le Duc Anh, and Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet. Communist Party candidates received 85% of the votes and took 384 out of 450 seats, 63 seats went to non-partisans, 3 mandates were received by independents. In September 1997, Chan Duc Luong became the new president, Pham Van Hai became the head of government, Le Kha Fieu became the head of the Communist Party in December 1997, and in 2001, Nong Duc Manh.

In the late 1990s, the Vietnamese leadership launched an anti-corruption campaign. Within its framework, some of the country's top officials and politicians, including the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Deputy Head of Government, etc., were removed from their posts. The bureaucracy was also blamed for the ongoing economic stagnation. Since 1998, 3,000 members have been expelled from the CPV due to corruption, and penalties have been imposed on 16,000. In general, during the decade of reforms, Vietnam managed to maintain economic growth at the level of 7.6% per year and double the gross domestic product; from 1985-1986, industrial production increased five times, and food production doubled. But market reforms have led to an increase social differences and the gap between town and countryside, to the discontent of the poorest sections of the population and national minorities. In February 2001, the party leadership was concerned about major unrest among minorities who protested against the placement of large industrial rubber and coffee plantations on their lands (the program was developed with the participation of the International Monetary Fund). These problems were discussed at the next IX Congress of the CPV in April 2001. It was stated at it that the country is at the stage of a long and difficult "transition to socialism", which preserves the diversity of economic forms and forms of ownership. The CPV characterizes the economic system during this period as a "socialist-oriented market economy", emphasizing, at the same time, the priority role of the public sector.

In an attempt to alleviate social tensions, the congress approved amendments to the party charter, banning members of the CPSU from owning their own private businesses. Corruption in the party and the state, “individualism, opportunism, lust for power, fame and profit, localism” were subjected to sharp and emotional attacks. after a certain age, democratic procedures are expanded. Nong Duc Manh, 60, former chairman of the National Assembly, became the new general secretary of the CPV. This is the first party leader belonging to a national minority (tai). His choice is considered a compromise between the "reformist" and more "conservative" wing of the party. In the elections to the National Assembly in May 2002, out of 498 seats, the candidates of the Communist Party won the majority, 51 - non-party, 3 - independent. In 2002 and 2003, despite the ban on strikes, labor conflicts broke out in various sectors of the Vietnamese economy. Vietnam's relations with the US and China improved in the 1990s. In October 1990, the Vietnamese foreign minister visited Washington for the first time and negotiated the fate of 1,700 missing American soldiers. In March 1992, the United States and Vietnam reached an agreement that the American side would provide Vietnam with humanitarian aid in the amount of $ 3 million in exchange for help in the search for missing Americans. In December, the US eased the trade embargo against Hanoi, imposed in 1964.

Finally, in August 1994, both countries established diplomatic relations. In April 1997, Vietnam pledged to pay the United States $145 million in debt from the former South Vietnamese government. In June 1997, US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright visited Hanoi, and in March 2000, the US Secretary of Defense, who officially apologized for the US role during the Vietnam War, which claimed the lives of almost 3 million Vietnamese and 58,000 American soldiers. In 2000, US President Clinton visited Vietnam, which gave a new impetus to relations between the two states. In the autumn of 1990, for the first time since the freeze of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and China in 1979, both countries signed an agreement on citizens' travel in Beijing. In November 1991, China and Vietnam agreed to formally normalize relations, and in February 1992 the Chinese foreign minister traveled to Hanoi. In November - December of the same year, the visit of Chinese Premier Li Peng followed. He discussed with the Vietnamese leaders disputed territorial issues, the situation in Cambodia, and signed an agreement on cooperation in the field of economy, science, technology and culture. Chinese President Jiang Zemin agreed in November 1994 to expand economic ties between the two countries. In turn, the leader of the Vietnamese Communist Party, Do Muoi, visited Beijing at the end of 1995 and continued negotiations on border disputes. Vietnam's relations with Asian as well as Western countries developed. In 1995 Vietnam was admitted to ASEAN. In February 1993, French President François Mitterrand became the first Western head of state to visit Hanoi since 1954. He signed seven cooperation agreements and promised to double the financial aid to 360 million francs. In July 1995, Vietnam and the European Union entered into an agreement on trade and cooperation.

