All Events
Athens is liberated and the Greek government-in-exile returns, with George Papandreou at its head
Japanese pilots fly the first of World War II's suicide or kamikaze missions
Victory over Japan in a massive 2-day battle at Leyte Gulf assures US recovery of Philippines
Tito and his partisans, with Soviet assistance, liberate Belgrade
President Roosevelt, although seriously ill, is elected for a fourth term with Harry S. Truman as his vice-president
American B-29 bombers take off from the newly captured Saipan on the long trip to bomb Tokyo
Allied bombs destroy the strategic bridge in Thailand over the River Kwai, built by the Japanese using prisoners of war as slave labour
Civil war breaks out in Greece between rival groups of partisans resisting demobilization
The Germans stage a counter-attack in the Ardennes region before being pushed back in the Battle of the Bulge
With Budapest still in German hands, the Soviets set up a provisional Hungarian government, at Debrecen
The Soviet army surrounds the Hungarian capital, Budapest
Harold Macmillan's responsibilties in Yugoslavia involve him, with others, in subsequently controversial decisions about the 'victims of Yalta'

Aung San's daughter, Aung San Suu Kyi, is born in Rangoon
In the Labour landslide in Britain's general election Harold Macmillan loses his seat of Stockton-on-Tees
A by-election in the safe Conservative seat of Bromley, in London, enables Harold Macmillan to return to the House of Commons
Allied bombing of Berlin forces Hitler to take refuge in his underground bunker
After Soviet troops liberate Hungary, Raoul Wallenberg is abducted and vanishes
The Red Army liberates the surviving prisoners at Auschwitz, who include the Italian novelist Primo Levi
Gamal Abdel Nasser and army colleagues form a secret party, the Free Officers, to fight for an independent Egyptian republic
Arab countries, gathered for a conference in Cairo, form the Arab League to further their joint interests
English painter Francis Bacon creates a sensation with his Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion
English author Nancy Mitford has her first success with the novel The Pursuit of Love
Maurice 'Rocket' Richard is the first to score 50 goals in a Canadian National Hockey League season
Austrian philosopher Karl Popper publishes The Open Society and its Enemies
US dramatist Tennessee Williams has his first success with The Glass Menagerie