-
Ho Chi Minh Is born
Ho Chi Minh would go on to lead the nationalist Vietminh in a war against the democratic ARVN. He was a communist and cared for all his peoples. Although he wanted to have good relations with the US, the US sided with south Vietnam due to his communist beliefs. -
Vietnam declares independence from France, but neither France nor the United States recognize Vietnam as a separate nation
North Vietnam asked the US for support but we didn't support them due to their communist ideas. We eventually end up fighting them once we land in the south. -
President Eisenhower declares "Domino Theory"
The USSR had been communist since 1922 and ever since then they have been spreading the communist ideas throughout the world. The US, being democratic, has been battling communism since it was created. The idea of the "Domino Theory" is that once one nation falls to communism then it makes it easier to the next one and the next one to do the same. This got the US in both Korea and Vietnam due to the fear of communism spreading abroad after they fall. -
The Vietminh and Ho Chi Minh defeat the French at Dien Bien Phu
The victory for the North Vietnamese at Dien Bien Phu had astounding effects on the US and Indochina. The Geneva Accords were signed that declared that France was out of Vietnam for the first time in decades and split Vietnam into both a communist (north) and democratic (south) state. The US stepped in shortly after due to the fear that communism would take over the south and eventually spreading to other countries. -
The Geneva Accords cause Vietnam to be split into North and South
As a result of the Geneva Accords, Vietnam was divided at the 17th parallel temporarily based on an agreement that elections would be held within 2 years to choose a president and reunite the country. -
Ngo Dinh Diem cancels elections in Vietnam
The elections of 1956 were planned in the Geneva Accords which stated that they would be held to reunite Vietnam and elect a new president. Ngo Dinh Diem claimed since South Vietnam did not sign the accords, they weren't obligated to follow them. -
The National Liberation Front is formed
The National Liberation Front was more commonly known as the Viet Cong and occupied south Vietnam. Although they were in the south, they coordinated with the north to fight the south behind the front lines using guerrilla tactics. -
The United States withdraws support of Ngo Dinh Diem, leader of South Vietnam
We stopped supporting Diem due to the fact that he refused to institute any reforms establishing a more democratic government. Shortly after he was assassinated on November 2, 1963 -
A South Vietnamese monk sets himself on fire
The monk that set himself on fire, Thích Quang Duc, was a Buddhist. He took this action due to the persecution of the Buddhists and he was demonstrating that they could fight it in all ways. This happened only 2 days after the Buddhist flag was banned. -
President Kennedy is assassinated, leading to the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson
If President Kennedy had lived, all efforts would have been centered around getting out of Vietnam. We wouldn't have suffered as many casualties, but Vietnam would've fallen into communism's trap quicker. Lyndon B. Johnson was first focused on carrying out Kennedy's principles, but strayed away as he got us deeper into Vietnam. -
President Johnson claims a US ship had been fired upon by the North Vietnamese
The USS Maddox was sailing in the Gulf of Tonkin and President Johnson claimed it had been fired apon by North Vietnamese forces. The President took immediate action and congress passed a bill stating that the President could take and and all measures into his own hands to lower the threat of Vietnam. This bill called the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution is highly debated because many believe it was all set up so Johnson could pull us into Vietnam. -
The first combat troops arrive in Vietnam
The first set of combat troops contained 3500 marines and landed at China Beach to assist the defense of the United States air base at Da Nang. The first US advisers arrived in Vietnam in September 1950 and formed a group called the United States Military Assistance Advisory Group based out of Saigon.
