Annam (Chinese Province)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Annam was one of the many names used to describe the southern-most province of the Chinese Empire. It is now part of present-day Vietnam.
In 111 BCE, the Han Dynasty Chinese, under Emperor Wu, invaded and conquered the former kingdom of Nam Viet. By 108 BCE, the conquest was completed and the Chinese took over the lands. The first name given the land based around Hanoi and the Red River was Jiaozhi. By 300 CE, it had been renamed Annam (Pacified South).
It was to remain Annam for the next 600 years, seemingly living up to its name. A peaceful territory, part of a succession of Chinese kingdoms: Wu, Eastern Jin Dynasty, Lu Song, Southern Qi, Liang, Chen, Sui Dynasty, and the Tang Dynasty.
Finally in 939, Ngo Quyen revolted against the Southern Han and turned Annam into the Dai Viet. This was the effective end of Annam as a Chinese province. Several attempts were made by various Chinese governments to retake Vietnam, one succeeded (Ming Rule of Vietnam) but only for 20 years (1407 - 1427).
In the 1860s, the French government under Napoleon III conquered first southern and then central Vietnam. The central portion of the country they ruled as the colony Annam (French Colony).
