Vietnam

Roman merchants arrived in Annam in 166 AD.
In 1292, Marco Polo visited Vietnam.
The Portuguese arrived in 1516, among other European traders and missionaries.
Alexandre de Rhodes, a French Jesuit priest, made significant improvements to earlier Portuguese missionary work and developed the Vietnamese romanized alphabet, known as Quoc Ngu, in his book Dictionarium Annamiticum Lusitanum et Latinum, published in 1651.

Initially, missionaries were allowed to operate in Vietnam.
By 1700, Christianity had successfully converted up to 10% of the population.
However, Confucian mandarins began viewing Christianity as a threat to the Confucian social order because it condemned ancestor worship, labeling it as idolatry.
Consequently, Vietnamese attitudes towards Europeans and Christianity hardened as they perceived these influences as undermining their society.

The Tay Son dynasty refers to a period in Vietnamese history characterized by peasant rebellions and the establishment of decentralized dynasties.
This period lasted from the end of the figurehead Le dynasty in 1770 until the commencement of the Nguyen dynasty in 1802.
The name Tay Son derived from the district of the rebel leaders, referred to as the Tay Son brothers: Nguyen Nhac, Nguyen Hue, and Nguyen Lu.
The uprising led by these brothers is known as the Tay Son Uprising, and their rule became known as the (Nguyen) Tay Son dynasty.

In 1802, Nguyen Anh established the Nguyen dynasty and showed tolerance towards Catholicism, employing some Europeans as advisors in his court.
However, his successors adopted a conservative Confucian stance, suppressing Catholicism through a “closed door” policy, perceiving Westerners as threats.
This policy was largely a response to French missionary Fr. Joseph Marchand, who incited local Catholics to revolt in hopes of installing a Catholic emperor, leading to retaliation and persecution of Catholics, both Vietnamese and foreign-born.

The political nomenclature was altered:
- Kingdom of Dai Viet (1802–1804)
- Kingdom of Viet Nam (1804–1839)
- Empire of Dai Nam (1839–1945)
During the existence of the Empire, it was gradually absorbed by France over a series of decades.
The greatest territorial expansion of Vietnam occurred in 1829 under Emperor Minh Mang.

Trade with the West experienced a decline during this period, coinciding with numerous uprisings against the Nguyen dynasty.
These uprisings served as justifications for French invasion.
The early Nguyen dynasty engaged in constructive activities indicative of governance, including:
- Building roads
- Digging canals
- Issuing a legal code
- Conducting examinations
- Sponsoring care facilities for the sick
- Compiling maps and histories
- Exercising influence over Cambodia and Laos
Structural features such as the Meridian gate in the Imperial Nguyen city in Hue reflect the architectural developments during this time.

Under Napoleon III of France, Rigault de Genouilly's gunships attacked the port of Da Nang in 1858 but failed to secure a foothold.
Subsequently, de Genouilly captured the poorly defended city of Gia Dinh, later named Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City), along with three southern provinces in 1858.
From 1859 to 1867, French troops expanded their control over the six provinces in the Mekong delta, forming a colony known as Cochinchina.

The 1863 Treaty of Hue mandated:
- The Vietnamese Empire was required to open three ports to French trade.
- Allowed French warships free passage to Kampuchea, which subsequently led to the establishment of the French protectorate of Kampuchea.
- Granted freedom for French missionaries and enacted a significant indemnity on the Vietnamese for war costs.
France did not intervene in a Christian-supported rebellion in Bac Bo or the subsequent massacre of Christians, which began the cycle of intervention and colonization.

The Second Treaty of Saigon (1874) reiterated the stipulations of the previous treaty.
Claims of sovereignty by both China and France over Vietnamese territory led to France's occupation of Hanoi in 1882.
The Sino-French War (1884-1885) was a conflict where French forces initially faced defeats from the Black Flags near Hanoi in 1873.
In 1882, the second French expedition successfully stormed the Hanoi Citadel.
The Vietnamese government, unable to combat the French, enlisted the Black Flags for assistance and sought Qing support, given Vietnam's historical tributary relationship with China.

In May 1884, the Tianjin Accord mandated that China recognize French dominion over Annam and Tonkin, with conditions pertaining to future trade agreements.
Despite initial victories leading to the capture of Nam Din (March 1883), the French faced significant military engagement, notably against the Black Flags.
The Battle of Paper Bridge and the Battle of Thuan An forced further negotiations leading to another Treaty of Hue in 1883, placing Tonkin under French protectorate status.
Chinese troops’ failure to withdraw from Tonkin led to escalated French military actions, including the attack on Son Tay in December 1883.

The French expeditionary force captured Bac Ninh in March 1884, further driving Chinese diplomatic decisions.
The Tianjin Accord led to the defeat of Chinese troops in Vietnam and solidified French control over Annam and Tonkin.
The Treaty of Hue resulted in an end to tributary relations between China and Vietnam.
The withdrawal of Chinese forces from Tonkin allowed the French to reoccupy Lang Son and leverage territorial advancements.

By 1887, France incorporated Cochinchina, Annam, and Tonkin (modern-day Vietnam) into French Indochina, alongside Cambodia.
Laos was ceded by Siam to France post the French-Siamese War in 1893.
Within French Indochina, the governance structure varied:
- Cochinchina was established as a colony.
- Annam was nominally a protectorate supporting the Nguyen dynasty's presence.
- Tonkin had a French governor with local governments run by Vietnamese officials.
French colonial rule introduced new cultural elements to Vietnam, particularly Catholicism and a Latin-based alphabet, a direct influence from a Portuguese cleric’s lexicon utilized by the French.