1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Ashes series, First test
In the second half, with England disorganised after Kitching's dismissal, Australia fought back and brought the score to 6–5 with a try by centre Ron Bailey. England extended struck back as Risman kicked a penalty but with ten minutes left Australia equalised as winger Lionel Cooper scored a try. In the closing minutes both Risman and Jorgenson missed penalty chances which could have won the game for their countries. Most observers agreed that England would probably have won if the sending-off of Kitching hadn't happened.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Ashes series, First test
After the game Kitching said he had pushed Jorgenson away and claimed he had been bitten. Jorgenson denied he had bitten Kitching and the judicial committee of the New South Wales Rugby League agreed dismissing Kitching's claim without hearing from Jorgenson and cautioning Kitching for punching.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Ashes series, First test
With this Kitching and the English management wanted to forget the whole incident but Jorgenson wanted a hearing to clear his name, but the committee declined the request and reiterated that they had no evidence Jorgenson had bitten Kitching, Jorgenson was not guilty of any improper conduct and "his good name and the team record had not been impaired" and that there was no need for Jorgenson to appear before the committee.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Ashes series, Second test
After the drawn test in Sydney, England only needed to win the second test to retain the Ashes as a tied series would result in the holders keeping the trophy. Australia made just one change to their side with loose forward Jack Hutchinson replacing the injured Noel Mulligan; the captaincy also changed as Ron Bailey succeeded fellow centre Joe Jorgenson. England made two changes with Arthur Bassett replacing an injured Eric Batten on the wing and Ted Ward replacing the suspended Jack Kitching. Also in the backs Gus Risman and Ernest Ward swapped positions to Ward at fullback and Risman at centre.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Ashes series, Second test
The game was played at the Brisbane Exhibition Ground on 6 July 1946. Despite a public transport strike and continuing restrictions on non-essential travel, huge queues had formed outside the ground by early morning and the gates were opened at 7 am, several hours before kick off. By 10 am the ground was full and the gates locked; this was unpopular with the thousands still outside the ground and the gates were crashed and an estimated additional 10,000 people broke into the ground.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Ashes series, Second test
This still left many more outside the ground and the Australian team who had set off early for the ground had considerable trouble gaining entrance; the England side only got to the ground due to the police arranging an escort for the team cars and forcing their way through the crowds.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Ashes series, Second test
When the match started it was a closely contested game for the first quarter before England opened scoring as debutant Arthur Bassett gained possession from a McCue kick to score a try on the wing. The only other points of the first half were from Ernest Ward's boot as he scored a penalty from outside the Australian 25-yard (20-metre) line.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Ashes series, Second test
With England starting the second half with a 5–0 lead, Australia had to score first to get back into the game and minutes into the second half they did so as Jorgenson put a penalty over to make the score 5–2. Shortly afterwards though Bassett scored his second try to increase England's lead to six points. Australia came back with a try through captain Ron Bailey before England scored two further tries to put the game beyond Australia's reach; the first was scored by Albert Johnson and then Bassett completed his hat trick to make the score 14–5.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Ashes series, Second test
Just before the end England hooker Joe Egan was sent off for hitting Australian second-rower Arthur Clues after Clues made a heavy tackle on Ernest Ward which Egan thought should have been penalised by the referee. As he was leaving the pitch Egan was heard to say "If the referee won't do his job, then someone has to". Soon after the game ended and England had retained the Ashes.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Ashes series, Second test
The attendance was officially recorded as 40,500 but estimates are that the number watching was closed to 60,000 when the gatecrashers and members of the Royal National Agricultural and Industrial Association of Queensland (owners of the ground) are included.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Ashes series, Third test
England came into the game making two changes from the previous test. Prop Frank Whitcombe was replaced by George Curran and Eric Batten was recalled to the wing. Australia made five changes with Trevor Eather, Noel White and Clem Kennedy being called up into the backs while Jim Armstrong and Noel Mulligan came into the forwards.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Ashes series, Third test
With the Ashes already decided the game at Sydney Cricket Ground on 20 July was about pride for both teams and the match was hotly contested from the start. Almost a quarter of the game had gone before either side scored and it was Australia who took the lead as Joe Jorgenson kicked a penalty. England equalised with a Gus Risman field goal before another Jorgenson penalty restores Australia's lead. Australia then scored the game's first try; George Watt collecting a wayward England kick and passing to Clem Kennedy who scored the try.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Ashes series, Third test
At half-time Australia led 7–2 but that was to be short-lived as the second half started with England scoring eight points in the first four minutes of the half. First was a Risman penalty then tries from Arthur Bassett and Curran to put England 12–8 ahead. Australis mounted pressure on the English line but lost momentum when Arthur Clues was sent-off for attempting a dangerous swinging arm tackle on Risman. Clues actually missed Risman but the attempt was so blatant that the referee had to send Clues off. England made use of the one-man advantage and scored two further converted tries, the first by Ike Owens and the second, right at the end of the game, by Bassett to win 20–7.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, New Zealand test
The sole test match in New Zealand was played at a rain-soaked Carlaw Park in Auckland on 10 August 1946. England gave test debuts to three players; Joe Jones, Trevor Foster and Bryn Knowelden while the entire New Zealand team were previously uncapped.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, New Zealand test
On a very heavy pitch the first half was played with many stoppages by the referee and no tries were scored. Instead New Zealand led 6–0 at half-time through three penalties kicked by fullback Warwick Clarke.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, New Zealand test
The second half coincided with more rain that hampered ball-handling for the rest of the game. England came back with tries by Eric Batten and Ernest Ward to equalise. Ward then kicked a penalty to put England ahead before New Zealand took a winning lead as Bruce Graham scored a try after catching a Clarke penalty attempt that rebounded from the goalpost. Clarke's conversion and his kicking a further penalty made the final score 13–8.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Finances
Net receipts for the tour were £46,312 (£38,226 from the Australian matches and £8,085 from the New Zealand leg) of which England's share was £27,782 (60%). Expenses and allowances to the players and their families amounted to £18,145 leaving a profit of £9,647. Of this a third was split between the squad who therefore received £123/13/7 each and the remainder of £6,431 went to the RFL.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Statistics
Overall England outscored their opponents almost 3:1 scoring 783 points while conceding 276.


