75 Color Photographs That Capture the Fall of Saigon in April, 1975

Saigon, capital city of South Vietnam, fell to North Vietnamese forces on April 30th 1975. The fall of Saigon effectively marked the end of the Vietnam War.

After the introduction of Vietnamisation by President Richard Nixon, US forces in South Vietnam had been constantly reduced leaving the military of South Vietnam to defend their country against the North.

Saigon had already experienced direct military action in 1968 when as part of the Tet Offensive North Vietnamese forces had appeared in Saigon and for a short time had entered the US Embassy. However, brief their incursion may have been, the appearance of North Vietnamese forces in the South’s capital had been a shock.

By 1975, what remained of the South Vietnamese Army was not capable of withstanding the advance of the North and it was an inevitability that Saigon would fall to communist forces.

30 Apr 1975, Saigon, South Vietnam --- A North Vietnamese tank rolls into a compound during the fall of Saigon, 1975. --- Image by © Francoise de Mulder/CORBIS

30 Apr 1975, Saigon, Vietnam --- Vietnamese celebrate after the fall of Saigon. --- Image by © Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma/Corbis

North Vietnamese troops enter Saigon on tanks and trucks, ending the Vietnam War. --- Image by © Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma/Corbis

30 Apr 1975, Saigon, South Vietnam --- Female North Vietnamese troops enter Saigon carrying wooden rifles, red flags, and portrait of Ho Chi Minh. --- Image by © Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma/CORBIS

30 Apr 1975, Saigon, South Vietnam --- Popular jubilation as North Vietnamese troops enter Saigon. --- Image by © Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma/CORBIS

30 Apr 1975, Saigon, South Vietnam --- North Vietnamese troops seize the presidential palace in Saigon. --- Image by © Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma/CORBIS

30 Apr 1975, Saigon, South Vietnam --- Female North Vietnamese troops enter Saigon in a jeep. --- Image by © Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma/CORBIS

30 Apr 1975, Saigon, South Vietnam --- During the Fall of Saigon, a boy on a jeep waves a transitional flag (used for 4 months in the middle of 1975) for South Vietnam, soon to reunite with the North. --- Image by © Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma/CORBIS

As Saigon falls to the communist rule of North Vietnamese, US Ambassador to Vietnam, Graham Martin, speaks to the press April 29, 1975 after an evacuation from South Vietnam. (Photo by Dirck Halstead/Liaison)

The Fall of Saigon, Vietnam in April, 1975 Spontaneous cheers at the communists's arrival. (Photo by Jean-Claude LABBE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

The Vietnam war in April, 1975. (Photo by Jean-Claude FRANCOLON/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

Civilian evacuees board US Marine helicopter inside US Embassy compound to be helilifted to the US Seventh Fleet ahead of Communist troops about to enter Saigon on the last day of the Vietnam War, April 30th 1975 --- Image by © Nik Wheeler/Corbis

The Fall of Saigon, Vietnam in April, 1975-Population fleeing on route. (Photo by Jean-Claude LABBE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

US civilians board helicopter inside the American Embassy compound in Saigon to escape advancing North Vietnamese about to capture Saigon. The evacuees were taken to the Sixth Fleet the day before Saigon fell to the Communists, April 29 1975 --- Image by © Nik Wheeler/Corbis

Civilian evacuees board US Marine helicopter inside US Embassy compound to be helilifted to the US Seventh Fleet ahead of Communist troops about to enter Saigon on the last day of the Vietnam War, April 30th 1975 --- Image by © Nik Wheeler/Corbis

Marines guard the evacuation of civilians at Tan Son Nhut airbase in Vietnam while under Viet Cong fire, during the fall of Saigon, on April 15, 1975

Civilian evacuees board US Marine helicopter inside US Embassy compound to be helilifted to the US Seventh Fleet ahead of Communist troops about to enter Saigon on the last day of the Vietnam War, April 30th 1975 --- Image by © Nik Wheeler/Corbis

