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Geneva Accords
Vietnam would become an independent nation, formally ending 75 years of French colonialism. The former French colonies Cambodia and Laos would also be given their independence. Vietnam would be temporarily divided for a period of two years. -
Assassination of Diem
Diem's heavy-handed tactics against the Viet Cong insurgency deepened his government's unpopularity, and his brutal treatment of the opposition to his regime alienated the South Vietnamese populace, notably Buddhists. In 1963 he was murdered during a coup d'état by some of his generals. -
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, authorizing President Johnson to take any measures he believed were necessary to retaliate and to promote the maintenance of international peace and security in southeast Asia. -
LBJ ordered 1st troops to Vietnam
Under the authority of President Lyndon B. Johnson, the United States first deployed troops to Vietnam in 1965 in response to the Gulf of Tonkin Incident of August 2 and 4, 1964. -
Nixon’s Vietnamization policy
Vietnamization was a policy of the Richard Nixon administration to end U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War through a program 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". -
My Lai Massacre
The My Lai massacre was one of the most horrific incidents of violence committed against unarmed civilians during the Vietnam War. A company of American soldiers brutally killed most of the people—women, children, and old men—in the village of My Lai on March 16, 1968 -
Tet Offensive
The Tet Offensive was a coordinated series of North Vietnamese attacks on more than 100 cities and outposts in South Vietnam. The offensive was an attempt to foment rebellion among the South Vietnamese population and encourage the United States to scale back its involvement in the Vietnam War. -
Nixon becomes President
Nixon signed the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty and SALT I, two landmark arms control treaties with the Soviet Union. He focused on détente with the People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union, easing Cold War tensions with both countries. These are some of his many accomplishments as president. -
Nixon ordered troops to Cambodia
Nixon ordered troops into Cambodia to disrupt the Ho Chi Minh Trail and other supply lines used by North Vietnam, even though Cambodia was neutral. In 1970, he ordered air and ground strikes in Cambodia. This is the most controversial act of his to end the Vietnam War. -
Hard Hat Riot
The Hard Hat Riot occurred on May 8, 1970, in New York City. It started around noon when around 400 construction workers and around 800 office workers attacked around 1,000 demonstrators affiliated with the student strike of 1970. -
Nixon goes to China
U.S. President Richard Nixon's 1972 visit to the People's Republic of China was an important strategic and diplomatic overture that marked the culmination of the Nixon administration's resumption of harmonious relations between the United States and mainland China after years of diplomatic isolation. -
Nixon’s Christmas bombing
Following the breakdown of peace talks with North Vietnam just a few days earlier, President Richard Nixon announces the beginning of a massive bombing campaign to break the stalemate. For nearly two weeks, American bombers pounded North Vietnam. -
Paris Peace Accords
Nixon's plan worked and in early January 1973, the Americans and North Vietnamese ironed out the last details of the settlement. ... The January accords titled the "Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam," neither ended the war (except for the United States) nor restored the peace. -
Nixon Resigns
With his complicity in the cover-up made public and his political support completely eroded, Nixon resigned from office on August 9, 1974. He is the only U.S. president to have resigned from office. On September 8, 1974, Nixon's successor, Gerald Ford, pardoned him. -
Saigon Falls
The Fall of Saigon, also known as the Liberation of Saigon, was the capture of Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, by the People's Army of Vietnam and the Viet Cong. The fall of Saigon (now Ho Chin Minh City) effectively marked the end of the Vietnam War.