-
Period: to
Eisenhower Presidency
Eisenhower would continue supplying money to the French in their war against the Vietminh, but with the war seeming to be a losing prospect he tried to cut his loses and create south Vietnam to counter communist north Vietnam. -
Battle of Dien Bien Phu
The final battle of the French Indochina war that would result in the independence of French Indochina and the partition of Vietnam into north and south. -
Geneva Accords
Resulted in the decolonization of French Indochina and the partition of Vietnam -
Period: to
Kennedy Presidency
Kennedy would oversee the start of the Vietnam war, before the U.S. got directly involved. He began training Vietnamese forces and sent aid to South Vietnam to prevent the communists from taking over. -
Period: to
Johnson Presidency
LBJ would continue the escalation of the Vietnam war and would begin direct involvement in the war. He wished to protect south Vietnam from falling to the increasing communist threat and sent U.S. troops to the country. -
Gulf of Tonkin Incident
The American destroyer USS Maddox was performing an intelligence gathering operation near North Vietnam when it was approached by several torpedo boats. It fired several warning shots at the boats before being fired upon by torpedoes and withdrawing. The incident would become the inciting event for American involvement in Vietnam. -
Tonkin Resolution
Act of congress that allowed the president to send the American military to Vietnam to defend south Vietnam. It allowed for the first escalation of the war to open fighting. -
Tet Offensive
A coordinated series of attacks by North Vietnamese forces against South Vietnamese cities and bases. The main objective of the offensive was to disrupt South Vietnamese command and ferment rebellion. Significant damages was done to U.S. morale as a result of this offensives and support for the war began falling. -
Period: to
Vietnamization
A policy of gradually withdrawing American troops from Vietnam and training the South Vietnamese army to fight on its own. The main aim of this policy was to appease the public who had grown discontent with the war. -
My Lai Massacre
A massacre of several hundred Vietnamese civilians by U.S. troops. Publication of the event and attempts at coverups sparked outrage internationally and domestically. -
Period: to
Nixon Presidency
Nixon attempted to escalate the war to force a favorable settlement, but North Vietnam was unyielding and domestic opposition was growing. He decided that Vietnam was a lost cause and began planning for the evacuation of Vietnam by U.S. forces. -
Cambodian Campaign
A series of incursions into Cambodia to eliminate North Vietnamese bases and troops on the border region between Vietnam and Cambodia. Little manpower was lost by the North Vietnamese army, but some equipment was left behind. Domestically the campaign sparked a series of protests against the war. -
Fulbright Hearings
A series of senate hearings led by senator William Fulbright that called into question the official state of the war. Testimony reveled that the war was going much worse than was being publicly reported and this significantly hurt support for the war. -
Pentagon Papers/Daniel Ellsberg
Leaked by Daniel Ellsberg who worked at the pentagon. The "Pentagon Papers" detailed how the military had expanded the scope of its operations in Vietnam significantly out of sight from the public. The publishing of the report led to widespread opposition to the war domestically. -
Christmas Bombing
Officially called "Operation Linebacker II" this bombing raid was conducted close to the war's end. Nixon hoped to achieve some kind of victory before the war ended and authorized a bombing raid on several military targets. -
Paris Peace Accords
Official ended America's involvement in Vietnam and required the withdrawal of all American troops from Vietnam. There were also other provisions set out by the treaty, but these were never enforced. -
War Powers Act
Established limits on when the president was allowed to deploy the military without a formal declaration of war. According to this act the president could only deploy the military for a maximum of 60 days before congress gives authorization. -
Period: to
Ford Presidency
Coming a few years after American withdrawal from Vietnam Ford did little in the country. He attempted to get military aid to the South Vietnamese government, but congress wouldn't allow it. He would order the evacuation of Saigon and admittance of Vietnamese refugees in to the country after the war. -
Fall of Saigon
Ending the Vietnam war was the capture of the former capital of South Vietnam Saigon. The city was rapidly evacuated before the capture by American helicopters and boats rescuing Americans and Vietnamese civilians.