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Ho Chi Minh is born
He went on to be a Vietnamese communist leader. He ruled the north in the Vietnam war -
Vietnam declares independence from France, but neither France nor the United States recognize Vietnam as a separate nation
When they weren't seen as independent Ho Chi Minh tried to turn all of Vietnam to communism. This is a factor to how the war started. -
The Viet Minh and Ho Chi Minh defeat the French at Dien Bien Phu
The US responds by continuing the fight by making South Vietnam. This battle ended teh French Indochina war but now the US was at war with Vietnam -
The Geneva Accords cause Vietnam to be split into North and South
The North and South were separated at the 17th parallel. -
President Eisenhower declares "Domino Theory"
The Domino Theory is behind Vietnam because it claims that if one nation falls to communism then others around it will to. The US thought that if Vietnam turns into communism then all the surrounding nations will too. This theory got to the people and was a factor of the US joining the war. -
Ngo Dinh Diem cancels election in Vietnam
He canceled the election because he knew he would lose and all of Vietnam would fall to communism. The vote was to see if Vietnam should be unified. US supported Ngo Dinh Diem at the time so they let it happen so they could get involved in Vietnam -
The National Liberation Front is formed
They were known as the Viet Congs. They occupied South Vietnam but were communist. They did work for the North in the South. They played a big part in the war and gave advantage to the North -
The United States withdraws support of Ngo Dinh Diem, leader of South Vietnam
After the US withdrew support, Ngo Dinh Diem was assassinated. The US stopped supporting after they stopped ignoring his religious persecution. This affected the war because the US no longer supported the leader of South Vietnam -
A South Vietnamese monk sets himself on fire
This man was Buddhist and he did it because his people were being oppressed and did not have religious freedom. He did this to make a statement to the US so the US could see what was going on and stop it. This led to the US to stop supporting Ngo Dinh Diem. -
President Kennedy is assassinated, leading to the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson
If JFK lived the US may never have gotten in the Vietnam War. JFK wanted to stay out of it. When LBJ became president he led the US to war -
President Johnson claims a U.S. ship had been fired upon by the North Vietnamese
The name of the ship fired upon is the USS Maddox. With this ship being fired upon the US responded by going to war with the Vietnamese. There are conspiracies to this like if it ever happened. -
The first combat troops arrive in Vietnam
The US first sent military advisers around September of 1950. The first combat troops arriving showed the US officially going to war with North Vietnamese
