Libya becomes independent after Italian colonial rule

The Basic Law took effect in the western occupation zones, establishing the Federal Republic of Germany. The division of Germany reflected postwar occupation and growing Cold War rivalry. European...

Mao Zedong proclaimed the People’s Republic of China in Beijing after decades of revolution, Japanese invasion, and civil war. The Nationalist government retreated to Taiwan. The new state’s...

The Netherlands transferred sovereignty to the Republic of the United States of Indonesia after four years of revolution and international pressure. The agreement excluded West New Guinea from the...

North Korean forces crossed the 38th parallel, beginning a war on a peninsula divided by U.S. and Soviet occupation after Japan’s defeat. Koreans had not chosen the division, and the war drew in...

The UN General Assembly voted to federate Eritrea with Ethiopia under the Ethiopian Crown, after Italian colonial rule and British military administration. Eritrean communities’ preferences were...

Students and activists in Dhaka protested the exclusion of Bengali as a state language of Pakistan. Police killed demonstrators, including students, and the movement became a defining struggle for...

The Free Officers movement overthrew King Farouk and established a republic, opening a period of land reform and confrontation with British influence. The revolution emerged amid military defeat in...

The colonial government declared a state of emergency and arrested nationalist leaders including Jomo Kenyatta as armed resistance against settler rule intensified. Land alienation, forced removals,...

After a prolonged siege, Vietnamese forces defeated the French garrison at Điện Biên Phủ. The victory ended France’s attempt to restore colonial rule in Indochina and inspired liberation struggles...

The Geneva Accords ended the First Indochina War and recognized independence for Cambodia and Laos while temporarily dividing Vietnam at the 17th parallel. Planned nationwide elections were never...