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Ho Chi Minh is born
He first emerged as an outspoken voice for freedom while he was living in France during WW1. He was a Vietnamese Communist revolutionary leader. -
Vietnam declares independence from France, but neither France nor the US recognize Vietnam as a separate nation.
Ho Chi Minh claims independence from the french. -
Ngo Diem cancels the elections in Vietnam
Ngo Diem cancelled the elections because he did not want North and South Vietnam to unify as called for in the Geneva Accords. -
President Eisenhower declares "Domino Theory"
The Domino Theory is the idea that if one country falls to communism the surrounding countries will fall to communism as well. -
The Geneva Accords cause Vietnam to be split into North and South
Took place in Geneva, Switzerland from April - July 1954. The nation split at the 17th parallel. -
The Viet Minh and Ho Chi Minh defeat the French at Dien Bien Phu
The US responded by increasing military aid to South Vietnam and sending the first US military advisers to S. Vietnam in 1959. -
The National Liberation Front is formed
Also known as the Viet Cong. They occupied North Vietnam. -
The US withdraws support of Ngo Dinh Diem, leader of South Vietnam
Ngo Diem was assassinated by a group of soldiers. -
A South Vietnamese monk sets himself on fire
A Buddhist monk set himself on fire and burns to death on a Saigon street. To protest persecution of Buddhists by the South Vietnamese government. -
President Kennedy is assassinated, leading to the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson
JFK would have possibly pulled out of Vietnam if he would've survived. -
President Lyndon B. Johnson claims a US ship is fired upon by the North Vietnamese.
President LBJ claimed the USS Maddox was attacked by three N. Vietnamese torpedo boats. The US responded by declaring war on the Vietnamese. -
The first combat troops arrive in Vietnam
The US sent the first military advisers in 1961
