CHRONOLOGY

Prehistoric and Legendary Period
200,000–	Homo erectus and Homo sapiens exist in Indochina.
100,000 B.C.E.
18,000 B.C.E.	Son Vi culture is thought to begin in northern Vietnam.
10,000 B.C.E.	Hoa Binh culture is thought to begin in northern Vietnam.
8000 B.C.E.	Bac Son culture is thought to begin.
3000 B.C.E.	Phung Nguyen culture is thought to begin.
1000 B.C.E.	Legendary kingdom of Van Lang or Lac Viet (Hung kings) is thought to begin.
	Traces of Bronze Age metallurgy are found.
500 B.C.E.	Dong Son culture begins: iron metallurgy, double cropping, chiefs.
	Proto-Cham culture in present-day central Vietnam begins.
400 B.C.E.	Iron-smelting and forging techniques appear in upper Red
	River valley.
Early History to End of Northern Period
257 B.C.E.	King An Duong of Tay Au tribes conquers Lac Viet and establishes Au Lac kingdom.
221 B.C.E.	Qin Shi Huang Di invades Yue lands.
207 B.C.E.	Trieu Da (Zhao Tuo), king of Nan Yue, conquers Au Lac.
111 B.C.E.	Han dynasty establishes suzerainty over Red River Delta.
9 C.E.	Wang Mang usurps the throne in China, triggering migrations to Red River Delta and coastal plain.
40	The Trung sisters overthrow Han administration.
42	Ma Yuan defeats the Trung sisters.
43	Ma Yuan institutes direct Han rule in Red River Delta.
150	“Funan” kingdom rises in Mekong River Delta.
180–226	Shi Xie rules northern Vietnam as the Han prefect and then in alliance with the Wu.
192	Lin Yi kingdom, precursor of Champa, is founded in present-day central Vietnam.
220	Han dynasty ends, and China is divided into three kingdoms, including the southern Wu kingdom.
248	Lin Yi invades Wu territories, and Lady Trieu leads rebellion against Wu.
280	Dao Huang consolidates power in Red River Delta and rebuilds Long Bien.
284	Lin Yi sends embassy to Jin court.
Mid-fourth	Brahman religion and Sanskrit writing system spread in
century	Funan.
Fourth–sixth	Traders, scholars, and monks come from India, spreading
centuries	Buddhism throughout Vietnamese lands.
446	Tan Hozhi, governor of Jiao, sacks Lin Yi capital.
494	Ly family strengthens its position in Jiao Province.
529	New dynasty with strong Brahman influences is established in Lin Yi.
541–546	Ly Bi leads revolt and rules independently until defeated by China’s Liang dynasty.
570	Ly Phat Tu consolidates his position in Jiao Province and, under nominal Liang authority, promotes Buddhism.
580	Vinitaruci, a Brahman from southern India, is said to arrive in Jiao Province to teach Buddhism and establish a line of religious succession, beginning with his disciple Phap (dharma master) Hien.
590	Funan kingdom disintegrates; the middle and lower Mekong, now called Zhenla in Chinese texts, are ruled by Khmer monarchs.
602	Ly Phat Tu rebels against the new Sui dynasty in China but is defeated and captured.
605	Sui army sacks Lin Yi’s capital.
622	New Tang dynasty divides Vietnamese lands into provinces under one administrator based near the modern-day Hanoi.
653	Vikrantavarman ascends Lin Yi throne and begins construction of major religious monuments at My Son and Tra Kieu in present-day Quang Nam.
679	Tang dynasty proclaims Protectorate of An Nan.
687	Dinh Kien leads a peasant rebellion.
700	Incomplete census of An Nan protectorate lists 148,431 “heads” in four provinces.
722	Mai Thuc Loan raises army in coastal Vietnam, seizes control of An Nan, and names himself the Black Emperor in present-day central Vietnam; the An Nan protector-general returns with reinforcements and destroys Mai Thuc Loan.
742	Census reveals substantial population growth.
750	Lin Yi shifts its center of gravity southward to modern-day Nha Trang.
767	Seaborne invaders from the south overrun the An Nan protectorate and destroy Cham sanctuary of Po Nagar.
782	Phung Hung seizes the capital of the protectorate and rules it independently of the Tang until his death in 789.
802	Jayavarman II establishes kingdom of Angkor.
808	The venerable Dinh Khong, a popular Buddhist figure in the Red River Delta, dies.
820	The Chinese monk Vo Ngon Thong is said to come to An Nan and found a new Buddhist school, which lasts until the thirteenth century.