The flourishing country, known to us as Vietnam, was mastered by man in the Paleolithic era. By the end of the III millennium BC. a significant part of the current state turned out to be inhabited by various tribes, in which modern anthropologists see relatives of the current Khmers and inhabitants of the islands of Southeast Asia. At that very time, in the far north, in the lower reaches of the great Chinese Yangtze River, lived a people who were destined not only to take possession of the hot lands of the south, but also to give them their current name. Representatives of this nationality called themselves La Viet. In the middle of the II millennium BC. the Laviet quickly settled on the fertile plains of the Red River Delta. As often happens in history, weaker predecessors were partly driven out and partly assimilated.

The power of Nam Viet, which was more than enough to conquer Au Lak, turned out to be insignificant in comparison with the power of the Chinese Han Empire, which easily swallowed up a small southern kingdom at the end of the 3rd century. BC. This event marked the beginning of a long period of complete dependence of Vietnam on its vast northern neighbor. Until the 7th century the area of the former Nam Viet was called Giaoti (in China - Jiaochzhi), and then acquired the well-known historical name Annam, which means "pacified south".

For eight long centuries, Vietnam was under Chinese rule. If the Middle Kingdom at that time was gradually weakening, losing control over its vast territories, then Vietnam, on the contrary, rallied and accumulated strength. In 938, the Vietnamese feudal lord Ngo Kuyen raised an uprising and threw off the hated foreign yoke. The new ruler again proclaimed the capital city of Koloa and restored the spirit and traditions of Vietnamese antiquity at the court. By the 11th century, when the Li dynasty came to power, the country, which changed its name to Dai Viet (Great Viet), was no longer inferior to the most powerful powers of the Far East in terms of development. At this time, the capital of Vietnam for the first time becomes the city of Thang Long - modern Hanoi. By expelling the Chinese, the victors borrow much from their statecraft. As early as 1070, a Confucius temple was erected in Thang Long, a national academy (Khan Lam) was created, and a system of state examinations was introduced according to the Chinese model. In the XII century. Confucianism finally becomes the state religion of Vietnam, while Buddhism and Taoism begin to play the role of folk beliefs. A strengthened state completely restores its lost positions - at the end of the 13th century. it successfully repels the invasion of the Mongols and even expands its possessions by adding the northern mountainous regions and the lands of the southern Chams.

At the beginning of the XV century. the country is once again in deep crisis. Taking advantage of the strife that arose as a result of the unpopular transformations of Emperor Li Ho Kyui, the troops of the Chinese Ming dynasty in 1407 again captured the country. This time, Chinese rule does not last long - after only 20 years, the united nation again drives out enemies. The rebel leader Le Loi proclaims the creation of the Later Le dynasty (1428-1788) and implements reforms that began the "golden age" of medieval Vietnam.

In the 30s. 17th century The state of Dai Viet, formally still headed by the kings of the Le dynasty, split into two rival destinies belonging to the Trinh and Nguyen clans. The top of each clan generously distributed land holdings to their supporters. The amount of land at the disposal of the treasury was rapidly decreasing, while the need for money for military expenses, on the contrary, was growing every day. To solve this problem, the leaders of the clans resorted to the old method - without further ado, they increased the exactions from the population. The result of the ruthless extortion of taxes was a peasant war, known as the "Teishon Rebellion" and broke out in 1771. The rebels were led by three brothers, one of whom, Nguyen Hue, proclaimed himself emperor in 1788. The last king of the Le dynasty was forced to seek help from his "brother" - the militant Chinese emperor Qianlong from the Qing dynasty. He willingly responded to the call, and the Chinese troops again invaded the country, but the Teishons quickly inflicted a crushing defeat on them in the battle near Thang Glong on January 5, 1789. It seemed to everyone that after such a success, the power of the "people's" emperor would be unshakable, but after all three years Nguyen Hue suddenly died. This was immediately taken advantage of by the head of the Nguyen clan, commander Nguyen Phuc Anh. Having gathered their own squads and relying on the help of France, the Nguyen managed to defeat the rebels. In 1804, Nguyen Phuc Anh took the throne name of Gia Long, moved the capital to Hue and became the first emperor of the dynasty, which remained on the throne until 1945.

