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Battle of Dien Bein Phu
The Battle of Dien Bien Phu (March 13, 1954 – May 7, 1954) ended the French effort to retain Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos in the Indochina War. The US promised aid worth $100 million to the anti-communists in line with the Communist Containment policy. -
Geneva Accords
The Geneva Agreements of 1954 (also, "Geneva Accords") arranged a settlement which brought about an end to the First Indochina War. The agreement was reached at the end of the Geneva Conference. A ceasefire was signed and France agreed to withdraw its troops from the region. The Geneva Accords of 1954 were designed to secure peace in Vietnam and organize an interim government in Vietnam to lead to Vietnam’s transition to independence. -
Ngo Dinh Diem
Pro-American Ngo Dinh Diem became President of South Vietnam in October. America agreed to train Diem’s army. -
Seato
The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) was an international organization for collective defense in Southeast Asia created by the Southeast Asia Collective Defense Treaty, or Manila Pact, signed in September 1954 in Manila, Philippines.
SEATO was established to contain the spread of Communism by the People's Republic of China and the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam). -
War Begins
The Vietnam War,also known as the Second Indochina War begins. -
North Vietnam
Peasant unrest in North Vietnam resulting from oppressive land reforms is put down by Communist force with more than 6000 killed or deported. -
Diem in Washington
Diem pays a state visit to Washington where President Eisenhower labels him the "miracle man" of Asia and reaffirms U.S. commitment. "The cost of defending freedom, of defending America, must be paid in many forms and in many places...military as well as economic help is currently needed in Vietnam," Eisenhower states. -
Deaths
Two U.S. military advisors, Maj. Dale Buis and Sgt. Chester Ovnand, are killed by Viet Minh guerrillas at Bien Hoa, South Vietnam. They are the first American deaths in the Second Indochina War which Americans will come to know simply as The Vietnam War. -
NLF
The National Liberation Front is established by Hanoi as its Communist political organization for Viet Cong guerrillas in South Vietnam. -
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President Kennedy
35th President of the United States -
President Kennedy
US President Kennedy pledged extra aid to South Vietnam -
Gulf of Tonkin Incident
The Gulf of Tonkin incident; Congress passed the ‘Gulf of Tonkin Resolution’; America bombs targets in North Vietnam; NLF attacked US air bases. -
Operation Rolling Thunder
Operation Rolling Thunder begins as over 100 American fighter-bombers attack targets in North Vietnam. Scheduled to last eight weeks, Rolling Thunder will instead go on for three years. -
Period: to
Operation Rolling Thunder
Operation Rolling Thunder begins as over 100 American fighter-bombers attack targets in North Vietnam. Scheduled to last eight weeks, Rolling Thunder will instead go on for three years. -
Riots
During the Democratic national convention in Chicago, 10,000 anti-war protesters gather on downtown streets and are then confronted by 26,000 police and national guardsmen. The brutal crackdown is covered live on network TV. 800 demonstrators are injured. -
Troop Withdrawal
President Nixon orders the withdrawal of 35,000 soldiers from Vietnam and a reduction in draft calls. -
Students Killed
At Kent State University in Ohio, National Guardsmen shoot and kill four student protesters and wound nine.
n response to the killings, over 400 colleges and universities across America shut down. In Washington, nearly 100,000 protesters surround various government buildings including the White House and historical monuments. On an impulse, President Nixon exits the White House and pays a late night surprise visit to the Lincoln Memorial and chats with young protesters. -
Peace in Vietnam
President Nixon announces "the end is in sight." -
Presidental Election
Richard M. Nixon wins the presidential election in the biggest landslide to date in U.S. history. -
Final Troop Withdrawal Vietnam
The last remaining American troops withdraw from Vietnam as President Nixon declares "the day we have all worked and prayed for has finally come." America's longest war. During 15 years of military involvement, over 2 million Americans served in Vietnam with 500,000 seeing actual combat. 47,244 were killed in action, including 8000 airmen. There were 10,446 non-combat deaths. 153,329 were seriously wounded, including 10,000 amputees. Over 2400 American POW's/MIAs were unaccounted for as of 1973. -
Impeachment Nixon
Congress begins impeachment proceedings against President Nixon stemming from the Watergate scandal. -
Khmer Rouge
The Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK), otherwise known as the Khmer Rouge, took control of Cambodia on April 17, 1975. The CPK created the state of Democratic Kampuchea in 1976 and ruled the country until January 1979. The party’s existence was kept secret until 1977, and no one outside the CPK knew who its leaders were (the leaders called themselves “Angkar Padevat”).
