Archaeological excavations of fossils in Bac Son Grotto in Lang Son Province, vestiges in caves in Nghe An Province as well as the discovery of some artifacts at Do Mountain in Thanh Hoa Province which are believed to belong to the Stone Age have proved that human life started in Vietnam 10,000 to 30,000 years ago and Vietnam has been considered as one of the earliest cradles of mankind.
Vietnam is a nation with thousand years of glorious history. Archaeological artifacts of the Phung Nguyen, Dong Dau, Go Mun especially the Ngoc Lu Bronze Drums have proved that Vietnam had a developed and glorious culture a thousand years BC (Dong Son Culture). The vestiges of the historic period of the Hung Kings have revealed that Vietnam was one of the first countries to be formed.
Three main periods in Vietnam's history:
- Northern Kingdom's domination: lasted 1,000 years. One of the fiercest periods of hardship experienced by the different tribal people in Vietnam's history.
- National construction and defense for independence: a brilliant era for national revival and development, marked by glorious victories of Vietnamese people against the aggressors.
- National Independence and socialism: Under French oppression since 1857, Vietnamese people had constantly fought for independence. The revolution succeeded in August 1945 under the leadership of President Ho Chi Minh and Vietnamese Communist Party. Vietnam proclaimed its independence on 2 September 1945. During the following 30 years, Vietnamese people continued to resist and protect their independence. Vietnam has been unified ever since the great victory over Americans in Spring 1975. The Socialist Republic of Vietnam was born with Hanoi as the capital.