1946 Great Britain Lions tour, Statistics
All 26 players appeared at some point on the tour. Harry Murphy was unlucky and broke a collarbone during the match against Group 8 which ruled him out of the rest of the tour having played just the single match. Martin Ryan also missed most of the tour after being diagnosed with a hernia which required an operation and lengthy convalescence.


1946 Greek legislative election
Parliamentary elections were held in Greece on 31 March 1946. The result was a victory for the United Alignment of Nationalists, an alliance that included the People's Party, the National Liberal Party, and the Reform Party, which won 206 of the 354 seats in Parliament. As a result Konstantinos Tsaldaris became Prime Minister leading a right-wing coalition. Nonetheless, he soon decided to resign in favor of Themistoklis Sophoulis, who led a government of national unity (conservative and centre-liberal forces) during the entire second phase of the civil war (1946–1949). One of the priorities of the new government was the proclamation of a plebiscite for the restoration of the Greek monarchy.


1946 Greek legislative election
The elections were marked by the boycott of the Communist Party of Greece claiming in protest against the unfolding, state-tolerated White Terror against the former members of EAM-ELAS. The night before the elections, a communist band attacked a police station in Litochoro. This event is considered the beginning of the three years civil war.


1946 Greek legislative election
One of the reasons for the defeat of the centre-liberal parties was the division of the Liberal Party, founded by Eleftherios Venizelos. One faction remained loyal to the leadership of Themistoklis Sophoulis, while another faction followed Sophoklis Venizelos, who formed a coalition with Georgios Papandreou and Panayiotis Kanellopoulos.


1946 Greek legislative election, Results
Within the United Alignment the People's Party won 156 seats, the National Liberal Party 34, the Reform Party five and others 11.


1946 Greek legislative election, Results
Within the National Political Union the Party of Venizelist Liberals won 31 seats, the National Unionist Party 27, the Democratic Socialist Party 7 seats and others three.


1946 Greek referendum
A referendum on maintaining the monarchy was held in Greece on 1 September 1946. The proposal was approved by 68.4% of voters with a turnout of 88.6%.


1946 Greek referendum, Background
The referendum was the fourth since 1920 on the country's monarchy. The 1946 parliamentary elections, in which the right-wing parties achieved a landslide, had just taken place. The new conservative government of Konstantinos Tsaldaris was favorable to George II, but what influenced the result more was the atmosphere of imminent civil war.


1946 Greek referendum, Background
The civil war convulsed Greece during two main periods: first between 1943 and 1944 between the communist-dominated EAM-ELAS partisans and the right-wing resistance groups and the internationally recognized Greek-Government which had returned from exile in November 1944 and later in 1946–1949. The collaborationist government had collapsed after the Germans left and all its leaders were in custody. EAM/ELAS which controlled much of the countryside and expected to take over when they realized that Stalin had conceded Greece to the British at Yalta. They believed it essential to seize control of the capital and create "facts on the ground." EAM/ELAS heavily outnumbered and outgunned government forces and came with a hair's breadth of success. Churchill moved quickly to transfer two British divisions from Italy and after a month of fighting decisively defeated the communists.


1946 Greek referendum, Background
The referendum took place, after EAM-ELAS had been defeated in the Dekemvriana. Although they had agreed to disarm in the Treaty of Varkiza, in January 1945, they surrendered only a few token weapons and withdrew into the mountainous areas of Greece where they had effective control. In retaliation for the Red Terror, right-wing groups, often with the tacit support of the security forces, persecuted communists in areas not under communist control - the White Terror.


1946 Greek referendum, Background
This deepened the gulf between the Left and the centrist and right-wing parties, and polarized the political spectrum so that the centrist parties (that followed a more moderate but also more ambiguous policy) lost part of their power. The Communist Party of Greece boycotted both the elections and the referendum and instead launched the second phase of the civil war. They prevented any voting in areas they controlled. George II symbolized the unity of the anti-communist forces, which partly explains the percentage of votes in his favour. The conservatives, along with Prime Minister Konstantinos Tsaldaris, supported him, whereas the centrists were divided. While the centrists regarded George II with displeasure, they reacted with disgust at the savagery of the communists.


1946 Greek referendum, Background
The official report of the Allied Mission to Observe the Greek Elections [AMFOGE] acknowledged the existence of voter fraud, despite its vested interest in legitimizing the election, that "There is no doubt in our minds that the party representing the government view exercised undue influence in securing votes in support of the return of the King." They however claimed that without said influence, the monarchy would still have prevailed in the election.


1946 Green Bay Packers season
The 1946 Green Bay Packers season was their 28th season overall and their 26th season in the National Football League. The team finished with a 6–5 record under coach Curly Lambeau, earning them a third-place finish in the Western Conference.


