The history of Việt Nam: my very brief version - Part 2

Updated on 2/14/2025

The Lý Dynasty (1009 CE - 1225 CE)

When Lý Công Uẩn ascended the throne in 1009 CE, he began the Lý dynasty that would last through eight kings and one queen, for 216 years. He did not know that he had ushered in a long period of political stability that lasted for four centuries, until 1407 CE, when the Ming Dynasty sent troops to invade Việt Nam and occupied it until 1428 CE.

King Lý Thái Tổ (Lý Công Uẩn) moved the capital from Hoa Lư to Thăng Long (present day Hà Nội) in 1010 CE. It would remain the capital of Việt Nam, continuously, until 1788 CE. Also, in 1054 CE, King Lý Thánh Tông, the third king, changed the name of the country from Đại Cồ Việt or Great Great Việt, since the Đinh Dynasty, to simply Đại Việt or Great Việt.

The Temple of Literature (Văn Miếu) was built in 1070 CE, where the names of doctorate graduates were forever enshrined. The first tablet has the names of the graduates of 1442 CE, during the Later Lê Dynasty. The first college, Quốc Tử Giám, was established in 1076 CE, for the royal family and aristocrats but later, promising commoners were also allowed to attend. The first exam to select doctorate graduates in Việt Nam was held in 1075 CE. The top graduate that year was Lê Văn Thịnh. He later became Prime Minister under the reign of King Lý Nhân Tông, the fourth king, in 1085 CE. Also, the first comprehensive legal system in Việt Nam was established in 1042 CE, under the reign of King Lý Thái Tông, the second king. During the Lý Dynasty, the three main religions of equal importance were Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism.

Việt Nam's relationship with the Song Court was relatively peaceful, other than a major war between 1075 CE and 1077 CE, in which it failed to conquer the country. Wars with the Kingdom of Champa were frequent, with the major one in 1069 CE, when it lost present day Quảng Bình province and the northern part of Quảng Trị province to Việt Nam. There were also wars with the Chenla Kingdom, present day Kingdom of Cambodia and southern Việt Nam, because it was an ally of Champa.

Source: Multiple authors. "Nhà Lý." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on November 21, 2024. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nh%C3%A0_L%C3%BD

Multiple authors. "Văn Miếu." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on January 14, 2025 https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/V%C4%83n_Mi%E1%BA%BFu_%E2%80%93_Qu%E1%BB%91c_T%E1%BB%AD_Gi%C3%A1m

The Lý Dynasty went into a sharp decline during the reign of King Lý Cao Tông, the seventh king. He precipitated the Quách Bốc rebellion, which greatly damaged the longevity of the dynasty. Prince Lý Hạo Sảm, his son, fled to Thái Bình province, which was governed by Trần Lý, for protection. There, he met and married Trần Thị Dung, the daughter of his benefactor. With the help of Trần Lý, Prince Lý Hạo Sảm was able to quell the rebellion, and later became King Lý Huệ Tông, in 1210 CE. He made Trần Thị Dung, his queen, and her brother, Trần Tự Khánh, a Marquis. By 1216 CE, all of the critical court positions were in the hands of the Trần's. In 1224 CE, King Lý Huệ Tông's health declined greatly, the Queen and her cousin, Trần Thủ Độ, were able to convince him to abdicate in favor of Princess Lý Chiêu Hoàng, who was only eight year old. She was the first and only female ruler since Việt Nam's independence from the Chinese rule, and second since Queen Trưng Trắc, who ruled Việt Nam briefly between 40 CE and 43 CE. They also arranged for Queen Lý Chiêu Hoàng to marry Trần Cảnh, the Queen's nephew. In 1225 CE, Queen Lý Chiêu Hoàng abdicated in favor of her husband, thus ending the Lý Dynasty. In 1226 CE, Trần Thủ Độ forced Lý Huệ Tông to commit suicide, and he then married Trần Thị Dung, the former Queen and his cousin. Historians of later dynasties condemned strongly this immoral behavior.

Source: Multiple authors. "Loạn Quách Bốc." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on November 5, https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lo%E1%BA%A1n_Qu%C3%A1ch_B%E1%BB%91c

Multiple authors. "Lý Huệ Tông." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on November 14, 2024. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%C3%BD_Hu%E1%BB%87_T%C3%B4ng

Multiple authors. "Trần Thị Dung." en.wikipedia.org. Last updated on November 9, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tr%E1%BA%A7n_Th%E1%BB%8B_Dung

