2prewittvietnam

By celeratoss

  • Dien Bien Phu

    Dien Bien Phu is in the northwest corner of Vietnam. The Second Indochina War, 1954-1975, grew out of the long conflict between France and Vietnam. In July 1954, after one hundred years of colonial rule, a defeated France was forced to leave Vietnam.

  • Ho Chi Minh Trail Created

    For arms, ammunition and special equipment, the Vietcong depended on the Ho Chi Minh trail.

  • Operation Rangeland

    In 1962 American begins Operation Rangeland to clear away shrubbery and vegetation away from alongside highways. This Operation was developed to make it more difficult for the Vietcong to hide for surprise attacks.

  • United States becomes actively involved

    first got involved in the 50s by providing relatively small amounts of economic and military aid to the French, who were involved in fighting in Vietnam before we were. In 1964, the Gulf of Tonkin incident occurred in waters adjacent to North Vietnam, where an American warship and a North Vietnamese vessel exchanged gunfire. There was controversy as to who shot first, but it eventually led to a push for Congress to approve the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which allowed for further U.S. military es

  • Gulf of Tonkin Attack

    South Vietnamese commandos attack two small North Vietnamese islands in the Gulf of Tonkin. The U.S. destroyer Maddox.

  • Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

    The U.S. congress passes the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, giving 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. It lasted for 3 years.

  • First Major Battle of Vietnam War for American Units

    A deserter from the 1st Vietcong regiment reveals a planned attack on the US Marine base at Chu Lai. United states has an astounding victory, with 700 dead Vietcong, and 45 dead American soldiers.

  • President Johnson commits over 60,000 troops to Vietnam

    This shows that the US was in a war with North Vietnam and wanted to win very quickly.

  • US offers peace for economic aid proposal

    The US offered a peace propsal so they would not have to go to war with North Vietnam.

  • Operation Junction City

    In one of the largest air-mobile assaults ever, 240 helicopters sweep over Tay Ninh province. This was the first war that helicopters were used in so this was never seen or heard of before this.

  • Tet offensive begins

    In Hanoi, as Communist forces are building up for the Tet Offensive, 200 senior officials are arrested in a crackdown on opponents of the Tet strategy. PLanning to attack major hot spots of the war.

  • Khe Sanh attacked by Vietcong

    Khe Sanh was one of the most remote outposts in Vietnam. American military officials decided to try and hold the base. On the morning of January 21, 1968, NVA forces launched the awaited attack, and the siege of Khe Sanh had begun. After Both sides realized that the war had changed.

  • My Lai Massacre

    In the hamlet of My Lai, U.S. Charlie Company kills about two hundred civilians. Although only one member of the division is tried and found guilty of war crimes, the repercussions of the atrocity is felt throughout the Army. The US is actually charged with a war crime for the first time ever.

  • Nixon Takes Office

    President Richard M. Nixon takes office as the new President of the United States. With regard to Vietnam, he promises to achieve "Peace With Honor." His aim is to negotiate a settlement that will allow the half million U.S. troops in Vietnam to be withdrawn, while still allowing South Vietnam to survive.

  • Operation Menu

    President Nixon authorizes Operation Menu, the bombing of North Vietnamese and Vietcong bases within Cambodia. Over the following four years, U.S. forces will drop more than a half million tons of bombs on Cambodia.

  • All but 133,000 US troops have come home

    The US is starting to fall out of the war that they realize they cannot win.

  • Peace talks break down

    In Paris, peace talks between the North Vietnamese and the Americans breakdown. The US wants to end the war in Vietnam.

  • Peace talks resume

    The US and the North Vietnamese try to come to a conclusion with the peace talks that have taken over a year.

  • Cease Fire signed

    All warring parties in the Vietnam War sign a cease fire. This shows that the US wants this war done with because they cannot win it, like in Korea.

  • Nixon Resigns

    President Nixon resigns because he is caught trying to cheat, Watergate. It is against the las to acquire information from the other party. This leaves South Vietnam without its strongest advocate.

  • Last Casualties for the US and final evacuation

    U.S. Marines and Air Force helicopters, flying from carriers off-shore, begin a massive airlift. In 18 hours, over 1,000 American civilians and almost 7,000 South Vietnamese refugees are flown out of Saigon. At 4:03 a.m., two U.S. Marines are killed in a rocket attack at Saigon's Tan Son Nhut airport. They are the last Americans to die in the Vietnam War. At dawn, the last Marines of the force guarding the U.S. embassy lift off. Only hours later, looters ransack the embassy, and North Vietnamese