Alternative Sixties

[Glanini]

I had already posted something similar in the past on another forum, but I have decided to go more in detail with this alternate History.

Mainly I divide "my" world history in 6 parts

WWI: 1911-1922
Interwar Period I: 1923-1935
WWII: 1935-1954
Vietnam War & De-Colonization: 1955-1968
Interwar Period II:1969-1977
WWIII: 1978-1989
Post Cold War: 1990-now

Here is what I called Vietnam War & De-Colonization or to make it easier "Alternative Sixties". I will try to post some relate a/p profiles as time become available. The History is in Timeline form and tries to give also the flavour of the time talking also about Sports, Movies and Music. My approach is not to deviate a lot from the original timeline but changing some key events and see the results (e.g. Von Stauffenberg attempt on Hitler succeed).
I hope you will enjoy reading it

Regards

Preface

1954, with the battle of Bien Dien Phu, saw the end of the conflicts of WWII (started in Spain in 1936).
The world has seen the rising of three major powers: USA, USSR and China, while the former colonial Powers: France and United Kingdom have lost some of the power they had , Germany has been able to keep some influence in Europe due to the Leadership of President Rommel and since has been the major stronghold against Communist attacks in Europe.
The major areas of crisis are in South East Asia with conflict in Malaya while in Korea, Indonesia and Viet Nam the situation is still critical. Middle East also is an area of interest with Nasser being the leader of a pan-Arabian vision.
In 1955 Eisenhower is the U.S. President, Krushev is the leader in U.S.S.R., while Rommel is in charge of Germany with the first election scheduled for 1955, also Churchill, another WWII hero, is going to leave the power to Anthony Eden. In France there is a high turnaround of Prime Minister that is creating instability. Mao is the strong leader of China.  

1955
January 2 1955: Central America- José Antonio Remón Cantera, president of Panama, is assassinated at a race track in Panama City. The day after José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama.

January 18-20 1955: China- Battle of Yijiangshan Islands: The Chinese Communist People's Liberation Army seizes the islands from the Republic of China (Taiwan).

January 22 1955: Cold War- The Pentagon announces a plan to develop ICBMs (intercontinental ballistic missiles) armed with nuclear weapons.

January 25 1955: Cold War-Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union announces the end of the war between the USSR and Germany, which began during World War II in 1941.

January 28 1955: China- United States Congress authorizes President Dwight D. Eisenhower to use force to protect Formosa from the People's Republic of China.

February 10 1955: China- Seventh Fleet of the United States Navy helps the Republic of China evacuate Chinese Nationalist army and residents from the Tachen Islands to Taiwan.

February 12 1955: Vietnam War- U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower sends the first U.S. advisors to South Vietnam that helps establish the Air Force.

February 18 1955: China- Clashes between ROCAF Corsairs and PLAAF Lavochkin La15 ends with 2 losses for the Communists and 4 for the Nationalists.

February 18 1955: China- Stalemate between Communists and Nationalists

February 19 1955: Politics- Southeast Asia Treaty Organization established (SEATO) with France, Australia, Philippine, New Zealand, Pakistan, United Kingdom, USA and Thailand

March 2 1955: Civil Rights- Claudette Colvin (a fifteen year old African American girl) refuses to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama, to a white woman after the driver demands it. She is carried off the bus backwards whilst being kicked and handcuffed and harassed on the way to the police station.

March 20 1955: Music & Movies- Evan Hunter's movie adaptation of the novel Blackboard Jungle premieres in the United States, featuring the famous single, Rock Around the Clock, by Bill Haley and His Comets. Teenagers jump from their seats to dance to the song.

April 1 1955: Cyprus Emergency-EOKA starts a revolution against English who occupied Cyprus (taken over from the Ottoman Empire in 1878 and a Crown Colony since 1925).

