Directory

1959 CE

A year shaped by the Cuban Revolution, the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway, the Antarctic Treaty, and the first photographs of the far side of the Moon.

Geopolitics & Diplomacy

  • Fidel Castro's revolutionary forces seized power in Cuba in January after dictator Fulgencio Batista fled the country, establishing a government that would reshape Caribbean geopolitics.
  • The Tibetan uprising against Chinese rule in March was crushed by the People's Liberation Army, forcing the Dalai Lama to flee into exile in India.
  • Alaska and Hawaii were admitted as the 49th and 50th states of the United States in January and August respectively.
  • The Antarctic Treaty was signed in December by twelve nations, designating the continent for peaceful scientific research and suspending territorial claims.
  • Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev visited the United States in September, the first visit by a Soviet leader, touring farms and factories though being denied access to Disneyland.
  • Singapore achieved self-governance from Britain in June, with Lee Kuan Yew becoming the first prime minister.
  • The Central Treaty Organization was weakened when Iraq withdrew from the Baghdad Pact following the previous year's revolution.
  • Charles de Gaulle was inaugurated as the first president of the French Fifth Republic in January, wielding expanded executive powers.
  • Guinea, which had rejected membership in the French Community the previous year, moved closer to the Soviet Union as France withdrew all aid.
  • The European Court of Human Rights heard its first case, establishing itself as a judicial body for human rights protection in Europe.

Conflict & Security

  • The Cuban Revolution succeeded in January, with Castro's guerrilla forces entering Havana as Batista's regime collapsed.
  • The Tibetan resistance to Chinese occupation culminated in a major uprising in Lhasa in March, which was violently suppressed by Chinese forces.
  • The Algerian War of Independence entered its fifth year, with the conflict intensifying and French public opinion increasingly divided.
  • A communist insurgency gained strength in Laos, with the Pathet Lao forces expanding their territory with North Vietnamese support.
  • The Mau Mau uprising in Kenya effectively ended, though the state of emergency would not be officially lifted until 1960.
  • Tensions between India and China escalated over disputed border areas in the Himalayas, with the first armed clashes occurring at Longju.
  • The civil rights movement in the United States continued, with sit-ins and protests against racial segregation expanding across the South.
  • A revolt in Mosul, Iraq in March was suppressed by the government, highlighting the political instability following the 1958 revolution.
  • The ETA (Basque separatist organization) was founded in Spain, beginning a decades-long campaign for Basque independence.
  • Nuclear weapons testing by both the United States and the Soviet Union continued, fueling public anxiety about radioactive fallout.

Economy & Finance

  • The U.S. economy recovered from the 1958 recession, with GDP growth resuming and unemployment beginning to decline.
  • The St. Lawrence Seaway opened in April, allowing ocean-going vessels to travel from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes and transforming North American shipping.
  • Japan's economy continued its rapid postwar recovery, with industrial production and exports growing at double-digit rates.
  • The European Economic Community continued to reduce internal tariffs, advancing toward the goal of a common European market.
  • Oil prices remained stable at approximately $1.80 per barrel under the control of the major international oil companies.
  • The Soviet economy grew at solid rates, with Khrushchev proclaiming that the Soviet Union would surpass American living standards within a generation.
  • West Germany's economic miracle continued, with strong industrial growth and rising prosperity.
  • Cuba's new revolutionary government began nationalizing foreign-owned businesses, straining relations with the United States.
  • Britain's economy expanded, though growth rates lagged behind those of its continental European competitors.
  • International trade grew as postwar recovery continued and global economic integration deepened.

Technology & Infrastructure

  • The Soviet Luna 2 became the first human-made object to reach the Moon in September, impacting the lunar surface near the Sea of Rains.
  • The Luna 3 spacecraft transmitted the first photographs of the far side of the Moon in October, revealing a terrain strikingly different from the near side.
  • The St. Lawrence Seaway opened in April, one of the largest engineering projects in North American history, enabling deep-draft navigation between the Great Lakes and the Atlantic.
  • The first commercial photocopier, the Xerox 914, was introduced, revolutionizing document reproduction in offices.
  • The first section of the M1 motorway opened in Britain in November, the country's first full-length motorway.
  • The hovercraft crossed the English Channel for the first time in July, demonstrating a new form of transportation over water.
  • The development of integrated circuit technology progressed, with Jack Kilby and Robert Noyce independently advancing semiconductor miniaturization.
  • Commercial jet aviation expanded, with airlines adding jet routes and the passenger experience of air travel continuing to transform.
  • The Vanguard satellite program continued, contributing to understanding of Earth's shape and gravitational field.
  • Nuclear power generation expanded, with new commercial reactors coming online in the United States and Europe.