The Fall of Saigon, Vietnam in April, 1975 - President Thieu. (Photo by Jean-Claude LABBE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

Japan ESouth Vietnamese UH-1H being pushed overboard to make room for a Cessna O-1 landing. Operation Frequent Wind, the final operation in Saigon, began April 29, 1975. During a nearly constant barrage of explosions, the Marines loaded American and Vietnamese civilians, who feared for their lives, onto helicopters that brought them to waiting aircraft carriers. The Navy vessels brought them to the Philippines and eventually to Camp Pendleton, Calif. (Official U.S. Navy photo)

Vietnamese helicopter sinking after being dumped overboard from aircraft carrier to make more room for the evacuation of American personnel from Vietnam during the fall of Saigon. (Photo by Dirck Halstead/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images)

Jam-packed with more than 7,000 refugees, the South Vietnamese Navy ship HQ-504 arrives at Vung Tau port, the South Vietnam' s most popular sea resort, and now the only port city in the Government hands. More than 20,000 Vietnamese refugees including those from Hue and Danang arrived at Vung Tau from Cam Ranh Bay, on board the Navy ships. The cease fire agreement was signed during the international peace conference on Vietnam the 02 March 1973 in Paris. (Photo credit should read STAFF/AFP/Getty Images)

29 Apr 1975, Saigon, South Vietnam --- A CIA employee (probably O.B. Harnage) helps Vietnamese evacuees onto an Air America helicopter from the top of 22 Gia Long Street, a half mile from the U.S. Embassy. --- Image by © Bettmann/CORBIS

Crowds of Vietnamese and Western evacuees wait around the swimming pool inside the American Embassy compound in Saigon hoping to escape Vietnam via helicopter before the arrival of North Vietnamese troops. Nearly all were left behind as the evacuation stopped at nightfall and the following day, April 30, NVA tanks rolled into saigon and the Vietnam War officially ended. --- Image by © Nik Wheeler/Corbis

The Fall of Saigon in Vietnam on April 30, 1975.

The Fall of Saigon in Vietnam on April 30, 1975 - A jeep willis with on board elements of the GRP (Provisional Revolutionary Government) South Vietnamese traverses Saigon announcing the arrival of the north-Vietnamese tanks. (Photo by Herve GLOAGUEN/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

The Fall of Saigon in Vietnam on April 30, 1975 - The vehicles occupied by soldiers and the resistants go through the town celebrating the victory. (Photo by Herve GLOAGUEN/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

30 Apr 1975, Saigon, South Vietnam --- Abandoned uniforms of South Vietnamese soldiers lie on the road after the invasion of North Communist troops which led to the Fall of Saigon. --- Image by © Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma/CORBIS

30 Apr 1975, Saigon, South Vietnam --- South Vietnamese [sic] tank in flames as North Vietnamese forces enter Saigon. --- Image by © Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma/CORBIS

Press conference of General Tran Van Tra after the fall of Saigon April 30, 1975. (Photo by Herve GLOAGUEN/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

Saigon in Vietnam on April 30, 1975 - G.P.R soldiers and North Vietnamese soldiers in Doc Lap palace after the fall of Saigon on April 30,1975 (Photo by Herve GLOAGUEN/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

The Fall of Saigon in Vietnam on April 29, 1975 - The last American journalists leave Saigon. (Photo by Herve GLOAGUEN/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

30 Apr 1975, Saigon, South Vietnam --- Captured South Vietnamese soldiers sit on a broad lawn after North Vietnamese troops seize the presidential palace in Saigon. --- Image by © Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma/CORBIS

South Vietnamese refugees approach a U.S. war ship to seek refuge from the invading force from the North April 1975 in the South China Sea near Saigon. American involvement in the Vietnam War came to an end when troops from communist North Vietnam invaded Saigon, the capital of the Republic of Vietnam in the South. (Photo by Dirck Halstead/Getty Images)

American military Chinook helicopters April 1975 help in the evacuation of Saigon. America''s involvement in the Vietnam War ended as troops from communist North Vietnam invaded Saigon, the capial of the Republic of Vietnam in the South. (Photo by Dirck Halstead/Getty Images)

