Music recorded in 1946
Following the end of World War II, 1946 was a year in which the international order rapidly shifted from an "ideal" to an "institution." The United Nations General Assembly held its first session in London on January 10, 1946, and the United Nations Security Council met for the first time in the same city on January 17. Furthermore, on January 24, the General Assembly adopted a resolution "Establishing a Commission to Deal with Problems Arising from the Discovery of Atomic Energy," establishing the United Nations Atomic Energy Commission, placing nuclear issues at the center of international politics. On March 5, Winston Churchill (1874–1965) delivered his "The Sinews of Peace" speech in Fulton, Missouri, and, with Harry S. Truman (1884–1972) in attendance, the metaphor of the "iron curtain" began to spread as a term symbolizing the division of the post-war world.
The pursuit of war crimes also progressed as an important pillar of the postwar order. The International Military Tribunal, which tried major German war criminals, handed down its verdict in Nuremberg on October 1, 1946, and the death sentences were carried out on October 16. In Asia, the International Military Tribunal for the Far East opened in Tokyo on April 29, 1946, with the prosecution's opening statements beginning on May 3. Reorganization of sovereignty and governance also progressed across the country. The Republic of the Philippines regained its independence on July 4, 1946, and the Treaty of General Relations Between the United States of America and the Republic of the Philippines was signed on the same day. It came into effect on October 22 after the exchange of instruments of ratification. In Europe, the French Republic approved a draft constitution for the French Fourth Republic in a referendum on October 13, and the "Constitution of the French Republic of 27 October 1946" was promulgated on October 27. Meanwhile, decolonization and armed conflict were already intensifying, and in French Indochina, the Battle of Hanoi on December 19, 1946, marked the full-scale initiation of the First Indochina War.
Science and technology advanced in ways that reshaped the foundations of postwar society. The ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer) was unveiled on February 14, 1946, demonstrating that electronic computing could become the core of large-scale information processing. The nuclear reality also deeply shook institutions and public opinion. Operation Crossroads was carried out at Bikini Atoll, and two nuclear tests were conducted: Able on July 1, 1946, and Baker on July 25. The Baker test, in particular, visualized the problem of radioactive contamination through an underwater explosion, highlighting the social impact of the "nuclear age" early on. In the United States of America, the Atomic Energy Act of 1946 was signed on August 1, 1946, establishing a framework for the transition of nuclear control to a peacetime system. In the field of health, the Constitution of the World Health Organization was adopted at an international conference held in New York from June 19 to July 22, 1946, and signed on July 22. In humanitarian aid, the United Nations General Assembly established the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund on December 11, 1946, clarifying the framework for international organizations to take on post-war child relief. In the areas of culture and education, the Charter of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization came into effect on November 4, 1946, establishing peacebuilding as a "knowledge" system.
In the realm of popular culture, postwar international exchange resumed as a real event. The first Cannes Film Festival was held in Cannes, France, from September 20 to October 5, 1946, marking the return of film to the stage of international competition and exchange. Furthermore, the bomb dropped during Operation Crossroads' Able test was named after the film Gilda (1946) and Rita Hayworth (1918–1987), demonstrating the fact that the military and the media shared the same atmosphere of the time. 1946 marked the concrete event that the "end" of the war was not simply the end, but the beginning of a new world in which systems, science, technology, and culture were intertwined.