Science & Discovery

  • The Luna 3 photographs of the Moon's far side revealed a surface dominated by highlands and lacking the large dark maria visible from Earth.
  • The Luna 2 impact on the Moon confirmed that the Moon had no significant magnetic field or radiation belts.
  • Richard Feynman delivered his influential lecture 'There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom,' envisioning the field of nanotechnology.
  • Research on the structure of DNA and the mechanisms of gene expression continued to advance molecular biology.
  • Continued study of the Van Allen radiation belts, discovered the previous year, expanded understanding of Earth's magnetosphere and the near-space environment.
  • Research on subatomic particles progressed, with new particles being discovered through accelerator experiments.
  • Severo Ochoa and Arthur Kornberg were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their work on the synthesis of RNA and DNA.
  • The theory of continental drift remained controversial, though evidence from ocean floor studies was beginning to accumulate.
  • Paleontological discoveries continued, with fossil finds in East Africa contributing to understanding of human evolution.
  • Advances in radio astronomy enabled detection of new celestial phenomena and improved understanding of the structure of the Milky Way galaxy.

Health & Medicine

  • The polio vaccination campaign continued worldwide, with the Salk vaccine dramatically reducing the incidence of the disease in vaccinated populations.
  • The WHO continued its global malaria eradication program, using DDT spraying to reduce mosquito populations in endemic areas.
  • The development of the oral polio vaccine by Albert Sabin progressed, with large-scale clinical trials demonstrating its effectiveness.
  • Tuberculosis remained a major global health challenge, though drug treatment continued to improve survival rates in developed countries.
  • Research on cardiovascular disease progressed, with studies identifying risk factors and developing new surgical techniques.
  • Childhood vaccination programs expanded in developed nations, with vaccines against polio, diphtheria, and pertussis becoming standard.
  • Research on the effects of radiation exposure from nuclear weapons testing raised concerns about long-term health consequences.
  • The relationship between smoking and lung cancer was increasingly well documented, though the tobacco industry continued to dispute the findings.
  • Mental health treatment evolved with the growing availability of psychotropic medications, including new antidepressants.
  • Advances in surgical techniques improved outcomes for a range of conditions, with anesthesia and postoperative care continuing to improve.

Climate & Environment

  • Typhoon Vera struck Japan in September, killing over 5,000 people and causing catastrophic flooding in the Nagoya region, making it one of the deadliest typhoons in Japanese history.
  • The Antarctic Treaty, signed in December, established the continent as a preserve for peaceful scientific research and prohibited military activity.
  • A severe drought affected parts of China, contributing to the beginning of the Great Chinese Famine that would kill millions over the following years.
  • Global atmospheric CO2 concentrations continued to rise, reaching approximately 316 parts per million at the Mauna Loa Observatory.
  • Nuclear weapons testing continued, with atmospheric tests by the United States and the Soviet Union raising concerns about radioactive fallout.
  • The Malpasset Dam in southern France collapsed in December, killing over 400 people when a wall of water swept through the Reyran valley.
  • Flooding affected multiple regions worldwide, with monsoon-related disasters in South and Southeast Asia causing significant casualties.
  • Conservation efforts gained attention as growing awareness of threats to wildlife prompted calls for protective measures.
  • Air pollution remained a problem in major industrial cities, with smog events drawing public concern.
  • Scientific research on the long-term effects of nuclear testing on the environment expanded, with studies documenting the global distribution of radioactive isotopes.

Culture & Society

  • The Cuban Revolution captured the imagination of leftist movements worldwide, with Fidel Castro and Che Guevara becoming icons of revolutionary struggle.
  • The Barbie doll was introduced by Mattel in March, becoming one of the most successful and controversial toys in history.
  • The global population reached approximately 2.97 billion, approaching the three billion mark.
  • The Guggenheim Museum, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, opened in New York City in October, shortly after the architect's death.
  • Gigi won the Academy Award for Best Picture at the ceremony held in April, taking home nine Oscars.
  • Berry Gordy Jr. founded Tamla Records in Detroit in January, the forerunner of the Motown label that would transform American popular music.
  • Miles Davis released Kind of Blue in August, an album that would become the best-selling jazz record of all time.
  • The Dalai Lama's flight from Tibet in March drew international attention to the plight of the Tibetan people under Chinese rule.
  • William S. Burroughs published Naked Lunch in Paris, a controversial novel that pushed the boundaries of literary expression.
  • Television ownership continued to expand worldwide, with the medium becoming an increasingly powerful force in shaping public opinion and culture.