America in Vietnam

American involvement in the Vietnam War began in the late 1950s, with ground troops arriving in 1965. The war was costly and controversial. Protests against American involvement, some held in national parks, became a defining element of the 1960s counterculture. By the time American forces withdrew from the conflict in 1973, more than 58,000 American lives were lost. Today the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, DC, honors the American men and women who served.