Trần Thủ Độ did what he could to eliminate the Ly's royal family and other oppositions, including forcing the remaining descendants to change their last name to Nguyễn. Prince Lý Long Tường, King Lý Huệ Tông's uncle, along with his family and loyal followers, were able to escape to the Goryeo Kingdom, present day Korea, in 1226 CE. After he settled there, he assisted his new country to repel the Mongol invasion twice, and he was rewarded with the title, General. In 1994, one of his 26th generation descendants, Lý Xương Căn (Lee Chang Keun) made headline news, when he came back to Việt Nam to pay respect to his ancestors at the Lý Dynastic Temple in Bắc Ninh province. In 2010, Lý Xương Căn moved his family to Việt Nam, and they later become its citizens. He is the Tourism Ambassador for Việt Nam in South Korea, since 2017. There is also another Lý prince, Prince Lý Dương Côn, who immigrated to Goryeo a hundred years earlier than Prince Lý Long Tường, but I will not go into detail here.

Source: Multiple authors. "Lý Long Tường." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on January 4, 2025. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%C3%BD_Long_T%C6%B0%E1%BB%9Dng

Multiple authors. "Lý Dương Côn." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on January 22, 2024. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%C3%BD_D%C6%B0%C6%A1ng_C%C3%B4n

Unknown author. "Royal Descendant named Vietnam tourism ambassador." tuổitrẻnews. November 23, 2017. https://tuoitrenews.vn/news/society/20171123/royal-descendant-named-vietnam-tourism-ambassador/42790.html

D.Kim Thoa. "Dòng máu Việt trong tim một người Hàn." tuổitrẻnews. November 11, 2024. https://tuoitre.vn/dong-mau-viet-trong-tim-mot-nguoi-han-20241110211840124.htm

Lina Jang. "Korean Descendant of Vietnamese Royal Family as Tourism Ambassador to South Korea." The Korea Biz Wire. November 27, 2017. http://koreabizwire.com/korean-descendant-of-vietnamese-royal-family-chosen-as-tourism-ambassador-to-south-korea/102654#google_vignette

Image source: Gia Khánh, "Thăng Long Imperial City during the Lý Dynasty," 2018. Accessed via https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ho%C3%A0ng_th%C3%A0nh_Th%C4%83ng_Long Unaltered from source photo.

Image source: Hanoi Research Institute, "Lý Dynasty Palace," 2021. Accessed via https://thanhnien.vn/dung-lai-cung-dien-thoi-ly-1851058904.htm Unaltered from source photo.

The Trần Dynasty (1226 CE - 1400 CE)

Trần Cảnh or King Trần Thái Tông, ascended the throne when he was only eight year old, at the end of 1225 CE, and established the dynasty that would last through twelve kings, for 175 years. Early in his reign, all power was in the hands of Trần Thủ Độ, the Grand Chancellor. In my opinion, Trần Thủ Độ did not ascend the throne because he believed the transition from Lý to Trần would not go as smoothly had he done so. He was a ruthless politician because he would go to the extreme to ensure the long term survival of the dynasty. When Queen Chiêu Thánh (Chiêu Hoàng) still could not produce a male heir by 1237 CE, he forced King Trần Thái Tông to divorce her, and married her sister, Princess Thuận Thiên, who was already married to his brother, Prince Trần Liễu, and also already three-month pregnant with his son, Prince Trần Quốc Khang. This event precipitated a revolt by Prince Trần Liễu but it ended quickly. Trần Thủ Độ wanted to behead him but King Trần Thái Tông interceded and forgave him. He also established the marriage policy that the royal family can only marry members from within the clan to prevent outsiders from taking the throne. This resulted in first cousins marrying each other during the early part of the dynasty and disastrous consequence by the time of King Trần Dụ Tông, the seventh king. The Trần dynasty was the only dynasty in the history of Việt Nam that had this policy. Confucianist historians in later dynasties condemned this immoral practice. In Europe, this was done by the Hapsburg Dynasty in later centuries and by other royal houses to lesser extreme.

Source: Multiple authors. "Trần Thủ Độ." en.wikipedia.org. Last updated on December 25, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tr%E1%BA%A7n_Th%E1%BB%A7_%C4%90%E1%BB%99

Multiple authors. "Trần Thái Tông." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on December 11, 2024. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tr%E1%BA%A7n_Th%C3%A1i_T%C3%B4ng

Multiple authors. "Nhà Trần." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on January 11, 2025 https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nh%C3%A0_Tr%E1%BA%A7n

Multiple authors. "Trần Dụ Tông." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on September 28, 2024. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tr%E1%BA%A7n_D%E1%BB%A5_T%C3%B4ng

F C Ceballos & G Álvarez. "Royal dynasties as human inbreeding laboratories: the Habsburgs." Department of Genetics, Faculty of Biology, University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain. April 10, 2013. https://www.nature.com/articles/hdy201325

