The VietNam War Chronology

Ho Chi Minh is elected president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jun 25

Ho Chi Minh travels to France for talks on Vietnamese independence.

Ref: 2

Dec 15

Vietnam leader Ho Chi Minh sends a note to the new French Premier, Leon Blum, asking for peace talks.

Ref: 2

Dec 19

War breaks out in Indochina as Ho Chi Minh's troops launch widespread attacks against the French

Ref: 5

Viet Minh and French forces fight fiercely in Annamite section of Hanoi.

Ref: 2

Dec 28

The French declare martial law in Vietnam as a full-scale war appears inevitable.

Ref: 2

1947

Jan 09

French General Leclerc breaks off all talks with Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh.

Ref: 2

Jan 19

The French open a drive on Hue, Indochina.

Ref: 2

1948

Nov 22

Ho Chi Minh's Democratic Republic of Vietnam requests admittance to the UN.

Ref: 2

Second Chamber accept 2nd Police Action in Indonesia.

Ref: 5

1949

Vietnam independence within French Union proclaimed.

Ref: 10

Jun 13

Installed by the French, Bao Dai enters Saigon to rule Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jun 14

The State of Vietnam is formed.

Ref: 2

Dec 10

150,000 French troops mass at the border in Vietnam to prevent a Chinese invasion.

Ref: 1

1950

Jan 01

Ho Chi Minh begins offensive against French troops in Indo-China.

Ref: 5

Jan 31

Paris protests the Soviet recognition of Ho Chi Minh's Democratic Republic of Vietnam.

Ref: 2

The United States recognizes Vietnam under the leadership of Emperor Bao Dai, not Ho Chi Minh who is recognized by the Soviets.

Ref: 2

May 21

Vietnamese troops of Ho Chi-Minh attack Cambodia.

Ref: 5

Jun 27

US sends 35 military advisers to South Vietnam

Ref: 5

Aug 03

A U.S. Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG) of 35 men arrives in Saigon. By the end of the year, the U.S. is bearing half of the cost of France's war effort in Vietnam.

Ref: 41

Dec 17

The French government appoints Marshal de Lattre de Tassigny to command their troops in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

1951

Jan 16

Viet Minh offensive against Hanoi.

Ref: 5

Mar 15

French General de Lattre demands that Paris send him more troops for the fight in Indochina.

Ref: 2

Jun 09

After several unsuccessful attacks on French colonial troops, North Vietnam's General Vo Nguyen Giap orders Viet Minh to withdraw from the Red River Delta.

Ref: 2

Jun 18

General Vo Nguyen Giap ends his Red River Campaign against the French in Indochina.

Ref: 2

Aug 08

General Vo Nguyen Giap ends his Red River Campaign against the French in Indochina.

Ref: 2

Nov 14

French paratroopers capture Hoa Binh, Vietnam.

Ref: 2

1952

Jan 04

The French Army in Indochina launches Operation Nenuphar in hopes of ejecting a Viet Minh division from the Ba Tai forest.

Ref: 2

French forces in Indochina launch Operation Violette in an effort to push Viet Minh forces away from the town of Ba Vi.

Ref: 2

Jan 12

The Viet Minh cut the supply lines to the French forces in Hoa Bihn, Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Feb 19

French offensive at Hanoi.

Ref: 5

Feb 22

French forces evacuate Hoa Binh in Indochina.

Ref: 2

Feb 24

The French evacuate Hoa Binh in Vietnam in order to mass for the Tonkin Delta drive.

Ref: 2

Feb 25

French colonial forces evacuate Hoa Binh in Indochina.

Ref: 2

Oct 29

French forces launch Operation Lorraine against Viet Minh supply bases in Indochina.

Ref: 2

1953

Feb 09

The French destroy six Viet Minh war factories hidden in the jungles of Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Mar 26

Eisenhower offers increased aid to the French fighting in Indochina.

Ref: 2

Apr 14

The Viet Minh invade Laos with 40,000 troops in their war against French colonial forces.

Ref: 2

1954

Feb 10

Eisenhower warns against US intervention in Vietnam.

Ref: 5

France and Vietnam open talks in Paris on a treaty to form the state of Indochina.

Ref: 2

Mar 13

Viet Minh General Giap opens assault on That Bien Phu.

Ref: 5

Mar 14

The Viet Minh launch an assault against the French Colonial Forces at Dien Bien Phu.

Ref: 2

The siege of Dien Bien Phu, the last French outpost in Vietnam, begins after the Viet Minh realize it cannot be taken by direct assault.

Ref: 2

Apr 07

President Dwight Eisenhower fears "domino-effect" in Indo-China.

Ref: 5

USAF flies French battalion to Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Apr 24

First American, civilian pilot, P R Holden, wounded in Indochina.

Ref: 5

May 07

The Battle of Dien Bien Phu in Vietnam ended after 55 days with Vietnamese insurgents overrunning French forces.

Ref: 70

Jun 04

French Premier Joseph Laniel and Vietnamese Premier Buu Loc initialed treaties in Paris according "complete independence" to Vietnam.

Ref: 70

Jun 28

French troops begin to pull out of Vietnam's Tonkin province.

Ref: 2

Jul 13

In Geneva, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, the People's Republic of China and France reach an accord on Indochina, dividing Vietnam into two countries, North and South, along the 17th parallel.

Ref: 2

Jul 20

The Geneva Conference on Indochina declares a demilitarized zone at the 17th parallel.

Ref: 41

Jul 21

The French sign an armistice with the Viet Minh that ends the war but divides Vietnam into two countries.

Ref: 2

Jul 27

Armistice divides Vietnam into two countries.

Ref: 5

Aug 01

The Geneva Accords divide Vietnam into two countries at the 17th parallel.

Ref: 2

Aug 11

A formal peace took hold in Indochina, ending more than seven years of fighting between the French and the Communist Vietminh.

Ref: 70

Oct 22

As a result of the Geneva accords granting Communist control over North Vietnam, U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower authorizes a crash program to train the South Vietnamese Army.

Ref: 2

Oct 24

President Eisenhower pledges support to Diem's government and military forces.

Ref: 41

Dec 29

Vietnam achieves independence.

Ref: 10

1955

President Eisenhower sends first US advisors to South Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Oct 26

Ngo Dinh Diem proclaims Vietnam a republic with himself as president.

Ref: 5

1956

Apr 28

Last French troops leave Vietnam.

Ref: 5

1959

Jul 08

Dale Buisand & Chester Ovnand first Americans killed in Vietnam War.

Ref: 5

1960

Jul 30

Over 60,000 Buddhists march in protest against the Diem government in South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

The National Liberation Front is formed by guerrillas fighting the Diem regime in South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

1961

Mar 17

The United States increases military aid and technicians to Laos.