South Vietnamese flee Saigon April 1975 with the help of the U.S. military. American involvement in the Vietnam War came to an end when troops from communist North Vietnam invaded Saigon, the capital of the Republic of Vietnam in the South. (Photo by Dirck Halstead/Getty Images)

Saigon's fall. South Vietnamese soldier. April 30, 1975. (Photo by Francoise De Mulder/Roger Viollet/Getty Images)

Saigon in Vietnam in April, 1975 - The area surrounding the American Embassy just before the fall of the city in late April 1975. (Photo by Herve GLOAGUEN/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

Saigon in Vietnam on May 01, 1975 - The wounded civilians at the hospital Grall. (Photo by Herve GLOAGUEN/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

South Vietnamese refugees in boats approach a U.S. war ship to seek refuge from the invading force from the North April 1975 in the South China Sea near Saigon. American involvement in the Vietnam War came to an end when troops from communist North Vietnam invaded Saigon, the capital of the Republic of Vietnam in the South. (Photo by Dirck Halstead/Getty Images)

War of Vietnam. Saigon's fall. Taken of the presidential palace. North - Vietnamese officer holding a flag of the G.R.P. April 30, 1975. FDM-363-8. (Photo by Francoise De Mulder/Roger Viollet/Getty Images)

The Fall of Saigon in Vietnam on April 29, 1975 - A small South Vietnamese plane deliaison was probably crushed with fuel course in a suburb of Saigon at the time of an attempt in escape. (Photo by Herve GLOAGUEN/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

South Vietnamese clamber aboard barges in the port of Saigon in an attempt to escape from advancing North Vietnamese troops on the day of the Fall of Saigon that ended the Vietnam War --- Image by © Nik Wheeler/Corbis

North Vietnamese troops are blindfolded and held under guard April 1975 in Saigon. American involvement in the Vietnam War came to an end when troops from communist North Vietnam invaded Saigon, the capital of the Republic of Vietnam in the South. (Photo by Dirck Halstead/Getty Images)

30 Apr 1975, Saigon, South Vietnam --- A Vietnamese man prays in front of a portrait of Ho Chi Minh after the Fall of Saigon. --- Image by © Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma/CORBIS

South Vietnamese clamber aboard barges in the port of Saigon in an attempt to escape from advancing North Vietnamese troops on the day of the Fall of Saigon that ended the Vietnam War --- Image by © Nik Wheeler/Corbis

The Fall of Saigon, Vietnam in April, 1975 - The Vietcong cutting hair and "western" clothes. (Photo by Jean-Claude LABBE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

The Fall of Saigon, Vietnam in April, 1975 - Vietcongs arriving in Saigon. (Photo by Jean-Claude LABBE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

30 Apr 1975, Saigon, Vietnam --- Vietnamese celebrate after the fall of Saigon. --- Image by © Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma/Corbis

South Vietnamese citizens seeking to flee the country April 1975 are assisted by South Vietnamese troops. American involvement in the Vietnam War came to an end when troops from communist North Vietnam invaded Saigon, the capital of the Republic of Vietnam in the South. (Photo by Dirck Halstead/Getty Images)

The Fall Of Saigon In Vietnam On April 30, 1975

Saigon ( Vietnam's ) fall. Wreck of an airplane in a street. April 30, 1975. FDM-370-6. (Photo by Francoise De Mulder/Roger Viollet/Getty Images)

South Vietnamese clamber aboard barges in the port of Saigon in an attempt to escape from advancing North Vietnamese troops on the day of the Fall of Saigon that ended the Vietnam War --- Image by © Nik Wheeler/Corbis

Vietnamese refugee family fleeing advancing North Vietnamese Communists try to push their laden scooter back onto Highway 1 outside Saigon a few days before Saigon fell and the Vietnam War ended April 1975 --- Image by © Nik Wheeler/Corbis