1946 Green Bay Packers season, Standings
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.


1946 Greenville propane explosion
The 1946 Greenville propane explosion occurred on 19 November 1946, at the Ideal Laundry laundromat in Greenville, South Carolina. A tank containing around 3,500 US gallons (13 m3) of propane exploded around 6 PM, after leaking vapors were ignited by the boilers in the basement. The blast, which killed 6 people and injured over 150, was felt as far away as Gaffney, 50 miles to the northeast.


1946 Greenville propane explosion, Explosion
Ideal Laundry and Cleaners was a large industrial laundromat, located on the northeastern side of Greenville. Initially, the laundry's boilers were powered by burning coal. Greenville city officials had pressured the company to reduce its smoke pollution for several years prior to World War II, leading the plant's manager, E.R. Haynie, to investigate propane as an alternative fuel in the summer of 1946. Haynie toured several industrial plants where Superior Gas Corporation had installed large propane systems, and was satisfied with their efficiency. Superior Gas installed a 500-US-gallon (1.9 m3) propane tank at Haynie's personal residence several months before installing a 6,500-US-gallon (25 m3) system at Ideal Laundry in November, 1946.


1946 Greenville propane explosion, Explosion
In the afternoon of November 19, several days after the switch from coal to propane, the tank had been filled to approximately half of its capacity when a leak in the system was noticed. Haynie ordered the building to be evacuated and ran to the fire department a block away; superintendent J. Carl Trammel remained inside, and directed the evacuation of Ideal Laundry employees. At approximately 6 PM, mere minutes after the leak was first noticed, the propane leaking into the basement of Ideal Laundry had reached the critical air–fuel ratio between 2.4 to 9.5 percent, and was ignited by the boilers.


1946 Greenville propane explosion, Explosion
The explosion demolished all but one corner of the Ideal Laundry building, and according to a Red Cross survey the following day, destroyed nearly 20 structures nearby; most were houses belonging to African-Americans. The Third Presbyterian Church across the street was one of approximately 50 other buildings that were severely damaged. Over 150 people were injured, and several dozen were admitted to local hospitals, but there were only six fatalities. Superintendent Trammel and three Ideal Laundry employees, all of them Black women, were killed before completing their evacuation.


1946 Greenville propane explosion, Explosion
One firefighter on the scene was also killed in the explosion, as was a visitor who assisted in the evacuation. Five minutes after the explosion, the remaining propane in the tank fueled a fire that reached nearly 600 feet into the air. The fire and explosion were witnessed for over 50 miles, including in Caesar's Head, Easley, Gaffney, Greer, and Liberty.


1946 Greenville propane explosion, Aftermath
In addition to firefighters from all across Greenville County, soldiers from Greenville Army Air Base arrived to prevent looting. Injured citizens, some of whom had been buried in rubble or thrown from their houses, were assisted to hospitals. Severe traffic jams formed into the night as curious civilians attempted to drive into Greenville.


1946 Greenville propane explosion, Aftermath
Two federal officials from the United States Bureau of Mines in Pittsburgh assisted Greenville police and Ideal Laundry officials in investigating the cause of the explosion. It was determined that the propane system was improperly constructed and installed, resulting in the gas leak. The report also urged that such large propane tanks should be kept further away from populated areas, that automatic or remote shut-off valves should be included in such systems, and that newly installed systems should be inspected by an impartial qualified agency before their first use.


1946 Greenville propane explosion, Aftermath
The Superior Gas Corporation engineer who oversaw the installation of the system at Ideal Laundry committed suicide shortly after the release of the report, and the company declared bankruptcy shortly thereafter.


1946 Greenville propane explosion, Aftermath
Several homeowners whose houses had been destroyed by the blast filed a lawsuit against Ideal Laundry, seeking compensation for the destruction of their houses. In 1949, Ideal Laundry was held not responsible; the bankrupt Superior Gas Corporation was held to be the only responsible party, having been legally contracted to install the propane system, and still overseeing it at the time of the explosion.


1946 Guamanian legislative election
Parliamentary elections were held in Guam on 13 July 1946.


1946 Guamanian legislative election, Background
Following the end of the Japanese occupation of Guam, the Seventh Guam Congress, elected in 1939 was reconvened in March 1946. In June Governor Charles Alan Pownall was asked to call fresh elections, with the electoral system modified to account for population changes caused by the war.


1946 Guamanian legislative election, Results
The elections saw Rosa Aguigui Reyes become the first woman elected to the Congress.


1946 Guamanian legislative election, Aftermath
The Eighth Guam Congress met for the first time in Agana on 10 August, using a Quonset hut.


1946 Haitian parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Haiti on 12 May 1946. They followed the overthrow of President Élie Lescot's government by Paul Magloire on 11 January.


1946 Haitian parliamentary election, Campaign
Over 200 candidates contested the 37 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 21 seats in the Senate. The elections were the first in Haiti to have a significant number of left-wing candidates, and the Haitian Communist Party staged a large demonstration in Port-au-Prince on 1 May.


1946 Haitian parliamentary election, Conduct
Left-wing candidates claimed that the Ministry of the Interior, headed by coup leader Magloire, had rigged the results. This view was supported by the American embassy after the discovery of the mass sale of electoral cards in the week preceding the elections.