Ref: 2

Mar 26

John F. Kennedy meets with British Premier Macmillan in Washington to discuss increased Communist involvement in Laos.

Ref: 2

Robert McNamara is named Secretary of Defense.

Ref: 3

Nov 14

President Kennedy increases the number of American advisors in Vietnam from 1,000 to 16,000.

Ref: 2

Dec 11

A U.S. aircraft carrier carrying Army helicopters arrived in Saigon the first direct American military support for South Vietnam's battle against Communist guerrillas.

Ref: 5

1962

Jan 18

The United States begins spraying foliage with herbicides in South Vietnam, in order to reveal the whereabouts of Vietcong guerrillas.

Ref: 2

Feb 08

The U.S. Defense Department reports the creation of the Military Assistance Command in South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Robert F. Kennedy says that U.S. troops will stay in Vietnam until Communism is defeated.

Ref: 2

Feb 27

South Vietnamese president Ngo Dinh Diem is unharmed as two planes bomb the presidential palace in Saigon. The first US citizens are killed.

Ref: 2

Mar 09

US advisors in South-Vietnam join the fight.

Ref: 5

Mar 17

Moscow asks the United States to pull out of South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

May 06

Pathet Lao breaks cease fire/conquerors Nam Tha Laos.

Ref: 5

May 11

US sends troops to Thailand

Ref: 5

US marines arrive in Laos.

Ref: 5

Jul 23

The Geneva Conference on Laos forbids the United States to invade eastern Laos.

Ref: 2

1963

Jan 02

In Vietnam, the Viet Cong down five U.S. helicopters in the Mekong Delta. 30 Americans are reported dead.

Ref: 2

Jun 11

Buddhist monk Ngo Quang Duc immolated himself on a Saigon street to protest the government of South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem. (TWA, 1964)

Ref: 95

Jun 27

Henry Cabot Lodge is appointed US ambassador to South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Aug 13

A 17 year-old Buddhist monk burns himself to death in Saigon, South Vietnam.

Ref: 41

Aug 21

The South Vietnamese Army arrests over 100 Buddhist monks in Saigon as martial law is declared in South Vietnam. US complicity in the overthrow of South Vietnam's president made it impossible to stay uninvolved in the war.

Ref: 2

Aug 27

Cambodia severs ties with South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Nov 01

Revolt against the Diem regime in South Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Nov 03

Dinh Diem Ngo, South Vietnamese president (1955-63), is assassinated at age 62 in a military coup.

Ref: 68

1964

Jan 30

Military coup of General Nguyen Khanh in South Vietnam.

Ref: 5

President Lyndon B. Johnson rejects Charles de Gaulle's plan for a neutral Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Cambodian Prince Sihanouk blames the United States for a South Vietnamese air raid on a village in his country.

Ref: 2

Apr 19

Rightist coup in Laos, Suvanna Phuma remains premier.

Ref: 5

May 04

A trade embargo is imposed on North Vietnam in response to attacks from the North on South Vietnam.

Ref: 41

May 21

US begin intelligence flights above Laos.

Ref: 5

Jun 20

General William Westmoreland succeeds General Paul Harkins as head of the US forces in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jun 23

Henry Cabot Lodge resigns as the U.S. envoy to Vietnam and is succeeded by Maxwell Taylor.

Ref: 2

Jul 14

The United States sends 600 more troops to Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jul 27

President Lyndon Johnson sends an additional 5,000 advisers to South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Aug 02

An American destroyer (Maddoxis) is attacked off the coast of North Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin, and U.S. aircraft attack North Vietnamese bases.

Ref: 41

Aug 04

The U.S.S. Maddox and Turner Joy exchange fire with North Vietnamese patrol boats.

Ref: 2

Aug 05

US begins bombing North Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Aug 07

The House and Senate, by a vote of 416-0 and 88-2, respectively, approve the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution which allows the president to take any necessary measures to repel further attacks and to provide military assistance to any SEATO member.

Ref: 41

Sep 18

U.S. destroyers fire on hostile targets in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Nov 10

Australia begins a draft to fulfill its commitment in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Nov 14

The U.S. First Cavalry Division battles with the North Vietnamese Army in the Ia Drang Valley, the first ground combat for American troops. Rescue at LZ Albany.

Ref: 2

Dec 12

Three Buddhist leaders begin a hunger strike to protest the government in Saigon.

Ref: 2

The U.S. headquarters in Saigon is hit by a bomb killing two officers.

Ref: 2

1965

Jan 13

Two U.S. planes are shot down in Laos while on a combat mission.

Ref: 2

Jan 26

South Vietnam military coup under General Nguyen Khanh.

Ref: 5

Jan 27

Military leaders oust the civilian government of Tran Van Huong in Saigon.

Ref: 2

The US begins strategic bombing of North Vietnam.

Ref: 43

Feb 06

Seven U.S. GIs are killed in a Viet Cong raid on a base in Pleiku.

Ref: 2

U.S. jets hit Don Hoi guerrilla base in reprisal for the Viet Cong raids.

Ref: 2

US begins regular bombing & strafing of North Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Feb 08

South Vietnamese bomb the North Vietnamese communications center at Vinh Linh.

Ref: 2

President Lyndon Johnson orders air strikes against targets in North Vietnam, in retaliation for guerrilla attacks on the American military in South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Feb 19

Fourteen Vietnam War protesters are arrested for blocking the United Nations' doors in New York.

Ref: 2

More than 150 U.S. and South Vietnamese planes bomb two bases in North Vietnam in the first of the "Rolling Thunder" raids.

Ref: 2

Mar 06

The United States announces that it will send 3,500 troops to Vietnam.

Ref: 2

More than 4,000 Marines land at Da Nang in South Vietnam and become the first U.S. combat troops in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Mar 11

The American navy begins inspecting Vietnamese junks in hopes of ending arms smuggling to the South.

Ref: 2

Mar 22

US confirms its troops used chemical warfare against the Vietcong.

Ref: 5

US ordered the 1st combat troops to Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Apr 06

President Lyndon B. Johnson authorizes the use of ground troops in combat operations.

Ref: 2

Apr 07

President Lyndon B. Johnson authorizes the use of ground troops in combat operations.

Ref: 2

Apr 20

People's Republic China offers North Vietnam military aid.

Ref: 5

Australian government announces it will send troops to Vietnam.

Ref: 5

May 03

Cambodia drops diplomatic relations with the US.

Ref: 5

May 05

First large-scale US Army ground units arrive in South Vietnam.

Ref: 5

May 16

Bomb destroys USAF base Bien Hoa South Vietnam

Ref: 5

May 30

Viet Cong offensive against US base Da Nang, begins.