863	Armies from the Nan Zhao kingdom attack and plunder An Nan.
867	The Chinese general Gao Pian defeats Nan Zhao forces and local allies in An Nan; the new capital of Dai La (Hanoi) is constructed and ushers in a period of peace.
875	Indravaman II, king of Champa, orders the construction of Buddhist monastery at Dong Duong.
906	The Tang dynasty disintegrates, and a local family, the Khuc, takes authority in the Red River Delta.
930	Southern Han army seizes Dai La.
938	Ngo Quyen defeats the Southern Han army and fleet on the Bach Dang River.
Independent Kingdoms: Early Regimes
939	Ngo Quyen names himself king, an act marking the traditional beginning of independence from the North.
950	Khmer armies invade Champa and steal a famous statue of Bhagavati.
959	Ngo Chan Luu is born; he becomes a famous Buddhist monk and dies in 1011.
968	Dinh Bo Linh defeats the twelve lords, establishes new capital at Hoa Lu, and proclaims himself king.
979	After Dinh Bo Linh is assassinated by a minor court official, Le Hoan takes the throne.
981	Le Hoan repels an invasion by the Song dynasty from the North.
982	Le Hoan invades Champa and destroys the capital of Indrapura.
Tenth century	Cheo theatrical form grows in popularity.
Tenth–twelfth	Buddhism spreads across Dai Viet, with numerous pagodas,
centuries	texts, and monks.
Ly Dynasty (1009–1225)
1009	Ly Cong Uan assumes throne, establishing Ly dynasty.
1010	The capital is moved to Thang Long (Hanoi).
1044	King Ly Thai Tong takes personal command of counterattack against Champa and seizes the Cham capital.
1054	Ly dynasty names its kingdom Dai Viet.
1069	Dai Viet demands three provinces of Champa (north-central Vietnam) in return for release of captured Cham king.
1070	Temple of Literature (Van Mieu) is constructed in Thang Long.
1075	Chinese-style examinations are first used to select scholars.
1076	Ly dynasty defeats invasion by China’s Song dynasty.
1096	Ly Nhan Tong establishes Thien school of Buddhism in royal court.
1120s–1210s	Wars are fought among Dai Viet, Champa, and Angkor.
1159	Court minister Do Anh Vu dies.
1160	Champa recaptures Amaravati (Quang Nam); new religious monuments are built at My Son.
1177	Cham fleet takes Angkor by surprise, killing the monarch and pillaging the city.
1190	Jayavarman VII of Cambodia defeats Cham forces and gains complete control of Champa by 1203.
1200s	Dai Viet first uses kilns to produce monochrome and polychrome ceramic wares for export.
1220	Cambodian forces evacuate Champa, and Cham prince takes the throne in new capital of Vijaya, near modern-day Qui Nhon.
Thirteenth	Tuong theatrical form grows in popularity.
century
Tran Dynasty (1225–1400)
1225	Tran Thu Do arranges for nephew to marry the Ly emperor’s daughter, then puts him on the throne and establishes the Tran dynasty (1225–1400).
1242	Tran dynasty promulgates village administration procedures, which for the first time extend the court’s attention to provinces and districts.
1248	Dinh Nhi dike is constructed in the Red River Delta.
1253	Tran court establishes the Royal Academy (Quoc Hoc Vien).
1258	The Mongols attack Dai Viet for the first time, burning the capital, but they soon withdraw under logistical and guerrilla pressure.
1272	Le Van Huu, Vietnam’s first notable historian, completes writing the Chronicle of Dai Viet (Dai Viet su ky).
1282	A Mongol naval expedition captures the Cham capital, but the Cham resistance continues.
1284	The Mongols’ second invasion of Dai Viet captures the capital, but in the following year, Tran Hung Dao leads a successful counteroffensive.
1287	The Mongols invade Dai Viet for the third time, but the Mongol fleet is destroyed at second battle of the Bach Dang River.
1293	King Tran Nhan Tong transfers throne to son, retires to Buddhist monastery, and, with two monks, founds the Bamboo Grove (Truc Lam) sect of Thien Buddhism.
