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Dien Bien Phu
Vietnamese forces occupy the French command post at Dien Bien Phu and the French commander orders his troops to cease fire. The importance is it shattered France's resolve to carry on the war. -
Creation of the Ho Chi Minh trail
A supply route from North Vietnam to Vietcong in South Vietnam. Group 559 develops a primitive route along the Vietnamese/Cambodian border, with offshoots into Vietnam along its entire length. -
United States becomes actively involved
American helicopters arrive in South Vietnam with 400 U.S. personnel, who will fly and maintain the aircraft. -
Operation Rangeland
The goal of is to clear vegetation to make it more difficult for the Vietcong to conceal themselves for ambushes. -
Gulf of Tonkin Attack
South Vietnamese commandos attack two small North Vietnamese islands in the Gulf of Tonkin. A U.S. destroyer orders to electronically simulate an air attack to draw North Vietnamese boats away from the commandos. -
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
U.S. congress passes the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. The importance is it gave President Johnson the power to take whatever actions he sees necessary to defend southeast Asia. -
Rolling Thunder Begins
President Johnson authorizes Operation Rolling Thunder, a limited but long lasting bombing offensive. Its aim is to force North Vietnam to stop supporting Vietcong guerrillas in the South. Operation Rolling Thunder came to an end November 1, 1968 -
US offers peace for economic aid proposal
The offer is rejected. President Johnson raises America's combat strength in Vietnam to more than 60,000 troops. Allied forces from Korea and Australia are added as a sign of international support. -
President Johnson commits over 60,000 troops to Vietnam
The U.S. offered North Vietnam economic aid in exchange for peace, but the offer was rejected so president Johnson raised combat strength to 60,000 troops. -
First major battle of Vietnam War for American Units
The American army launches Operation Starlite. Ground forces, artillery, ships and air support combine to kill nearly 700 Vietcong soldiers. U.S. forces sustain 45 dead and more than 200 wounded. This is important because it was the first major battle of the vietnam war and the U.S. won. -
Operation Junction City
Began one of the largest air-mobile assaults ever. The goal of Junction City was to destroy Vietcong bases and the Vietcong military headquarters. Some 30,000 U.S. troops take part in the mission, joined by 5,000 men of the South Vietnamese Army. After 72 days, Junction City ends. American forces succeed in capturing large quantities of equipment and weapons. -
Khe Sanh attacked by Vietcong
The initial attack continued for two days. 18 Marines are killed instantly, 40 are wounded. -
Tet Offensive begins
more than 100 cities and towns are attacked by Vietcong units surging into action over the length and width of South Vietnam. Shock attacks by Vietcong sapper-commandos are first followed by wave after wave of supporting troops. 37,000 Vietcong troops deployed for Tet have been killed. The fighting had created more than a half million civilian refugees by the end. -
My Lai massacre
The U.S. Charlie Company kills about two hundred civilians in the village of My Lai. Only one member of the division is tried and found guilty of war crimes. The repercussions of the atrocity are felt throughout the Army. This raised unsettling questions about the conduct of the war. -
Nixon takes Office
He promises to achieve "Peace With Honor." And his aim is to negotiate a settlement that will allow the half million U.S. troops in Vietnam to be withdrawn well still allowing South Vietnam to survive. -
Operation Menu
President Nixon authorizes Operation Menu, the bombing of North Vietnamese and Vietcong bases within Cambodia. The U.S. forces dropped more than a half million tons of bombs on Cambodia over the following 4 years. -
All but 133,000 US troops have come home
Now the ground war is now almost exclusively the responsibility of South Vietnam. They have over 1,000,000 men enlisted in its armed forces. Two thirds of America's troops have gone home in two years. -
Peace talks break down
Peace talks between the North Vietnamese and the Americans break down in Paris. -
Peace talks resume
North Vietnam and the United States resume peace talks in Paris. -
Cease fire signed
A cease fire is signed by all warring parties in the Vietnam War -
Nixon Resigns
President Richard M. Nixon resigns. Leaving South Vietnam without its strongest advocate. -
Last casualties for the US and final evacuation
The last Americans to die in the Vietnam War are two U.S. Marines that were killed in a rocket attack at Saigon's Tan Son Nhut airport at 4:03 a.m. North Vietnamese tanks role into Saigon, ending the war. In 15 years, nearly a million North Vietnamese and Vietcong troops and a quarter of a million South Vietnamese soldiers have died.