Ref: 5

Jun 08

President Johnson authorizes commanders in Vietnam to commit US ground forces to combat offensively.

Ref: 2

Jun 14

A military triumvirate takes control in Saigon, South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jun 17

27 B-52s hit Viet Cong outposts, but lose two planes in South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jun 19

Air Marshall Nguyen Cao Ky becomes South Vietnam's youngest premier at age 34.

Ref: 2

Jun 28

First US ground combat forces in Vietnam authorized by Pres Johnson

Ref: 5

Jul 28

President Lyndon B. Johnson announced he was increasing the number of American troops in South Vietnam from 75,000 to 125,000.

Ref: 70

Aug 02

Morley Safer's sends first Vietnam report indicating we are losing.

Ref: 5

Aug 18

Operation Starlite marks the beginning of major U.S. ground combat operations in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Aug 19

U.S. forces destroy a Viet Cong stronghold near Van Tuong, in South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Aug 28

The Viet Cong are routed in the Mekong Delta by US forces, with more than 50 killed. Defoliation was meant to save lives by denying the enemy cover. But for some the 'cure' was worse than the problem.

Ref: 2

Sep 11

The first Cavalry Division (Airmobile) arrives in South Vietnam and is stationed at An Khe.Remember those grizzled vets of our youth from the Great War in 1917? Guess who the grizzled vets are today!

Ref: 2

Sep 20

Seven U.S. planes are downed in one day over Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Oct 05

U.S. forces in Saigon receive permission to use tear gas.

Ref: 2

Oct 15

Anti-Vietnam war demonstrations in U.S. major cities start;draft card burning.

Ref: 10

Roger Allen LaPorte, a 22-year-old former seminarian and a member of the Catholic worker movement, immolates himself at the United Nations in New York City in protest of the Vietnam War.

Ref: 2

Nov 15

In the second day of combat, regiments of the first Cavalry Division battle on Landing Zones X-Ray against North Vietnamese forces in the Ia drang Valley. Rescue at LZ Albany.

Ref: 2

Nov 16

In the last day of the fighting at Landing Zone X-Ray, regiments of the U.S. first Cavalry Division repulse NVA forces in the Ia Drang Valley.

Ref: 2

Nov 17

The NVA ambushes American troops of the 7th Cavalry at Landing Zone Albany in the Ia Drang Valley, almost wiping them out.

Ref: 2

Dec 03

The National Council of Churches asks the United States to halt the massive bombings in North Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Dec 15

The United States drops 12 tons of bombs on an industrial center near Haiphong Harbor, North Vietnam.

Ref: 2

U.S. Marines attack VC units in the Que Son Valley during Operation Harvest Moon.

Ref: 2

Dec 21

Four pacifists are indicted in New York for burning draft cards.

Ref: 2

Dec 22

The EF-105F Wild Weasel makes its first kill over Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Dec 29

A Christmas truce is observed in Vietnam, while President Johnson tries to get the North Vietnamese to the bargaining table.

Ref: 2

1966

Jan 02

American G.I.s move into the Mekong Delta for the first time.

Ref: 2

Jan 03

Cambodia warns the United Nations of retaliation unless the United States and South Vietnam end intrusions.

Ref: 2

Jan 10

Julian Bond denied seat in Georgia legislature for opposing Vietnam War.

Ref: 5

Jan 12

President Johnson says in his State of the Union address that the US should stay in South Vietnam until Communist aggression there was ended.

Ref: 5

Jan 31

U.S. planes resume bombing of North Vietnam after a 37-day pause.

Ref: 2

Feb 04

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee begins televised hearings on the Vietnam War.

Ref: 2

Feb 10

Protester David Miller is convicted of burning his draft card.

Ref: 2

Vice President Hubert Humphrey begins a tour of Vietnam.

Ref: 2

The South Vietnamese win two big battles in the Mekong Delta.

Ref: 2

215,000 US soldiers in Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Australia announces that it will triple the number of troops in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Mar 10

The North Vietnamese capture a Green Beret camp at Ashau Valley.

Ref: 2

Mar 27

Anti Vietnam war demonstrations in US, Europe & Australia.

Ref: 5

An estimated 200,000 anti-[VietNam] war demonstrators march in New York City.

Ref: 2

Apr 03

Three-thousand South Vietnamese Army troops lead a protest against the Ky regime in Saigon.

Ref: 2

Apr 12

First B-52 bombing on North Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Pfc. Milton Lee Oliver is awarded the Medal of Honor, posthumously, for bravery during the Vietnam War.

Ref: 2

Apr 23

President Lyndon Johnson publicly appeals for more nations to come to the aid of South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

US troops shooting targets in Cambodia.

Ref: 5

South Vietnamese army battle Buddhists, about 80 die

Ref: 5

10,000 march on White House to protest Vietnam war.

Ref: 10

May 26

Buddhist sets self on fire at US consulate in Hu� South-Vietnam.

Ref: 5

May 30

300 US airplanes bomb North Vietnam

Ref: 5

Jun 29

The United States bombed fuel storage facilities near the North Vietnamese cities of Hanoi and Haiphong.

Ref: 5

Jun 30

U.S. planes bomb demilitarized zone (DMZ) between North and South Vietnam.

Ref: 10

Jul 01

The U.S. Marines launch Operation Holt in an attempt to finish off a Vietcong battalion in Thua Thien Province in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jul 07

The U.S. Marine Corps launches Operation Hasting to drive the North Vietnamese Army back across the Demilitarized Zone in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jul 17

Ho Chi Minh orders a patial mobilization of North Vietnam to defend against American airstrikes.

Ref: 2

Jul 22

American B-52's hit the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Vietnam for the first time.

Ref: 2

Aug 07

The United States loses seven planes over North Vietnam, the most in the war up to this point.

Ref: 2

Aug 18

Australians bloodily repulse a Viet Cong attack at Long Tan.

Ref: 2

Sep 14

Operation Attleboro, designed as a training exercise for American troops, becomes a month-long struggle against the Viet Cong.

Ref: 2

Oct 06

Hanoi insists the United States must end its bombings before peace talks can begin.

Ref: 2

Oct 10

U.S. Forces launch Operation Robin, in Hoa Province south of Saigon in South Vietnam, to provide road security between villages.

Ref: 2

Dec 05

Comedian and political activist Dick Gregory heads for Hanoi, North Vietnam, despite federal warnings against it.

Ref: 2

Dec 13

First US bombing of Hanoi.

Ref: 5

USAF CL-44 military charter crashes near Binh Thai Vietnam kills 129.

Ref: 5

1967

Jan 06

Over 16,000 US Marines and 14,000 South Vietnamese troops launched Operation "Deckhouse Five (V)," an offensive in the Mekong River delta on the Iron Triangle, northwest of Saigon.