April 5 1955: Politics- Winston Churchill resigns as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

April 6 1955:  Politics-Anthony Eden becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

April 11 1955: China-  The Taiwanese Kuomintang sabotage the ship Kashmir Princess, killing 16 but failing to assassinate the People's Republic of China leader, Zhou Enlai.

April 17 1955: Hungarian Revolution- Imre Nagy, the communist Premier of Hungary, is ousted for being too moderate, he is replaced by Matias Rakosi.

May 7 1955: Politics- For the first time elections are held in West Germany.

May 14 1955: Cold War- Eight Communist Bloc countries, including the Soviet Union, sign a mutual defense treaty in Warsaw, Poland, that is called the Warsaw Pact.

May 15 1955: Cold War- Austrian State Treaty, which restores Austria's national sovereignty, is concluded between the four occupying powers following World War II and Austria, setting it up as a neutral country.

May 21 1955: Politics- Erwin Rommel leaves the power in West Germany and Konrad Adenauer  is the new Canchellor after the elections.

June 2 1955: The Race for Space: The Cosmodrome of Baikonur is inaugurated in the USSR.

June 11 1955: Sports- Le Mans disaster: eighty-three people are killed and at least 100 are injured after two race cars collide in the 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans.

June 16 1955: South America- In Buenos Aires, FAA Airplanes with “Cristo Vence” insignias are part of a Coup against Peron’s Government. In an attack at “Plaza de Mayo” there are 364 deaths and over a thousan wounded. In the following days Peron’s followers burn several Catholic Churches, without victims.

June 18 1955: South America- Argentinan President Peron is excommunicated by the Pope.

July 7 1955: Indonesian Konfrontasi- The New Zealand Special Air Service is formed.

July 27 1955: Vietnam War- South Vietnamese Premier Ngo Dinh Diem announced in a broadcast that South Vietnam would not participate in the elections specified in the Geneva accords. As Saigon's delegation did not sign the Geneva accords, it was not bound by it.

July 27 1955: Cold War- El Al Flight 402 from Vienna, Austria to Tel Aviv-Yafo via Istanbul is shot down over Bulgaria. All 58 passengers and crewmen aboard the Lockheed Constellation airplane are killed.

August 20 1955: Algerian War- Hundreds of people are killed in anti-French rioting in Morocco and Algeria.

September 19 1955: South America-The President of Argentina, Juan Peron, is ousted in a military coup “La Revolucion Libertadora”. 

September 24 1955: Politics- Dwight D. Eisenhower, President of the United States suffers a coronary thrombosis while on vacation in Denver, Colorado.

September 30 1955: Music & Movies-  Actor James Dean is killed when his automobile collides with another car at a highway junction near Cholame, California. Dean is just 24 years old.

October 26 1955:  Cold War- After the last Allied troops have left the country and following the provisions of the Austrian Independence Treaty, Austria declares its permanent neutrality.

October 27 1955: Vietnam War- Ngo Dinh Diem proclaims Vietnam to be a republic with himself as its President.

October 29 1955: Cold War- Soviet battleship Novorossiysk explodes at moorings in Sevastopol Bay, killing 608, the Soviet Union's worst naval disaster.

November 5 1955: Civil Rights- Racial segregation is outlawed on trains and buses in Interstate Commerce in the United States.

November 26 1955: Cyprus Emergency-The British Governor proclaims a State of Emergency.

December 11 1955: Civil Rights- In Montogomery, Alabama, 42 years old Rosa Parks refuses to give her seat to a white man. This event is considered as the start of the Civil Rights Movement

December 14 1955: Politics- Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Laos, Libya, Nepal, Portugal, Romania, Spain, and Sri Lanka join the United Nations simultaneously, after several years of moratorium on admitting new members that began during the Korean War.
 

[upnorth]

Some interesting ideas you have going on there.

Some other things that might be interesting to ponder:

The 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion succeeded.

