Editing Annam (French protectorate) (section)

==Geography==
[[File:An Nam Dai Quoc Hoa Do by Jean Louis Taberd 1838.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Map of the ''An Nam Empire'' by [[Jean-Louis Taberd]].]]

Annam comprised a sinuous strip of territory measuring between 750 and {{convert|800|mi|km}} in length, with an approximate area of {{convert|52000|sqmi|km2}}.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911|p=61}} It had a rich, well-watered soil which yields tropical crops, and was rich in naturally occurring [[minerals]].

The country consisted chiefly of a range of [[plateaus]] and wooded mountains, running north and south and declining on the coast to a narrow band of [[plain]]s varying between 12 and {{convert|50|mi|km}} in breadth. The mountains are cut transversely by short narrow valleys, through which run rivers, most of which are dry in summer and torrential in winter. The [[Ma River|Song Ma]] and the Song Ca in the north, and the Song Ba, Don Nai and Se Bang Khan in the south, are the only rivers of any size in the region. The chief harbour is that afforded by the [[Da Nang Bay|bay of Tourane]] at the centre of the coastline. South of this point, the coast curves outwards and is broken by [[peninsulas]] and indentations; to the north it is concave and bordered in many places by [[dunes]] and [[lagoons]].{{sfn|Chisholm|1911|p=61}}