| |
| 1958 |
| |
| Cold war developments included extensive discussions on discontinuance of nuclear weapons testing, leading to the opening of a Geneva conference on the issue. Russian author Boris Pasternak received the Nobel Prize for Literature. The nuclear-powered submarine Nautilus undertook major Arctic explorations and passed under the ice cap at the North Pole. The First UN Conference on the Law of the Sea produced four major conventions dealing with the use of the seas and their natural resources. | 1 |
| |
| Jan |
| |
| The Federation of the West Indies was established, bringing together ten British territories in the Caribbean. The federation was dissolved in 1962, following the withdrawal of Jamaica and Trinidad-Tobago. | 2 |
| |
| Feb |
| |
| The UNITED ARAB REPUBLIC (UAR) was created, joining Egypt and Syria in a major experiment in pan-Arab nationalism under the leadership of Nasser. Syria withdrew in 1961. | 3 |
| |
| Oct |
| |
| Cardinal Roncalli elected as Pope, taking the name of JOHN XXIII, beginning an era of major change in the Roman Catholic Church. | 4 |
| |
| |
