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War Powers Act
Act giving federal government and American leaders executive power during the event of a war or national crisis. -
Ho Chi Minh Creates Provisional Government
Following the surrender of Japan to Allied forces, Ho Chi Minh and his People's Congress create the National Liberation Committee of Vietnam to form a provisional government. -
Valluy Fails to Defeat Vietminh
French General Etienne Valluy attempts, and fails, to wipe out the Vietminh in one stroke. -
Geneva Conference
A conference which took place in Geneva, Switzerland. The purpose was to find a way to unify Vietnam and discuss restoring peace in Indochina. -
Communist Insurgency in South Vietnam
Communist insurgent activity in South Vietnam begins. Guerrillas assassinate more than 400 South Vietnamese officials. Thirty-seven armed companies are organized along the Mekong Delta. -
Kennedy Authorizes Green Berets
President Kennedy authorizes the "Green Berets" a Special Forces operation activated at Fort Bragg, NC. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
Photos taken from a U.S. spy plane reveal the Soviets placing offensive missiles on Cuban soil. -
Diem Overthrown
With the approval of the United States, operatives within the South Vietnamese military overthrow Diem. He and his brother Ngo Dinh Nhu are shot and killed. -
Tonkin Resolution
This gave U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson authorization for the use of military force in Southeast Asia.The resolution authorized the President to do whatever necessary in order to assist the state of Southeast Asia -
LBJ Defeats Goldwater
Lyndon Johnson is elected president in a landslide over Republican Barry Goldwater of Arizona. During the campaign, Johnson's position on Vietnam appeared to lean toward de-escalation of U.S. involvement, and sharply contrasted with Goldwater's more militant views. -
Operation Rolling Thunder
Sustained, US Navy, and Republic of Vietnam Air Force aerial bombardment against North Vietnam from 2 March 1965 until 2 November 1968 -
B-52s Bomb North Vietnam
In an effort to disrupt movement along the Mugia Pass American B-52s bomb North Vietnam for the first time. -
Tet Offensive
The Tet Offensive was a campaign launched by the Viet Cong and North Vietnam against South Vietnam. It was a campaign of surprise attacks launched against military and civilian command centers in South Vietnam. -
Richard Nixon Elected President
Running on a platform of "law and order," Richard Nixon just barely beats out Hubert Humphrey for the presidency. -
Vietnamization
Richard M. Nixon's policy in result of the Viet Cong's Tet Offensive, to expand, equip, and train South Vietnam's forces, at the same time reducing the number of U.S. troops. -
Kent State shootings
The shooting of unarmed college students by the Ohio National Guard. They fired 67 rounds over 13 seconds, killing four students and wounding nine others. -
U.S. Troop Withdrawel
The United States began drastically reducing their troop support in South Vietnam during the final years of the war. Many U.S. troops were removed from the region including the 5th Special Forces Group, which was the first American unit deployed to South Vietnam, to its former base in Fort Bragg, North Carolina -
26th Amendment
Extension of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that required the voting age to be 18 in all federal, state, and local elections. -
Cease-fire Signed in Paris
A cease-fire agreement that "brings peace with honor in Vietnam and Southeast Asia," is signed in Paris by Henry Kissinger and Le Duc Tho. -
South Vietnam Surrenders
North Vietnamese and Viet Cong troops had taken over almost all of South Vietnam including the Presidential Palace in Saigon. They captured South Vietnam's last President, General Duong Van Minh and his entire cabinet. South Vietnam was forced to surrender
