With the foundation of the kingdom Nam
– Viet the name „Vietnam" appears in the historical research. The capital
was Phien – Ngu, today called Canton. Nam – Viet approved the Chinese rule
in 196 BC, which was pulled back 112 BC. As consequence the invasion and
occupation followed by the Chinese Han – dynasty.
More than 1’000 years Vietnam was subordinated
to Chinese supremacy, as first as Province Giao – chi , later as province
Annan (= the liberated south). In this period, a very important change
happened in the Vietnamese standard of nature. The change from the matriarchal
to a patriarchal family life. The present influence and stronger position
of the woman in the Vietnamese family life goes back to this period.
The Chinese invasion can be subdivided
in three phases:
1) Trung dynasty from 111 BC until
39 AC
2) Second Chinese period (44 – 544)
with „Former Ly dynasty„ (544 – 602)
3) Third Chinese period (603 – 939)
with Ngo dynasty (939 – 965)
The spaces of time between these different
dynasty periods were particularly important for the Vietnamese self – image
and self – conveyance.
This self – image compared with the
supposed more powerful enemy from the middle kingdom is the reason for
two battles at the River Dang – this is the fate River where the Chinese
(first time at 938 and second time at 1288) were firmly defeated.
Each time the Chinese troops drove
with their boats into a spear – trap. When they were sailing by high tide
upstream, nothing had happened. But by low tide the Chinese ships were
held up by the spears which were fired by the Vietnamese troops on the
riverbed. The ships were wrecked and by this way unable to defend themselves
against the Vietnamese aggressors, who suddenly turned up on the riverside.
„River Dang" is therefore for every schoolboy and schoolgirl a keyword.