Editing History of Australia (section)

===Menzies and Liberal dominance: 1949–72===
[[File:Portrait Menzies 1950s.jpg|thumb|left|[[Robert Menzies|Sir Robert Menzies]], founder of the [[Liberal Party of Australia]] and [[Prime Minister of Australia]] 1939–41 ([[United Australia Party|UAP]]) and 1949–66]]

Politically, [[Robert Menzies]] and the [[Liberal Party of Australia]] dominated much of the immediate post war era, defeating the Labor government of [[Ben Chifley]] in 1949, in part because of a Labor proposal to nationalise banks<ref>Jan Bassett (1986) p. 18</ref> and following a crippling coal strike led by the [[Australian Communist Party]]. Menzies became the country's longest-serving prime minister and the Liberal party, in [[Coalition (Australia)|coalition]] with the rural based [[National Party of Australia|Country Party]], won every federal election until 1972.

As in the United States in the early 1950s, allegations of communist influence in society saw tensions emerge in politics. Refugees from Soviet dominated Eastern Europe immigrated to Australia, while to Australia's north, [[Mao Zedong]]'s [[Chinese Communist Party]] won the [[Chinese Civil War]] in 1949 and in June 1950, Communist [[North Korea]] invaded [[South Korea]]. The Menzies government responded to a United States led [[United Nations Security Council]] request for military aid for South Korea and diverted forces from [[occupied Japan]] to begin Australia's involvement in the [[Australia in the Korean War|Korean War]]. After fighting to a bitter standstill, the UN and North Korea signed a ceasefire agreement in July 1953. Australian forces had participated in such major battles as [[Battle of Kapyong|Kapyong]] and [[Battle of Maryang San|Maryang San]]. 17,000 Australians had served and casualties amounted to more than 1,500, of whom 339 were killed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.awm.gov.au/atwar/korea.asp|title=AWM.gov.au|publisher=AWM.gov.au|access-date=14 July 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120107181032/http://www.awm.gov.au/atwar/korea.asp|archive-date=7 January 2012}}</ref>

[[File:QueenElizabeth InspectingSheep WaggaWagga 1954.jpg|thumb|Queen [[Elizabeth II]] inspecting sheep at [[Wagga Wagga]] on her 1954 Royal Tour. Huge crowds greeted the Royal party across Australia.]]

During the course of the [[Korean War]], the Liberal government attempted to ban the [[Communist Party of Australia]], first by legislation in 1950 and later by referendum, in 1951.<ref>See Menzies in Frank Crowley (1973) ''Modern Australia in Documents, 1939–1970''. pp. 222–26. Wren Publishing, Melbourne. {{ISBN|978-0-17-005300-6}}</ref> While both attempts were unsuccessful, further international events such as the defection of minor Soviet Embassy official [[Petrov Affair|Vladimir Petrov]], added to a sense of impending threat that politically favoured Menzies' Liberal-CP government, as the Labor Party split over concerns about the influence of the Communist Party on the trade union movement. The tensions led to another [[Australian Labor Party split of 1955|bitter split]] and the emergence of the breakaway [[Democratic Labor Party (Australia, 1955)|Democratic Labor Party]] (DLP). The DLP remained an influential political force, often holding the balance of power in the Senate, until 1974. Its preferences supported the Liberal and Country Party.<ref>Jan Bassett (1986) pp. 75–76</ref> The Labor party was led by [[H.V. Evatt]] after Chifley's death in 1951. Evatt had served as [[President of the United Nations General Assembly]] during 1948–49 and helped draft the [[United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights]] (1948). Evatt retired in 1960 amid signs of mental ill-health, and [[Arthur Calwell]] succeeded him as leader, with a young [[Gough Whitlam]] as his deputy.<ref>[http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/evatt-herbert-vere-bert-10131 Biography – Herbert Vere (Bert) Evatt] ''Australian Dictionary of Biography''</ref>

Menzies presided during a period of sustained economic boom and the beginnings of sweeping social change, which included [[youth culture]] and its [[Australian rock|rock and roll music]] and, in the late 1950s, the arrival of television broadcasting. In 1958, [[Australian country music]] singer [[Slim Dusty]], who would become the musical embodiment of rural Australia, had Australia's first international music chart hit with his [[bush ballad]] "[[Pub With No Beer]]",<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/sep/20/guardianobituaries.artsobituaries|location=London|work=The Guardian|first=Dave|last=Laing|title=Slim Dusty|date=20 September 2003}}</ref> while [[rock and roll]]er [[Johnny O'Keefe]]'s "[[Wild One (Johnny O'Keefe song)|Wild One]]" became the first local recording to reach the national charts, peaking at No. 20.<ref name="Kent">{{cite book|title=Australian Chart Book 1940–1970|last=Kent|first=David|author-link=David Kent (historian)|publisher=Australian Chart Book, 2005|location=[[Turramurra, New South Wales|Turramurra]], N.S.W.|year=2005|isbn=0-646-44439-5|title-link=Kent Music Report}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/longway/discography/|title=Long Way to the Top|publisher=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]]|access-date=28 May 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080530145120/http://www.abc.net.au/longway/discography/|archive-date=30 May 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Australian cinema]] produced little of its own content in the 1950s, but British and Hollywood studios produced a string of successful epics from [[Australian literature]], featuring home grown stars [[Chips Rafferty]] and [[Peter Finch]].

Menzies remained a staunch supporter of links to the [[monarchy of Australia|monarchy]] and [[Commonwealth of Nations]] and formalised an [[ANZUS|alliance with the United States]], but also launched post-war trade with Japan, beginning a growth of Australian exports of coal, iron ore and mineral resources that would steadily climb until Japan became Australia's largest trading partner.<ref>{{cite web|author=Chris Uhlmann|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/04/30/2886680.htm?site=thedrum|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100503053310/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/04/30/2886680.htm?site=thedrum|url-status=dead|archive-date=3 May 2010|title=Conviction? Clever Kevin is no Pig Iron Bob|work=The Drum|location=Australia|date=30 April 2010|access-date=14 July 2011}}</ref>

When Menzies retired in 1965, he was replaced as Liberal leader and prime minister by [[Harold Holt]]. Holt drowned while swimming at a surf beach in December 1967 and was replaced by [[John Gorton]] (1968–1971) and then by [[William McMahon]] (1971–1972).