1306	The king of Champa exchanges two provinces for the Tran monarch’s sister in marriage.
1329	Departed Spirits of the Viet Realm (Viet dien u linh tap) is written.
1330s	Le Tac writes A Brief Record of An Nan (An Nan chi luoc) while in exile in China during the Yuan dynasty.
1335	Dai Viet campaign is launched against the Tai kingdom of Ai Lao.
1337	Eminent Monks of the Thien Community (Thien uyen tap anh) is written.
1360s	Che Bong Nga ascends the throne of Champa.
1369	The physician Tue Tinh dies, leaving behind treatises on medicinal plants and herbs.
1370s	Le Quy Ly gains power as court minister.
1371	Che Bong Nga sacks Thang Long.
1380	Nguyen Trai is born; he becomes a political adviser, scholar, and writer and dies in 1442.
Late fourteenth century	Strange Tales from South of the Passes (Linh Nam chich quai) is written.
1390	Che Bong Nga is killed during a naval reconnaissance, and Cham forces withdraw to Champa.
1397	Le Quy Ly builds the royal palace at Tay Do (Western capital).
Ho Dynasty (1400–1407)
1400	Le (Ho) Quy Ly, a powerful Tran minister, takes the throne and undertakes reforms.
1407	A Ming dynasty army invades Dai Viet, defeats the Ho forces, and makes Jiaozhi (Dai Viet) into a Chinese province.
1418	Le Loi begins revolt against Ming rule.
Le Dynasty (1428–1527)
1428	Ming forces withdraw from Dai Viet; Le Loi establishes Le dynasty (1428–1527), which is recognized by the Ming emperor.
	Nguyen Trai writes “Great Proclamation on the Defeat of the Ngo [Ming]” (Binh Ngo dai cao).
1430s	The Le dynasty’s legal code is instituted.
1460	Le Thanh Tong begins his reign, which lasts until 1497.
1463	Le Thanh Tong initiates the standard triennial Confucian examinations and begins to adopt bureaucratic government.
1471	The Champa capital of Vijaya falls permanently to Vietnamese forces.
1479	Ngo Si Lien presents to the throne the Complete Chronicle of Dai Viet (Dai Viet su ky toan thu), a history of Vietnam from its mythological origins up to 1428.
1479–1480	Le armies invade the Lao territories.
1483	Record of the Government Institutes of the South of Heaven (Thien Nam du ha tap), along with a legal chronology, is compiled.
1516	The Tran Cao revolt against the Le court.
1527	Mac Dang Dung seizes the throne, forcing the Le emperor to commit suicide.
Mac Dynasty (1528–1592)
1535	The Portuguese Antonio da Faria establishes the first Western trading post at Faifo (Hoi An).
1541	The Mac reach an agreement with the Ming court.
1550s	Portuguese priest Gaspar da Cruz visits Dai Viet.
1558	Nguyen Hoang is appointed governor-general of Thuan Hoa and Quang Nam, marking the beginning of the Nguyen political project in the southern frontier lands.
1592	The Mac flee the capital under attack from Nguyen and Trinh forces, who restore a member of the Le family to the throne.
Restored Le Dynasty (1592–1788)
Sixteenth century	Christianity is introduced.
1600	Nguyen Hoang splits with his rival, the Trinh clan, in Thang Long and concentrates on building a separate domain in the south; the Trinh clan controls the royal Le family in the north.
1615	Jesuit Father Francis Buzomi builds the first Catholic church in Vietnam.
Divided Period: Trinh (North) and Nguyen (South)
1627	Civil war breaks out between Trinh and Nguyen. Father Alexander de Rhodes arrives in Ha Noi and plays a crucial role in developing the Latinized quoc ngu script.
1637	Dutch merchants establish a trading outpost in Pho Hien, northern Dai Viet.
1658	Rome appoints François Pallu to spearhead proselytizing efforts in the northern Vietnamese territories. Hostilities break out between the Nguyen state and Cambodia, and eventually the Nguyen court annexes territory in the Mekong Delta.
1672	Trinh and Nguyen arrive at a de facto truce, ending a half century of conflict.
1673	British merchants establish a trading office in Pho Hien.
1679	Three thousand Chinese refugees from the defeat of Ming dynasty forces arrive at Danang and receive Nguyen approval to settle in the Mekong Delta.
