-
Ho Chi Minh and the creation of the Viet Minh
Ho Chi Minh was a communist revolutionary. The Viet Minh aimed to unify the Vietnamese people in a nationalist cause to achieve independence from France. -
The First Indochina war
This war was a conflict between Vietnam and France. The communist leader led VietMinh for control of France Indochina. It ended with them signing the Geneva accord. -
The Domino Theory
The domino theory was the belief that if a country is communist, then it will spread to the neighboring countries. North Vietnam was communist while South Vietnam wasn´t. To have communism stop spreading they did something called containment. -
America Aids France
America provided France with military equipment, financial support, and personnel during the first Indochina war. With the US helping France it led to a longer conflict. But it did bring France and America together in supporting each other. -
The Geneva Accords
The Geneva Accord was signed in 1954 ending the first Indochina war and temporarily divided Vietnam. It divided North Vietnam and South Vietnam where the North were communist and the South was non communist. -
Use of agent orange
Agent Orange was an herbicide to defoliate forests, clear clear vegetation, and destroy crops. This herbicide was sprayed from aircrafts to spread it through Vietnam, parts of Laos, and Cambodia. This herbicide causes cancer, birth defects, and other illnesses. -
Diệm’s assassination
Diệm was a politician who was the final Prime minister of South Vietnam and later the first president. He was then captured and assassinated. -
The Gulf of Tonkin Incident
North Vietnamese boats attacked the US boats. With North Vietnam doing this, congress authorized President Lyndon B. Johnson to take any necessary measures against North Vietnam. -
The Tet offensive
This event was a series of attacks by Viet Cong and North Vietnamese against south Vietnam and the US forces during the Vietnamese new year. It involved attacks on over 100 cities and outposts in South Vietnam. -
My Lai Massacre
This event was a US war crime involving mass murder of unarmed civilians in Vietnam villages during the Vietnam war also called ¨Search and Destroy¨. They then investigated this massacre and charged them with murder. -
U.S. troop withdrawals and Vietnamization
This was aimed to gradually transfer responsibility for fighting the Vietnam War from American soldiers to the South Vietnamese military. It failed to achieve its goals. -
War power Acts
This is a federal Law that restricts the president's ability to commit US military forces to armed conflicts without authorization. -
The Fall of Saigon
The fall of Saigon is the capital of South Vietnam by North Vietnam forces. North Vietnam launched a major offense and South Vietnam started collapsing.