Argentina takes the 1957 Defence White Paper and the force reductions it represents to the British military as an opportunity to launch an invasion, and occupation, of the Falkland Islands in the early 1960s.

[Glanini]

Thanks Upnorth

Now in this Alt History Cuba with Castro his a key elements as long as a diferent white paper will see UK with a different role also in the Far East ......

1956

January 1 1956: Suez Crisis- The Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan.

January 16 1956: Suez Crisis- Egyptian leader Gamal Abdel Nasser vows to reconquer Palestine.

January 25-26 1956:Cold War- Finnish troops reoccupy Porkkala after Soviet troops vacate its military base. Civilians can return

January 16 1956: Sport- The 1956 Winter Olympic Games open in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy.

February 11 1956: Cold War- British spies Guy Burgess and Donald Maclean resurface in the Soviet Union after being missing for 5 years.

February 22 1956: Music & Movies – Elvis Presley enters the United States music charts for the first time, with Heartbreak Hotel.

February 25 1956: Cold War- Nikita Khrushchev attacks the veneration of Joseph Stalin as a "cult of personality."

March 2 1956: Algerian War- Morocco declares its independence from France.

March 9 1956: Cyprus Emergency-The British deport Archbishop Makarios from Cyprus to the Seychelles.

March 12 1956: Cold War- Soviet Armed Forces suppresses mass demonstrations in the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic, reacting to Nikita Khrushchev's de-Stalinization policy.

March 13 1956: Politics- 96 U.S. Congressmen sign the Southern Manifesto, a protest against the 1954 Supreme Court ruling (Brown v. Board of Education) that desegregated public education.

March 20 1956: Algerian War- Tunisia gains independence from France.

April 7 1956: Algerian War- Spain relinquishes its protectorate in Morocco.

April 9 1956: Algerian War- Habib Bourguiba is elected prime minister of Tunisia.

April 19 1956: Cold War- British diver and Secret Service Agent Lionel Crabb dives into Portsmouth harbour to investigate a visiting Soviet cruiser and vanishes.

April 27 1956: Sport– Heavyweight boxing champion Rocky Marciano retires without losing a professional boxing match.

May 1 1957: Cold War- At the May 1st Parade for the first airplanes with the livery of each Soviet Republic appears, similar to the US National Guard.



May 8 1956: Indonesian Konfrontasi- The constitutional union between Indonesia and the Netherlands is dissolved

May 23 1956: Algerian War- French minister Pierre Mendès France resigns due to his government's policy on Algeria.

June 28 1956: Cold War- Labour riots in Poznań, Poland, are crushed with heavy loss of life. Soviet troops fire at a crowd that protests high prices, killing 53.

June 29 1956: Music & Movies- Actress Marilyn Monroe marries playwright Arthur Miller.

July 7 1956: Hungarian Revolution- Soviet hardliner Rakosi is forced from power and ordered to Moscow, the moderate Enro Gero is appointed as successor.

July 19 1956: Suez Crisis- US withdraw financial aid for Aswan Dam project. Official reason is Egypt's increased ties to USSR. 

July 26 1956:Suez Crisis- President Nasser announces plan to nationalize Suez Canal. 

July 28 1956: Suez Crisis- Britain freezes Egyptian assets. 

July 30 1956: Suez Crisis- British Prime Minister Anthony Eden imposes an arms embargo on Egypt, and informs General Nasser that he cannot have the Suez Canal.

August 1 1956: Suez Crisis- Britain, France and US hold talks on escalating Suez crisis. 

August 2 1956: Suez Crisis- Britain mobilizes armed forces for the Suez Crisis, a Royal proclamation announced the call up of all reservists and the retention of all troops due for discharge. All carriers at sea were recalled to port and Bulwark embarked her air group of three squadrons of Sea Hawks.

August 17 1956: Cold War – West Germany bans the Communist Party of Germany.

August 21 1956: Suez Crisis- Egypt says it will negotiate on Suez ownership if Britain pulls out of the Middle East. 

