Anarchy of the 12 Warlords in the context of Ngô dynasty

Đại Việt (大越, IPA: [ɗâjˀ vìət]; literally Great Việt) was a Vietnamese monarchy in eastern Mainland Southeast Asia from the 10th century AD to the early 19th century, centered around the region of present-day Hanoi. Its early name, Đại Cồ Việt, was established in 968 by the ruler Đinh Bộ Lĩnh after he ended the Anarchy of the 12 Warlords, until the beginning of the reign of Lý Thánh Tông (r. 1054–1072), the third emperor of the Lý dynasty. Đại Việt lasted until the reign of Gia Long (r. 1802–1820), the first emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty, when the name was changed to Việt Nam in 1804. Under rule of bilateral diplomacy with Imperial China, it was known as Principality of Giao Chỉ (chữ Hán: 交趾) (975–1164) and later Kingdom of Annam (chữ Hán: 安南) (1164–1804) when Emperor Xiaozong of Song recognized Đại Việt's independence and upgraded its status from principality to kingdom.

Đại Việt's history was divided into the rule of eight dynasties: Đinh (968–980), Early Lê (980–1009), Lý (1009–1226), Trần (1226–1400), Hồ (1400–1407), and Later Lê (1428–1789); the Mạc dynasty (1527–1677); and the short-lived Tây Sơn dynasty (1778–1802). It was briefly interrupted by the Hồ dynasty (1400–1407), which changed the country's name to Đại Ngu, and the Fourth Era of Northern Domination (1407–1427), when the region was administered as Jiaozhi by the Ming dynasty. Đại Việt's history can also be divided into two periods: the unified state, which lasted from the 960s to 1533, and the fragmented state, from 1533 to 1802, when there were more than one dynasty and several noble clans simultaneously ruling from their own domains. From the 13th to the 18th century, Đại Việt's borders expanded to encompass territory that resembled modern-day Vietnam, which lies along the South China Sea from the Gulf of Tonkin to the Gulf of Thailand.

Nguyễn Bặc (chữ Hán: 阮匐, 924 – 15 October 979), also known with the noble title Định Quốc Công (定國公), was a Vietnamese mandarin and general who served as the Grand Chancellor of Đinh dynasty and was the first chancellor in Vietnamese history. He helped future emperor Đinh Bộ Lĩnh put an end to the troubles of the Anarchy of the 12 Warlords and to establish the short-lived Đinh dynasty. After Đinh Bộ Lĩnh and his chosen successor Đinh Liễn were murdered by a palace official, Đỗ Thích, Nguyễn Bặc captured the murderer and had him executed. He then tried unsuccessfully to organize resistance to Lê Hoàn. According to Nguyễn Phúc tộc thế phả (Nguyễn Phúc clan Family tree book), Nguyễn Bặc was the ancestor of the Nguyễn Phúc clan, followed by founding of the Nguyễn lords by Nguyễn Hoàng in 1558 and Nguyễn dynasty in 1802 under the emperor Gia Long. As a result, he was sometimes considered to be a patriarch of the surname Nguyen, which is the most common amongst all Vietnamese people. Moreover, he was considered as one of the "seven heroes of Giao Châu" (Giao Chỉ province) according to Việt Sử tân biên including: Đinh Bộ Lĩnh, Đinh Liễn, Lê Hoàn, Đinh Điền, Phạm Hạp and Phạm Cự Lượng.

Đinh Bộ Lĩnh (924–979; r. 968–979), real name allegedly Đinh Hoàn (丁桓), was the founding emperor of the short-lived Đinh dynasty of Vietnam, after declaring its independence from the Chinese Southern Han dynasty. He was a significant figure in the establishment of Vietnamese independence and political unity in the 10th century. He unified Vietnam by defeating rebellious warlords and became the emperor of Vietnam. Upon his ascension, he renamed the country Đại Cồ Việt. Đinh Bộ Lĩnh was also known as Đinh Tiên Hoàng (丁先皇; literally "the Former Đinh Emperor").