Vietnam

The United States, identifying the Viet Minh as a Communist threat, steps up military assistance to France for their operations against the Viet Minh

1950

The U.S. sets up military assistance to France

The Geneva Accords establish North and South Vietnam with the 17th parallel as the dividing line

1954

Establishing the Vietnam dividing line

Catholic nationalist Ngo Dinh Diem emerges as the leader of South Vietnam, with U.S. backing, while Ho Chi Minh leads the communist state to the north

1955

New leader of South Vietnam

The first U.S. soldiers are killed in South Vietnam when guerrillas raid their living quarters near Saigon

1959

The First U.S. soldiers are killed

In Operation Ranch Hand, U.S. aircraft start spraying “Agent Orange” and other herbicides over rural areas of South Vietnam to kill vegetation that would offer cover and food for guerrilla forces

1962

“Agent Orange” begins

The attacks in the Gulf of Tonkin spur Congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which authorizes the president to “take all necessary measures, including the use of armed force” against any aggressor in the conflict

1964

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

The U.S. government institutes the first draft lottery since World War II, prompting ever more young American men—later disparaged as “draft dodgers”—to flee to Canada

1969

The U.S. starts the first draft since WWII

In a bloody incident known as the Kent State Shooting, National Guardsmen fire on anti-war demonstrators at Ohio’s Kent State University, killing four students and wounding nine

1970

Kent State Shooting

Congress repeals the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution to reassert control over the president’s ability to use force in the war.

1970

Gulf of tonkin resolution gets repealed

The New York Times publishes a series of articles detailing leaked Defense Department documents about the war, known as the Pentagon Papers. The report reveals the U.S. government had repeatedly and secretly increased U.S. involvement in the war.

1971

Pentagon papers

President Nixon signs the Paris Peace Accords, ending direct U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. The North Vietnamese accept a cease fire. But as U.S. troops depart Vietnam, North Vietnamese military officials continue plotting to overtake South Vietnam.

1973

Paris Peace Accords

In the Fall of Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam is seized by communist forces and the government of South Vietnam surrenders.

1975

Fall of Saigon