Key Events in Vietnam War

Dien Bien Phu

A French outpost that the Vietminh overruns and causes France to surrender.

Geneva Accords

Temporarily divided Vietnam along the 17th parallel, calling for elections to unify Vietnam in 1956.

Gulf of Tonkin Incident

An event where the US Destroyer Maddox was mistakenly thought to be under attack, leading to the Tonkin Gulf Resolution giving broad military powers to the President.

Operation Rolling Thunder

The first sustained carpet bombing of North Vietnam initiated due to the killing of 8 Americans in Pleiku, resulting in the deployment of over 50,000 troops.

Invasion of Cambodia

A military action by Nixon to root out Vietcong bases without Congressional approval, leading to increased protests.

Tet Offensive

A major military campaign by the Viet Cong in 1968 aimed to regain territory but failed. It resulted in a shift in American public opinion against the war.

1968 Democratic National Convention

A convention marked by protests turned violent against Vietnam, resulting in clashes and the nomination of Humphrey amidst party turmoil.

Kent State shootings

A tragic event in which National Guardsmen killed four students during protests against Nixon's Cambodian invasion. Other students had burned the ROTC building.

Fall of Saigon

The event on April 30, 1975, when Communist forces captured Saigon, leading to mass exodus and re-education camps in South Vietnam.

Paris Peace Accords

The agreement resulting in US troop withdrawal from Vietnam by 1973 while the war continued in Vietnam.

Watergate

A political scandal involving Nixon's administration and the break-in at the Democratic Party headquarters, leading to extensive investigations and Nixon's eventual resignation.

War Powers Act

A 1973 act intended to limit presidential power regarding military actions and require justification to Congress.

My Lai

A city in South Vietnam where a massacre occurred in 1968, resulting in the rapings and deaths of many civilians at the hands of US troops.