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Ho Chi Mihn declared Vietnam's independence.
Ho Chi Mihn declared independence from France, but the French didn't grant the Vietnamese their Independence. -
America Aids the French
Following the Vietnamese declaration of independence, the French denied the validity and declared War, requesting aid from America. America agreed to help supply the French army. -
Defeat at Dien Bien Phu
After the Vietnamese tried to declare independence, the French did not honor it, and it led to war. In this war, the French requested aid from America, but even after American help, the Vietnamese would eventually win, officially declaring themselves independent from France and the event marking this would forever be know as the Defeat at Dien Bien Phu. -
Geneva Accords
The Geneva Accords was an event after the war that decided to divide Vietnam along the 17th parallel, with the Northern half being communist and the Southern Half non-communist. -
Kennedy Takes Over
After Kennedy won the close 1961 election against Nixon, he showed great support for South Vietnam, believing that this was the way to fight against Communism. -
The Overthrow of Diem
Diem was the NonCommunist Leader of South Vietnam. He was very strict with the religion practiced, and he banned the practice of Buddhism, the largest religion in South Vietnam. This caused lots of protests, and when a Buddhist monk set himself on fire the American people criticized the U.S. for supporting him. The U.S. heard that some Army officials were considering overthrowing Diem, and they showed support, ultimately ending up with Diem being executed. -
Kennedy Assasinated
President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. This resulted in Lyndon B Johnson taking over for the rest of Kennedy's term. -
Johnson elected as president
After Kennedy's assassination, President Johnson was now in charge. Johnson had similar beliefs to Kennedy as to fight with the South Vietnamese against Communism. He would continue American involvement and issue bombings. -
“Search and Destroy”
This was a tactic used against the Viet Cong to combat their guerrilla warfare techniques. Some commonly used methods were dropping Napalm bombs (which lit fire to anything it touched) and using Agent Orange, a chemical that would kill all vegetation and expose the opposing forces. -
The Ho Chi Minh Trail
The Ho Chi Minh Trail was a series of jungle trails that were used to get supplies and ammunition through South Vietnam to continue the progression of the communist party through the war.