1946 Haitian parliamentary election, Aftermath
An outbreak of violence two days after the elections left five people dead. Dumarsais Estimé was elected president by the legislature on 16 August, defeating Communist Party leader Félix d'Orléans Juste Constant and Démosthènes Pétrus Calixte (the candidate of a coalition including the Worker Peasant Movement) in a second round of voting.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election
The 1946 Hamilton municipal election was held on December 9, 1946, to select one Mayor, four Controllers, and sixteen members of the Hamilton, Ontario City Council, as well as members of the local Board of Education. Held immediately following the 1946 Stelco strike, the election set a record for voter turnout, with 65.1% of eligible voters casting a ballot.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Election campaign
In light of the city's labour situation, interest in the vote increased in the months leading up to election day, with speculation about mayoral contenders and candidates for council regular news in the Hamilton Spectator.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Election campaign
The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) fielded a slate of candidates for each of the positions on council. The party nominated Sam Lawrence for the mayoralty, Roy Aindow for Board of Control, and candidates for alderman in every ward but Ward One. Only Wards Four and Seven had contested Board of Education races, the CCF nominated Norman Draker in Ward Four.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Election campaign
The Labor-Progressive Party nominated candidates, most notably Helen Anderson, a prominent party member and two-term Ward Seven Alderman.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Election campaign
The Hamilton Women's Civic Club, a right-leaning organization dominated by Controller Henderson, nominated candidates for office. Henderson had received considerable public criticism for her stance on the strike at Stelco, having challenged the picketers by crossing the line in August, and subsequently becoming one of the city's strongest anti-Lawrence figures. WCC candidates campaigned on a platform of civic impartiality, despite receiving the backing of a strong political organization, and defended the actions of Henderson on the grounds of maintaining the rule of law and upholding her oath of office.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Mayoral election
Sitting Mayor Sam Lawrence had amassed considerable support over the course of the summer's strike, and anti-Lawrence candidates began discussing potential scenarios in the month leading up to the vote. Controller Andrew Frame initially sought the office, but withdrew in early November in favour of either Controller Donald Clarke or Alderman Herbert Hannah. Hannah withdrew a week later, lending his support to Clarke. In his withdrawal announcement, Hannah indicated that he wished to see anti-Lawrence forces unite and remove the mayor from office. Those allied against Lawrence rallied around the conservative Clarke.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Mayoral election
"The Mayor, himself, and his supporters, have made it clear that matters of administrative policy will be secondary issues. Backed by a powerful section of the C.C.F., Sam Lawrence has determined to seek endorsement of the electors on his record of blind partnership in office, rather than defend his inept record of municipal business administration."


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Mayoral election
The early campaign was marred by allegations that the Hamilton Municipal Employees' Association, Local 167, donated to Lawrence's campaign. It was quickly revealed that the Local's financial secretary, C. P. Goodes, was responsible and was removed from his position upon the circulation of a petition signed by 90% of employees at City Hall. The issue was quickly resolved and the union distanced itself from the actions of Goodes following a meeting of their membership.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Mayoral election
The Lawrence campaign was centred on "constructive change" and the mayor's 21-year tenure on council. The main issues the mayor ran on were the extension of the franchise to all citizens of legal age, supporting existing social services, extending public ownership over utilities, and the widening of King William Street.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Mayoral election
Clarke's campaign made an issue of Lawrence's political affiliations, running on the importance of an impartial and independent citizen occupying the office of Mayor. The Controller promised that his administration would "protect individual rights [and] safeguard our economic assets."


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Mayoral election
The issue of partisanship proved to be a major point of contention between the candidates and, during a community forum at Westdale Secondary School, Lawrence and Clarke traded barbs over affiliation. Clarke argued that "the basic issue at stake is whether we are to have a party-free administration of one dominated by a political party", prompting Lawrence to fire back with "It is well-known to the people of this city where I stand... At least [the C.C.F. is] clean and above board. We prepare a program and present it to the electorate; we don't disguise ourselves," a reference to Clarke's own Conservative affiliations.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Mayoral election
On election night, Lawrence and Clarke remained close, with the Mayor's margin over his competitor increasing steadily as returns came in from across the city. At 10:30, Clarke conceded defeat to Lawrence after capturing only Wards One, Two, and Three.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Board of Control election
The campaign for Board of Control was more tense than in previous years thanks to the large number of candidates who entered the race. The fight for the four seats on the Board became highly ideological, pitting the right-leaning Controllers Nora-Frances Henderson, Hugh McDermid McIntyre, and William Alfred Weir, as well as Ward One Alderman Herbert Hannah and Ward Five Alderman Douglas Belling Gordon, against a broad spectrum of candidates on the left, notably the Labor-Progressive Party nominee Helen Anderson, who was a Ward Seven Alderman, and the C.C.F. candidate, Roy Aindow. Andrew Frame, a veteran and former Controller, and Walter Thomas Carroll comprised the remainder of the nine-candidate field.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Board of Control election
Henderson remained a favourite throughout the race. A 12-term Controller at the time of the election, the politically conservative Henderson became the de facto leader of the anti-Lawrence faction on Council. Henderson was heartily endorsed by the Hamilton Spectator, who called her, "One of the best public servants this city has ever had. A woman of integrity, intelligence and great courage," and was the focus of a full-page photo spread, chronicling her average day on the campaign trail.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Board of Control election
Her campaign centred primarily on her political independence, as well as her opposition to a proposal to widen King William Street, and her support for open-shop unionization of the city's employees, noting that she could not, "be a party to the union shop which would compel us to refuse work to a man or woman who did not want to join a union."


