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Unit 1: The Past Speaks To Us: Vietnam's History An excerpt from the secondary teacher reference book Vietnam - Young People Old Country: Secondary The history of Vietnam has been one of constant threat and influence from external powers which have shaped the Vietnam of today. The Vietnamese people are both proudly nationalistic and open to integrating and adapting foreign influences. In 179 BC, the Chin Dynasty from China started to expand south and conquered Au Lac State, and in 111 BC the Han Dynasty annexed Champa and extended its territory to central Vietnam. The next one thousand years were marked by several uprisings against Chinese domination, including those led by the famed Trung sisters and Lady Trieu. Such victories were short-lived until Ngo Quyen led a decisive victory in 939 AD. The French occupation in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries was a period of severe repression for the Vietnamese people. As a consequence, a patriotic movement emerged during the early years of the 20th century. By the end of World War II (on 2 September 1945), Ho Chi Minh declared Vietnam independent. But the French refused to leave until their defeat at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954. In 1956 the Geneva Agreement was signed in which it was agreed that general elections would be conducted. These were not held and the country was once again divided by civil war with the South receiving assistance from the United States and its allies, including Australia, and the North being supported by the Soviet Union and China.
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