1692	The ruler of remaining small kingdom of Champa is put to death, and the Nguyen state annexes his territory.
1695	Chinese Buddhist monk Dashan visits the Nguyen court and later writes an account of his journey, Overseas Journal (Hai wai ji shi).
1705	Doan Thi Diem is born; she becomes a poet and teacher and dies in 1748.
1737–1769	The Le prince Duy Mat resists control by the Trinh from the western mountains of Thanh Hoa.
1741–1751	Nguyen Huu Cau leads a peasant revolt against the Trinh.
1744	Nguyen lord Nguyen Phuc Khoat declares autonomy from the Le dynasty as an independent ruler in the southern realm.
1749	Cambodia cedes the remainder of the lower Mekong Delta to the Nguyen state, which governs the region through its vassal, the ethnic Chinese Mac family, based in Ha Tien.
1750	The Nguyen court orders Christian missionaries to be deported, although several Jesuits with scientific skills are permitted to remain.
1763	Le Van Duyet is born; he becomes a Nguyen general and, later, the viceroy of the south in Gia Dinh; he dies in 1832.
1767	Pigneau de Béhaine, the bishop of Adran, arrives in the Mekong Delta.
1771	The Tay Son uprising in Qui Nhon Province begins.
1774	The Trinh invade and capture Phu Xuan, the Nguyen capital.
1776	Le Quy Don (1726–1784) writes Chronicles of the Prefectural Borders (Phu bien tap luc).
1785	The Tay Son defeat the Siamese army allied with the Nguyen.
1786	Tay Son forces enter Thang Long, ousting the Trinh.
1787	Pigneau de Béhaine, on behalf of Prince Nguyen Anh, concludes a treaty of alliance between France and Cochinchina, but French aid fails to materialize.
1788	Qing dynasty forces invade Dai Viet in the name of protecting the Le dynasty but are defeated at Tet in 1789 by Nguyen Hue, the leader of the Tay Son.
Tay Son Dynasty (1788–1802)
1788	Nguyen Hue issues an edict proclaiming himself the Quang Trung emperor and establishes a new dynasty.
1790	The Quang Trung emperor issues an edict calling for a restoration of agriculture.
1792	Quang Trung dies suddenly and is succeeded by his young son; the Tay Son dynasty slowly begins to unravel.
Nguyen Dynasty (1802–1945, independent rule until 1885)
1802	Nguyen Anh defeats remnant Tay Son forces, establishes the Nguyen dynasty, names himself the Gia Long emperor, and reigns from 1802 to 1819.
1804	Gia Long and the Chinese court agree on Vietnam as the name of the country.
	Gia Long issues an edict “outlining propriety and ritual.”
1807	Vietnam establishes a protectorate over Cambodia.
Ca. 1810	Nguyen Du composes epic poem The Tale of Kieu (Kim Van Kieu).
Early nineteenth century	Ho Xuan Huong writes her provocative poetry.
1812	Gia Long promulgates new legal code to replace the Le dynasty’s code.
1820	Trinh Hoai Duc completes Gia Dinh Citadel Records (Gia Dinh thanh thong chi).
1820–1840	Reign of the Minh Mang emperor.
1821	John Crawford, representing the British East India Company, visits Vietnam to assess commercial prospects.
	Phan Huy Chu finishes writing Categorized Records of the Institutions of Successive Dynasties (Lich trieu hien chuong loai chi).
1825	Minh Mang refuses to conclude a commercial treaty with France and issues the first Nguyen dynasty decree outlawing the dissemination of Christianity.
1833–1835	Le Van Khoi, adopted son of Le Van Duyet, mounts a revolt in southern Vietnam against Minh Mang but is defeated and killed two years later.
1833–1845	Siam and Vietnam fight over Cambodia and in 1845 agree to joint control.
1834	Minh Mang issues “Ten Moral Precepts.”
1835	Minh Mang issues edict of admonition to the literati and commoners of the six provinces of southern Vietnam in the aftermath of the Le Van Khoi revolt.
1838	Dai Nam becomes the official name of Vietnam.
1839	Minh Mang introduces a system of salaries and pensions for princes and mandarins, which is designed to replace the traditional assignment of fief estates.
1841–1847	Reign of the Thieu Tri emperor.