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Board of Control election
Considerable attention was paid to Helen Anderson, the sitting Ward Seven Alderman and organizer for the Labor-Progressive Party. In a profile done by the Hamilton Spectator, she was described as a "shrewd, aggressive, extreme Leftist." Central to her campaign was more housing for the city's working-class residents, a better redistribution of wealth, and a move away from a business-centred approach to municipal governance. The Spectator dedicated an editorial to her candidacy, writing that "those who sleep on the assurance that this minority is a bit of a joke may find out too late that it is anything but a joke."


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Board of Control election
Andrew Frame was an incumbent Controller, veteran of World Wars I and II and the former secretary of the Hamilton Boy Scouts. His platform took issue with a proposal to widen King William Street, which he opposed on financial grounds, improving housing for veterans, and developing a bathing beach for the city's youth


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Board of Control election
Hugh McDermid McIntyre was a Scottish-Canadian printer and sitting member of the Board of Control.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Board of Control election
Roy Aindow was a World War I veteran, union organizer and candidate supported by the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation. The Hamilton Spectator described Aindow as "Intelligent, likable, [and] a conscientious partisan." Aindow ran on his record of serving in the military, and vowed to improve labour relations in the city and building more public housing.


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Board of Control election
Two of the prominent candidates in the race were William Alfred Weir and Herbert Reginald Hannah. Weir was a sitting member of the Board of Control, and, as the Spectator noted, "not inclined to controversy," while Hannah was one of Ward 1's Aldermen, described by the Hamilton Spectator as "aggressive, keen, competent."


1946 Hamilton, Ontario municipal election, Board of Control election
Douglas Belling Gordon was, at the time, an Alderman for Ward Five, and was viewed as a critic of the administration. Gordon campaigned on providing housing for returning veterans and installing parking meters to provide revenue for civic improvement projects. Rounding out the field was Walter Thomas Carroll, who was listed as having no fixed employment and a "well-known figure in Ward 5." Carroll ran on a platform of better sewage management for the city after a personal campaign to clean up Hamilton Harbour attracted the interest of the Drew government.


1946 Hardin–Simmons Cowboys football team
The 1946 Hardin–Simmons Cowboys football team represented the Hardin–Simmons University in the Border Conference during the 1946 college football season.


1946 Hardin–Simmons Cowboys football team, After the season
The 1947 NFL Draft was held on December 16, 1946. The following Cowboys were selected.


1946 Harvard Crimson football team
The 1946 Harvard Crimson football team was an American football team that represented Harvard University during the 1946 college football season. In its 10th season under head coach Dick Harlow, the team compiled a 7–2 record and outscored their opponents 214 to 65.


1946 Harvard Crimson football team
Despite the end of World War II and return of its longtime coach from military service in 1945, Harvard continued to designate its football program "informal" that year. The 1946 season thus represented the return of "major" college football to Harvard for the first time since fall 1942.


1946 Harvard Crimson football team
Harvard played its home games at Harvard Stadium in the Allston neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts.


1946 Hawaii Rainbows football team
The 1946 Hawaii Rainbows football team was an American football team that represented the University of Hawaii during the 1946 college football season. In its second non-consecutive season under Tom Kaulukukui, the team compiled an 8–2 record and outscored opponents by a total of 275 to 93.


1946 Hawthorn Football Club season
The 1946 season was the Hawthorn Football Club's 22nd season in the Victorian Football League and 45th overall.


1946 Hemsworth by-election
The Hemsworth by-election, 1946 was a parliamentary by-election held in England for the British House of Commons constituency of Hemsworth on 22 February 1946. The seat had become vacant on the death of the Labour Member of Parliament George Griffiths, who had held the seat since a 1934 by-election.


1946 Hemsworth by-election
The Labour candidate, Horace Holmes, was returned unopposed. This was the last uncontested Parliamentary election to date outside Northern Ireland.


1946 Hemsworth by-election
During World War II, unopposed by-elections were common, since the major parties had agreed not to contest by-elections when vacancies arose in seats held by the other parties; contests occurred only when independent candidates or minor parties chose to stand, and the Common Wealth Party was formed with the specific aim of contesting war-time by-elections.


1946 Hemsworth by-election
Hemsworth was one of Labour's safest seats: Labour's share of vote in Hemsworth had exceeded 80% both in 1935 and 1945. This may have been a factor in the lack of a Conservative candidate at the by-election.


1946 Henty by-election
A by-election was held in the Henty electorate in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne on 30 March 1946, following the resignation of independent MP Arthur Coles.


1946 Henty by-election, Background
Coles, a prominent businessman and founder of the Coles supermarket chain, had won the seat as an independent United Australia Party candidate at the 1940 federal election. The seat had been left open due to the death of incumbent MP Henry Gullett, a senior minister in the Menzies government, in the Canberra air disaster five weeks before the election.


1946 Henty by-election, Background
Coles had duly joined the United Australia Party in early 1941, but resigned in August that year after Menzies was deposed as leader. He subsequently joined with another independent, Alexander Wilson, to vote down the Fadden UAP government in October 1941, installing Labor leader John Curtin as Prime Minister. He had generally been seen as sympathetic to Labor thereafter, and was re-elected in 1943 against Gullett's son, Henry "Jo" Gullett. In February, 1946, he was appointed chairman of the new Australian National Airlines Commission by Curtin's successor Ben Chifley, thus necessitating his resignation from parliament, which occurred on 12 February.


1946 Heywood and Radcliffe by-election
The Heywood and Radcliffe by-election of 1946 was held on 21 February 1946. The byelection was held due to the death  of the incumbent Labour MP, John Edmondson Whittaker. It was won by the Labour candidate Tony Greenwood.