19th century: Vietnam under French rule

Looking for a way to deal a decisive blow to their opponents, the feudal rulers of Vietnam in the middle of the 17th century. began to resort to the help of Europeans, who could not boast of numbers, but had military technologies unknown to Asians. If the Trinh clan entered into a military alliance with the Dutch, then the Nguyen preferred to take advantage of the support of the French. Their decision turned out to be correct: the Dutch quickly lost interest in Indochinese affairs, and Cheeney was left without "military advisers". The British at that time were too busy conquering India. The French, not feeling pressure from other European competitors, made the Nguyen conclude a very advantageous treaty, which provided for the first territorial acquisitions of France on the peninsula. It happened in 1787, but soon the Great French revolution followed by the years of the Napoleonic Wars. All these "misunderstandings" made France forget about Eastern affairs for a long time. Once again interested in the "Indochinese question" in the 20s. In the 19th century, Paris realized that there were not enough forces for a full-scale invasion. Over the next 30-plus years, France operated in Vietnam mainly by the method of intrigue, the threads of which were concentrated in the hands of missionaries and all kinds of adventurers. Meanwhile, the Nguyen dynasty, having gained power, did not at all seek to pay generous "dividends" to its overseas allies, leaning away from sin to politics " closed doors". In France, they understood that it was impossible to open these “doors” without guns, and for the time being they took a wait-and-see attitude. Favorable conditions for the invasion developed only by 1858. The successful completion of the 2nd Opium War against China for Europeans, in which France took an active part, allowed Napoleon III to send impressive forces against Vietnam - 2.5 thousand infantrymen on 13 ships armed with last word technology. Spain also took part in the expedition, putting up one warship and 450 soldiers. On August 31, 1858, the combined forces under the command of Admiral Charles Rigaud de Genoui approached the port of Da Nang. The next day, before the expiration of the ultimatum, the city was taken by storm.

The French invasion from the first days ran into fierce resistance from the imperial troops and the local population. The failures forced the commander to change tactics: instead of fruitless attempts to dismember the country in its central part, he decided to win a foothold in the south. This path gave the conquerors huge advantages, because in the territory they occupied there was the most necessary thing - water and food. The abundance of waterways in the Mekong Delta made it possible to control the country with the help of gunboats, and the key role of the region in rice production made it possible not only to feed its soldiers, but also to put the uncompromising emperor Tu Duc on a “starvation ration”. The next blow was aimed at the Zyadin fortress, not far from which, on the shore deep river there was a conglomerate of 40 settlements - the future Saigon. In February 1859, the invasion troops defeated the Vietnamese troops and captured the fortress. Despite the defeat, the Vietnamese did not lose their presence of mind - they quickly gathered reinforcements and kept the foreigners under siege for three whole years. The fact that in 1860 the French had to fight on two fronts also played into the hands of the patriots: they were forced to transfer part of their expeditionary forces to China, whose authorities also stubbornly refused to obey the will of the West.

In February 1861, French forces concentrated off the coast of Vietnam, including 50 warships and 4,000 troops. infantry corps under the command of Admiral Charne. Under the onslaught of this rati, resistance was broken, and on June 5, 1862, Emperor Tu Duc was forced to conclude an agreement that gave the French three southern provinces of the country - Zyadin, Dinh Tuong and Bien Hoa; an indemnity of $4 million and the right to trade in the ports of Vietnam. In the occupied territories, a colony of French Cochinchina arose with a center in Saigon.

A year later, France asserted its dominance in Cambodia. Three southwestern provinces of Vietnam - Vinh Long, An Giang and Ha Tinh - were sandwiched between French possessions. The rivers that connected the two parts of the French colonial possessions were under the control of Vietnam, which did not suit Paris in any way. Inviting the emperor to voluntarily "cede" three provinces and not having received consent, the French in June 1867 resolved the issue by military means. Huge possessions were in the hands of the colonial authorities, which they disposed of at their own discretion. They organized a system of administrative control headed by the governor. At the same time, on the ground, the French were only at the head of the provinces, and the lower positions - from the prefect to the village headman - were occupied by the Vietnamese. During the first ten years of French rule (from 1860 to 1870), rice exports from the Mekong Delta quadrupled. New ports and shipyards were built, the Indochina Bank was established, and Saigon became a flourishing European city. For the "opponents of progress" in 1862, the famous hard labor prison was built on the island of Kondao in the South China Sea ...