August 23 1956: Suez Crisis- USSR announces it will send troops if Egypt is attacked. 

August 26 1956: Suez Crisis- General Nasser agrees to five nation conference on Suez Canal. 

September 5 1956: Suez Crisis- Israel condemns Egypt over Suez crisis. 

September 9 1956: Suez Crisis- Conference talks collapse when General Nasser refuses to allow international control of the Suez Canal. 

September 14 1956: Suez Crisis- Egypt now in full control of the Suez Canal. 

September 19-21 1956: Politics- The President of Argentina, Juan Peron, is ousted in a military coup.

September 21 1956: Cuban Crisis- Nicaraguan dictator Anastasio Somoza García is assassinated.

October 13 1956: Suez Crisis- Anglo-French proposal for the control of the Suez Canal is vetoed by the USSR during UN session.

October 13 1956: Hungarian Revolution- Imre Nagy is reinstated in the Communist Party.

October 13 1956: Hungarian Revolution- Students demonstration requests radical changes in the Communist Party Line.

October 22 1956: Suez Crisis- Britain, France, and Israel secretly meet in and make plans to invade Egypt.

October 23 1956: Hungarian Revolution- The Hungarian revolution breaks out against the pro-Soviet government. Hungary attempts to leave the Warsaw Pact.

October 24 1956 : Hungarian Revolution- Red Army troops stationed in Hungary attempt to take control of Budapest under request from Gero.

October 24 1956 : Hungarian Revolution- Major fighting’s around the Parliament Square in Budapest, Gero is replaced by Janos Kadar

October 24 1956 : Hungarian Revolution- Additional Soviet troops arrive in Budapest, fierce fighting’s continue

October 28 1956: Hungarian Revolution- A cease fire is devlared in Hungart

October 28 1956: Hungarian Revolution- Negotiations starts between Soviet Union and Hungarian Government, in reality the USSR is just buying some time to reinforce their position after the initial fiasco.

October 29 1956: Suez Crisis- Israel invades the Sinai Peninsula and push Egyptian forces back toward the Suez Canal.

October 30 1956: Suez Crisis- Britain and France veto USSR demand for Israel-Egypt cease-fire

October 31 1956: Suez Crisis- H.M.S. Eagle, Albion and Bulwark left Malta with the Helicopter Carriers H.M.S. Ocean and Theseus.

October 31 1956: Hungarian Revolution- President Dwight D. Eisenhower praised the promise by Moscow made the previous day of major concessions to Hungarians in revolt as "the dawning of a new day" in Eastern Europe.

October 31 1956: Suez Crisis- The United Kingdom and France begin bombing Egypt to force the reopening of the Suez Canal.

November 1 1956: Suez Crisis- An emergency special session of the UN is; the same day Nasser requests diplomatic assistance from the U.S., without requesting the same from the Soviet Union.

November 2 1956: Hungarian Revolution- Hungary appealed for UN assistance against Soviet invasion. The Soviets chose Janos Kadar to form a counter-government

November 2 1956: Suez Crisis- UN Assembly finally approves a cease-fire plan for Suez.

November 2 1956: Suez Crisis- F4U-7 Corsairs from the 14.F and 15.F Aéronavale taking off from the French carriers Arromanches and La Fayette, attacked the Cairo aerodrome.

November 4 1956: Hungarian Revolution- More Soviet troops invade Hungary to crush a revolt that started on October 23. Thousands are killed, more are wounded, and nearly a quarter million leave the country. Imre Nagy gets asylum in the Yugoslavian Embassy

November 5 1956: Suez Crisis- British and French forces involved in airborne invasion of Egypt .The 3rd Battalion of the British Parachute Regiment dropped at El Gamil Airfield, clearing the area and establishing a secure base for incoming support aircraft and reinforcements.

