However, the influence the French in the trade and politics of Vietnam culminated in Vietnam becoming a French colony in 1887. The colonial rule continued until Vietnam's independence in 1954.

In the 1850s, persecution of French missionaries gave France an excuse to expand their colonial empire into Vietnam. In 1859, French troops destroyed the citadel at Gia Dinh. Skirmishes continued ...

War veterans, communist leaders and diplomats gathered in Vietnam’s Dien Bien Phu yesterday to mark the 60th anniversary of the country’s seminal victory over French colonial forces. The bloody 56-day ...