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Geneva Accords
Vietnam would become an independent nation, formally ending 75 years of French colonialism. The former French colonies Cambodia and Laos would also be given their independence. Vietnam would be temporarily divided for a period of two years. It caused Vietnam to divide into two countries at the 17th parallel. -
Assassination of Diem
Diem's heavy-handed tactics against the Viet Cong insurgency deepened his government's unpopularity, and his brutal treatment of the opposition to his regime alienated the South Vietnamese populace, notably Buddhists. In 1963 he was murdered during a coup d'état by some of his generals. The death of Diem caused celebration among many people in South Vietnam, but also lead to political chaos in the nation. -
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
This gave President Johnson the power to take any measures he believed were necessary to retaliate and to promote the maintenance of international peace and security in southeast Asia. The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution effectively launched America's full-scale involvement in the Vietnam War. -
LBJ Ordered 1st Troops to Vietnam
Under the authority of President Lyndon B. Johnson, the United States first deployed troops to Vietnam in 1965 in response to the Gulf of Tonkin Incident of August 2 and 4, 1964. -
My Lai Massacre
A company of American soldiers were brutally killed most of the people—women, children and old men—in the village of My Lai on March 16, 1968. The shooting of hundreds of people in the Vietnamese village of My Lai in 1968 marked a pivotal turning point in America's feelings about the the Vietnam War. -
Tet Offensive
The Tet Offensive was a coordinated series of North Vietnamese attacks on more than 100 cities and outposts in South Vietnam. The offensive was an attempt to foment rebellion among the South Vietnamese population and encourage the United States to scale back its involvement in the Vietnam War. -
Nixon Becomes President
The presidency of Richard Nixon began at noon EST on January 20, 1969, when Richard Nixon was inaugurated as 37th President of the United States. Nixon ended American involvement in Vietnam in 1973, ending the military draft that same year. -
Nixon’s Vietnamization Policy
In 1969, Nixon ordered B-52 strikes against the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) bases and supply routes in Cambodia, which had been used as a sanctuary by North Vietnam forces. The orders for U.S. bombing of Cambodia were classified, and thus kept from the U.S. media and Congress. -
Hard Hat Riot
The students were protesting the May 4 Kent State shootings and the Vietnam War, following the April 30 announcement by President Richard Nixon of the U.S. invasion of neutral Cambodia. Some construction workers carried U.S. flags and chanted "USA, All the way", and "America, love it or leave it". -
Nixon Ordered Troops to Cambodia
Cambodian neutrality and military weakness made its territory a safe zone where PAVN/VC forces could establish bases for operations over the border. With the US shifting toward a policy of Vietnamization and withdrawal, it sought to shore up the South Vietnamese government by eliminating the cross-border threat. -
Nixon Goes to China
U.S. President Richard Nixon's 1972 visit to the People's Republic of China was an important strategic and diplomatic overture that marked the culmination of the Nixon administration's resumption of harmonious relations between the United States and mainland China after years of diplomatic isolation. -
Nixon Christmas Bombing
The US Air Force lost two B-52s that night out of a total of 15. A number of fighter jets and support aircraft were also destroyed during the 11 days of Linebacker II. At least 30 US airmen were killed and more than 20 went missing in action, others were captured after ejecting over North Vietnam. -
Paris Peace Accords
The Paris Peace Accords, officially titled the Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam was a peace treaty signed on January 27, 1973, to establish peace in Vietnam and end the Vietnam War. -
Nixon Resigns
With his complicity in the cover-up made public and his political support completely eroded, Nixon resigned from office on August 9, 1974. He is the only U.S. president to have resigned from office. On September 8, 1974, Nixon's successor, Gerald Ford, pardoned him. -
Saigon Falls
The Fall of Saigon, also known as the Liberation of Saigon, was the capture of Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, by the People's Army of Vietnam and the Viet Cong on 30 April 1975. The Fall of Saigon was a very important event because it marked not only the end of the Vietnam War, but the beginning of the formal reunification of Vietnam under Communist Rule.