November 6 1956: Suez Crisis- British Commandos stormed the beaches, using landing craft of World War II landing crafts while French paratroopers jumped over the al-Raswa bridges from Noratlas Nord 2501

November 6 1956: Politics – United States presidential election, 1956: Republican incumbent Dwight D. Eisenhower defeats Democrat challenger Adlai E. Stevenson in a rematch of their contest 4 years earlier.

November 7 1956: Suez Crisis- The United Nations General Assembly adopts a resolution calling for the United Kingdom, France, and Israel to withdraw their troops from Arab lands immediately.

November 7-30 1956: Suez Crisis- In concert with U.S. actions Saudi Arabia started an oil embargo against Britain and France. The U.S. refused to fill the gap until Britain and France agreed to a rapid withdrawal. The other NATO members refused to sell oil they received from Arab nations to Britain or France

November 8 1956: Hungarian Revolution- UN demanded USSR leave Hungary.

November 13 1956: Civil Rights- The United States Supreme Court declares Alabama and Montgomery, Alabama laws requiring segregated buses illegal, thus ending the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

November 14 1956: Hungarian Revolution- Fighting ends in Hungary.

November 20 1956: Cold War- In Yugoslavia, former prime minister Milovan Djilas is arrested after he criticizes Josip Broz Tito.

November 22 1956: Sport- The 1956 Summer Olympics begin in Melbourne, Australia.

November 23 1956: Suez Crisis- The Suez Crisis causes petrol rationing in Britain.

November 25 1956: Suez Crisis- Egypt begins to expel British, French, and Zionist residents. 

November 28 1956: Music & Movies – Roger Vadim's drama film And God Created Woman released in France (as Et Dieu… créa la femme) propels Brigitte Bardot into the public spotlight as a "sex kitten".

November 29 1956: Suez Crisis- Tripartite Invasion is officially ended under pressure from UN. 

December 1956: Hungarian Revolution- Thousands of Hungarians flee the country and ask for exile to Austria.

December 2  1956: Cuban Crisis- The Yacht Granma with Fidel Castro and other 81 revolutionaries arrived in Cuba.

December 4 1956: Hungarian Revolution- While making Air patrol over the Austrian Hungarian border a couple of Soviet MiG15s invade the Austrian airspace and are attacked by Austrian Me262 with former Luftwaffe WWII pilots on board



December 5 1956: Cuban Crisis- Only twenty of the men on the Granma have escaped from bloody fighting’s with Batista’s army and succeeded in fleeing in the Sierra Maestra Mountains. The group of survivors included Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, Raúl Castro, and Camilo Cienfuegos.

December 20 1956: Suez Crisis- Israel refuses to return Gaza to Egypt. 

December 24 1956: Suez Crisis- British and French troops depart Egypt. 

December 28 1956: Suez Crisis- Operation to clear sunken ship in Suez Canal starts.

[Glanini]

1957

January 7 1957: Algerian War- The “Battle of Algiers” starts. French army is given free hand in the Algiers Casbah against FLN. President of the Council Guy Mollet gave General Massu absolute power on civilian and military matters in Algiers.

January 9 1957: Cold War- Birth of the “Eisenhower Doctrine”- Under the “Eisenhower Doctrine”, a country could request American economic assistance and/or aid from U.S. military forces if it was being threatened by armed aggression from another state.

January 9 1957: Suez Crisis- British Prime Minister Anthony Eden resigns.

January 10 1957: Politics- Harold Macmillan becomes the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

January 20 1957: Politics- Dwight D. Eisenhower is inaugurated for a second term as President of the US.

January 22 1957: Suez Crisis- Israel withdraws from the Sinai Peninsula.

February 4 1957: Algerian War- France prohibits U.N. involvement in Algeria.

February 15 1957: Cold War- Andrei Gromyko becomes foreign minister of the Soviet Union.

February 18 1957: De-Colonization- Kenyan rebel leader Dedan Kimathi is executed by the British colonial government.

