1950 - 1959

1950s EU was formed

1951 Apartheid introduced in South Africa. It was overthrown in 1994.

1949 - 1954 The Rock and Roll Explosion. Elvis Presley.

1947 - 1954 McCarthyism. Witchhunt of communists in the US. The Senate voted to censure McCarthy for abuse of power. He died less than 3 years later.

1947 "Hollywood Ten" At one House Committee on Un-American Activities hearing, 10 witnesses were blacklisted because they refused to answer the question: "Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Communist Party?"

1951 Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were sentenced to death for passing atomic secrets to Soviet Union.

1952 The US detonated the first hydrogen bomb in the Pacific.

1957 Ghana gained independence from Britain.

1960 Congo gained independence from Belguim under activist Patrice Lumumba. But the province Katanga sought to break away under pro-Western leader Tshombe. Lumumba was overthrown by one of his army officer Joseph Mobutu with the help of the US. Lumumba was captured by Tshombe's soldiers, beaten and executed. Mobutu renamed the country to Zaire.

1948 Kim II-sung established the People's Democratic Republic of Korea in North Korea supported by the Soviet Union. The US helped founded an anti-communis regime in South Korea.

1950 - 1953 Korean War between North Korea + China aganst US led UN forces.. MacCathur was recalled by Truman for MacArthur's desire to fight against China. The war entered into stalemate around 38th parallel in 1951. Armistice was signed on 1953 and a demilitarized zone was established.

1953 Mount Everest was successfully climbed by a New Zealander and a Nepalese.

1956 Hungarian Revolution: Soviet tanks crushed Hungarian revolution. Prime Minister Imre Nagy tried to negotiate a peace between Soviets and the protesters. When he asked west for help the tanks came back and silenced him. He was executed 2 years later.

... it is possible that I shall only be able to stay at my post for one or two hours.

-- Imre Nagy's last broadcast, 1956

1952 Nationaliist army officers led by General Neguib overthrew the pro-British regime.

1953 Coup partner Colonel Nasser overthrew Neguib to become the president.

1956 Egypt took over the Suez Canal from the Anglo-French company. When Israeli forces worked with Britain and France to retake the canal, Nasser sank 47 ships to block the canal. Ignoring UN calls, Franco-British force assaulted Port Said. Nasser won in the end by standing firm and with the pressure from the US and the anti-war protest in Britain. A ceasefire happened and the UN Emergency Force was dispatched to keep the peace. It is the first time UN blue helmet was worn.

I've just never seen great powers make such a complete mess and botch of things.

-- US President Eisenhower, 1956

1958 When Algeria nationalists started guerrilla warafre and terror attacks trying to gain independence, Frech settlers in Algeria also revolted, angry with the French government not helping to stop the Algerian nationalists. They demanded de Gaulle to come back as Prime Minister. However when de Gaulle did come back, he decided to emancipate Algeria. This led to more revolt and assassination of him.

1962 Algeria gained independence.

1954 - 1968 Che Guevara, an Argentine revolutionary. 1953 in Guatemala, failed because of CIA support. 1956 he landed in Cuba with Castro and finally won at 1959 after a long guerrilla war. 1965 in Congo but he lost faith to the internal rivalries within the country. 1967 in Bolivia he was captured and executed.