1846	A joint Vietnamese-Thai protectorate over Cambodia is established.
1847	Census records 1,024,338 male taxpayers.
	French warships sink five armored junks of the Vietnamese navy in Da Nang harbor.
1848–1883	Reign of the Tu Duc emperor.
1851	Vietnamese authorities execute two French missionaries and then a French bishop the following year.
1858	French and Spanish ships attack Da Nang, destroying the Vietnamese fleet and harbor defenses.
1859	The French conquest of the Mekong Delta begins with the seizure of the Gia Dinh fortress.
1862	The Nguyen dynasty cedes three provinces to France, opens three ports to French trade, and promises to pay a huge indemnity.
	The Complete Geographical Records of Dai Viet (Dai Viet dia du toan bien) is completed.
1863	Nguyen Truong To (1827–1871), a Confucian-educated Catholic, returns from overseas with a series of modernizing proposals to submit to the Tu Duc emperor, mostly without effect.
	Treaty of Hue affirms French territorial claims and makes further diplomatic concessions.
	Cambodia becomes a French protectorate.
1865	The first Vietnamese newspaper, Gia Dinh News (Gia Dinh Bao), is published.
1866–1868	The Lagree-Garnier expedition travels up the Mekong River; Garnier’s Voyage d’exploration is published in 1873.
1867	French forces seize three remaining southern Vietnamese provinces, creating the colony of Cochinchina.
1876	Truong Vinh Ky (1837–1898) completes writing Tales from a Journey to the Northern Region (Truyen di Bac Ky).
1881	A major typhoon in Indochina kills 300,000 people.
	The French Society of Mines is formed to explore Tonkin coal resources.
French Period
1883	Tonkin and Annam become French protectorates.
1883–1885	Sino-French war over the issue of French protectorates begins; the Chinese concede and recognize the French protectorates of Tonkin and Annam.
1884	The Nguyen dynasty’s history board releases The Imperially Ordered Mirror and Commentary on the History of the Viet (Kham dinh Viet su thong giam cuong muc).
1885	The Nguyen Ham Nghi emperor issues the proclamation “Loyalty to the Emperor” (Can Vuong).
1887	France proclaims the Indochinese Union.
1890	Ho Chi Minh is born.
1893	Laos becomes a French protectorate.
1898	The Indochinese colonial administration is centralized in Hanoi.
1904	Phan Boi Chau forms the Modernization Society (Duy Tan Hoi).
1905	The Study in the East (Dong Du) movement commences, and Vietnamese students begin going to Japan to study.
	Phan Boi Chau writes The History of the Loss of the Country (Vietnam vong quoc su) in Japan.
1906	The Tonkin Free School (Dong Kinh Nghia Thuc) is founded but the French close it in 1907.
1909	Japan expels Vietnamese students.
1912	Phan Boi Chau forms the Vietnam Restoration Society (Vietnam Quang Phuc Hoi).
1913	The first issue of the journal Indochina Review (Dong Duong Tap Chi) is published.
1915–1918	Civil service examinations are abolished in Tonkin (1915) and Annam (1918).
1917	The first issue of the monthly Southern Ethos (Nam Phong Tap Chi), edited by Pham Quynh, is published and runs until 1934.
1919	The Cao Dai religion is revealed to Ngo Van Chieu.
1920	Ho Chi Minh participates in founding the French Communist Party.
1923	The newspaper La cloche felée (The Flawed Bell) is first published in Saigon.
1924	Saigon and Paris are linked by direct transoceanic cable.
1925	Ho Chi Minh establishes the Vietnamese Revolutionary Youth Association.
1926	The Cao Dai religion is officially founded.
	The Women’s Labor Study Association is established.
1927	The Vietnam Nationalist Party (VNQDD) is formed.
1929	The periodical Women’s News (Phu Nu Tan Van) begins publishing in 1929 and runs until 1934.
1930	Ho Chi Minh unites Vietnamese Communist groups into one party, later named the Indochinese Communist Party (ICP).
1932	The Self-Reliance Literary Group (Tu Luc Van Doan) is founded.
1936	The Popular Front period in Vietnamese politics and publishing begins; it lasts until 1939.
1938	Popular literacy classes are organized by the Association for the Dissemination of Quoc Ngu Study.
1939	The Hoa Hao religious movement is formed.
1940	Japan occupies Vietnam, but French authorities are left in place.
1941	The Viet Minh (Viet Minh Doc Lap Dong Minh Hoi [League for the Independence of Vietnam]) is established.
1944	Vo Nguyen Giap forms the first units of the Vietnam Propaganda and Liberation Army.
1945, March 9	The Japanese overthrow the French colonial regime and install Tran Trong Kim as the prime minister of the Empire of Vietnam under the Bao Dai emperor.