1946 Holy Cross Crusaders football team
The 1946 Holy Cross Crusaders football team was an American football team that represented the College of the Holy Cross as an independent during the 1946 college football season. In its second year under head coach Ox DaGrosa, the team compiled a 5–4 record. The team played its home games at Fitton Field in Worcester, Massachusetts.


1946 Holy Cross Crusaders football team, After the season
The 1947 NFL Draft was held on December 16, 1946. The following Crusaders were selected.


1946 Houston Cougars football team
The 1946 Houston Cougars football team represented the University of Houston in the 1946 college football season as a member of the Lone Star Conference (LSC). The Cougars were led by head coach Jewell Wallace in his first season and finished with a record of four wins and six losses (4–6 overall, 1–4 in the LSC).


1946 Hsinhua earthquake
The 1946 Hsinhua earthquake (Chinese: 1946年新化大地震; pinyin: 1946 nián Xīnhuà dà dìzhèn), also referred to as the 1946 Tainan earthquake (Chinese: 1946年台南大地震; pinyin: 1946 nián Táinán dà dìzhèn) was a magnitude 6.1 earthquake which hit Tainan County (now part of Tainan City), Taiwan, on 5 December 1946, at 06:47. The quake claimed 74 lives and was the eighth deadliest earthquake in twentieth century Taiwan.


1946 Hsinhua earthquake, Earthquake
The 6.1 ML earthquake struck at 06:47 CST on Thursday 5 December 1946, as people in the area were waking up and preparing breakfast. The epicentre was in Hsinhua in the centre of Tainan County at a relatively shallow depth of 5 kilometres (3 mi); the rupture responsible was the Hsinhua fault (Chinese: 新化斷層; pinyin: Xīnhuà duàncéng). Government geologists in Taiwan believe this fault may have been active a number of times during the (current) Holocene era. There was one major aftershock, on December 17, which measured 5.7 on the Richter scale but caused no additional casualties.


1946 Hsinhua earthquake, Damage
According to Taiwan's Central Weather Bureau, there were 74 people killed by the quake, with 200 people seriously injured and 274 lightly injured. 1,971 dwellings were completely destroyed, while a further 2,084 dwellings were partially destroyed. Soil liquefaction and sand boils were observed in central Tainan County, and there was widespread damage to railways, roads, farmland, water pipes and bridges. As the disaster came just a year into the new Kuomintang rule in Taiwan, it served as a test for the new government. It was the most serious earthquake in Tainan County in 84 years.


1946 Humboldt State Lumberjacks football team
The 1946 Humboldt State Lumberjacks football team represented Humboldt State College during the 1946 college football season. This was the first team Humboldt State fielded since 1941. They became a member of the Far Western Conference (FWC) as of the 1946 season. Prior to World War II they had competed as an Independent.


1946 Humboldt State Lumberjacks football team
The 1946 Lumberjacks were led by head coach Joseph Forbes in his first year as coach at Humboldt State. They played home games at Albee Stadium in Eureka, California and the Redwood Bowl in Arcata, California. Humboldt State finished with a record of five wins, three losses and one tie (5–3–1, 1–0–1 FWC). The Lumberjacks outscored their opponents 84–70 for the season.


1946 Humboldt State Lumberjacks football team, Team players in the NFL
No Humboldt State players were selected in the 1947 NFL Draft.


1946 Icelandic parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Iceland on 30 June 1946. The Independence Party remained the largest party in the Lower House of the Althing, winning 13 of the 35 seats.


1946 Icelandic parliamentary election, Electoral system
The elections were conducted under two electoral systems. Twenty-one members were elected in single-member constituencies via first-past-the-post voting, while the remainder were elected using D'Hondt method proportional representation: twelve members in two-member constituencies, eight members in Reykjavík, and eleven from a single national compensatory list. To earn national list seats, a party had to win at least one constituency seat. In constituencies electing two or more members, within the party list, voters had the option to re-rank the candidates and could also strike a candidate out. Allocation of seats to candidates was done using a system based on the Borda count.


1946 Idaho Vandals football team
The 1946 Idaho Vandals football team represented the University of Idaho in the 1946 college football season. The Vandals were led by second-year head coach James "Babe" Brown and were members of the  Pacific Coast Conference. Home games were played on campus at Neale Stadium in Moscow, with none held in Boise this season.


1946 Idaho Vandals football team
Idaho was 1–8 overall and lost all five of their PCC games.


1946 Idaho Vandals football team
The Vandals' losing streak in the Battle of the Palouse with neighbor Washington State reached eighteen games, shut out 0–32 in Pullman on October 5. Idaho tied the Cougars four years later, but the winless streak continued until 1954.


1946 Idaho Vandals football team
In the rivalry game with Montana in Missoula, Idaho was blanked 0–19 to relinquish the Little Brown Stein; it was the fourth of six straight shutouts in the series, with each side winning three.


1946 Idaho Vandals football team
Shortly after the final game on Thanksgiving, Brown resigned as head coach; succeeded by Dixie Howell in February 1947.


1946 Idaho gubernatorial election
The 1946 Idaho gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 1946. Republican nominee C. A. Robins defeated Democratic incumbent Arnold Williams with 56.37% of the vote.


