Background

Chronology

1945
The end of the World War II. where Vietnam fighted with Japan and Germany against the US and Great Britain. They lost the war. North Vietnam was supported by the Soviet Union and China and South by France

1946
The international arbitration declares Vietnam French colony

1950
Friendly contract among Vietnam, China and the Soviet Union

November, 1953
The fights began in Dien Bien Phu

7th May, 1954
Vietnam won, France lost at Dien Bien Phu. The independence of North Vietnam was acknowledged

26th April - 21th July, 1954
In the Geneva Convention Vietnam was halved at the 17th degree of latitude

10th October, 1954
French troops withdrew from Ha Noi

26th October, 1955
Ngo Dinh Diem overthrew the puppet king Bao Dai. American-friend government in Saigon

1959
Dong Khoi movement started in South against the Diem regime. The build-up of the Ho Chi Minh Trail started

20th December, 1960
Forming of the Viet Cong

1960-1962
First fights with North Vietnamese's success

1963
Despite the tenfold numerical superiority North won at Ap Bac. Kennedy increased the number of the advisors to 17000. Most of them are military advisors. Demonstrations in South against the Diem regime

1st November, 1963
The US took over the power from Diem. Hooligans killed Diem

2nd, 4th August, 1964
The Tonkin Gulf incident. The USA officially joined the war

05th August, 1964
The USA started the bomb attacks against the Republic of Democratic Vietnam

January, 1965
January The US started air raid named the Rolling Thunder

1965
Further American defeats. In North the destructive war was started. In Saigon Nguyen Cao Ky came to power

1966
Further American defeats. They couldn't noiter the Vietcongs. Buddhists and students demonstrated against Ky in Sai Gon

29th, April, 1966
The 1000th aircraft was shot above North Vietnam

1967
American attack against Dong Nam Bo, the center of the uprising. Defeat again. The US initiated conferences, but these ended in failure because of the being corrupt of the South Vietnamese administration

1968
More than half million American soldiers stayed in South Vietnam. It became clear that the US could not win the war. The peace movements became more stronger, that's why the US started the vietnamization

30th January, 1968
Tet offensive. North took over the direction

March, 1968
My Lai massacre which produced general indignation. The picture of the bodies of the weaponless peasants were published only five month later

1969
Though Nixon wanted to produce peace, the number of the soldiers increased in South

3rd September, 1969
The President of North, Ho Chi Minh died. The new president was Ton Duc Thang

1970
North Vietnam occupied Cambodia. 500000 American soldiers were took home. The peace demonstrations dimished.

1970-71
South tried to break off the Ho Chi Minh Trail with the Laos operation. The action, the first test of the vietnamization ended in failure

1972
Only 45000 American soldiers stayed in South

Spring, 1972
North overran South Vietnam

October, 1972
Kissinger wanted to conclude a peace, but he did not managed to do it. Further bomb attacks against North Vietnam

24th December, 1972
Ha Noi was bombed 12 days long by American aircraft ('air-Dien Bien Phu')

12th January, 1973
End of the bombing in North

15th January, 1973
The USA finished the war

27th January, 1973
Peace-negotiations in Paris. The US withdrew from the war

12th February, 1973
The change of the prisoners started between the US and North Vietnam

1973
Gerald Ford did not help to Cambodia; there went on the war. There was a civil war in Vietnam

1974
It was declared that the war had to be settled within 2 years

21st April, 1975
Thieu, President of South, resigned

23rd April, 1975
Gerald Ford, American President, announced the end of the war

29th April, 1975
Duong Van Minh, President of South, yielded unconditionally

7:53 AM, 30th April, 1975
The last American left Vietnam

2nd May, 1975
Whole Vietnam was liberated

1976
The united Socialist Republic of Vietnam was founded

1977
Jimmy Carter, American President, tried to contact with Vietnam diplomatically, but he couldn't because of the strong influence of the Soviet Union