Meanwhile, the north of Vietnam, or Tonkin, as the Europeans called it, continued to attract the eyes of newcomers. In annexing these territories, the most important role was played by the entrepreneur-adventurer J. Dupuy, who in 1872 led a trading expedition to the basin of the Red (Hong Ha) River. Not forgetting about personal gain, Dupuis had to fulfill a secret assignment from the colonial administration: to ensure the presence of "French interests" in Tonkin and provoke the Vietnamese authorities to hostile actions. The latter gave rise to another military expedition. In October 1873, Major F. Garnier joined Dupuis with a detachment of 180 marines. Reinforced from Cochin China, this small force captured Hanoi and the principal cities of the five provinces within three weeks. At the same time, the crowded city of Ninh Bin surrendered to a detachment of ... 10 people! The reason for these miracles was a large number of opponents of the emperor in the north of the country. Major Garnier himself died in battle, but his expedition became another "eastern victory" for France. In 1874, another treaty was concluded with Vietnam, which allowed France to subjugate all the foreign trade of the "Annamites" to its control and deploy its troops in Tonkin "to protect the consulates." The number of this contingent was constantly increasing and by the beginning of the 1880s. reached such a size that it made it easy to complete the occupation of the country. However, here the French had to face an obstacle - as it turned out, Qing China also claimed a tidbit. Considering North Vietnam as its own "patrimony", Beijing was not afraid to enter into conflict with a powerful European power. The Franco-Chinese war lasted for a year and ended, as you might guess, with the victory of the modern European weapons. The new success of France coincided with the death of Emperor Tu Duc. In August 1883, French troops occupied the imperial capital of Hue, and five days later the “Treaty of Arman” was signed, establishing French dominance throughout the country. At the same time, Kochinchina (South Vietnam) remained a colony, and Annam ( Central Vietnam) and Tonkin (Northern Vietnam) were declared protectorates, nominally subordinate to the emperors of the Nguyen dynasty. In 1884-1885. agreements were signed between France and China under which Beijing fully recognized French acquisitions and renounced any claims to the lands of Indochina. In 1887, Vietnam and Cambodia were united in the Indochinese Union, and in 1899 Laos was added to it, which became a French protectorate by 1893. Thus, France became the owner of huge Asian possessions. However, she did not have to rest on her laurels for long: in the mountains and jungles of the conquered peninsula, pockets of guerrilla warfare flared up, which escalated into the 20th century. to the national independence movement.

XX century: in the fire of wars and revolutions

At the end of the 19th century, a patriotic movement called Can Vuong - "In Defense of the Emperor" gained great weight in Vietnam. Its participants from among the officials and scientists were peace-loving, moderate in their demands, and saw their ideal in a constitutional monarchy. In the rural outback, on the contrary, there were enough people who were inferior to the city "freethinkers" in education, but who did not miss the opportunity to arrange a plentiful bloodletting of the hated teys ("people of the West", i.e. the French). Hoang Hoa Tham, the leader of the resistance in the Yenthe region, was the most widely known among such daredevils. Companions treated him with great respect and called him De Tham - "Commander Tham". A born military leader and an unsurpassed connoisseur of the area, De Tham for a long time, like a splinter, haunted the French with lightning raids. In 1894, the colonial authorities were forced to offer De Tham something like autonomy, giving him full control over the territory of four volosts. Such a handout did not suit the old partisan, and the jungle war unfolded with new force, ending only with the death of De Tham in 1913. The comrades-in-arms of the fallen commander, like many other rebels, took refuge in China, where the Qing authorities, wanting to annoy the French, turned a blind eye to their presence.

As in british india, leadership in the Vietnamese liberation movement at the beginning of the 20th century. gradually began to pass into the hands of energetic young people who received a Western education, but did not break away from their people. Many of them were fond of the then fashionable radical political doctrines. Among these "revolutionaries of the new generation" belonged the son of a rural teacher Nguyen Ai Quoc, known throughout the world under the name of Ho Chi Minh. The active political activity of the "father of Vietnamese independence" began in 1922 in Paris, where he created the Intercolonial Union of Colored Peoples, which became the progenitor of the current Communist Party of Vietnam.