Ref: 17

Jan 15

Some 462 Yale faculty members call for an end to the bombing in North Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jan 29

Thirty-seven civilians are killed by a U.S. helicopter attack in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Feb 15

Thirteen U.S. helicopters are shot down in one day in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Feb 22

25,000 US & S Vietnamese troops launched Operation Junction City, offensive to smash Viet Cong stronghold near Cambodian border.

Ref: 5

Feb 23

American troops begin the largest offensive of the war, near the Cambodian border.

Ref: 2

Mar 06

President Lyndon B. Johnson announces his plan to establish a draft lottery.

Ref: 2

Mar 15

President Lyndon Johnson names Ellsworth Bunker as the new ambassador to Saigon. Bunker replaces Lodge.

Ref: 2

Mar 20

A J F Moody, the first US Army General to die in Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Mar 23

Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. calls the Vietnam War the biggest obstacle to the civil rights movement.

Ref: 2

Mar 24

Viet Cong ambush a truck convoy in South Vietnam damaging 82 of the 121 trucks.

Ref: 2

Mar 28

UN Secretary General U Thant makes public proposals for peace in Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Apr 14

In the Vietnam War, US planes bomb Haiphong for first time.

Ref: 5

Apr 20

U.S. planes bomb Haiphong for first time during the Vietnam War.

Ref: 2

Stockholm Vietnam-Tribunal declares US aggression in Vietnam/Cambodia

Ref: 2

May 11

The siege of Khe Sanh ends, the base is still in American hands.

Ref: 2

May 19

U.S. planes bomb Hanoi for the first time.

Ref: 2

10,000 demonstrate against war in Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Jul 02

The U.S. launches Operation Buffalo in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jul 03

North Vietnamese soldiers attack South Vietnam's only producing coal mine at Nong Son.

Ref: 2

Jul 29

Fire swept the USS Forrestal in the Gulf of Tonkin, killing 134 servicemen and $100 million in damage. (XDG, p 4A, 7/29/2003)

Ref: 83

Jul 30

General William Westmoreland claims that he is winning the war in Vietnam, but needs more men.

Ref: 2

Aug 03

President Lyndon B. Johnson announces plans to send 45,000 more troops to Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Sep 03

Nguyen Van Thieu (nwen van too) was elected president of South Vietnam under a new constitution.

Ref: 5

Sep 04

Michigan Gov. George Romney said during a TV interview that he had undergone a "brainwashing" by U.S. officials during a 1965 visit to Vietnam.

Ref: 70

Sep 23

Soviets sign a pact to send more aid to Hanoi.

Ref: 2

Sep 26

Hanoi rejects a U.S. peace proposal.

Ref: 2

Oct 21

(22nd and 23rd) The "March on the Pentagon," protesting American involvement in Vietnam , draws 50,000 protesters.

Ref: 2

Oct 31

Nguyen Van Thieu took oath of office as first pres of S Vietnam 2nd Rep.

Ref: 5

Nov 16

U.S. planes hit Haiphong shipyard in North Vietnam for the first time.

Ref: 2

Nov 24

Special Forces Captain John J. McCarthy kills a suspected Cambodian double agent. He will be tried for murder in a court in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Dec 05

Benjamin Spock & Allen Ginsberg arrested protesting Vietnam war.

Ref: 5

Dec 08

In the biggest battle yet in the Mekong Delta, 365 Vietcong are killed.

Ref: 2

Dec 12

The United States ends the airlift of 6,500 men in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

474,300 US soldiers in Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Dec 23

U.S. Navy SEALs are ambushed during an operation southeast of Saigon.

Ref: 2

1968

Jan 05

U.S. forces in Vietnam launch Operation Niagara I to locate enemy units around the Marine base at Khe Sanh.

Ref: 2

Jan 05

Dr Benjamin Spock indicted for conspiring to violate draft law.

Ref: 5

Jan 13

U.S. reports shifting most air targets from North Vietnam to Laos.

Ref: 2

Jan 19

Cambodia charges that the United States and South Vietnam have crossed the border and killed three Cambodians.

Ref: 2

Jan 21

In Vietnam, the Siege of Khe Sanh begins as North Vietnamese units surround U.S. Marines based on the hilltop headquarters.

Ref: 2

Jan 30

During the Vietnam War, the Tet Offensive began as Communist forces launched surprise attacks against South Vietnamese provincial capitals.

Ref: 87

U.S. troops drive the North Vietnamese out of Tan Son Nhut airport in Saigon; South Vietnam President Nguyen Van Thieu declares martial law.

Ref: 2

Famous photo Saigon police chief Nguyen Ngoc Loan executes a Viet Cong officer with a pistol shot to the head in a scene captured in a famous news photograph.

Ref: 5

South Vietnam President Nguyen Van Thieu declares martial law.

Ref: 2

U.S. troops divide Viet Cong at Hue while the Saigon government claims they will arm loyal citizens.

Ref: 2

Feb 06

Dutch 2nd Chamber condemns US bombing of North Vietnam.

Ref: 5

The North Vietnamese use 11 Soviet-built light tanks to overrun the U.S. Special Forces camp at Lang Vei at the end of an 18-hour long siege.

Ref: 2

Feb 13

US sends 10,500 additional soldiers to Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Three U.S. pilots that were held by the Vietnamese arrive in Washington.

Ref: 2

10,000 demonstrators against US in Vietnam War in West-Berlin.

Ref: 5

Feb 20

North Vietnamese army chief in Hue orders all looters to be shot on sight.

Ref: 2

Feb 24

North Vietnamese troops recapture the imperial palace in Hue, South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Mar 01

Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara is replaced by Clark Clifford.

Ref: 2

The siege of Khe Sanh ends in Vietnam, the U.S. Marines stationed there are still in control of the mountain top.

Ref: 2

Mar 07

The Battle of Saigon, begun on the day of the Tet Offensive, ends.

Ref: 2

Mar 09

General William Westmoreland asks for 206,000 more troops in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Mar 22

President Lyndon Johnson names General William Westmoreland as Army Chief of Staff.

Ref: 2

Mar 28

The United States loses its first aircraft in Vietnam. An F-111 vanishes in a combat mission over North Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Apr 01

The U.S. Army launches Operation Pegasus, the reopening of a land route to the besieged Khe Sanh Marine base.

Ref: 2

Apr 03

North Vietnam agreed to meet with U.S. representatives to set up preliminary peace talks.

Ref: 5

Apr 16

The Pentagon announces the "Vietnamization" of the war.

Ref: 2

Apr 24

Leftist students at Columbia University in New York City began a weeklong occupation of several campus buildings in protest over the Vietnam War.

