What happened in 1951

33 events　World 3, Japan 1, North America 7, Europe 9, USSR / Russia 1, Asia 7, Middle East 2, Latin America 1, Africa 1, Oceania 1

Highlights of 1951

Jan 4AsiaKorean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950).
Apr 18EuropeThe Treaty of Paris (1951) is adopted, establishing the European Coal and Steel Community.
Jul 20WorldKing Abdullah I of Jordan is assassinated by a Palestinian while attending Friday prayers in Jerusalem. He is succeeded by his son, King Talal.
Jul 22USSR / RussiaSoviet space dogs Dezik and Tsygan become the first to enter space, in a 15-minute sub-orbital spaceflight in an R-1 rocket, being safely parachuted back to earth.
Sep 8North AmericaTreaty of San Francisco: In San Francisco, 48 representatives out of 51 attending sign a peace treaty with Japan, formally ending the Pacific War; the delegations of the Soviet Union, Poland and Czechoslovakia do not sign the treaty, instead favoring separate treaties.
Dec 3Middle EastLebanese University is founded in Lebanon.

Feb 12The seven-nation Commonwealth Consultative Committee meets to discuss the Colombo Plan for south and south-east Asia.
Jul 20King Abdullah I of Jordan is assassinated by a Palestinian while attending Friday prayers in Jerusalem. He is succeeded by his son, King Talal.
Sep 8The U.S.-Japan Security Treaty, which allows United States Armed Forces to be stationed in Japan even after the end of the occupation of Japan, is signed by Japan and the United States.

Apr 24Sakuragichō train fire: in Yokohama, Japan, a fire on a train kills more than 100.

Mar 29Second Red Scare: In the United States, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg are convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage. On April 5 they are sentenced to death.
Mar 29The 23rd Academy Awards Ceremony is held; All About Eve wins the Best Picture award and five others.
Sep 1The United States, Australia and New Zealand all sign a mutual defense pact, the ANZUS Treaty.
Sep 8Treaty of San Francisco: In San Francisco, 48 representatives out of 51 attending sign a peace treaty with Japan, formally ending the Pacific War; the delegations of the Soviet Union, Poland and Czechoslovakia do not sign the treaty, instead favoring separate treaties.
Oct 15On television, the situation comedy I Love Lucy airs its first episode on CBS in the U.S.
Nov 1Desert Rock exercises, the first military exercises for nuclear war, with infantry troops included, are held in the Nevada desert.
Nov 12The National Ballet of Canada performs for the first time in Eaton Auditorium, Toronto.

Jan 20Winter of Terror: Avalanches in the Alps kill 240 and bury 45,000 for a time, in Switzerland, Austria and Italy.
Apr 18The Treaty of Paris (1951) is adopted, establishing the European Coal and Steel Community.
Jun 7Nazi war criminal Otto Ohlendorf is hanged at Landsberg Prison, Bavaria.
Jul 13Vuoristorata, one of the oldest still-operating wooden roller coasters in Europe, is opened at the Linnanmäki amusement park in Helsinki, Finland.
Jul 23Marshal Philippe Pétain, former Prime Minister and Head of State of France, Chief of State of Vichy France during World War II, hero commander of World War I who led the French Army to victory at the nine-month-long Battle of Verdun, for which he was called "the Lion of Verdun", dies while serving a sentence of life-imprisonment on the island of Île-d'Yeu at 95 years old.
Jul 28Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, a multilateral treaty of the United Nations, is signed at a special conference in Geneva, defining the status of refugees and setting out the basis for granting right of asylum, coming into force on 22 April 1954.
Oct 2Television in the Netherlands commences with the first broadcast from NTS; also television in Denmark from DR1.
Dec 20The World Meteorological Organization becomes a specialized agency of the United Nations.
Dec 24Gian Carlo Menotti's 45-minute opera, Amahl and the Night Visitors, premieres live on NBC in the United States, becoming the first opera written especially for television.

Jul 22Soviet space dogs Dezik and Tsygan become the first to enter space, in a 15-minute sub-orbital spaceflight in an R-1 rocket, being safely parachuted back to earth.

Jan 4Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950).
Mar 14Korean War: Operation Ripper – For the second time, United Nations troops recapture Seoul.
May 23The Tibetan government signs the Seventeen Point Agreement for the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet with the People's Republic of China.
Sep 2The Sri Lanka Freedom Party is founded by S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike.
Oct 3Korean War: First Battle of Maryang-san – United Nations (primarily Australian) forces drive back the Chinese.
Oct 16East China Normal University is founded in Shanghai, China.
Oct 16Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan of Pakistan is assassinated.

MarThe Israeli government organizes Operation Ezra and Nehemiah, a mass airlift of Jews out of Iraq.
Dec 3Lebanese University is founded in Lebanon.

Dec 24Libya becomes independent from Britain and France; Idris I is proclaimed King.

Apr 281951 Australian federal election: Robert Menzies' Liberal/Country Coalition Government is re-elected with a decreased majority, defeating the Labor Party, led by former Prime Minister Ben Chifley. Chifley dies a little over a month after the election; he will be replaced by his deputy H. V. Evatt.