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French defeat in the Battle of Dien Bien Phu
The efforts of the French to maintain control over their colonial possessions in Southeast Asia come to an end with their failed attempt to defeat the Viet Minh forces in the fortress battle of Dien Bien Phu. The defeat leads to a convention in Geneva regarding the future of Vietnam. -
Geneva Conference of 1954
A convention called after the French defeat in Southeast Asia earlier that year brought the political future of Vietnam into question. The convention resulted in what were known as the Geneva Accords that split Vietnam into a southern and northern halves. The north would be under the control of the Viet Minh and the south under former emporer Bao Dai. Bao Dai and the US do not recognise the agreement. -
Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG) Vietnam decided to take over from French military
After it became clear that the French were withdrawing their military forces from Vietnam the US agreed to take on the role of assisting the South Vietnamese militarily. The US distributed additional funding to the force. -
Ngo Dinh Diem becomes President of the Republic of Vietnam
Diem held a referendum on the 23rd of October 1955 and engaged in election fraud in order to win by a landslide. Diem would go on to create a right wing dictatorship in South Vietnam. Diem held US support due to his staunch anti-communist stance. -
Vice President Lyndon Johnson visits Saigon
Johnson met with Diem and assured him of US support. -
Diem assassinated
President of South Vietnam, Ngo Dinh Diem is assassinated with the tacit approval of the US government. -
President Kennedy assassinated
President John F. Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas, Texas, promoting Lyndon B. Johnson to President of the United States. -
General Nguyen Khanh seizes control of South Vietnam in military coup
Establishes military control over South Vietnam. -
Gulf of Tonkin Incident
The destroyer USS Maddox reports being attacked by North Vietnamese torpedo boats while operating near North Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin. While an initial incident has since been confirmed by both Vietnamese and American sources, a second incident claimed by the US governemtn has since been discredited from having ever occurred. Who actually fired first in the initial incident also remains known. Regardless, President Johnson utilized the incident to escalate US involvement in VIetnam. -
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
Congress passes resolution giving President Lyndon Johnson the authorization to use conventional military force in Southeast Asia, without the formal declaration of war to assist any member of the "Southeast Asia Collective Defense Treaty". This allowed the committment of US combat troops (not just training forces) to Vietnam. -
Operation Rolling Thunder begins
US begins conducting strategic bombing missions over North Vietnam in retribution for an attack by Communist forces against a US airbase in Peiku. The bombing campaign would continue all the way into late 1968. -
First US combat ground troops arrive in Vietnam
9th Marine Expeditionary Brigade arrive in Vietnam, complimenting the over 25 000 training and advisory personnel already there as part of MAAG. -
Battle of La Drang Valley
First major clash between US ground forces and the North Vietnamese Army. Important tactical lessons are learned by both sides. -
Tet Offensive
The Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army units conduct a carefully planned surprise operation against cities and population centers in South Vietnam. The Battle of Hue and the Battle of Khe Sanh were both parts of the broader campaign. -
My Lai Massacre
More than three hundred unarmed Vietnamese civilians are massacred in a small village by US forces under the command of 2nd Lieutenant William Calley. The massacre becomes front page news within the US the following year. -
President Richard Nixon begins process of "Vietnamization"
Vietnamization of the conflict signals Nixon's exit strategy for involvement in Vietnam whereby the South Vietnamese military would be left responsible for defeating the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army. -
Ceasefire signed in Paris
US and North Vietnam sign peace treaty at Paris Peace Conference. The treaty includes the promise the US forces will leave South Vietnam. -
US ground troops are withdrawn from Vietnam
In accordance with the requirements of the Paris Peace Accords, the US withdraws its ground forces from South Vietnam
