Five men were arrested inside the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C., after being discovered with surveillance equipment—an event that triggered the Watergate scandal.
A federal grand jury indicted the five burglars along with E. Howard Hunt and G. Gordon Liddy on charges including conspiracy, burglary, and violations of federal wiretapping laws, moving the case firmly into the courts.
In the initial Watergate criminal case, the burglars and related defendants pleaded guilty or were convicted, with Chief Judge John J. Sirica presiding—an early judicial push that helped widen scrutiny beyond the break-in itself.
The U.S. Senate unanimously established the Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the Senate Watergate Committee) to investigate the break-in and related abuses and cover-up allegations.
Archibald Cox began serving as special prosecutor, giving the Justice Department’s Watergate investigation a dedicated, independent figurehead—setting up later clashes over access to White House evidence.
Former Nixon aide Alexander Butterfield publicly disclosed that a secret taping system recorded presidential conversations, transforming Watergate by creating the possibility of direct audio evidence of decision-making and the cover-up.
After Cox refused a compromise proposal on handling the tapes, President Nixon ordered him fired; the attorney general and deputy attorney general resigned rather than carry out the order, and Solicitor General Robert Bork dismissed Cox—deepening the constitutional crisis.
Leon Jaworski was appointed as the new special prosecutor after the Saturday Night Massacre, and the prosecution effort continued with renewed demands for tapes and other evidence.
The Senate Watergate Committee announced discovery of an 18½-minute gap in a tape of a Nixon–Haldeman conversation, intensifying suspicion about evidence handling and possible obstruction.
The U.S. House of Representatives approved a resolution authorizing the House Judiciary Committee to investigate whether grounds existed to impeach President Nixon, formalizing impeachment as a central track of Watergate accountability.
In United States v. Nixon, the Supreme Court unanimously required President Nixon to comply with a subpoena for Watergate-related recordings, rejecting an absolute claim of executive privilege in this context.
The House Judiciary Committee approved its first proposed article of impeachment against Nixon—obstruction of justice—focused on efforts to impede the Watergate investigation and cover up wrongdoing.
The committee approved a second proposed article of impeachment—abuse of power—addressing misuse of presidential authority and federal agencies in ways alleged to violate constitutional rights and lawful processes.
The committee approved a third proposed article of impeachment—contempt of Congress—citing Nixon’s refusal to comply with House subpoenas for evidence including tapes and related materials.
The White House released the June 23, 1972 recording commonly called the “smoking gun,” which showed Nixon participating in an early plan to use the CIA to pressure the FBI to limit the investigation—collapsing remaining political support.
Facing near-certain impeachment and removal, President Nixon announced on national television that he would resign the presidency effective the next day.
Richard Nixon’s resignation took effect at noon, and Vice President Gerald R. Ford was sworn in as president—marking the first and only U.S. presidential resignation to date.
President Gerald Ford granted Nixon a “full, free and absolute pardon” for any federal crimes he may have committed while in office (Proclamation 4311), decisively shaping Watergate’s legal aftermath.
Watergate Scandal and Nixon's Resignation (1972–1974)