Ref: 70

US Marines attack a division of North Vietnamese troops in the village of Dai Do.

Ref: 2

In the second day of battle, US Marines, with the support of naval fire, continue their attack on a North Vietnamese Division at Dai Do. Dateline Vietnam.

Ref: 2

May 02

The US Army attacks Nhi Ha in South Vietnam and begins a fourteen-day battle to wrestle it away from Vietnamese Communists.

Ref: 2

May 03

After three days of battle, the US Marines retake Dai Do complex in Vietnam, only to find the North Vietnamese have evacuated the area. Dateline Vietnam.

Ref: 2

May 05

US Air Force planes hit Nhi Ha, South Vietnam in support of attacking infantrymen.

Ref: 2

Preliminary Vietnam peace talks begin in Paris between the US & North Vietnam.

Ref: 70

May 13

Peace talks between the United States and North Vietnam begin in Paris.

Ref: 2

US Marines relieve army troops in Nhi Ha, South Vietnam after a fourteen-day battle.

Ref: 2

Jun 07

In Operation Swift Saber, US Marines sweep an area 10 miles northwest of Danang in South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jul 23

R.F. Worley becomes America's first General killed in action in Vietnam.

Ref: 10

Aug 21

The first Medal of Honor awarded to an African American Marine in the Vietnam War goes to James Anderson, Jr.

Oct 04

Cambodia admits that the Viet Cong use their country for sanctuary.

Ref: 2

Oct 08

U.S. forces in Vietnam launch Operation Sealord, an attack on North Vietnamese supply lines and base areas. In Vietnam's Mekong Delta, Navy SEALs were the military's 'eyes and ears,' providing vital intelligence on enemy operations.

Ref: 2

Oct 31

President Johnson orders a halt to all U.S. bombing of North Vietnam, saying he hoped for fruitful peace negotiations.

Ref: 70

Nov 01

President Lyndon B. Johnson calls a halt to bombing in Vietnam, hoping this will lead to progress at the Paris peace talks.

Ref: 2

Dec 08

South Vietnam's Vice President Nguyen Cao Ky arrives in Paris for peace talks.

Ref: 2

Dec 15

President Richard Nixon announces the third round of Vietnam withdrawals.

Ref: 2

1969

Jan 05

President Richard M. Nixon appoints Henry Cabot Lodge as negotiator at the Paris Peace Talks.

Ref: 2

Jan 08

Looking through his crystal ball, Joseph DeLouise announced on radio and TV and in newspapers that Ho Chi Minh would soon die. Ho Chi Minh died that year.

Ref: 4

Jan 10

Sweden (1st Western country) recognizes North Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Jan 18

Expanded 4 party Vietnam peace talks began in Paris.

Ref: 5

Jan 25

US-North Vietnamese peace talks begin in Paris.

Ref: 5

President Richard M. Nixon authorizes Operation Menue, the 'secret' bombing of Cambodia.

Ref: 2

Mar 20

US President Nixon proclaims he will end Vietnam war in 1970.

Ref: 5

Mar 29

(My Lai) Rob Ridenhour's writes letter descibing the My Lai incident and its cover-up.

Ref: 43

Apr 24

US B-52's drop 3,000 ton bombs at Cambodian boundary.

Ref: 5

US troops begin attack on Hill 937/Hamburger Hill

Ref: 2

May 12

Viet Cong sappers try unsuccessfully to overrun Landing Zone Snoopy in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

May 14

Three companies of the 101st Airborne Division fail to push North Vietnamese forces off Hill 937 (Hamburger Hill) in South Vietnam.

Ref: 2

May 18

Two battalions of the 101st Airborne Division assault Hill 937 but cannot reach the top because of muddy conditions. Hamburger Hill revisited.

Ref: 2

The Paris peace talks begin.

Ref: 41

US and South Vietnamese forces capture Apbia Mountain (referred to as "Hamburger Hill" by the Americans) following one of the bloodiest battles of the Vietnam War.

Ref: 70

Jun 02

74 American sailors died when the destroyer USS Frank E. Evans was cut in two by an Australian aircraft carrier in the South China Sea.

Ref: 2

Jun 08

President Richard Nixon meets with President Thieu of South Vietnam to tell him 25,000 US troops will pull out by August.

Ref: 2

Jul 07

The first U.S. units to withdraw from South Vietnam leave Saigon.

Ref: 2

Jul 08

President Richard Nixon announces the first troop withdrawals from South Vietnam.

Ref: 41

Aug 12

American installations at Quan-Loi, Vietnam, come under Viet Cong attack.

Ref: 2

Aug 22

Moratorium Day.500,000 march in San Francisco & Washington to end Vietnam war.

Ref: 70

Sep 02

Ho Chi Minh, Indochinese leader; president of Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) from 1945 to 1969, dies.

Ref: 70

Sep 03

Ho Chi Minh North Vietnamese president, dies.

Ref: 5

Sep 04

Nixon announces "Vietnamization" program.

Ref: 87

Sep 12

President Richard Nixon orders a resumption in bombing North Vietnam. While the military is responsible for fighting a war, its civilian superiors not only wage war but also determine how it will be fought.

Ref: 2

Oct 15

Peace demonstrators staged activities across the country, including a candlelight march around the White House, as part of a moratorium against the Vietnam War.

Ref: 70

Oct 19

Vice President Spiro Agnew referred to anti-Vietnam War protesters "an effete corps of impudent snobs."

Ref: 70

Nov 03

President Nixon announces the "Vietnamization" program.

Ref: 43

Nov 15

A quarter of a million protesters staged a peaceful demonstration in Washington, D.C., against the Vietnam War.

Ref: 70

Nov 16

Lieutenant William Calley, Jr., faces a court martial for directing his platoon in the massacre of at least four hundred unarmed peasants in the Vietnamese village of My Lai.

Ref: 3

Nov 24

Lt William L Calley, charged with massacre of over 100 civilians in My Lai Vietnam in March 1968, ordered to stand trial by court martial.

Ref: 26

Dec 21

American draft evaders gather for a holiday dinner in Montreal, Canada.

Ref: 2

1970

Jan 06

The Department of Defense announces that 1,403 U.S. military service personnel had deserted to foreign countries since July 1, 1966, a period that coincided with the height of the increasingly unpopular Vietnam War.

Ref: 3

Feb 26

Five Marines are arrested on charges of murdering 11 South Vietnamese women and children.

Ref: 2

The Nixon administration discloses the deaths of 27 Americans in Laos.

Ref: 2

Mar 13

Cambodia orders Hanoi and Viet Cong troops to get out.

Ref: 2

U.S. forces in Vietnam down a MIG-21, the first since September 1968.

