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Ho Chi Minh is born.
Founded the Indochina Communist Party. Leader of the Vietnamese nationalist movement. Very influential among the Vietnamese people. He was the reason the Vietnamese people were fighting for their independence. -
Vietnam declares independence from France, but neither France nor the U.S. recognize Vietnam as a separate nation
After Ho Chi Minh declared independence French forces seized southern Vietnam. After this they sent warships to the North and killed many people. -
The Geneva Accords cause Vietnam to be split into North and South
Vietnam was split on the 17th parallel. Also, the French withdrew their troops from northern Vietnam and elections were to be held in 2 years to reunite the country. -
President Eisenhower declares "Domino Theory"
Domino Theory refers to the fact that if one nation falls to communism those around them will also fall. This was seen with Vietnam because they were shifting towards communism and that would cause other Indochina nations to also become communist. -
The Viet Minh and Ho Chi Minh defeat the French at Bien Bien Phu.
After the defeat of the French the U.S. were more committed to fighting communist nationalist in Indochina. Due to this victory the U.S. stays in Vietnam. Also, representatives from the U.S., France, Vietnam, and China met in Geneva and agreed to a cease-fire and a division of the country along the 17th parallel. -
Ngo Dinh Diem cancels elections in Vietnam
Ngo Dinh Diem canceled the elections because he knew that he would lose to Ho Chi Minh. Also, the unification of the county was being voted on. -
The National Liberation Front is formed
The National Liberation Front was also known as Viet Cong. They occupied South Vietnam and worked to reunite the country. -
The U.S. withdraws support of Ngo Dinh Diem, leader of South Vietnam
The Buddhist protests were what finally caused the U.S. to not support Ngo Ninh Diem. Shortly after the U.S. had withdrawn their support of Diem his generals assassinated him. -
A South Vietnamese monk sets himself on fire
This man was a Vietnamese Buddhist. He did this in order to protest the persecution of Buddhists by the South Vietnamese government. -
President Kennedy is assassinated, leading to the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson
Vietnam would not have gotten as out of hand if Kennedy was not assassinated and remained president. Lyndon B. Johnson's run for president was largely based off of Kennedy's policies however he was not true to what he promised. -
President Johnson claims a U.S. ship had been fired upon by the North Vietnamese.
The ship that was fired on was the USS Maddox. The response to this was the passing of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. This resolution gave Johnson a reason to deploy U.S. troops into Vietnam. -
The first combat troops arrive in Vietnam
The U.S. sent military advisors to Vietnam in September 1950. This was long before they sent the first combat troops.
