-
Domino Theory
Domino theory is the theory that communism spreads from nation to nation, causing countries to fall to communism like "dominos". This was coined in the late 1940s by President Truman, but was applied to Southeast Asia, specifically South Vietnam in the 1950s by President Eisenhower, and was used by Presidents Kennedy and Johnson to justify continuous involvement in the Vietnam conflict. -
Geneva Accords
A conference was held in Geneva between major world powers with the intent to resolve the issues in Southeast Asia, particularly the war between the French, who had occupied Vietnam, and Vietnamese nationalists. The agreement reached at this conference resulted in the French pulling their troops out of Vietnam entirely. -
Assassination of President Diem
In November, 1963, President Diem of South Vietnam was assassinated. While America officially has no connections to the assassination, it has since been found that American officials met with those who organized the plot and encouraged them to go through with their plans. -
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution was a resolution passed by Congress in response to the alleged attack on two U.S. naval vessels off the coast of Vietnam, in the Gulf of Tonkin. This resolution authorized President Johnson to "take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against the forces of the United States and to prevent further aggression”. -
LBJ sends the first troops to Vietnam
In 1965, President Johnson sent troops to Vietnam in response to the Gulf of Tonkin incident of August 1964. Marines landed near South Vietnam's Da Nang. -
Tet Offensive
The Tet Offensive was a coordinated series of North Vietnamese attacks on more than a hundred cities and outposts in South Vietnam intended to stoke rebellion among the South Vietnamese population and encourage the United States to scale back its involvement in the Vietnam War. The American and South Vietnamese armies were able to hold off the North Vietnamese attacks, though not without a loss in support for the war effort due to media coverage. -
My Lai Massacre
The My Lai massacre was a horrific atrocity committed against unarmed Vietnamese civilians by the United States military. Over 500 people were killed and many women and young girls were raped before being slaughtered. The massacre was covered up by Army officials but was leaked to the press approximately a year later, sparking domestic and international outrage. -
Nixon's Vietnamization Policy
Vietnamization was a policy promoted by the Nixon administration to end American involvement in Vietnam, using programs to "expand, equip, and train South Vietnamese forces and assign to them an ever-increasing combat role, at the same time steadily reducing the number of U.S. combat troops". -
Kent State Shooting
At Kent State University in Ohio, four students were shot dead by the National Guard after the Guard was deployed in response to the violent anti-war protest. The incident caused a temporary mass closure of colleges and universities across the United States to prevent further on-campus student protests. -
Hard Hat Riot
The Hard Hat Riot took place mere days after the Kent State shooting. A group of anti-war protesters marched in New York in response to the military action against students, but a group of construction workers and self-identified Vietnam veterans confronted and attacked them. Roughly seventy people were injured in the riot. -
Nixon deploys troops to Cambodia
Nixon deployed troops to Cambodia near the Vietnamese border in an effort to stop the Vietcong from retreating across the border with Cambodia to escape United States troops. The anti-war movement and the media seized on this action, sparking new protests across the United States. -
Nixon's Christmas bombing
After the breakdown of peace talks with North Vietnamese officials, Nixon ordered a massive bombing campaign against North Vietnam. This campaign continued until North Vietnam agreed to resume peace talks, and a few weeks thereafter the Paris Peace Accords were signed. -
Paris Peace Accords
The Paris Peace Accords were the official documents signed by the United States, South Vietnam, North Vietnam, and Vietcong that instituted a ceasefire in Vietnam and included the full withdraw of of United States troops. -
War Powers Act
The War Powers Act was passed by Congress in 1973, it required the President to consult with and report to Congress before deploying troops to any foreign nation. This was in response to the way the recent presidents had circumvented Congressional war powers regarding troop movements in Vietnam. -
Saigon Falls
On April 30th, 1975, the South Vietnamese city of Saigon, now known as Ho Chi Minh City, fell to the North Vietnamese army and Vietcong. Shortly after, North and South Vietnam were united under one communist government.