1945, May	Vo Nguyen Giap’s and Chu Van Tan’s armed units are merged into the People’s Liberation Armed Forces.
1945, August 13–15	Ho Chi Minh convenes an ICP conference at Tan Trao and plans the August Revolution.
1945, August 14	The Japanese surrender to Allied forces.
1945, August 25	The last Nguyen emperor, Bao Dai, renounces his throne.
1945, September 2	The Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) is proclaimed in Hanoi.
1946–1954	The first Indochina War begins, lasting until 1954.
Postcolonial and Contemporary Period
1949	France recognizes the Associated State of Vietnam, with Bao Dai as the head of state; Vietnam joins the French Union.
1950	The People’s Republic of China grants diplomatic recognition to the DRV.
1951	The Vietnam Workers’ Party is formed after the dissolution of the ICP in 1945.
1954, May	The French defeat at Dien Bien Phu marks the end of the French–Viet Minh war.
1954, July	The Geneva Agreements temporarily divide Vietnam at the seventeenth parallel so the military can regroup; elections are to be held in two years to decide Vietnam’s political future.
	Ngo Dinh Diem is appointed by Bao Dai as prime minister of the state of Vietnam.
1954, September	The United States forms the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO), extending protection to the state of Vietnam.
1954, October	Viet Minh troops enter Hanoi, which becomes the capital of the DRV.
1955	The Republic of Vietnam is formed, with its capital in Saigon.
1955–1956	The DRV undertakes a land reform program.
1955–1958	The Nhan Van Giai Pham affair plays out in the north.
1958	The collectivization program begins in the north. Nguyen Thi Dinh and the southern Viet Minh launch the first armed uprisings against the Ngo Dinh Diem regime in Ben Tre Province.
1960	The National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam (NLF) is formed.
1960, September	The Third Congress of the Vietnamese Workers’ Party in the north decides to support the revolutionary struggle in the south.
1960, November	Military officials launch an abortive coup against the Ngo Dinh Diem regime.
1963, January	The battle of Ap Bac is fought in Dinh Tuong Province.
1963, summer	Buddhist protests challenge the Ngo Dinh Diem government.
1963, November	Ngo Dinh Diem is assassinated, and a succession of military governments take charge in the south.
1964	The United States begins bombing northern Vietnam.
1965	The United States sends ground troops into the Vietnamese conflict.
1968	The DRV/NLF launches the Tet Offensive.
1969	Ho Chi Minh dies.
	Nguyen Van Thieu, president of the Republic of Vietnam (RVN), signs the Land to the Tiller Program into law.
1973, January	The Paris Agreement leads to the withdrawal of U.S. forces from South Vietnam and the return of U.S. POWs.
1975, April 30	DRV forces occupy Saigon and accept the surrender of the Republic of Vietnam.
1976	A unified Vietnam is renamed the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), and the name of the party is changed to the Vietnam Communist Party.
1978	The SRV nationalizes commercial and manufacturing enterprises owned by Vietnamese of Chinese descent, leading to the exodus of several hundred thousand “boat people.”
1978–1988	Vietnam overthrows the Khmer Rouge regime and occupies Cambodia.
1979	Chinese forces briefly invade Vietnam but begin withdrawing after a month.
1986	The Communist Party holds its Sixth National Congress; the failure of the socialist economy and agricultural cooperatives lead to doi moi (renovation) economic reforms.
	The decollectivization of the land begins.
1989	Vietnam withdraws from Cambodia.
1991	Vietnam normalizes its relations with China.
1994	The U.S. embargo of Vietnam is lifted.
1995	The United States and Vietnam establish diplomatic relations, and Vietnam joins the Association of Southeast Nations (ASEAN).
1999	Tran Do, an army general and party dissident, is expelled from the party.
2005	Thich Nhat Hanh, a prominent Buddhist activist, returns to Vietnam after thirty-eight years in exile.