The
State of Vietnam () was a state that claimed authority over all of
Vietnam during the
First Indochina War, and replaced the
Provisional Central Government of Vietnam (1948-1949). The provisional government was a brief transitional administration between colonial
Cochinchina and an independent state. The state was created in 1949 and was internationally recognized in 1950, although its main power was in the south, whereas the
Democratic Republic of Vietnam dominated the north. Former emperor
Bảo Đại was chief of state (
Quốc Trưởng).
Ngô Đình Diệm was appointed prime minister in 1954. Diệm ousted Bảo Đại the following year and became president of the
Republic of Vietnam.
History
Unification of Vietnam (1947-1948)
By February 1947, following the
pacification of
Tonkin (North Vietnam), the Tonkinese capital,
Hanoi, and the main traffic axis returned under French control. The derouted
Việt Minh partisans were forced to retreat into the jungle and prepared to pursue the war using
guerrilla warfare.
In order to reduce Việt Minh leader
Hồ Chí Minh’s influence over the Vietnamese population, the French authorities in Indochina supported the return to power of the emperor (last ruler of the Nguyễn Dynasty), Bảo Đại. The latter had been forced to abdicate by the Việt Minh back in August 25, 1945 after the fall of the short-lived
Empire of Vietnam,
puppet state of the
Empire of Japan.
On June 5, 1948, the
Halong Bay Agreements (
Accords de la baie d’Along) allowed the creation of a unified State of Vietnam replacing the Tonkin (North Vietnam),
Annam (Middle Vietnam) and the Republic of Cochinchina (South Vietnam) associated to France within the
French Union then including the neighboring
Kingdom of Laos and
Kingdom of Cambodia.
Since the Halong Bay Agreements resulted in many aspects — excluding the
referendum — in the enforcement of the March 6, 1946
Indochinese Independence Convention signed by
Communist Hồ Chí Minh’s
Democratic Republic of Vietnam and
High Commissioner of France in Indochina Admiral
Thierry d'Argenlieu, representative of
Felix Gouin’s
Provisional French Republic led by the
French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO), some regarded the State of Vietnam as a puppet state of the
French Fourth Republic.
French Union (1949-1954)
From 1949 to 1954, the State of Vietnam had partial autonomy from
France as an associated state within the
French Union.
Bảo Đại fought with Communist leader Hồ Chí Minh for legitimacy as the government of the whole of Vietnam through the struggle between the
Vietnamese National Army and the Việt Minh during the
First Indochina War.
The State of Vietnam found support in the French Fourth Republic and the
United States while Hồ Chí Minh was backed by the
People's Republic of China, and to a lesser extent by the
Soviet Union.
Partition (1954-1955)
After the
Geneva Conference of 1954, as well as becoming fully independent with its departure from the French Union, the State of Vietnam became territorially confined to those lands of Vietnam south of the
17th parallel, and as such became commonly known as
South Vietnam.
The massive migration of anti-Communist north Vietnamese, essentially
Roman Catholic people, was proceeded during the French-American
Operation Passage to Freedom in summer 1954.
Republic of Vietnam (1955-1975)
In 1955, the State of Vietnam ceased to exist and was replaced by the
Republic of Vietnam whose reformed army pursued the struggle against the Việt Minh in the
Vietnam War.
Government
Provisional Central Government of Vietnam (1948-1949)
On May 27, 1948,
Nguyễn Văn Xuân, then President of the Republic of Cochin China, became President of the Provisional Central Government of Vietnam (
Thủ tướng lâm thời) following the merging of the government of Cochin China and Vietnam in what is sometimes referred as “Pre-Vietnam.”
State of Vietnam (1949-1955)
On June 14, 1949, Bảo Đại was appointed Chief of State (
Quoc Truong) of the State of Vietnam; he was concurrently Prime Minister for a short while (
Kiêm nhiệm Thủ tướng).
On October 26, 1955, the Republic of Vietnam was established and Ngô Đình Diệm became the first President of the Republic.
Leaders (1948–1955)
Military
Vietnamese National Army (1949-1955)
Following the signing of the 1949
Elysee Accords in
Paris, Bảo Đại was able to create a
National Army for defense purpose.
It fought under the State of Vietnam’s banner and leadership and was commanded by General
Nguyen Van Hinh.
Economy
Currency
The currency used within the French Union was the
French Indochinese piastre. Notes were issued and managed by the “Issue Institute of the States of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam” (
Institut d’Emission des Etats du Cambodge, du Laos et du Viêt-Nam).
See also
Category:Short-lived statesCategory:States and territories established in 1949VietnamCategory:1955 disestablishmentsCategory:South VietnamCategory:Former colonies of FranceCategory:Former countries in history of Vietnamfr:État du Viêt Namko:베트남 국ja:ベトナム国vi:Quốc gia Việt Namzh:越南国 
