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Kennedy Increases Military Advisers in Vietnam
Although there were currently no United States troops in Vietnam, President John F Kennedy ordered the number of United States Military Advisers to be increased to over 16,000 advisers. -
Gulf of Tonkin & Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
The Golf of Tonkin incident was a military conflict between American and North Viennese forces. Originally, America blamed North Vietnam for the incident, however, it was later revealed that the event may have been a cover-up. The golf of Tonkin Resolution was the United States Congress officially declaring war on North Vietnam and the Viet Cong. This is an example of change because the United States could officially start fighting the North Vietnamese. It was passed nearly unanimously. -
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Operation Rolling Thunder
Operation Rolling Thunder was an intense bombing campaign carried out by the USAF in Vietnam for over 3 years. This operation was intended to kill North Vietnamese soldiers, however, it ended up killing up to 182,000 civilians. This included daily bombings of the Ho Chi Minh Trail, which ran from North Vietnam to South Vietnam. The trail was being used by Viet Cong soldiers. A quote about the event is, "Send me dead flowers to my wedding and I won't forget to put roses on your grave." -
Tet Offensive
The Tet Offensive was one of the largest military campaigns of the Vietnam War, launched on January 30, 1968, by the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army of Vietnam against the forces of the South Vietnamese Army and the United States. It was a campaign of surprise attacks against military and civilian command and control centers throughout South Vietnam. There were over 100,000 casualties! -
My Lai Massacre
The My Lai Massacre was the mass murder of innocent civilians in the village of My Lai. This attack was perpetrated by American forces. More than 500 innocent people were slaughtered. The effect that this had on the war was more and more Americans showing their support for anti-war protesters. This put more pressure on American Officials to consider withdrawing forces from Vietnam. -
Election of 1968
The President Election of 1968 was held during the Vietnam War. The current president, Lyndon B. Johnson, had decided to not run for a second term as president. The election was held between the Republican candidate, Richard (Dick) Nixon and Democratic candidate, and current vice president, Hubert Humphrey. Nixon, who's slogan about Vietnam was "Peace With Honor" successfully defeated Humphrey with 301 electoral votes compared to Humphrey's 191. -
Kent State Massacre
The Kent State Massacre, also known as the Kent State shootings, occurred on May 4, 1970 at Kent State University in Kent, Ohio. 4 unarmed and innocent college students were wrongfully murdered by Ohio National Guard soldiers. Additionally, 9 students sustained life changing injuries from the shooting. This is an important event during the war because it marks change because more people started to question the United States' motive and what they would stop at to silence the masses. -
Expansion Into Laos and Cambodia
The expansion into Laos and Cambodia started in 1971. Ho Chi Minh was trying to start communist parties in Laos and Cambodia in order to convert those countries to his side. The United Sattes and South Vietnam both also sent forces into Laos. This part of the war was not widely known untill after the war. This marks an example of continuity during the war, because all it was was more behind the scenes fighting. The U.S. ended its involvement in 1975. Fighting continued between other forces. -
Pentagon Papers Released
The Pentagon papers were released on june 6, 1971 by Daniel Ellsberg, who was a Unite States Military Analyst during the time that the papers were released. The papers revealed the real reason the the United States was continually expanding millitary operations in Vietnam and nearby countries like Laos. The papers reveled that the United States was fighting in Vietnam because they did not want to suffer a humiliating loss. This was contrary to the official United States Government position. -
26th Amendment Ratification
The Twenty-sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution allows citizen who are at least eighteen years old to vote, lowering the age from 21 years old. It was proposed by Congress on March 23, 1971, and ratified on July 1, 1971. This amendment was ratified very quickly because the government wanted to make young people who were drafted before they could vote less angry. The main slogan of the supporters of this amendment was, "old enough to fight, old enough to vote" -
Paris Peace Accords
A peace treaty signed by North Vietnam, South Vietnam, and America. This treaty marked the end of the Vietnam war for the American troops. The treaty said that the war would pause temporarily while the American forces left Vietnam. After that, North Vietnam could continue to fight the war if they wanted. -
Fall of Saigon
The Fall of Saigon was the capture of the South Vietnam capital of Saigon by the North Vietnamese. This marked the end of the Vietnam War and the defeat of the South Vietnamese and American forces.
