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The Battle of Dien Bien Phu
Giap defeated the French force based there; a ceasefire was agreed at Geneva that split Vietnam at the 17th Parallel; France withdrew her military from Vietnam; US promises aid worth $100 million to the anti-communist Diem -
Eisenhower Debates Intervention
After finding the idea obsurd, Eisenhower adminstration revisit the idea of ntervention in the Vietnam War. -
Nixon Supports Troop Committment
Nixon explains that "if to avoid further Communist expansion in Asia and Indochina we must take the risk now of putting our boys in, I think the Executive has to take the politically unpopular decision and do it." -
Vietnam Divided
France and Ho Chi Minh sign the Geneva Accords, in which Vietnam is to be divided at the seventeenth parallel until elections can be held in 1956 to reunify the country. The South Vietnamese government and the United States refuse to sign, though both promise to abide by the agreement -
First American Deaths
Two American Soldiers killed in a raid at Bien Hoa -
South Government Officials Killed
Viet Cong guerrilla fighters kill some 4,000 South Vietnamese officials. Important for the start of true violence -
Johnson Visits Vietnam
Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson visits South Vietnam and offers military and economic aid to Diem. By the end of the year, the U.S. military presence in Vietnam will reach 3,200 men -
Credbility Gap
U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara tells the press that the Kennedy administration intends to withdraw most American forces from South Vietnam by the end of 1965. -
Diem Overthrown
With U.S. encouragement, South Vietnamese General Duong Van Minh overthrows the Diem regime, and the following day he orders the execution of Diem and his brother. General Duong's military rule is recognized by the United States. -
Kennedy Assassinated
While riding in a motorcade through Dallas, Texas, President John F. Kennedy is shot and killed. Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson assumes the presidency. Much stress is brought to the war efforts. -
March on the Pentagon
Thousands march to the Pentagon to demonstrate against the war in Vietnam. -
Tet Offensive
Beginning on the Vietnamese Tet holiday, Viet Cong forces shock U.S. troops with a wave of attacks supported by North Vietnamese troops. Heavy fighting will continue for months. Ultimately, the Tet Offensive will be a catastrophe for the NLF and the Viet Cong, which lose 37,000 fighters. But it is also a serious blow for the United States, which loses 2,500 men. Public support for the war in the U.S. plummets. -
The Pentagon Papers
The New York Times begins publishing portions of the "Pentagon Papers." Daniel Ellsberg, an American military analyst with an extremely high-level security clearance and a former employee of the RAND Corporation, has leaked the documents to reporter Neil Sheehan. They contain top-secret information collected by the Department of Defense about U.S. political and military involvement in Vietnam from 1945 to 1967. -
Time Declares Ho Chi Minh "The Victor"
Just days after the government of South Vietnam surrendered to the VC and North Vietnamese armies, Ho Chi Minh appears on the cover of Time magazine, this time with the heading, "The Victor." -
Vietnam Veterans Memorial unveiled in Washington DC
A memorial to commenmorate fallen soldiers in Vietnam is placed and opened in Washington DC
