The war started...

Officially, it started in the 1950's but that's not to say that earlier conflict didn't occur. 

- In 1954, the Geneva conference took place with the intention of ending any preexisting issues from the Korean and first Indochina wars. From this event, a ceasefire was agreed upon, therefore ending the Indochina war

- August 5th, 1964 was a major turning point in which North Vietnamese torpedo boats supposedly ambushed the U.S.S. Turner Joy and U.S.S. Maddox. To fight back, President Johnson sent bombs to North Vietnam, thus continuing the soon to be 20 year battle.

US involvement occurred...

1954 was the year America got involved, due to the fear of communism spending to South Vietnam and the remaining Asia territories.

The gulf of tonkin...

The Gulf of Tonkin was the reason for America's fulled fledged involvement into the war. This was in response to two U.S. ships reporting North Vietnamese ships firing at them, thus getting the "ok" from the president to pursue combat

Fighting tactics...

- Bombing... in which over 5 millions tons of bombs were dropped from planes onto Vietnam

-  Search and Destroy... where ground forces would take over hostile territory and destroy the opposing side from there

- "Hug" method... in which troops would get extremely close before opening fire on the enemy

Major battles...

Battle of Hué - considered the single most bloody battle in the Vietnam War, the city of Hué was virtually destroyed, and more than 7,000 casualties occurred

Tet Offensive - was influential on America due to leading its political and military leaders to believe that the North Vietnamese were being defeated and incapable of launching such an ambitious military operation but clearly they were proven wrong

Battle of Khe Sanh - where over 1,000 deaths occurred and both sides claimed victory

Important people...

Richard Nixon - the main president during the Vietnam War who was a key hand in America's decisions

John F. Kennedy - the second president to aide in decision making during the Vietnam war as well as heightened the importance of America's position

Robert McNamara - was an extreme promoter of the Vietnam War in America's favor and their involvement

The peoples opinion...

The younger generation were the most adamant on the idea of peace among the war with huge protests and tranquil mindsets. Parents were big supporters of ending the war as well due to their sons and friends being drafted to fight and maybe even die. 

an end to the war...

The Vietnam war eventually came to an end on April 30th 1975 under President Ford's term. On January 27th, 1973, the Paris Peace Accords took place with the intention of ending the war and stated that North and South Vietnam would hold their positions, America would withdraw and leave, and both sides would find a peaceful path.

Lasting effects...

The Vietnam War had a dramatic impact pertaining to the U.S. economy, family life and everyones minds. After the war, a spike in divorce rates, suicide, alcoholism and drug addiction ensued which tainted the everyday lives of the American people. Not only that but President Johnson refused to raise taxes for war costs which caused extreme inflation. In total, the war ended in over 57,000 U.S. casualties and over 1,600,000 casualties worldwide. As well as 2,600 declared MIA and roughly 1,300 POW.