Thanh Hóa province in the context of Nghệ An Province

Nghệ An (Vietnamese pronunciation: [ŋêˀ ān]) is a coastal province near the northernmost part of the North Central Coast region, Central Vietnam. It borders Thanh Hóa to the north, Hà Tĩnh to the south, Xiangkhouang, Bolikhamsai and Houaphan of Laos to the west, and the South China Sea (Gulf of Tonkin) to the east.

Nghệ An is Vietnam's largest province by area. It is located on the east–west economic corridor connecting Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam along National Route 7 to the port of Cửa Lò.

The Lam Sơn uprising was a rebellion against Ming China led by Vietnamese leader Lê Lợi. The uprising began in early 1418 and ended in late 1427 with the victory of the Lam Sơn rebels, the retreat of the Ming army after the Đông Quan oath, and the establishment of the Later Lê dynasty.

In 1407, the Ming dynasty annexed the entire territory of Đại Ngu, the short-lived state ruled by the Hồ dynasty in what is now northern Vietnam and established the province of Jiaozhi. Their rule was met with resistance from the Viet people due to the Yongle Emperor's vigorous Sinicization policy, which aimed to assimilate the Viet. This policy caused widespread dissatisfaction and led to a series of uprisings across Jiaozhi, both large and small. After suppressing these uprisings, the Ming dynasty's rule became more stable than ever, but in some areas, there remained a latent risk of rebellion, particularly in the mountainous region of Thanh-Nghệ (modern Thanh Hóa and Nghệ An provinces), where the people were not willing to submit like those in the Kinh lộ region (the lowland Red River Delta).