By the beginning of 1930, there were already three communist organizations in Vietnam and the border regions of neighboring countries - the Communist Party of Annam, the Communist Party of Indochina and communist union Indochina. A considerable contribution to the popularity of the "faithful and omnipotent" doctrine in Indochina was played by the Comintern, tirelessly nurturing the cadres of the Vietnamese communists (at the end of the 1920s, more than fifty "Annamites" studied Marxist wisdom in Moscow), on February 3, 1930, a unification meeting was held in Hong Kong a conference of three parties, culminating in the creation of the Communist Party of Vietnam, immediately renamed the Communist Party of Indochina. Although Ho Chi Minh did not participate in the forum, he made a great contribution to the common cause of the Vietnamese communists. With his direct participation in May 1941, a militant organization of the party arose - the League of Struggle for the Independence of Vietnam (Viet Minh). In 1940, Japanese troops entered the territory of Vietnam. Despite this, unlike the Philippines, Malaya and Singapore, French Indochina formally continued to remain under the control of the colonial administration: Tokyo was forced to observe "decency" in relation to Vichy France, which made peace with the countries of the Nazi axis. In March 1945, in an effort to free their hands to organize the “last line of defense”, the Japanese finally removed the French from power in the colony, but their time in Vietnam was coming to an end: on August 15 of the same year, the island empire capitulated. The situation was immediately taken advantage of by the Viet Minh guerrillas, who emerged from the jungle and took control of the entire country in just 11 days. On September 2, 1945, in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh proclaimed the establishment of an independent Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV). Less than a month later, French troops began to arrive in Saigon, but active hostilities of the 1st Indochina War did not begin until December of the following year. Both opponents were strong enough, and the scales leaned in one direction or the other. During the first three years of the war, the communists lost control of South Vietnam, where in 1949 a state was established under the leadership of Emperor Bao Dai, a modernist who wore European clothes and married a Christian of humble origin. After the establishment of the communist regime in China, the military assistance of Mao Zedong tipped the scales towards the DRV. France was saved from a quick defeat by the United States, which for the first time openly appeared on the stage of the Indochinese historical drama. Only in June 1954, after the defeat of 13 thousand. army corps near the town of Dien Bien Phu in northwestern Vietnam, the French government agreed to negotiations. The Geneva Peace Agreement divided Vietnam into a special demilitarized zone along the 17th parallel. The agreement provided for the gradual unification of the country, taking into account the interests of the population of the South. Violating the terms of the agreement, the leader of the Saigon nationalists Ngo Dinh Diem in October 1955 proclaimed the creation of an independent Republic of Vietnam south of the 17th parallel, becoming the first president of the new state. The "Saigon regime", rapidly acquiring the features of a dictatorship, already in 1957 found itself in a state of war with numerous guerrilla groups of its opponents. In 1959, Hanoi openly proclaimed a policy of uniting the country by military means and provided the southern partisans with all-round support. Supplies of weapons from the north went along the famous "Ho Chi Minh trail", laid bypassing the demilitarized zone through the territory of Laos and Cambodia. By the end of 1960, the partisans controlled a third of the territory of the south. They even formed their own government, the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam, better known as the Viet Cong. Seeing the inability of their president to resist the "Reds", the Saigon military plotted, which ended in 1963 with the overthrow and assassination of Ngo Dinh Diem. In an effort to regain positions lost in the fight against the communists, the subsequent leaders of the republic, Duong Van Minh, Nguyen Khanh and Nguyen Van Thieu, relied on American help.

