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After World War II, France wanted to regain control over Indochina. As French forces were reclaiming territory, a military group was organized to fight against French control. The group was the Vietminh (soon to be called the Viet-cong). The fighting started in 1946, but most of the French losses occurred from 1950 to 1954.

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On April 23, 1975, the last ditch attempt to make sure that South Vietnam wouldn't fall to communism was held at Saigon. The ARVN fought to try and keep the capitol from falling but they were soon out numbered, out gunned, and overrun. Soon, Saigon fell and the South rejoined the North under communist control.

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1970 Nixon starts pulling back U.S. troops

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1970 Nixon starts pulling back U.S. troops

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Nixon initiated his Nixon doctrine or "Vietnamization" in order for the ARVN to take over the defense of South Vietnam. Earlier in 1969, Nixon sent B-52 bombers loaded with nuclear weapons to race to the border of Soviet airspace to show them that he was capable of using anything to end the Vietnam War.

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On the 31st of January in 1968, the Viet-Cong launched a surprise attack on South Vietnam during the Vietnamese new year, Tet. American troops fought long and hard until the Viet-Cong pulled out of the engagement. It was a victory for the South and U.S. but it showed the tactics of the Viet-Cong and it also showed that there was no way to discern which Vietnamese were Viet-Cong or not.

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The French tried to make a last stand in the Vietnam town of Dien Bien Phu. The Vietminh surrounded the town and commenced a heavy bombardment of artillery and mortar shells into the town. At this time, the Geneva conference was in session. France, the U.K, China, Vietnam, and the U.S. were discussing a course of action about the situation in Vietnam. The representative of France soon received word that the last stand at Dien Bien Phu had become a surrender. France, the U.S. and the U.K. agreed to split the country into North communist controlled Vietnam and South democratic controlled Vietnam.

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Ho Chi Minh wanted to reunite Vietnam as a whole. He sent in his troops and weapons through a forested path that lead into South Vietnam. The Viet-cong later called it the Ho Chi Minh trail. While in the South, Buddhist priests were setting themselves on fire to protest the persecution of Buddhism by Diem. The US saw this and gave permission to a "secret" group to assassinate Diem in 1963 (also when Kennedy was assassinated. coincidence? Not really Kennedy was killed on the 22nd of Nov. when Diem and his brother were executed on the 2nd of Nov.).

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While on an intelligence mission near North Vietnam, the USS Maddox fired upon and sunk several torpedo ships that were stalking it. Congress approved the Tonkin Gulf Resolution and it allowed LBJ to send troops to Southeast Asia without the declaration of war.

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After the Geneva conference, the French pull out of Vietnam, and the division of Vietnam, a communist Vietnamese by the name of Ho Chi Minh rose to become the leader of North Vietnam. To make sure that communism didn't spread to the South, the US put Ngo Dinh Diem as the president of South Vietnam. Both Diem and the US rejected the free elections that were to be held so that Diem could stay in power and prevent the spread of communism.