1947

In another important political development, albeit with more of a cultural impact for the Anglosphere, this was the year that Princess Elizabeth announced her engagement to Philip Mountbatten. After their marriage and Elizabeth’s ascension to the throne, Philip became Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.

1947 was also the year that a major political shift occurred in the United States. On the heels of World War II and in the shadow of the developing Cold War, the US took a major step in creating the “national security state” – a major increase in the size and scope of the central government in Washington, DC. This was brought to bear with the National Security Act of 1947, which established what would eventually be called the Department of Defense, established the National Security Council, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). The effects of this Act have been felt in the United States and abroad for decades.

News highlights in 1947 were not all politics, though. In a major cultural development in the United States, Jackie Robinson started with the Brooklyn Dodgers, becoming the first black athlete to play in Major League Baseball in the modern era, essentially desegregating professional baseball in the US.

In film, the holiday classic, Miracle on 34th Streetopened in the US and Gentleman’s Agreement, starring Gregory Peck, won Best Picture at the Academy Awards.

Finally, in a major literary event, Anne Frank’s diary from World War II was published for the first time. The diary was initially published in Amsterdam and then became an international classic, read by generations of students across the world.