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French Defeat
The French troops are defeated by the Viet Mihn forces leading to an end of French control in Vietnam and more importantly all of Indochina. The 57-day long Seige allowed for more freedom for the Vietnamese people and for new ideas of independence to flourish. -
Geneva Accords Conclusion
The Geneva Accord decides on there being a north and a south Vietnam. They are divided by the 17th parallel and in two years the north and south were supposed to join forces. However, this never occurred because of ongoing fighting. -
The First Americans
Americans had been backing the south since its separation from the north to support international democracy, and even though tensions were high there had not been too much fighting. However, on this day northern Vietnamese forces killed the first American troops in an outpost near the city of Saigon. After this tensions rise an incredible amount between America and northern Vietnam. -
Opperation Ranch Hand
In the following years after the attack at Saigon, the United States Military had been on high alert but did not really take any action until the launch of Operation Ranch Hand. President Kennedy ordered American special forces to spray an extremely powerful herbicide called Agent Orange to wipe out vegetation to slow the advances of the Northern Vietnamese guerilla troops. -
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The Fall of Deim
During the stressful times before the war began, the President of southern Vietnam Ngo Dinh Deim began to make questionable choices. The breaking point for the United States was the moment of the "Buddhist Crisis". Buddhist protesters were gunned down by police forces that were controlled by Deim. This led to a military coup that was backed by American troops to put a new force in power to save democracy. The coup ended with the assassination of Deim and American control of the south. -
The Assassination of Kennedy
On November 22nd, 1963 President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas Texas by former marine Lee Harvey Oswald. Fortunately for the American people, President Lyndon B. Johnson stepped up to fill the shoes of Kennedy. -
Draft Card Mutilation Act
This Act was created to stop people from destroying their draft cards. Thousands of people were terrified by the thought of being in Vietnam fighting a war. So to resist people would take their draft cards and destroy or burn them to rid the evidence, the new act makes doing such illegal. -
United States Declares War
After the questionable attacks on the USS Maddox, the United States finally decided to become involved in the war. Immediately, Operation Rolling Thunder, a three-year campaign of bombing raids, was put in place to destroy all enemy Vietnam territory. The area surrounding the Ho Chi Mihn Trail, a major supply line controlled by the north, was the primary target of the attacks. -
Half a Million Men
By November 1967 the total number of troops in Vietnam had reached 500,000 and the number of bombing raids was at an all-time high. The plan was to push the north as far away as possible and to shut down their supply using the incredible number of troops in Vietnam. -
A Time To Break Silence
The speech was delivered by Martin Luther King Jr in 1967 to express his frustration with the world. In the speech, King made it clear that he did not agree with America's foreign policies and he felt that they needed to be changed. The speech was very empowering and allowed for many anti-war movements to begin. -
Madison Draft Protests
The draft protests in Madison took place on a college campus and originally were very peaceful. However, things took a turn and violence broke out. Protesters and local police forces both turned to violence and fought against each other. Tear gas and sticks were used by police to fight off the protestors. -
March on the Pentagon
The March on the Pentagon was an anti-war protest with a turnout of roughly 70,000 to 100,000 people in attendance. The purpose of the protest was to have President Johnson pull the troops from Vietnam. In the crowd, poetry was read to inspire more movements and to pass messages through American society. -
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Tet Offensive
The Tet Offensive was probably the most stressful time for southern Vietnam. The northern Vietnamese used coordinated attacks to fight and take as much southern territory as possible. Unfortunately for America and democracy, this push was very successful. During this time the north took a lot of land and many lives. -
Pentagon Papers
The Pentagon Papers were a few documents that were leaked from the Pentagon by Daniel Ellsberg. The papers contained information top-secret information regarding the beginning involvement in Vietnam before it was announced to the public. It was revealed at this time that the United States Army helped with the assassination of Deim. -
Kent State Shooting
During a protest fighting against the Nixon administration, a national guard member took shots into a crowd. Four people were killed and nine were wounded from the shots. The American people were devastated and more protests arose from the incident.