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The First Indochina War begins. The Viet Minh fight against the French colonial rule. They grew from guerilla bands to a well-organized and equipped army.
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The Viet Minh defeated the French army, forcing the surrender of occupying troops. France signs the Geneva Accord, which leads to the withdrawal of French troops. Vietnam is temporarily divided between North and South.
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South Vietnam declares itself the Republic of Vietnam. Its capital at Saigon and Ngo Dinh Diem elected president in rigged elections. Diem argues that South Vietnam was not a party to the Geneva Accords. The 1956 elections canceled.
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Communist soldiers kill over 400 South Vietnamese officials. Within a year, they begin to settle the Mekong Delta.
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In South Vietnam, the Hanoi government created the National Liberation Front to overthrow the South Vietnamese government for the reunification of North and South Vietnam.
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President Ngo Dinh Diem and his brother are captured and killed by a group of soldiers. The death of Diem caused celebration among many people in South Vietnam, but also lead to political chaos in the nation. The United States became involved in an effort to atablize the country.
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United States begins to sustain bombing of North Vietnam. The bombing went for as long as three years.
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The U.S. launches Operation Cedar Falls, a ground war effort involving U.S. and South Vietnamese troops to destroy Vietcong operations and supply sites near Saigon.
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The North Vietnamese and Vietcong forces launch an attack on one hundred South Vietnamese cities and towns. Although the Communists are defeated, Americans begin to question The United State’s role in the war.
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Nixon approves a secret plan to bomb Cambodian enemy bases without the public knowing. When the public learns of it 14 months later, it aids the anti-war movement.
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The United States signs a peace treaty with the Vietcong leader for a ceasefire and American withdraw. American troops soon return from overseas.
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North Vietnam attacks the South but for the United States, the war is finished. Communism takes over the country.
