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U.S. "advisors" sent to Vietnam
President John F. Kennedy sends helicopters and 400 Green Berets to South Vietnam and authorizes secret operations against the Viet Cong. They are supposed to observe and train the South Vietnamese troops. -
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Vietnam War: The United States' Involvement
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Operation Ranch Hand
U.S. aircraft start spraying Agent Orange and other chemicals over rural areas of South Vietnam to kill vegetation that would offer cover and food for guerrilla forces. -
USS Maddox attacked
USS Maddox is allegedly attacked by North Vietnamese patrol torpedo boats in the Gulf of Tonkin leading to President Johnson to call for air strikes on North Vietnamese patrol boat bases. Two U.S. aircraft are shot down. -
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
The attacks in the Gulf of Tonkin instigate Congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which authorizes the president to “take all necessary measures, including the use of armed force” against any aggressor in the conflict. President Johnson signed the agreement on August 8, 1964. -
Operation Rolling Thunder
President Johnson launches a three-year campaign of sustained bombing of targets in North Vietnam named Operation Rolling Thunder. The same month, U.S. Marines land on beaches in South Vietnam as the first American combat troops to enter Vietnam. -
The Tet Offensive
A combined assault of North Vietnamese armies into more than 100 cities and outposts across South Vietnam. Hundreds of innocent civilians were killed. The U.S. Embassy is invaded. This marks a turning point in the war and the beginning of a gradual U.S. withdrawal from the region. -
Mai Lai Massacre
Over 500 innocent Vietnamese men, women and children were killed by American troops. U.S. officers tried to cove-up the story, but the event was later exposed. People in America began to regret the war even more. They already wanted the United States out of the war and this event re-inforced the mood. -
Paris Peace Accords
President Nixon signs the Paris Peace Accords, ending direct U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. The North Vietnamese accept a cease fire. But as U.S. troops depart Vietnam, North Vietnamese military officials continue plotting to overtake South Vietnam. -
The Fall of Saigon/The U.S. Pulls Out
The capital of South Vietnam is seized by communist forces and the government of South Vietnam surrenders. U.S. Marine and Air Force helicopters transport more than 1,000 American civilians and nearly 7,000 South Vietnamese refugees out of Saigon in an 18-hour mass evacuation effort. The U.S. officially pulls out of the region.