American war

The leaders of the "free world" viewed South Vietnam as an obstacle to the expansion of the sphere of influence of the USSR and the PRC and considered it their duty to maintain the strength of this barrier. In the first years after the French left Asia, US aid to Saigon was expressed mainly in military supplies and financial injections. A few military advisers from across the ocean were engaged in planning operations and provided technical assistance. The first regular units of American aviation were transferred to South Vietnam in 1961. The situation changed dramatically in August 1964 after a mysterious battle American destroyer Maddox with North Vietnamese torpedo boats in the Gulf of Tonkin. Without denying the very fact of the collision, Hanoi claimed that american ship violated the maritime border of the DRV. The US government, by contrast, portrayed what happened as a treacherous attack that took place in international waters. The reaction followed immediately. On August 5, 1964, American naval aviation for the first time struck the territory of North Vietnam. The main consequence of the "Tonkin Incident" was the resolution of the US Congress, allowing President Lyndon Johnson the direct use of American soldiers in Southeast Asia. After some hesitation, the White House decided to use the received right, and in the spring of 1965 the first two battalions of the American marines went to Vietnam. At the same time, regular bombardments of the territory of the DRV by US aircraft began.

By the end of 1965, the number of American troops fighting in Vietnam exceeded 180 thousand people. In addition to the American ones, in Vietnam were placed military units australia, South Korea and Thailand. The most combat-ready American units were engaged in the search and destruction of Viet Cong units in the northern provinces of the Republic of Vietnam, as well as along the border of Laos and Cambodia. Other military contingents guarded important sea and air ports, military bases and territories cleared of partisans. In the spring of 1966, the Viet Cong began to receive help from like-minded people. Units of the North Vietnamese army armed with first-class Soviet and Chinese "gifts" began to penetrate into South Vietnam from the territory of the DRV. In response to this, the American command had to urgently create a chain of fortified points along the southern border of the demilitarized zone. During 1965-1967. military operations in Vietnam were becoming more and more "hot" in nature, while cruelty against peaceful peasants was allowed by all participants in the conflict ... Having exchanged quick blows, the opponents retreated to their bases for regrouping, and then everything was repeated with exhausting monotony. The American command was forced to transfer more and more reinforcements to Indochina. Expeditionary force casualties mounted, and U.S. public opinion began to ask the government uncomfortable questions about the advisability of war.

Despite some tactical successes, none of the parties to the conflict managed to gain the upper hand. In January 1968, having concentrated all their forces, the army of the DRV and the Viet Cong delivered a sudden blow to the Americans in several directions at once. The operation, timed to coincide with the lunar New Year's holiday, went down in history as the "New Year Offensive", or "Strike on Tet". Despite the monstrous human losses, the communists achieved important results: the American troops were demoralized, and for the first time in the White House they thought about how to get out of this impassable bloody quagmire. By this time, the international prestige of the United States was crying bitter tears, and anti-war speeches in the country itself threatened to develop into actions of open defiance. When the commander of the American forces in Vietnam, General W. Westmorland, demanded another 200,000 soldiers from Washington, promising to put an end to the bloodless Viet Cong, President L. Johnson refused. On March 31, 1968, the president addressed the country, announcing the cessation of the bombing of the DRV, readiness for peace negotiations and the completion of his own political career after the expiration of the term of office.

Beginning in 1969, the United States headed for the "Vietnamization" of the war. This meant that from now on the main burden of the fighting was to fall on the shoulders of the Saigon army. Despite this, American troops continued to fight in Vietnam until the beginning of 1973. In 1970, the fire of the war flared up even more, and the fighting spread to the territory of Cambodia and Laos. Gradually, it became clear to everyone that the victory had been lost once and for all. The Viet Cong controlled 4/5 of the territory of the Republic of Vietnam. In the offensive of the North Vietnamese army, which began in the spring of 1972, more than 120 thousand people participated with the support of armored formations. The American command was still trying to influence the situation by resuming the bombing of North Vietnam, but already on January 27, 1973, an agreement was reached in Paris, according to which the United States completed the withdrawal of its troops from Indochina four months later.

The departure of the Americans did not yet mean the end of the war. In the ranks of the South Vietnamese army, there were about a million fighters, and in terms of its firepower, it surpassed the troops of the DRV by seven times. American assistance to Saigon in the last two years of its independent existence amounted to $4 billion. Although the troops were withdrawn, 26 thousand American advisers and specialists remained and continued to work on the territory of the country. Despite this, the offensive operation "Ho Chi Minh", launched by the troops of the DRV and the Viet Cong in March 1975, ended with the fall of the Saigon government on April 30th.

