Contemporary
Minamata Disease (1956): Industrial Mercury Poisoning in Japan
Thousands were poisoned; the Japanese government recognised the cause only in 1968, and the disaster inspired the global Minamata Convention on Mercury of 2013.
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
Battle of Algiers 1957: Urban War in the Algerian Revolution
French paratroopers dismantled the FLN network in Algiers, but the systematic use of torture damaged France politically at home and abroad.
Contemporary
Ghana Independence 1957: Kwame Nkrumah and Africa's First Step
The Gold Coast became the independent state of Ghana within the Commonwealth, with Kwame Nkrumah as prime minister.
Contemporary
Little Rock Nine (1957): Integrating Central High School
Federal troops enforced the desegregation of Central High; the crisis confirmed federal authority over school integration but Little Rock's high schools were closed in 1958–59.
Contemporary
Jodrell Bank and the Lovell Telescope (1957): Radio Astronomy
The 76-metre Mark I telescope became the largest steerable radio telescope in the world, gained fame by tracking Sputnik's rocket, and made Jodrell Bank a leading centre of radio astronomy.
Contemporary
Treaty of Rome (1957): Founding the European Economic Community
Belgium, France, West Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands created the European Economic Community and Euratom, which came into being on 1 January 1958.
Contemporary
Laika and Sputnik 2 (1957): The First Animal in Orbit
Laika became the first animal to orbit Earth, showing that a living creature could survive launch and weightlessness, but she died within hours from overheating.
Contemporary
Sputnik 1 (1957): The First Satellite and the Space Race
The Soviet Union placed the first artificial satellite in orbit, shocking the West and launching the Space Race between the USSR and the United States.
Contemporary
14 July Revolution 1958: The Fall of Iraq's Hashemite Monarchy
The monarchy was abolished and Iraq declared a republic; King Faisal II, members of the royal family and Prime Minister Nuri al-Said were killed.
Contemporary
Great Leap Forward 1958-1962: Mao's Campaign and the Great Famine
The campaign failed and led to the Great Chinese Famine of 1959–1961, with most estimates of excess deaths between 15 and 55 million.
Contemporary
Aldermaston Marches (1958): CND and the Birth of the Peace Symbol
The first Aldermaston march launched an annual Easter tradition, made CND a mass movement and introduced the peace symbol to the world.
Contemporary
Notting Hill Race Riots (1958): Racist Violence in West London
Several days of attacks on Caribbean residents ended with over 100 arrests and exemplary sentences; the riots spurred Black community organising and the first Caribbean carnival in London.