Lila Thulin. "The Distinctive ‘Habsburg Jaw’ Was Likely the Result of the Royal Family’s Inbreeding." Smithsonian Magazine. December 4, 2019. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/distinctive-habsburg-jaw-was-likely-result-royal-familys-inbreeding-180973688/

While Trần Thủ Độ's actions against the Ly's were regrettable, the ascend of the Trần Dynasty was timely because it came at a perilous moment. In 1206 CE, the Mongol tribes crowned Genghis Khan. Once crowned, he unleashed army and occupied much of the Eurasian continent. The Mongol empire reached Caspian Sea to the west and the Pacific to the east, by his death in 1227 CE. Genghis Khan's successor, Ogedei, continued to expand its empire into China, Persia, and Europe. In 1279 CE, the Song Dynasty fell and China was absorbed into the vast Mongol Empire. Việt Nam would not have withstood successfully the three Mongol invasions under the helm of the Lý's. The first Mongol invasion took place in 1257 CE, the invaders captured Thăng Long quickly but they failed to capture the royal family and destroy the Vietnamese army. In January of 1258 CE, the Trần's army recaptured Thăng Long and the Mongols withdrew from Việt Nam shortly after. The second invasion took place in January of 1285 CE, six years after the collapse of the Song Dynasty. Again, the Mongols quickly captured Thăng Long and had early successes. The royal family and its mostly intact army withdrew to safety and waited for the opportunities to counterattack. The Mongol forces lost Thăng Long to the Trần's army by May of 1285 CE, and completely withdrew from Việt Nam by June. The third and last invasion took place from December of 1287 CE to April of 1288 CE. Again, the Mongols had early successes but were defeated at the end. Immediately after the withdrawal, Việt Nam sent diplomatic mission to the Yuan Court to pay tribute. The Yuan Court planned a fourth invasion but it did not take place because Kublai Khan passed away and his successor lost interest in conquering Việt Nam.

Source: Multiple authors. "Mongol Empire." en.wikipedia.org. Last updated on January 7, 2025. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongol_Empire

Multiple author. "Chiến tranh Nguyên Mông - Đại Việt lần 1." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on September 16, 2024. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chi%E1%BA%BFn_tranh_Nguy%C3%AAn_M%C3%B4ng_%E2%80%93_%C4%90%E1%BA%A1i_Vi%E1%BB%87t_l%E1%BA%A7n_1

Multiple authors. "Chiến tranh Nguyên Mông - Đại Việt lần 2." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on December 29, 2024. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chi%E1%BA%BFn_tranh_Nguy%C3%AAn_M%C3%B4ng_%E2%80%93_%C4%90%E1%BA%A1i_Vi%E1%BB%87t_l%E1%BA%A7n_2

Multiple authors. "Chiến tranh Nguyên Mông - Đại Việt lần 3." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on September 9, 2024. Multiple authors. "Chiến tranh Nguyên Mông - Đại Việt lần 3." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on September 9, 2024. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chi%E1%BA%BFn_tranh_Nguy%C3%AAn_M%C3%B4ng_%E2%80%93_%C4%90%E1%BA%A1i_Vi%E1%BB%87t_l%E1%BA%A7n_3

Relationship with Champa was complicated during the Trần dynasty. When the Mongols invaded Việt Nam the second time, it also attacked Champa. The two countries cooperated with each other militarily against the common enemy. When the war ended, King Trần Nhân Tông visited Champa in 1301 CE and agreed to marry Princess Huyền Trân to King Jaya Simhavarman III. In return, Champa gave present day Quảng Trị and Thừa Thiên Huế provinces to Việt Nam. In 1307 CE, King Jaya Simhavarman III died, a year after the marriage. According to the old custom of Champa, the wife was to be burned along with the deceased husband. King Trần Anh Tông sent a delegation to the funeral to rescue his sister. He succeeded but the relationship with Champa deteriorated. Wars were frequent between 1367 and 1390 CE, during which it invaded Việt Nam twelve times and sacked Thăng Long several times. Historians of later dynasties criticized this duplicity by King Trần Anh Tông.

Source: Multiple authors. "Chế Mân." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on December 10, 2023. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ch%E1%BA%BF_M%C3%A2n

Multiple authors. "Huyền Trân Công chúa." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on November 10, 2024. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huy%E1%BB%81n_Tr%C3%A2n_C%C3%B4ng_ch%C3%BAa

Multiple authors, "Chế Bồng Nga." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on December 25, 2024. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ch%E1%BA%BF_B%E1%BB%93ng_Nga

Trần Hưng. "Vì sao Chiêm Thành có thể chặng đội quân hùng mạnh nhất thế giới?" Dân Việt News. December 4, 2018. https://danviet.vn/vi-sao-chiem-thanh-co-the-chan-doi-quan-hung-manh-nhat-the-gioi-7777936144.htm

Image source: Unknown creator, "Map of Đại Việt territory in 1306 CE after Champa gave away two provinces," 2025. Accessed by https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nh%C3%A0_Tr%E1%BA%A7n Unaltered from source photo.

