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War Begins
Vietnam declares independence from France. -
Fighting with France
Communists in the north begin fighting France for control of the country. -
Fight for control
France establishes the State of Vietnam in the southern half of the country. -
Ho Chi Minh
Ho Chi Minh becomes leader of Dang Lao Dong Vietnam, the Vietnam Worker's Party, in the north. -
The Battle of Dien Bien Phu
results in serious defeat for the French and peace talks in Geneva -
Gulf of Tonkin
President Lyndon Johnson falsely claims that there had been a second attack on the destroyer. Johnson orders the bombing of North Vietnam in retaliation for the Tonkin attack. -
permission requested to go to war
President Johnson ask congress for the power to go to war against the North Vietnamese and the Communists for violating the Geneva Accords against South Vietnam and Laos. -
USA enters the war
Congress grants the permission to go to war against vietnam -
Tet Offensive
The North Vietnamese launch a massive surprise attack during the festival of the Vietnamese New Year, called Tet. The attack hits 36 major cities and towns in South Vietnam. -
My Lai Massacre
About 400 women, children and elderly men are massacred by U.S. forces in the village of My Lai in South Vietnam. -
Invasion of Cambodia
President Richard Nixon orders U.S. and South Vietnamese troops to invade border areas in Cambodia and destroy supply centers set up by the North Vietnamese. -
Invasion of Laos
invasion in Southern Laos in an effort to stop the North Vietnamese supply routes through Laos into South Vietnam. This action is done without consent of Congress and causes more anti-war protests in the U.S. -
cease-fire
Arranged after peace talks -
last American ground troops leave
Americans leave and fighting begins again between North and South Vietnam, but the U.S. does not return. -
Surrender
South Vietnam surrenders to North Vietnam as North Vietnamese troops enter Saigon, now called Ho Chi Minh City.