1946 Illinois Fighting Illini football team
The 1946 Illinois Fighting Illini football team represented the University of Illinois in the 1946 Big Nine Conference football season. Led by fifth-year head coach Ray Eliot and playing their home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois, the Illini won the Big Nine Conference title and completed an 8–2 season with a 45–14 win over UCLA in the Rose Bowl. The team's captain was center Mac Wenskunas. Guard Alex Agase was voted the team's most valuable player and received the Chicago Tribune Silver Football as the Big Nine's most valuable player.


1946 Illinois elections
Elections were held in Illinois on Tuesday, November 5, 1946.


1946 Illinois elections, Election information
1946 was a midterm election year in the United States.


1946 Illinois elections, Election information, Turnout
In the primary election 1,531,657 ballots were cast (741,821 Democratic and 789,836 Republican).


1946 Illinois elections, Federal elections, United States House
All 26 Illinois seats in the United States House of Representatives were up for election in 1946.


1946 Illinois elections, Federal elections, United States House
Republicans flipped five Republican-held seats, leaving the Illinois House delegation to consist of 20 Republicans and 6 Democrats.


1946 Illinois elections, State elections, Treasurer
Incumbent first-term Treasurer, Republican Conrad F. Becker, did not seek reelection. Republican Richard Yates Rowe was elected to succeed him.


1946 Illinois elections, State elections, Superintendent of Public Instruction
Incumbent  Superintendent of Public Instruction Vernon L. Nickell, a Republican, was reelected to a second term.


1946 Illinois elections, State elections, State Senate
Seats in the Illinois Senate were up for election in 1946. Republicans retained control of the chamber.


1946 Illinois elections, State elections, State House of Representatives
Seats in the Illinois House of Representatives were up for election in 1946. Republicans retained control of the chamber.


1946 Illinois elections, State elections, Trustees of University of Illinois
An election was held for three of nine seats for Trustees of University of Illinois.


1946 Illinois elections, State elections, Trustees of University of Illinois
First-term Republican incumbents Park Livingston and John R. Fornof were reelected. New Republican member Doris Simpson Holt was elected.


1946 Illinois elections, State elections, Judicial elections
On June 3, 1946 elections were held to fill vacancies on the Superior Court of Cook County. On November 5, 1946, a special election was held to fill a vacancy on the Circuit Court of Cook County. On December 17, 1946, a special election was held to fill a vacancy on the Sixth Judicial Circuit.


1946 Illinois elections, State elections, Ballot measures, Illinois Gateway Amendment
The Illinois Gateway Amendment, a proposed amendment to Section 2 of Article XIV of the Constitution, failed to meet the threshold for approval.


1946 Illinois elections, State elections, Ballot measures, Illinois Gateway Amendment
If approved, this amendment would have enabled the legislature to submit legislatively referred amendments to up to three constitutional articles per session.


1946 Illinois elections, State elections, Ballot measures, Illinois Gateway Amendment
In order to be approved, legislatively referred constitutional amendments required approval equal to a majority of voters voting in the entire general election.


1946 Illinois elections, State elections, Ballot measures, World War II Veterans' Compensation Act
The World War II Veterans' Compensation Act, a legislatively referred bond issue, was approved by voters.


1946 Illinois elections, State elections, Ballot measures, World War II Veterans' Compensation Act
The bond issue would be used to compensate veterans of World War II.


1946 Illinois elections, State elections, Ballot measures, World War II Veterans' Compensation Act
It was required to be approved by a vote equal to vote for whichever chamber of the state legislature received the greatest vote total. In this case, that meant it needed to receive 1,709,721 votes.


1946 Illinois elections, Local elections
Local elections were held. These included county elections, such as the Cook County elections.


1946 Indian provincial elections
Provincial elections were held in British India in January 1946 to elect members of the legislative councils of British Indian provinces. The consummation of British rule in India were the 1945/1946 elections. As minor political parties were eliminated, the political scene became restricted to the Indian National Congress and the  Muslim League who were more antagonised than ever. The Congress, in a repeat of the 1937 elections, won 90 percent of the general non-Muslim seats while the Muslim League won the majority of Muslim seats (87%) in the provinces. Nevertheless, the All India Muslim League verified its claim to be the sole representative of Muslim India. The election laid the path to Pakistan.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Background
On 19 September 1945, following negotiations between Indian leaders and members of the 1946 Cabinet Mission to India from the United Kingdom, the Viceroy Lord Wavell announced that elections to the provincial and central legislatures would be held in December 1945 to January 1946. It was also announced that an executive council would be formed and a constitution-making body would be convened after these elections. These elections were important as the provincial assemblies thus formed were to then elect a new Constituent Assembly which would begin formulating a constitution for an independent India. All contesting parties began campaigning. The Congress contended that it represented the entire Indian population while the Muslim League professed to speak for the whole Muslim population. The dominant issue of the election campaign became the issue of Pakistan.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Background
Originally, the Muslim League had been a party which received most of its support from the Muslim-minority provinces, where fear of Hindu ‘domination’ was greater as was the sense of ‘a loss of privilege’, and to showcase its argument for Muslim nationhood the League needed support from both Muslim-majority as well as Muslim-minority provinces. In the election campaign, the League resorted to establishing networks with traditional power bases, such as landowners and the religious elite, in the Muslim-majority provinces to win support. Religious slogans were utilized and the term ‘Pakistan’ was put forward.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Background
Some scholars state that the meaning of Pakistan was kept vague so that it meant different things to different people. On the other hand, Venkat Dhulipala observes that, rather than being vague, the proposals for Pakistan were vigorously debated in public, maps printed, economic foundations analysed and Pakistan was envisioned as a modern Islamic state.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Background
In contrast to earlier elections, the religious commitment was intertwined with a declaration of Muslim communal unity. Casting the vote became an Islamic act. Consequently, for the Muslim electorate, Pakistan represented both a nation-state for India's Muslims, but one which surpassed the common state structure, and an awakening of an Islamic polity where Islam would be blended with the state's functioning.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Results
The results were in favour of the Muslim league, Of the total of 1585 seats, it won 923 (58.23%)