Ref: 2

50,000 US & South Vietnamese troops invade Cambodia.

Ref: 5

President Richard Nixon announced the United States was sending troops into Cambodia, an action that sparked widespread protest.

Ref: 70

Students from Kent State University riot in downtown Kent, Ohio, in protest of the American invasion of Cambodia.

Ref: 2

May 02

Student anti-war protesters at Ohio's Kent State University burn down the campus ROTC building. The National Guard takes control of campus.

Ref: 2

May 08

Construction workers break up an anti-war rally in NYC's Wall Street.

Ref: 2

May 09

Four years after 10,000 antiwar protestors descend on Washington, D.C., 100,000 do so today.

Ref: 10

Some 100,000 people demonstrated in NY's Wall Street district in support of US policy in Vietnam and Cambodia.

Ref: 70

Jun 10

A 15-man group of special forces troops begin training for Operation Kingpin, a POW rescue mission in North Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jun 17

North Vietnamese troops cut the last operating rail line in Cambodia.

Ref: 2

Jun 24

Senate votes overwhelmingly to repeal Gulf of Tonkin Resolution.

Ref: 5

Jun 29

The United States ended a two-month military offensive into Cambodia.

Ref: 5

Aug 24

A bomb planted by anti-war extremists exploded at the University of Wisconsin's Army Math Research Center in Madison, killing 33-year-old researcher Robert Fassnacht.

Ref: 70

Sep 09

U.S. Marines launch Operation Dubois Square, a 10-day search for North Vietnamese troops near DaNang.

Ref: 2

Oct 12

President Richard Nixon announces the pullout of 40,000 more American troops in Vietnam by Christmas.

Ref: 2

Trial of Seattle 8 anti-war protesters begins.

Ref: 5

Nov 11

U.S. Army Special Forces raid the Son Tay prison camp in North Vietnam but find no prisoners.

Ref: 2

Nov 21

U.S. planes conduct widespread bombing raids in North Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Nine GIs are killed and nine are wounded by friendly fire in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

1971

Jan 22

Communist forces shell Phnom Penh, Cambodia, for the first time.

Ref: 2

Feb 08

South Vietnamese ground forces, backed by American air power, begin Operation Lam Son 719, a 17,000 man incursion into Laos that ends three weeks later in a disaster.

Ref: 2

Feb 13

12,000 South Vietnamese troops cross into Laos.

Ref: 5

Mar 07

A thousand U.S. planes bomb Cambodia and Laos.

Ref: 2

Radio Hanoi broadcasts Jimi Hendrix's "Star Spangled Banner".

Ref: 5

Mar 14

South Vietnamese troops flee Laos.

Ref: 5

U.S. helicopters airlift 1,000 South Vietnamese soldiers out of Laos.

Ref: 2

Mar 21

Two U.S. platoons in Vietnam refuse their orders to advance.

Ref: 2

Apr 07

President Nixon pledges a withdrawal of 100,000 more men from Vietnam by December.

Ref: 2

Apr 15

North Vietnamese troops ambush a company of Delta Raiders from the 101st Airborne Division near Fire Support Base Bastogne in Vietnam. The American troops were on a rescue mission.

Ref: 2

Apr 25

About 200,000 anti-Vietnam War protesters march on Washington DC.

Ref: 5

May 03

Anti-war protesters calling themselves the Mayday Tribe began four days of demonstrations in Washington DC aimed at shutting down the nation's capital. 13,000 are arrested.

Ref: 70

Pentagon reports blacks constitute 11% of US soldiers in SE Asia.

Ref: 5

Jun 13

The NY Times began publishing the Pentagon Papers, a secret study of America's involvement in Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Jul 09

The United States turns over complete responsibility of the Demilitarized Zone to South Vietnamese units.

Ref: 2

Jul 18

New Zealand and Austrailia announce they will pull their troops out of Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Aug 20

The Cambodian military launches a series of operations against the Khmer Rouge.

Ref: 2

Oct 31

Saigon begins the release of 1,938 Hanoi POW�s.

Ref: 2

Nov 12

President Richard Nixon announces the withdrawal of about 45,000 U.S. troops from Vietnam by February.

Ref: 3

1972

Jan 25

President Nixon airs the eight-point peace plan for Vietnam, asking for POW release in return for withdrawal.

Ref: 2

Senator Edward Kennedy advocates amnesty for Vietnam draft resisters.

Ref: 2

Feb 13

Enemy attacks in Vietnam decline for the third day as the United States continues its intensive bombing strategy.

Ref: 2

Mar 23

The United States calls a halt to the peace talks on Vietnam being held in Paris.

Ref: 2

During the Vietnam War, tens of thousands of North Vietnamese troops cross the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and rapidly overrun the northern portion of South Vietnam in the Eastertide Offensive.

Ref: 3

Apr 27

Quang Tri was cut off from the rest of South Vietnam by North Vietnamese troops

Ref: 62

The North Vietnamese launch an invasion of the South.

Ref: 2

North Vietnamese troops occupy Quang Tri Activities Committee.

Ref: 5

May 04

Vietcong forms revolutionary government in Quang Tri South Vietnam.

Ref: 5

May 08

U.S. institutes mining of Haiphong Harbor

Ref: 62

Jun 09

American advisor John Paul Vann is killed in a helicopter accident in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jun 12

At a hearing in front the of a US House of Representatives committee, Air Force General John Lavalle defends his orders on engagement in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jun 28

Nixon announces that no new draftees will be sent to Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jul 11

American forces break the 95-day siege at An Loc in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Jul 14

The State Department criticizes Jane Fonda for making antiwar radio broadcasts in Hanoi, calling them "distressing". (XDG, p 4A, 7/14/2000)

Ref: 83

Aug 11

The last U.S. ground forces withdraw from Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Aug 12

The last American combat ground troops left Vietnam.

Ref: 70

Aug 12

As U.S. troops leave Vietnam, B-52's make their largest strike of the war.

Ref: 2

Sep 16

South Vietnamese troops recapture Quang Tri province in South Vietnam from the North Vietnamese Army.

Ref: 2

Oct 11

US Army turns over Long Bihn base to South Vietnamese army.

Ref: 5

Oct 11

A French mission in Vietnam is destroyed by a U.S. bombing raid.

Ref: 2

Oct 17

Peace talks between Pathet Lao and Royal Lao government begin in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Oct 22

Operation Linebacker I, the bombing of North Vietnam with B-52 bombers, ends.

Ref: 2

Oct 26

National security adviser Henry Kissinger declared, "Peace is at hand" in Vietnam.

Ref: 6

Nov 11

The US Army turned over its base at Long Bihn to the South Vietnamese army, symbolizing the end of direct US military involvement in the Vietnam War.