March 6 1957: De-Colonization- United Kingdom colonies Gold Coast and British Togoland become the independent nation of Ghana within the Commonwealth.

March 8 1957: Suez Crisis- Egypt re-opens the Suez Canal.

March 14 1957: Indonesian Konfrontasi- President Sukarno declares martial law in Indonesia.

March 20 1957: Algerian War- The French newspaper L'Express reveals that the French army tortures Algerian prisoners.

March 25 1957: Politics- Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and West Germany sign the “Treaty of Rome”, birth of the European Union.

April 10 1957: De-Colonization- Violent demonstrations against foreign rule erupted in Ifni(Spanish Morocco), followed by civil strife and the widespread murder of those loyal to Spain.

April 12 1957: Indonesian Konfrontasi- The United Kingdom announces that Singapore will gain self-rule on January 1, 1958.

May 15 1957:Cold War- At Malden Island in the Pacific, Britain tests its first hydrogen bomb, which fails to detonate properly.

May 15 1957: Race for Space- The first launch of an R-7 rocket as part of the Sputnik Project.

May 24 1957: China- Anti-American riots erupt in Taipei, Taiwan.

June 1957: De-Colonization- Generalissimo Franco dispatched two battalions of the Spanish Legion, Spain's elite fighting force, to El Aaiún (Spanish Morocco).

July 1957: Algerian War- The French complete the “Morice Line” at the Tunisian Border.

August 4 1957: Sport- Juan Manuel Fangio, driving for Maserati, wins the Formula One German Grand Prix, clinching his record 5th world drivers championship, including his 4th consecutive championship.

August 21 1957:Cold War- U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces a 2-year suspension of nuclear testing.

August 28 1957: Civil Rights- United States Senator Strom Thurmond (D-SC) sets the record for the longest filibuster with his 24-hour, 18-minute speech railing against a civil rights bill.

August 31 1957: Indonesian Konfrontasi- The Federation of Malaya gains limited independence from the United Kingdom.

September 1957: Algerian War- The “Battle of Algiers” is over. French army has even destroyed or infiltrated all FLN groups in Algiers.

September 12 1957: De-Colonization- Italian Gas Firm ENI signs a deal with Persian Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi for the use of Iranian oil based on a 75/25 earnings against the 50/50 used by the US/English companies.

September 24 1957: Civil Rights- U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower sends federal troops to Arkansas to provide safe passage into Central High School for the Little Rock Nine.

October 4 1957: Race for Space- The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite to orbit the earth.

October 4 1957: Cold War- New Canadian Air Force Bomber. The Avro Arrow is presented

October 10 1957: Civil Rights- U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower apologizes to the finance minister of Ghana, Komla Agbeli Gbdemah, after he is refused service in a Dover, Delaware restaurant.

October 21 1957: Vietnam War- The U.S. military sustains its first combat fatality in Vietnam, Army Capt. Hank Cramer of the 1st Special Forces Group.

October 23 1957: De-Colonization- Spanish military mobilization resulted in the Moroccan army converging near Ifni.  two villages on the outskirts of Sidi Ifni, Goulimine and Bou Izarguen, were occupied by 1,500 Moroccan soldiers (Moukhahidine).

November 3 1957: Race for Space- The Sputnik program: The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 2, with the first animal to orbit the Earth (a dog named Laika) on board.

November 23 1957: De-Colonization- Out of Tafraout, Spanish lines of communication were cut, and a force of 2,000 Moroccans stormed Spanish garrisons and armories in and around Ifni.

November 23 1957: De-Colonization- At Tiluin, 60 Tiradores de Ifni (indigenous infantry with Spanish officers and specialist personnel), struggled to stave off a force of hundreds of Moroccans. A fleet of five CASA 2.111 bombers (Spanish-built variants of the Heinkel He-111) and 8 FW190, bombed enemy positions, while an equal number of C.A.S.A. 352 transports (Spanish-built versions of the Junkers Ju-523M) dropped a force of 75 paratroopers into the outpost.