The outcome of a long-term civil war was predetermined by the decision of the government of South Vietnam to rely on overseas soldiers. Whatever the Viet Cong was, it won in the eyes of the population in comparison with the regime that let outsiders into the country. The Americans themselves not only treated the culture and traditions of Vietnam without the slightest respect, but also turned the country into a testing ground for new products of their military-industrial complex. All this came at a heavy price. Only the combat losses of American troops in Vietnam amounted to almost 50 thousand people killed, while the wounded numbered in the hundreds of thousands. The war left a deep mark on the historical memory and culture of America. More than three decades after the end of the war, in 2007, about 2,000 US servicemen continued to be considered missing in Indochina...

Postwar years

On April 25, 1975, five days before the fall of Saigon, general elections were held for the National Assembly of a united Vietnam. By the end of the year, the winners managed to carry out the nationalization of banks and large private businesses in South Vietnam. Having achieved the uniformity of the economy in accordance with socialist principles, on July 2, 1976, the authorities officially decided to reunify the country and create the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV). In the same year, the former capital of the Republic of Vietnam was merged with the adjoining city of Tholon into a single agglomeration, named after the leader of the Vietnamese revolution - Ho Chi Minh City.

With the support of the Soviet Union, the new state managed to achieve worldwide recognition. On September 20, 1977, the country became a full member of the UN. Relations with the USSR were formalized in 1978 by the Treaty of Friendship and Partnership. The leadership of the PRC, on the contrary, was extremely dissatisfied with Vietnam, which "changed" Beijing and Moscow and actively interfered in Chinese policy in Southeast Asia. In 1978, the Vietnamese troops occupied a significant part of the territory of Cambodia and overthrew the ruling Khmer Rouge regime, supported by China. In addition, by carrying out socialist transformations in their own country, the Vietnamese communists affected the interests of ethnic Chinese, who traditionally occupied key positions in the field of trade, especially in the South. This led to a mass exodus of Chinese from Vietnam, during which more than 300,000 people left the country.

On the morning of February 17, 1979, units of the People's Liberation Army of the People's Republic of China invaded the border regions of North Vietnam. Easily breaking the resistance of the border guards and local militias, the Chinese troops occupied Lao Cai, Lang Son, Mong Cai and other Vietnamese border cities. A fleeting and very strange war began, during which aviation was not used, diplomatic relations between the warring countries were not interrupted, and their contacts along the party line did not stop. Already on March 5, China announced its "victory" and began the withdrawal of troops, which ended on March 16. Perhaps the Soviet Union played a role in making such a hasty decision, putting strong pressure on Beijing. The choice of sides in the conflict, which received the ironic nickname of the "first socialist war", is still not known for certain. The conflict complicated relations between Vietnam and China for a long ten years. The tension that reigned on the border of the two countries, from time to time resulted in armed clashes. Despite the “pacification” that followed as a result, disagreements still persist between the PRC and Vietnam over the ownership of the islands of the South China Sea.

The authoritarian methods that prevailed in the leadership of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam in the era of the first secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Poland, Le Duan (1969 - 1986), led to the fact that in the mid-1980s. The country's economy was in deep crisis. The death of the all-powerful leader and the example of the Soviet "perestroika" prompted the leadership of the Vietnamese Communist Party to proclaim in 1986 the course of "Renewal" (Vietnamese doi moi), which included measures to liberalize the economy. Fortunately for the country, the Vietnamese leaders nevertheless preferred to be guided on the path of transformation not by the Soviet, but by the Chinese experience...

1990s not very favorable to Vietnam. With the collapse of the USSR, the country lost its main support, and integration into the world economy was complicated by the hostile attitude of the United States. However, all the difficulties only stimulated the implementation of reforms, allowing the world to show another "miracle": from a poor totalitarian country, Vietnam suddenly turned into a self-sufficient and rapidly developing power, whose economic growth could not be slowed down even by the devastating Asian crisis of 1997-1998. The new era brought a change in foreign policy priorities: in 1991, ties with Beijing were completely normalized, and three years later, diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the United States were restored. In 1995, Vietnam became a member of the authoritative ASEAN organization, and in 1998, a member of APEC. In 2004, the next summit of the ASEAN member countries was held in Hanoi.