Ref: 5

The United States began the heaviest bombing of North Vietnam during the Vietnam War. The bombardment ended 12 days later.

Ref: 70

President Richard M. Nixon declares that the bombing of North Vietnam will continue until an accord can be reached.

Ref: 2

Hanoi bars all peace talks with the United States until U.S. air raids over North Vietnam stop.

Ref: 2

Dec 30

After two weeks of heavy bombing raids on North Vietnam, President Nixon halts the air offensive and agrees to resume peace negotiations with Hanoi representative Le Duc Tho.

Ref: 2

1973

Jan 02

The United States admits the accidental bombing of a Hanoi hospital.

Ref: 2

Jan 08

Secret peace talks between the United States and North Vietnam resumed near Paris.

Ref: 70

Jan 15

President Richard Nixon announced the suspension of all U.S. offensive action in North Vietnam, citing progress in peace negotiations.

Ref: 70

Jan 17

City of Amsterdam decides to support Hanoi.

Ref: 5

Jan 22

US, North & South Vietnam & Vietcong sign boundary accord.

Ref: 5

Jan 23

President Richard Nixon claims that Vietnam peace has been reached in Paris and that the POWs would be home in 60 days.

Ref: 2

Jan 27

The United States, North and South Vietnam, and the Viet Cong sign the Paris Peace Accords, ending the American combat role in war. U.S. military draft ends.

Ref: 41

Jan 28

A cease fire officially goes into effect in the Vietnam War. (XDG, p 4A, 1/28/2003)

Ref: 83

Funeral for LC William Nolde, last US soldier killed in Vietnam War, before the Vietnam cease-fire.

Ref: 5

Services are held at Arlington National Cemetary for Army Lt Col William B. Nolde, the last American soldier killed before the Vietnam ceasefire. (XDG, p 4A, 2/05/2003)

Ref: 83

First US POWs in N Vietnam released; 116 of 456 flown to Philippines.

Ref: 5

Feb 14

The United States and Hanoi set up a group to channel reconstruction aid directly to Hanoi.

Ref: 2

Mar 17

The first POWs are released from the "Hanoi Hilton" in Hanoi, North Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Mar 29

Last regular American troops leave South Vietnam. Last soldier is Master Sergeant Max Beilke of MN.

Ref: 70

Ellsworth Bunker resigned as U.S. ambassador to South Vietnam, and is succeeded by Graham A. Martin.

Ref: 5

Last U.S. prisoner in Vietnam released; US military role in Vietnam ends.

Ref: 10

Apr 01

Hanoi releases the last 591 acknowledged American POWs.

Ref: 41

Apr 09

Netherlands recognizes North Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Apr 12

France recognizes North Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Jun 19

The Case-Church Amendment prevents further US involvement in Southeast Asia.

Ref: 2

Jun 27

President Richard Nixon vetoes a Senate ban on the Cambodia bombing.

Ref: 2

Jul 16

Congress looks into allegations that the Air Force had made 3,500 bombing raids on Cambodia in 1969 and 1970

Ref: 62

Jul 31

Congress votes to end all bombing in Indochina and to ban any future military moves in area without prior congressional approval.

Aug 07

A U.S. plane accidentally bombs a Cambodian village, killing 400 civilians.

Ref: 2

Aug 14

The United States ends the "secret" bombing of Cambodia.

Ref: 2

Nov 07

Congress over-rode President Nixon's veto of the War Powers Act, which limits a chief executive's power to wage war without congressional approval.

Ref: 70

Nov 23

US helicopter force lands in Vietnam POW camp and trying to rescue US soldiers there, but the place was empty

Ref: 62

Nov 27

William Rogers & Nguyen Duy Trinh sign US-N Vietnam treaty.

Ref: 5

1974

Jan 09

Cambodian Government troops open a drive to avert insurgent attack on Phnom Penh.

Ref: 2

Communist-led rebels shower artillery fire into a crowded area of Phnom Pehn, killing 139 and injuring 46 others.

Ref: 2

Feb 21

A report claims that the use of defoliants by the U.S. has scarred Vietnam for a century.

Ref: 2

Mar 22

The Viet Cong propose a new truce with the United States and South Vietnam, which includes general elections.

Ref: 2

Sep 04

Creighton Williams Abrams, commanding general in Vietnam from 1968 to 1972, dies.

Ref: 15

Sep 16

Limited amnesty is offered to Vietnam-era draft resisters who would now swear allegiance to the United States and perform two years of public service.

Ref: 2

1975

Jan 04

The Khmer Rouge launches its newest assault in its five-year war in Phnom Penh. The war in Cambodia would go on until the spring of 1975.

Ref: 2

Vietnamese troops take Phuoc Binh in new full-scale offensive.

Ref: 2

Mar 10

The North Vietnamese Army attacks the South Vietnamese town of Ban Me Thout, the offensive will end with total victory in Vietnam.

Ref: 2

Mar 12

Vietcong conquer Ban me Thuot South Vietnam.

Ref: 5

South Vietnam abandons most of the Central Highlands to North Vietnamese forces.

Ref: 2

Mar 21

As North Vietnamese forces advance, Hue and other northern towns in South Vietnam are evacuated.

Ref: 2

Mar 25

Hue is lost and Da Nang is endangered by North Vietnamese forces. The United States orders a refugee airlift to remove those in danger.

Ref: 2

As the North Vietnamese forces move toward Saigon, desperate South Vietnamese soldiers mob rescue jets.

Ref: 2

Apr 04

More than 130 people, most of them children, were killed when a U.S. Air Force C5A transport plane evacuating Vietnamese orphans crashed shortly after take-off from Saigon. (TWA, 1997)

Ref: 95

Apr 17

Phnom Penh fell to Communist insurgents, ending Cambodia's five-year war.

Ref: 70

South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu resigned after 10 years in office.

Ref: 70

Apr 27

Saigon is encircled by North Vietnamese troops.

Ref: 2

Apr 28

South-Vietnam General Duong Van Minh sworn in as president till April 30.

Ref: 5

The U.S. embassy in Vietnam is evacuated as North Vietnamese forces fight their way into Saigon.

Ref: 2

The last U.S. citizens were airlifted out of Saigon; last American combat death.

Ref: 41

Charles McMahon Jr US USMC lance corporal, killed in Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Darwin Judge USMC-corporal, 1 of last US soldiers killed in Viet.

Ref: 5

Michael John Shea USMC-Lieutenant/pilot, 1 of last soldiers killed in Vietnam.

Ref: 5

William Craig Nystul USMC Captain, 1 of last US soldiers killed in Viet.