December 1 1957: Indonesian Konfrontasi- In Indonesia, Sukarno announces the nationalization of 246 Dutch businesses.

December 3 1957: De-Colonization- At Tiluin soldiers of the Spanish Legion 6th battalion arrived, breaking the siege and retaking the airfield. All military and civilian personnel were then evacuated overland to Sidi Ifni.

December 5 1957: Indonesian Konfrontasi- All 326,000 Dutch nationals are expelled from Indonesia.

December 6 1957: Race for Space- First U.S. attempt to launch a satellite fails, the rocket blowing up on the launch pad.

December 9 1957: De-Colonization- Supplied from the sea by the Spanish Navy and invested with kilometers of trenches and forward outposts, Sidi Ifni, boasting 7,500 defenders proved impregnable.

December 18 1957: Music & Movies- The Bridge on the River Kwai is released in the U.S.

[Glanini]

1958

January-July 1958: Algerian War- “Battle of the Frontiers”, FLN tries to smuggle weapons across the Tunisian Border, fierce fighting’s follow.

January 1958: De-Colonization-  Morocco redoubled its commitment to the Spanish campaign, reorganizing all army units in Spanish territory as the "Saharan Liberation Army".

January 1 1958: Politics- European Economic Community (EEC) founded.



January 12 1958: De-Colonization- A division of the Saharan Liberation Army attacked the Spanish garrison at El Aaiún. Beaten back and forced into retreat by the Spaniards, the army turned its efforts to the southeast.

January 31 1958: Race for Space- The first successful American satellite, Explorer 1, is launched into orbit from Cape Canaveral Missile Annex in Florida.

February 1958: De-Colonization- Franco-Spanish corps launched a major offensive that successively dismantled the Moroccan Liberation Army. For the first time, massively superior European air power was brought to bear as France and Spain deployed a joint air fleet of 150 planes. The Spanish were 9,000 strong and the French 5,000.

February 1 1958: Politics- Egypt and Syria unite to form the United Arab Republic.

February 10 1958: De-Colonization-The 4th, 9th, and 13th Spanish Legion battalions, organized into a motorized group, drove the Moroccans from Edchera and swept through to Tafurdat and Smara.

February 14 1958: Politics-The Hashemite Kingdoms of Iraq and Jordan unite in the Arab Federation of Iraq and Jordan with Iraqi King Faisal II as head of state.

February 21 1958: De-Colonization-The Spanish army at El Aaiún, in conjunction with French forces from Fort Gouraud, struck the Moroccans destroying Saharan Liberation Army concentrations between Bir Nazaran and Ausert.

March 14 1958: Cuban Crisis- An arms embargo - imposed on the Cuban government by the United States government caused increasing problems for the Batista forces.

March 17 1958: Race for Space- The United States launches the Vanguard 1 satellite.

March 25 1958: Cold War- Canada's Avro Arrow makes its debut flight.

March 26 1958: Music & Movies- The 30th Academy Awards ceremony took place; The Bridge on the River Kwai wins 7 Academy Awards, including Academy Award for Best Picture.

March 27 1958: Cold War- Nikita Khrushchev becomes Premier of the Soviet Union.



April 1958: Aden and Radfan Crisis- A state of Emergency being declared in Aden when Yemeni Forces occupied Jebel Jehaf.

April  1958: Algerian War- France is without Governement since mid-February, civil unrest starts.

April 2 1958: De-Colonization- The governments of Spain and Morocco signed the Treaty of Angra de Cintra. Morocco obtained the region of Tarfaya (the colony of Cape Juby), between the river Draa and the parallel 27º 40', excluding Sidi Ifni and the Spanish Sahara.

May 1 1958: South America- Arturo Frondizi becomes President of Argentina.