A tank through the streets of the city destroyed, during the Tet offensive, the Vietnamese new year night. Saigon, January 1968. (Photo by Angelo Cozzi/Archivio Angelo Cozzi/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images)

Two Chinook helicopters hover above a road as they assist in evacuating supplies and soldiers of the South Vietnamese (ARVN) 18th Division and their families from Xuan Loc, Vietnam, mid April, 1975. The road is likely Highway 1. (Photo by Dirck Halstead/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images)

The Fall of Saigon, Vietnam in April, 1975 - Attacking the presidential palace. (Photo by Jean-Claude LABBE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

April, 1975 - Cemetery of Saigon, last South Vietnamese deads. (Photo by Jean-Claude LABBE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

As Saigon falls to the communist rule of North Vietnamese, reporters cover the story April, 1975 from a roof top. (Photo by Dirck Halstead/Liaison)

Assault on Presidential Palace. (Photo by Jean-Claude LABBE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

As Saigon falls to the communist rule of North Vietnamese, a Vietamese family await evacuation April, 1975 in Saigon, Vietnam. (Photo by Dirck Halstead/Liaison)

Crewmen of the amphibious cargo ship U.S.S. Durham (LKA-114) take Vietnamese refugees aboard from a small craft. The refugees will be transferred later by mechanized landing craft (LCM) to the freighter Transcolorado.

The fall of Saigon to Communist North Vietnam April 30th

Saigon, South Vietnam falls to the communist from the North after intense fighting. Many try to flee by ground, air and sea with the help of American Soldiers, South Vietnam, April, 1975. (Photo by Dirck Halstead / Liaison Agency)

Desperate South Vietnamese citizens try to scale the walls of the American Embassy in a vain attempt to flee Saigon and avancing North Vietnamese troops . The following day April 30 1975 Saigon fell to the communists and the Vietnam War was officially over. --- Image by © Nik Wheeler/Corbis

Jam-packed with more than 7,000 refugees, the South Vietnamese Navy ship HQ-504 arrives at Vung Tau port, the South Vietnam' s most popular sea resort, and now the only port city in the Government hands. More than 20,000 Vietnamese refugees including those from Hue and Danang arrived at Vung Tau from Cam Ranh Bay, on board the Navy ships. The cease fire agreement was signed during the international peace conference on Vietnam the 02 March 1973 in Paris. (Photo credit should read STAFF/AFP/Getty Images)

The Fall of Saigon, Vietnam in April, 1975-Tank in Saigon. (Photo by Jean-Claude LABBE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

The Fall of SAIGON - Escape from Vietnam

Desperate South Vietnamese refugees cling to vehicles along Highway 1 as they flee North Vietnamese troops advancing to capture Saigon a few days before the Fall of Saigon that signaled the end of the Vietnam War. --- Image by © Nik Wheeler/Corbis

Desperate South Vietnamese refugees cling to vehicles along Highway 1 as they flee North Vietnamese troops advancing to capture Saigon a few days before the Fall of Saigon that signaled the end of the Vietnam War. --- Image by © Nik Wheeler/Corbis

South Vietnamese babies on a flight from Saigon to the USA (probably San Francisco) during Operation Babylift, the mass evacuation of children from South Vietnam at the end of the Vietnam War, from 3rd to 26th April 1975. (Photo by Jean-Claude FRANCOLON/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

Desperate and frightened South Vietnamese try to convince US Marines guarding the American Embassy to let them into the compound hoping that they will be evacuated by helicopter before the arrival of North Vietnamese troops about to enter the city. Most of them were denied entrance and the hundreds of refugees already inside the embassy grounds were abandoned. --- Image by © Nik Wheeler/Corbis

April 1975, Bien-hoa, South Vietnam --- A street congested with traffic as refugees flee in automobiles to Saigon near the end of the Vietnam War. --- Image by © Nik Wheeler/CORBIS

Refugees during the last days of the Vietnam War. Photo by Hiroji Kubota

Refugees during the last days of the Vietnam War. Photo by Hiroji Kubota