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Ho Chi Minh is born
Ho Chi Minh would go on to lead the people of Vietnam to independence. He would also lead the Vietnamese nationalists. -
Vietnam declares independence from France, but neither France nor the United States recognize Vietnam as a separate nation.
In response, the French took over South Vietnam and started talks with North Vietnam. Following this, the Northern Vietnamese and French had several military exchanges. -
President Eisenhower declares "Domino Theory"
The idea behind Domino Theory is that if one nation falls to Communism it is very likely that another nation nearby will fall shortly after, and so on. The U.S. was afraid that if Vietnam fell the rest of Indochina, as well as the rest of Asia, would fall too. -
The Viet Minh and Ho Chi Minh defeat the French at Dien Bien Phu
After being attacked by the Ho Chi Minh's Viet Minh for 57 days the French finally fall at Dien Bien Phu. In respone, the U.S. beefs up military efforts in the South of Vietnam. -
Ngo Dinh Diem cancels elections in Vietnam
Diem canceled the election in fear that he would lose all his power in Vietnam because Ho Chi Minh was so popular in the North and South. The vote was over uniting North and South Vietnam as stated in the Geneva Accords. -
The National Liberation Front is formed
The National Liberation Front is also known as the Viet Cong. They occupied South Vietnam, and even in Cambodia. -
The United States withdraws support of Ngo Dinh Diem, leader of South Vietnam
After the backing Ngo Dinh Diem was halted by the United States he and his brother were killed. This occurred during a military coup, he was assassinated. -
A South Vietnamese monk sets himself on fire.
The Buddhist monks name was Thich Quang Duc. He burned himself alive in protest because he would rather die than not be able to practice his religion. -
President Kennedy is assassinated, leading to the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson
If Kennedy were never assassinated it is very possible that the U.S. would have been much less involved in Vietnam. However, since Johnson took over he deployed more military forces into Vietnam. -
The Geneva Accords cause Vietnam to be split into North and South
The Geneva Accords stated that the French would withdraw their troops from Vietnam. In addition, Vietnam would be split at the 17th parallel into a North and South. -
President Johnson claims a U.S. ship had been fired upon by the North Vietnamese
The USS Maddox was supposedly fired on my 3 North Vietnamese torpedo boats in the Gulf of Tonkin. In response to this congress sign the Gulf of Tonkin resolution, which allows LBJ to deploy more military forces into Vietnam. -
The first combat troops arrive in Vietnam
The first U.S. military advisors were sent to Vietnam in September of 1950. They were sent by President Truman to help the French in the Indochina War.
