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Geneva Conference
April 26- July 20 1954 The Geneva Conference was set up to try and resolve many of the problems that were in Asia, one of the most troubling was the battle happening in Vietnam. It was held with representatives from the United States, the Soviet Union, the People's Republic of China, France, and Great Britain, marking a turning point in the United States involvement. -
South Vietnam's Independence
South Vietnam declared itself independent from the North part of Vietnam. They declared themselves the Republic of Vietnam, with and elected Ngo Dinh Diem as their president -
Diem is executed
The South Vietnamese president, Ngo Dinh Diem, was killed. The president was executed during a coup. -
Tonkin Resolution
The Senate and House passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution which made it so the president of the United States could do what he needed to stop further attacks against us. This made is so that the war was in the president’s hands, and had a lot of favor with only two votes against it. -
Operation Rolling Thunder
President Johnson changed and expanded the United States involvement in the war by sustaining a bombing campaign against the North Vietnamese and Vietcong armies. He also expanded our involvement in the war by ordering the combat troops into Vietnam during the mount of March. -
First Troops Arrive
The first U.S. combat troops arrived in Vietnam, landing at Da Nang air base. There was 3,500 Marines that were deployed to try and secure the U.S. airbase. This freed up the South Vietnamese troops so they were up for combat. -
Tet Offensive
Guerrilla fighters attacked all American air bases in South Vietnam, along with many of the major cities. This attack was from the Vietcong and North Vietnamese armies for the surprise of attacking on of Tet, the Vietnamese New Year. -
Mai Lai Massacre
A platoon of American soldiers brutally kill between 200 and 500 unarmed civilians at Mai Lai. Mai Lai was a cluster of small villages that was located near the northern coast of South Vietnam. -
U.S. withdrawal of troops
President Nixon announced that there would be a withdrawal of 25,000 soldiers from Vietnam. But, he didn’t want people to view this as surrender. Instead he wanted it to be looked at as South Vietnam is being put more in control. To support a positive view of this, he ordered air strikes against North Vietnam to help the South. -
Vietnamization
Vietnamization is the process of gradually taking South Vietnam so that they could take over more of the fighting. President Nixon did this when he announced that there would be a withdrawal of 25,000 soldiers. Though soldiers were withdrawn, he didn’t want the people to view this as us surrendering, but instead they were doing more of the fighting. -
Cambodia Invasion
President Nixon announces that the U.S. troops will attack enemy locations in Cambodia, which sparked a lot of nationwide protests. Many of these protests happened in colleges, such as the one that lead to the death of a Kent State University. -
Kent State
In Kent State University, Ohio National Guard soldiers shot at protesting students without being told to do so. The soldiers, who were armed with tear gas and rifles, killed four students and wounded nine others. -
26th Amendment
The 26th amendment was passed in 1971. It allowed all citizens when they are 18 or older the right to vote in all state and federal elections. -
Pentagon Papers are Published
Some portions of the Pentagon Papers, papers about the United States commitment in the Vietnam War, were published in The New York Times. The papers were released from an antiwar activist Daniel Ellsberg, who was a former Defense Department analyst, who had stolen the documents. -
Easter Offensive
April 5-7 1972 The North Vietnamese army crossed the DMZ, or demilitarized zone, at the 17th parallel. There goal was to attack the South Vietnam. This attack was later known as the Easter Offensive. -
War Power Act
Congress passed this act as a way to again establish some limits on the executive power that the President had gained during the war. It required the president to inform Congress of any troops being sent abroad within 48 hours of it happening. The president could only have the troops there for 60 to 90 days unless Congress agreed with the troops commitment there. -
Paris Peace Accords signed
In the Paris Peace Accords, the United States, South Vietnam, Viet Cong, and North Vietnam formally signed a document that provided a cease-fire. It was, “An Agreement Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam.” -
Last US troops are withdrawn
The last of the U.S. troops were withdrawn from Vietnam because of the terms dictated under the Paris Peace Accords. The the last of the U.S. troops departing from South Vietnam ended the nearly 10 years of U.S. military presence in Vietnam. -
South Vietnam is attacked
The North Vietnamese launched a massive full-scale assault on South Vietnam. The South Vietnamese Army appealed to Washington D.C. for help. President Nixon had assured to help, but resigned after the Watergate scandal. Gerald Ford, the new president, asked for funds to aid the South Vietnamese, but Congress refused. -
South Vietnam Surrenders
After the peace agreement collapsed, North Vietnam launched a full scale attack on the South. North Vietnam was able to capture Saigon, South Vietnam’s capital, and make the united Vietnam under Communist rule.