May 5 1958: De-Colonization- The British Government set up a plan to provide partial independence to its African Colonies within the Commonwealth

May 13 1958: Algerian War- French Algerian protesters seize government offices in Algiers, leading to a military coup.

June 1 1958: Algerian War- Charles de Gaulle is brought out of retirement to lead France by decree for 6 months.

June 4 1958: Algerian War- French President Charles De Gaulle visits Algeria.

June 16 1958: Hungarian Revolution- Imre Nagy is hanged for treason in Hungary after being released by the Yugoslav Embassy with a Safepass.



June 27 1958: Politics- The Peronist Party becomes legal again in Argentina

June 29 1958: Sports-  Brazil beats Sweden 5–2 to win the football World Cup.

July 11-21 1958: Cuban Crisis- In the Battle of La Plata, Castro's forces defeated an entire battalion of Batista’s Army, capturing 240 men while losing just 3 of their own.

July 14 1958: Politics-The Iraqi monarchy is overthrown by Arab nationalists, King Faisal II is murdered and Abdul Karim Qassim assumes power.

July 15 1958: Middle East- In Lebanon, 5,000 United States Marines land in the capital Beirut in order to protect the pro-Western government there with the operation “Blue Bat”.

July 17 1958: Middle East- British paratroopers arrive in Jordan; King Hussein has asked help against pressure from Iraq.

July 29 1958: Cuban Crisis- Batista’s troops almost destroyed Castro's small army (some 300 men) at the Battle of Las Mercedes (Operation Verano).

July 31 1958: China- Tibet Uprising, Tibetan resistance movement against rule by China receives support from the United States Central Intelligence Agency.

August 1958:Cold War- Thor IRBM deployed to the UK, within striking distance of Moscow.

August 8 1958: Cuban Crisis- Castro’s entire army had escaped back into the mountains, and Operation Verano had effectively ended in failure for the Batista government.

August 23 1958: China- The Second Taiwan Strait crisis begins with the People's Liberation Army's bombardment of Quemoy

September 1958: Cuban Crisis- Castro’s forces began their own offensive. In the "Oriente" province Fidel Castro, Raúl Castro and Juan Almeida Bosque directed four fronts. Meanwhile, three columns under the command of Che Guevara, Camilo Cienfuegos and Jaime Vega proceeded westward toward Santa Clara, the capital of Villa Clara Province.

September 5 1958: Cold War-  A US reconnaissance C-130 airplane is shot down over Armenia by Mig-17s, with 17 casualties.

September 22 1958: China- Sidewinder missiles are used for the first time when 32 RoC Sabres and over 100 Communist Chinese MiGs dog fight with 10 MiGs being downed by the F-86s in a single day.

October 2 1959: De-Colonization- Guinea declares itself independent from France.

October 6 1958: China- Faced with a stalemate, the PRC and the ROC called a ceasefire

October 25 1958: Middle East- The US ends operation “Blue Bat” and retreats from Lebanon after having granted the support to the pro Western Government with a new Prime Minister Fuad Chehab

October 28 1958: Politics- Pope John XXIII succeeds Pope Pius XII as the 261st pope

November 1958: Cold War- Start of the second Berlin crisis, Nikita Khrushchev asks the West to leave Berlin.

November 25 1958: De-Colonization- French Sudan gains autonomy as a self-governing member of the French Community

November 28 1958: De-Colonization- Chad, the Republic of the Congo, and Gabon become autonomous republics within the French Community.

December 21 1958: Algerian War- General Charles de Gaulle is elected president of France with 78.5% of the votes

December 30 1958: Cuban Crisis- the combined rebel army with Cienfuegos won a key victory in the Battle of Yaguajay

December 31 1958: Cuban Crisis- the Battle of Santa Clara took place in a scene of great confusion. The city of Santa Clara fell to the combined forces of Che Guevara and Cienfuegos. News of these defeats caused Batista to panic.

[arc3371]

Interesting timeline