Vietnam War Timeline of Events

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Vietnam War

The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of South Vietnam, supported by the United States and other anti-communist nations...

Timeline of Events

1970

11.4.1970

Vietnam War: Vietnamization

11.5.1970

Vietnam War: The United States Military Assistance Command in Vietnam reports the lowest weekly American soldier death toll in five years (24).

11.9.1970

Vietnam War: The Supreme Court of the United States votes 6 to 3 against hearing a case to allow Massachusetts to enforce its law granting residents the right to refuse military service in an undeclared war.

11.10.1970

Vietnam War: Vietnamization

11.17.1970

Vietnam War: Lieutenant William Calley goes on trial for the My Lai massacre.

1971

2.13.1971

Vietnam War: Backed by American air and artillery support, South Vietnamese troops invade Laos.

4.19.1971

Vietnam War: Vietnam Veterans Against the War begin a five-day demonstration in Washington, D.C..

6.6.1971

Vietnam War: The Battle of Long Khanh between Australian and Vietnamese communist forces begins.

6.13.1971

Vietnam War: ''The New York Times'' begins publication of the Pentagon Papers.

1972

2.29.1972

Vietnam War: Vietnamization

4.2.1972

Vietnam War: The Easter Offensive begins – North Vietnamese soldiers of the 304th Division take the northern half of Quang Tri Province.

4.6.1972

Vietnam War: Easter Offensive

4.10.1972

Vietnam War: For the first time since November 1967, American B-52 bombers reportedly begin bombing North Vietnam.

4.22.1972

Vietnam War: Increased American bombing in Vietnam prompts anti-war protests in Los Angeles, New York City, and San Francisco.

4.25.1972

Vietnam War: Nguyen Hue Offensive – The North Vietnamese 320th Division forces 5,000 South Vietnamese troops to retreat and traps about 2,500 others northwest of Kontum.

8.11.1972

Vietnam War: the last United States ground combat unit departs South Vietnam.

10.22.1972

Vietnam War: In Saigon, Henry Kissinger and South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu meet to discuss a proposed cease-fire that had been worked out between Americans and North Vietnamese in Paris.

11.30.1972

Vietnam War: White House Press Secretary Ron Ziegler tells the press that there will be no more public announcements concerning American troop withdrawals from Vietnam due to the fact that troop levels are now down to 27,000.

12.16.1972

Vietnam War: Henry Kissinger announces that North Vietnam has left private peace negotiations, in Paris.

12.18.1972

Vietnam War: President Richard Nixon announces that the United States will engage North Vietnam in Operation Linebacker II, a series of Christmas bombings, after peace talks collapsed with North Vietnam on the 13th.

12.30.1972

Vietnam War: The United States halts heavy bombing of North Vietnam.

1973

1.15.1973

Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, President Richard Nixon announces the suspension of offensive action in North Vietnam.

1.27.1973

The Paris Peace Accords officially end the Vietnam War. Colonel William Nolde is killed in action becoming the conflict's last recorded American combat casualty.

2.11.1973

Vietnam War: First release of American prisoners of war from Vietnam takes place.

2.12.1973

Vietnam War: The first United States prisoners of war are released by the Viet Cong.

3.29.1973

Vietnam War: The last United States combat soldiers leave South Vietnam.

8.15.1973

Vietnam War: The United States bombing of Cambodia ends.

1974

8.5.1974

Vietnam War: the U.S. Congress places a $1 billion dollar limit on military aid to South Vietnam.

1975

4.2.1975

Vietnam War: Thousands of civilian refugees flee from the Quang Ngai Province in front of advancing North Vietnamese troops.

4.4.1975

Vietnam War: Operation Baby Lift

4.21.1975

Vietnam War: President of South Vietnam Nguyen Van Thieu flees Saigon, as Xuan Loc, the last South Vietnamese outpost blocking a direct North Vietnamese assault on Saigon, falls.

4.30.1975

Fall of Saigon (or Liberation of Saigon from the Communist perspective): Communist forces gain control of Saigon. The Vietnam War formally ends with the unconditional surrender of South Vietnamese president Duong Van Minh.

9.8.1975

Gays in the military: US Air Force Tech Sergeant Leonard Matlovich, a decorated veteran of the Vietnam War, appears in his Air Force uniform on the cover of ''Time'' magazine with the headline "I Am A Homosexual". He is later given a general discharge.

1977

1.21.1977

President Jimmy Carter pardons nearly all American Vietnam War draft evaders, some of whom had emigrated to Canada.

1982

11.13.1982

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is dedicated in Washington, D.C. after a march to its site by thousands of Vietnam War veterans.

2000

11.16.2000

Bill Clinton becomes the first U.S. President to visit Vietnam since the end of the Vietnam War.

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