Contemporary
Founding of the People's Republic of China, 1 October 1949
The Chinese Communist Party established the People's Republic of China, while the Republic of China government retreated to Taiwan.
Era · 1945 – present
Contemporary
From the Cold War and the Space Race to the fall of the Berlin Wall and the world we live in today.
Contemporary
First Soviet Atomic Bomb (1949): The RDS-1 Test in Kazakhstan
The Soviet Union became the world's second nuclear power, ending the American atomic monopoly four years earlier than US intelligence had expected.
Contemporary
Founding of NATO (1949): The North Atlantic Treaty Signed
Twelve Western countries formed a collective defence alliance; the treaty entered into force on 24 August 1949.
Contemporary
The Second Sex (1949): Simone de Beauvoir's Feminist Landmark
The two-volume study caused a scandal in France and became a founding text of second-wave feminism and gender theory.
Contemporary
Council of Europe (1949): Founding of Europe's Human Rights Body
Ten Western European states created an intergovernmental organisation for democracy, human rights and the rule of law, which later produced the European Convention on Human Rights.
Contemporary
Chinese Annexation of Tibet 1950: Chamdo and the 17-Point Deal
Tibet's army was defeated at Chamdo and the Seventeen Point Agreement of May 1951 placed Tibet under the People's Republic of China.
Contemporary
Klaus Fuchs (1950): The Atomic Spy Who Confessed in Britain
Fuchs confessed, was convicted under the Official Secrets Act on 1 March 1950 and sentenced to 14 years; his confession led the FBI to Harry Gold and the Rosenberg network.
Contemporary
Battle of the Pusan Perimeter (1950): Holding the Line in Korea
UN and South Korean forces held the perimeter around Pusan; the North Korean army was exhausted and collapsed after the Inchon landing and the breakout of mid-September 1950.
Contemporary
Battle of Chosin Reservoir (1950): Fighting Retreat in the Cold
UN forces broke out of the Chinese encirclement and reached the coast, but northeastern Korea was abandoned and the troops were evacuated from Hungnam.
Contemporary
Battle of Inchon (1950): MacArthur's Amphibious Gamble in Korea
Decisive UN victory; the landing cut North Korean supply lines, led to the recapture of Seoul and reversed the course of the Korean War.
Contemporary
McCarthyism (1950-1954): Joseph McCarthy and the Red Scare
McCarthy's influence collapsed after the televised Army-McCarthy hearings, and the Senate condemned him on 2 December 1954.
Contemporary
Korean War (1950-1953): The First Hot War of the Cold War
An armistice signed on 27 July 1953 left Korea divided near the 38th parallel; no peace treaty has ever been concluded.