Empire of Vietnam

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The Empire of Vietnam (Vietnamese: Đế quốc Việt Nam, 越南帝國) was a short-lived puppet state of Imperial Japan governing the whole of Vietnam between March 11 and August 23, 1945.

During World War II, the French had lost control in French Indochina to the Japanese, but Japan stayed in the background while giving the French administrators nominal control. This changed on March 9, 1945 when Japan officially took over. To gain the support of the Vietnamese people, Imperial Japan declared to return sovereignty to Vietnam. Emperor Bảo Đại declared the treaty made with France in 1884 void. Trần Trọng Kim, a renown historian and scholar, was chosen to lead the government as prime minister.

The newly created government was a part of Japan's Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. It was beset by the Vietnamese Famine of 1945. In its short existence, it managed to replace the French-language school curriculum with a Vietnamese-language one developed by Vietnamese scholars. After Imperial Japan's defeat in World War II and the subsequent August Revolution, it ceased to exist.

[edit] Legacy

The Empire of Vietnam was the first state that reunited the territories of Vietnam in the 20th century, albeit nominally. Although it was seen as a puppet state of Japan, it was the first time in the 20th century that the Vietnamese people were self-governing^{[citation needed]}. Trần Trọng Kim is still generally seen in a positive light, unlike leaders of collaborationist governments in other countries.