Hải Dương Province
Hải Dương city was built in 1804, and was first called "Thành Đông" (Sino-Vietnamese for "eastern citadel"), referring to the citadel east of Vietnam's capital, Hanoi. During the French colonial period, Hải Dương was a town. Before 1968, Hải Dương was a town in Hải Dương Province. Between 1968 and 1996 it was the capital of Hải Hưng Province after the provinces of Hải Dương and Hưng Yên merged to form Hải Hưng. On November 6, 1996, following the separation of Hải Dương and Hưng Yên provinces, Hải Dương became the capital of Hải Dương province. On August 6, 1997, Hải Dương was established as a city.