Ref: 5

North Vietnamese forces take over Saigon, South Vietnam surrenders to North Vietnam, ending the war and reunifying the country under communist control. Washington extends embargo to all of Vietnam.

Ref: 41

The Communist victory in Vietnam is complete.

Ref: 17

May 07

President Ford formally declared an end to the "Vietnam era." In Ho Chi Minh City -- formerly Saigon -- the Viet Cong celebrated its takeover.

Ref: 5

The merchant ship Mayaguezis recaptured from Cambodia's Khmer Rouge.

Ref: 2

Jun 06

Provisional Revolutionary Government of South Vietnam established.

Ref: 5

1976

Apr 25

Elections in Vietnam for a National Assembly to reunite the country.

Ref: 5

Jul 02

North and South Vietnam are officially reunified.

Ref: 2

Sep 13

The United States announces it will veto Vietnam's UN bid. America is not alone. The Vietnamese people are pressuring Hanoi to account for their 300,000 MIAs, as well.

Ref: 2

1977

Jan 21

President Jimmy Carter pardons almost all Vietnam War draft evaders.

Ref: 17

Vietnam hands over MIA to US.

Ref: 5

Dec 03

The State Department proposes the admission of 10,000 more Vietnamese refugees to the United States.

Ref: 2

1979

Vietnamese forces captured the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh, overthrowing the Khmer Rouge government.

Ref: 18

Feb 17

China begins a "pedagogical" war against Vietnam. Chinese troops attack Vietnam along most of their 480 mile long border. It will last until March.

Ref: 5

The Soviet Union warns China to stop its invasion of Vietnam

Ref: 62

China withdraws invasion troops from Vietnam.

Ref: 5

Nov 24

The United States admits that thousands of troops in Vietnam were exposed to the toxic Agent Orange.

Ref: 2

1980

Vietnam adopts constitution.

Ref: 5

1981

A military jury in North Carolina convicted Marine PFC Robert Garwood of collaborating with the enemy while a prisoner of war in Vietnam. (XDG, p 4A, 2/05/2004)

Ref: 83

May 06

Yale architecture student Maya Ying Lin was named winner of a competition to design the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Ref: 6

1982

Jan 24

A draft of Air Force history reports that the U.S. secretly sprayed herbicides on Laos during the Vietnam War.

Ref: 2

Mar 26

Groundbreaking ceremonies take place in Washington, D.C., for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Ref: 5

Nov 10

As part of a four-day national salute to Americans who served in the Vietnam War, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, designed by architect Maya Lin, is dedicated in Washington, D.C. The long-awaited memorial is a simple black granite wall, inscribed with the names of the 58,183 Americans who died in the conflict, arranged in order of death, not rank.

Ref: 3

Nov 13

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial, "The Wall," is dedicated in Washington, D.C.

Ref: 41

1984

Apr 11

Chinese troops invade Vietnam.

Ref: 5

May 07

A $180 million out-of-court settlement was announced in the Agent Orange class-action suit brought by Vietnam veterans who charged they had suffered injury from exposure to the defoliant.

Ref: 70

May 28

President Reagan led a state funeral at Arlington National Cemetery for an unidentified American soldier killed in the Vietnam War. (However, the remains were later identified as those of Air Force First Lieutenant Michael J. Blassie, and were sent to St. Louis for hometown burial.)

Ref: 70

Three Servicemen, a sculpture by Frederick Hart, was unveiled in Washington, DC. It was the final addition to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. The statue faces the wall of names of more than 58,000 Americans who were either killed or reported missing in action during the Vietnam War.

Ref: 4

1985

Vietnam seizes the Khmer National Liberation Front headquarters near the Thai border.

Ref: 2

Feb 14

Vietnamese troops surround the main Khmer Rouge base at Phnom Malai.

Ref: 2

1987

Aug 03

Three days of talks between the U.S. and Vietnam end with no progress on recovering soldiers missing in action.

1988

Jan 21

US accept immigration of 30,000 US-Vietnamese children.

Ref: 5

Mar 11

Pham Hung premier of Vietnam, dies at about 74.

Ref: 5

1989

Dec 13

Forced repatriation of Vietnamese in Hong Kong.

Ref: 5

1991

United States and Vietnam agree to establish U.S. office in Hanoi to help determine MIAs' fate. Washington presents Hanoi with a roadmap for phased normalization of relations and the lifting of the embargo.

Ref: 41

1992

Washington eases trade embargo by allowing commercial sales to Vietnam that meet basic human needs, lifts restrictions on projects by American non-governmental and non-profit groups, and allows establishment of telecommunications links with Vietnam.

Ref: 41

Dec 14

President George Bush grants permission for U.S. companies open offices, sign contracts and do feasibility studies in Vietnam.

Ref: 41

1993

Sep 13

President Clinton eases economic sanctions against Vietnam to allow American firms to bid on development projects financed by international banks, another step toward normalization.

Ref: 41

Nov 11

A bronze statue honoring the more than 11,000 American women who'd served in the Vietnam War was dedicated in Washington DC.

Ref: 70

1994

Jan 16

Admiral Charles Larson, head of U.S. Pacific Command visits Vietnam, the highest-ranking active-duty U.S. military officer to do so since the war's end. He concludes that lifting the trade embargo would help efforts to account for Americans missing from the war.

Ref: 41

Jan 16

Canadian rocker Bryan Adams played before 2,500 people in Ho Chi Minh City. He was the first Western entertainer to perform in Vietnam since the end of the Vietnam War in 1975.

Ref: 4

Feb 03

President Clinton announces the lifting of the trade embargo with Vietnam.

Ref: 41

Oct 05

House passes bill saying MIA accounting should remain central to U.S. policy in Vietnam and the main function of a U.S. liaison office in Vietnam.

Ref: 41

1995

Jan 27

U.S. and Vietnam sign agreements settling old property claims and establishing liaison offices in each other's capitals.

Ref: 41

Vietnam gives U.S. presidential delegation batch of documents on missing Americans, later hailed by Pentagon as most detailed and informative of their kind.

Ref: 41

Jul 11

President Clinton announces normalization of relations with Vietnam, saying the time has come to move forward and bind up the wounds from the war. See also, Ending the Vietnam War.

Ref: 41

Aug 05

Secretary of State Warren Christopher opens U.S. embassy in Hanoi.

Ref: 41

1997

Apr 10

Former POW Douglas "Pete" Peterson is confirmed by the Senate as the first ambassador to Vietnam since the end of the war and the first ever to be posted to Hanoi. Vietnam's Le Van Bang is confirmed as Vietnam's ambassador to the United States.

Ref: 41

May 09

Ambassador Peterson arrives in Hanoi to take up his new post, the first US ambassador since Saigon fell arrives in Vietnam.

Ref: 41

1998