The Trần Dynasty began to decline during King Trần Dụ Tông’s reign. He was impotent and left no male heir. In 1369 CE, he passed the throne to an outsider, Dương Nhật Lễ, who was adopted by King Trần Dụ Tông's brother. Historical records have not clearly explained the reasons for this because his action appears illogical, in my opinion. In 1371 CE, another outsider rose to prominence, Hồ Quý Ly, because his two paternal aunts were married to King Trần Ming Tông. Hồ Quý Ly later married Princess Huy Ninh, King Trần Ming Tông's daughter. In 1387 CE, Hồ Quý Lý became King Lý Nghệ Tông's Prime Minister. When King Trần Thuận Tông ascended the throne in 1389 CE, Hồ Quý Ly promptly married his daughter to the king. In 1398 CE, he pressured King Trần Thuận Tông to abdicate in favor of his three year old son, King Trần Thiếu Đế, who was also Hồ Quý Ly's grandson. In 1400 CE, King Trần Thiếu Đế was dethroned, thus ending the Trần Dynasty, a heroic one that defeated the Mongols.

Source: Multiple authors. "Trần Dụ Tông." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on December 3, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tr%E1%BA%A7n_D%E1%BB%A5_T%C3%B4ng

Multiple authors. "Dương Nhật Lễ." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on November 11, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D%C6%B0%C6%A1ng_Nh%E1%BA%ADt_L%E1%BB%85

MA. "Dương Nhật Lễ là ai mà được vua Trần Dụ Tông truyền ngôi?" Dân Việt News. April 25, 2023. https://danviet.vn/duong-nhat-le-la-ai-ma-duoc-vua-tran-du-tong-truyen-ngoi-20230425182906137.htm

Multiple authors. "Hồ Quý Ly." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on December 3, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H%E1%BB%93_Qu%C3%BD_Ly

Multiple authors. "Trần Thiếu Đế." November 9, 2024. vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tr%E1%BA%A7n_Thi%E1%BA%BFu_%C4%90%E1%BA%BF

The Hồ Dynasty and brief Chinese Rule (1400 CE - 1407 CE)

Hồ Quý Ly established the shortest dynasty in Việt Nam since independence from China, only seven years. He changed the name of the country from Đại Việt to Đại Ngu to reference an ancient glorious Chinese dynasty. He also built a new capital, Tây Đô, in present day Thanh Hóa province as the primary, and Thăng Long became the secondary. Militarily, King Hồ Quý Ly attacked Champa between 1400 and 1403 CE, and annexed present day Quảng Nam and Quảng Ngãi provinces. The building of the new capital was done by his army and the local populace. He forced them to complete it within three months, thus causing tremendous hardship to the people. He did not have the support of the people when he fought against the Ming forces later because of this. He also lost Champa as a potential ally because he attacked it earlier. During his reign, King Hồ Quý Ly implemented a series of important economic reforms such as the widespread usage of paper money and military reforms but their fruitfulnesses were unknown because of the shortness of his dynasty. He also promoted Confucianism over Buddhism and Taoism and this was also adopted by later dynasties. Historians today are still debating about the merits of Hồ Quý Ly's dynasty.

Image source: Unknown photographer, "Thành nhà Hồ," 2025. https://www.vietnam.vn/giai-ma-bi-an-thanh-nha-ho-ky-tich-kien-truc-hon-600-nam Altered from source photo.

Some of the Trần Dynasty descendants escaped to China and requested the Ming Court to restore the dynasty. In September of 1406 CE, the Mings sent it forces to Việt Nam. They captured King Hồ Quí Ly and his family by May of 1407 CE, and sent them as prisoners to Nanjing. The Ming forces did not restore the Trần Dynasty but occupied Việt Nam until 1428 CE, when they were defeated by the leader of the Lam Sơn revolution, Lê Lợi. There were multiple revolts during the Ming occupation, notably from other Trần Dynasty descendants, Trần Ngỗi and Trần Quý Khoách, but they were defeated by 1414 CE.

Source: Multiple authors. "Nhà Hồ." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated July 2, 2024. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nh%C3%A0_H%E1%BB%93

Multiple authors. "Lê Thái Tổ." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on November 26, 2024. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%C3%AA_Th%C3%A1i_T%E1%BB%95

Multiple authors. "Nhà Hậu Trần." vi.wikipedia.org. Last updated on October 6, 2023. https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nh%C3%A0_H%E1%BA%ADu_Tr%E1%BA%A7n