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President Eisenhower feared that if Vietnam fell completely to communism, it would spread. This was the central reason for America's continued involvement in Vietnam.
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The Geneva Accords were signed at the Geneva Conference which temporarily divided Vietnam along the 17th parallel. The Geneva Conference also recognized Cambodia’s independence.
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Diem first rejects conditions of the Geneva Accords. Later, Britain, France, and the United States urge Diem to respect Geneva accords and conduct discussions with the north
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Hanoi forms the National Liberation Front for South Vietnam. Diem’s government names the group, “Vietcong.”
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May 9-24, 1961
Vice President Lyndon Johnson goes on a tour of Asian countries, and visits Diem in Saigon. Johnson convinces Diem that he is crucial to the US objectives in Vietnam and called him “The Churchill of Asia.” -
Helicopters flown by th U.S. Army pilots carried 1,000 South Vietnamese soldiers to sweep a National Liberation Front stronghold near Saigon. This marked America's first combat mission against the Vietcong.
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The US Air Force begins using a defoliant that came in orange metal containers known as Agent Orange. Agent Orange was used to expose roads and trails used by Vietcong Forces.
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With tacit approval of the United States, operatives in South Vietnamese military overthrow Diem. Diem and his brother were shot and killed in the aftermath.
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The senate and House passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution which authorized the president to “Take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against the forces of the United States and to prevent further aggression.”
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Johnson expanded American involvement by shifting his policy to a sustained bombing campaign against North Vietnam.
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Guerrilla fighters attacked virtually all American air bases in South Vietnam and most of the South’s major cities and provincial Capitals.
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Nixon cut back on the number of American troops in Vietnam, and started to gradually withdraw troops while South Vietnam assumed more of the fighting. Nixon then increased airstrikes against North Vietnam and began bombing Vietcong sanctuaries in Cambodia.
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A process that involved the gradual withdrawal of US troops while South Vietnam assumed more of the Fighting.
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Many people viewed the Cambodian invasion as a widening of the war which led to protests. One of these occurred at Kent State University and Ohio National Guard soldiers fired on demonstrators without an order to do so.
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Anger over the draft fueled discussions of voting age, which led to the 26th amendment being added to the Constitution. The amendment stated that all citizens age 18+ had the right to vote in all state and federal elections.
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The New Times leaked top-secret documents that were known as the Pentagon Papers. The documents showed that the government had lied in the public statements about how the military was involved and the progress of the war. Over 2/3 of the American population wanted President Nixon to order troop withdrawal from Vietnam.
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American and North Vietnam signed the Paris Peace accords which ended the war. The Accords stated the release of American prisoners and the withdrawal of troops from vietnam in the next 60 days.
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A cease-fire agreement is signed in Paris by Henery Kissinger and Le Duc Tho. The agreement went into effect on January 28, 1973. Richard Nixon stated, “This brings peace with honor in Vietnam and Southeast Asia.”
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Congress passed the War Powers Act as a way to reestablish some limits on executive power. This required the president to inform Congress of any commitment of troops abroad within 48 hours and to withdraw them in 60-90 days unless Congress explicitly approved the troop commitment.
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Communist North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces captured th South Vietnamese capital, forcing SOuth Vietnam to surrender and bring about an end to the Vietnam War.
