1960 US aid to the South Vietnamese President,
Ngo Dinh Diem, increased

1962 President John F Kennedy provides US military
advisers to South Vietnam (12,000 by end of year)
AATTV committed with 30 advisors

1963 Viet Cong, the communist guerrillas operating
in South Vietnam, defeat units of ARVN, the South
Vietnamese army.President Diem overthrown

1964 North Vietnamese patrol boats fire on the US
destroyer USS Maddox in the Gulf of Tonkin, triggering
start of US bombing raids on North Vietnam

1965 US troops in Vietnam number 23,000 at start of year
1RAR committed in "limited" role.

1966. 400,000 US troops in Vietnam, rising to 500,000 in 1967.

1968 Tet Offensive a combined assault by Viet Cong and
North Vietnamese army on US positions - begins.

More than 500 civilians die in My Lai massacre

1968 March 31 President Lyndon Johnson announces on
television that bombing north of the 20th parallel will
stop and that he will not seek re-election in the fall.

Hanoi responds by de-escalating its insurgency efforts,
and in October Johnson orders total halt to bombing.
US and Hanoi agree to preliminary peace talks in Paris

1969 President Nixon draws back US ground troops from Vietnam

1970 Nixon's national security adviser, Henry Kissinger,
and Le Duc Tho of the Vietnamese Politburo start talks in Paris

1972 D Company 4RAR last Australian Infantry Unit to leave SVN.

1973 Ceasefire agreement with guarantees of no further attacks
on the sovereign nation of SVN by NVN. "Peace with Honour"
Withdrawal of US troops completed by March.

1975 North Vietnamese troops invade South Vietnam and take
control of the whole country after South Vietnam surrenders

1975 April Last members of US embassy staff evacuated by
helicopter from roof of embassy Human toll 3,000,000 military
and civilian Vietnamese. 58,000 Americans. 500 Australians