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3 days ago · The Vietnam War (1954–75) was a conflict that pitted the communist government of North Vietnam and its allies in South Vietnam, the Viet Cong, against South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States. It was part of a larger regional conflict as well as a manifestation of the Cold War.
- The U.S. Role Grows
To the new administration of U.S. Pres. John F. Kennedy, who...
- Fall of Saigon
Vietnam War - Fall, Saigon, US Withdrawal: In early March...
- French Rule, Division, Conflict
The Vietnam War had its origins in the broader Indochina...
- My Lai Massacre
My Lai, a subdivision of Son My village, was located in the...
- Indochina Wars
Indochina wars, 20th-century conflicts in Vietnam, Laos, and...
- Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson put the Gulf of Tonkin...
- Gulf of Tonkin Incident
The Gulf of Tonkin incident was a complex naval event in the...
- Diem Regime, Viet Cong, Conflict
Summarize This Article The Diem regime and the Viet Cong....
- The U.S. Role Grows
Find current and historical data on the U.S. military involvement in Vietnam, including casualties, spending, public opinion, and legacy. Explore charts, maps, and tables on various aspects of the conflict and its impact.
- Roots of The Vietnam War
- When Did The Vietnam War Start?
- The Viet Cong
- Domino Theory
- Gulf of Tonkin
- William Westmoreland
- Vietnam War Protests
- Tet Offensive
- Vietnamization
- My Lai Massacre
- GeneratedCaptionsTabForHeroSec
Vietnam, a nation in Southeast Asia on the eastern edge of the Indochinese peninsula, had been under French colonial rule since the 19th century. During World War II, Japanese forces invaded Vietnam. To fight off both Japanese occupiers and the French colonial administration, political leader Ho Chi Minh—inspired by Chinese and Soviet communism—for...
The Vietnam War and active U.S. involvement in the war began in 1954, though ongoing conflict in the region had stretched back several decades. After Ho’s communist forces took power in the north, armed conflict between northern and southern armies continued until the northern Viet Minh’s decisive victory in the Battle of Dien Bien Phuin May 1954. ...
With the Cold War intensifying worldwide, the United States hardened its policies against any allies of the Soviet Union, and by 1955 President Dwight D. Eisenhowerhad pledged his firm support to Diem and South Vietnam. With training and equipment from American military and the CIA, Diem’s security forces cracked down on Viet Minh sympathizers in t...
A team sent by President John F. Kennedyin 1961 to report on conditions in South Vietnam advised a build-up of American military, economic and technical aid in order to help Diem confront the Viet Cong threat. Working under the “domino theory,” which held that if one Southeast Asian country fell to communism, many other countries would follow, Kenn...
A coup by some of his own generals succeeded in toppling and killing Diem and his brother, Ngo Dinh Nhu, in November 1963, three weeks before Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. The ensuing political instability in South Vietnam persuaded Kennedy’s successor, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Secretary of Defense Robert McNamarato further increase U.S....
In contrast to the air attacks on North Vietnam, the U.S.-South Vietnamese war effort in the south was fought primarily on the ground, largely under the command of General William Westmoreland, in coordination with the government of General Nguyen Van Thieu in Saigon. Westmoreland pursued a policy of attrition, aiming to kill as many enemy troops a...
By November 1967, the number of American troops in Vietnam was approaching 500,000, and U.S. casualties had reached 15,058 killed and 109,527 wounded. As the war stretched on, some soldiers came to mistrust the government’s reasons for keeping them there, as well as Washington’s repeated claims that the war was being won. The later years of the war...
By the end of 1967, Hanoi’s communist leadership was growing impatient as well, and sought to strike a decisive blow aimed at forcing the better-supplied United States to give up hopes of success. On January 31, 1968, some 70,000 DRV forces under General Vo Nguyen Giap launched the Tet Offensive(named for the lunar new year), a coordinated series o...
Nixon sought to deflate the anti-war movement by appealing to a “silent majority” of Americans who he believed supported the war effort. In an attempt to limit the volume of American casualties, he announced a program called Vietnamization: withdrawing U.S. troops, increasing aerial and artillery bombardment and giving the South Vietnamese the trai...
The next few years would bring even more carnage, including the horrifying revelation that U.S. soldiers had mercilessly slaughtered more than 400 unarmed civilians in the village of My Lai in March 1968. After the My Lai Massacre, anti-war protests continued to build as the conflict wore on. In 1968 and 1969, there were hundreds of protest marches...
Learn about the origins, course and consequences of the Vietnam War, a long and divisive conflict between communist North Vietnam and South Vietnam and its ally, the United States. Find out how the war affected millions of people, both in Vietnam and in the U.S., and explore the key events and turning points of the war.
- The Vietnam War was a military conflict between North Vietnam and U.S.- aided South Vietnam from 1955–1975. The conflict has deep historical roots, most recently the First Indochina War between the communist North and the French-backed South, and the subsequent splitting of Vietnam into North and South.
- The United States grew interested in the political situation in Vietnam because of the perceived growing threat of global communism. American leaders viewed North Vietnam, led by communist Ho Chi Minh, as an ideological threat to the surrounding region.
- Vietnam has been subject to many foreign powers. The country was a part of Imperial China until it gained independence in 939 AD. It was colonized by the French in the late 1800s and invaded by Japan and the United States in the 20th century.
- Historians of the Vietnam War point to many misconceptions on the part of the United States that contributed to U.S. failure in the war, the most serious of which was a severe lack of understanding of Vietnamese history and society.
- Casualties in the Vietnam War. The U.S. suffered over 47,000 killed in action plus another 11,000 noncombat deaths; over 150,000 were wounded and 10,000 missing.
- North Vietnam, South Vietnam. Vietnam has a long history of being ruled by foreign powers, and this led many Vietnamese to see the United States’ involvement in their country as neo-colonialism.
- United States Military Advisors in Vietnam. The U.S., which had been gradually exerting influence after the departure of the French government, backed Diem in order to limit the area under communist control.
- American Military Involvement Escalates. American involvement began to escalate under President John F. Kennedy’s administration (January 1961–November 1963).
Vietnam War. The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 [A 1] to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and a major conflict of the Cold War.
My Lai Massacre. March 16, 1968. Fall of Saigon. March 4, 1975 - April 30, 1975. Read More: Vietnam War Timeline. Key People. Richard Nixon. president of United States.