1946 Indian provincial elections, Results
The All-India Muslim League won 425 seats (26.81% of the total), placing it as the second-ranking party. It captured all Muslim constituencies in the central assembly as well as most of the Muslim constituencies in the provincial legislatures. The vote opened the path to Pakistan. The system of separate electorates ensured that Muslim contestants would compete with other Muslim candidates instead of facing non-Muslim contestants. Thus, the establishment of Pakistan was debated mainly among Muslims themselves.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Results
The Muslim League's biggest success was in Bengal where out of 119 seats for Muslims, it won 113. The League reinforced its vote in the Muslim minority provinces. It won 54 out of 64 Muslim seats in the United Provinces and 34 of Bihar's 40 Muslim seats. It captured all Muslim seats in Bombay and Madras. The party demonstrated that it was the representative of Muslim India.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Results
The Communist Party of India had presented 108 candidates, out of whom only 8 won a seat. The set-back came as a result of the decision of the party not to support the Quit India movement of 1942. Seven out of the eight seats it won were reserved for labour representatives. All in all, the Communist Party obtained 2.5% of the popular vote. Albeit far from competing with the two main parties, the communists became the third force in terms of the popular vote. Amongst the communist candidates elected were Jyoti Basu (railways constituency in Bengal), Ratanlal Brahman (Darjeeling) and Rupnarayan Ray (Dinajpur).


1946 Indian provincial elections, Results
The results for the North-West Frontier Province came through in March. Congress achieved a strong majority, largely due to the personality of Abdul Ghaffar Khan, enabling them to form a government without trouble.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Results
In Punjab, the concerted effort of the Muslim League led to its greatest success, winning 75 seats of the total Muslim seats and becoming the largest single party in the Assembly. The Unionist Party suffered heavy losses winning only 20 seats in total. The Congress was the second-largest party, winning 43 seats, whilst the Sikh centric Akali Dal came third with 22 seats.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Results
In Assam, Congress won all of the general seats and most of those were reserved for special interest, thus forming the local government. The Muslim League won all of the Muslim seats.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Results
In the Muslim majority province of Sind, the Muslim League won the most seats. Congress however also achieved strong results, and initially hoped to form a coalition in government with four Muslims who had defected from the Muslim League. At the last minute, one of the four Muslim dissidents went over to the Muslim League, handing them a majority of one. Congress then lobbied three European members, who would swing the balance of power into their favour, but their overtures were rejected. The Governor of Sind, therefore, asked the Muslim League to form the local government.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Results, Overall Muslim League Performance
In the 1946 elections, the appeal for Pakistan was crucial for the Muslim league's victory. According to Robert Stern, religious fervour played part in the league's victory. In Punjab also religious appeal was the factor in the battle between the league and the Muslim members of the Unionist party who were not interested in Pakistan.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Results, Overall Muslim League Performance
Compared to above table Indian Annual Register, 1946, vol. I shows different scenario. There has been some differences between the results of the two sources.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Results, Overall Muslim League Performance
Chatterji, J. (2002). Bengal divided: Hindu communalism and partition, 1932-1947 (No. 57). Cambridge University Press.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Aftermath
The Congress formed its ministries in Assam, Bihar, Bombay, Central Provinces, Madras, NWFP, Orissa and United Provinces. The Muslim League formed its ministries in Bengal and Sind. A coalition consisting of the Congress, Unionist Party and the Akalis was formed in Punjab.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Aftermath
A well-documented account of how the Coalition Government in United Punjab collapsed as a result of a massive campaign launched by the then Punjab Muslim League has been given by Sharma, Madhulika. AIML (Punjab) deemed the coalition government as a 'non-representative' government and thought it was their right to bring such government down (notwithstanding the fact that it was a legal and democratically elected government).


1946 Indian provincial elections, Aftermath
AIML (P) called for a 'Civil Disobedience' movement (which was fully backed by Mr. Jinnah and Mr. Liaqat Ali Khan, after they had failed to enlist Sikh's support to help form an AIML led government in Punjab). This led to bloody communal riots in Punjab during the later part of 1946. By early 1947, the law and order situation in the province came to such a point where civil life was utterly paralysed. It was under such circumstances that the coalition Punjab Premier (Chief Minister) Mr. Khizer Hayat Tiwana was forced to resign, on 2 March 1947.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Aftermath
His cabinet was dissolved the same day. As there was no hope left for any other government to be formed to take the place of the Khizer government, the then Punjab Governor Sir Evan Jenkins imposed Governor's rule in Punjab on 5 March which continued up to the partition day, that is 15 August 1947. Akali-Dall Sikhs, with 22 seats, were major stakeholders in the coalition along with Congress(51) and the Unionist Party (20), who were infuriated over the dissolution of the Khizer Government.


1946 Indian provincial elections, Aftermath
It was in this backdrop that on 3 March 1947, Akali Sikh leader Master Tara Singh brandished his kirpan outside Punjab Assembly saying openly 'down with Pakistan and blood be to the one who demands it'. From this day onwards, Punjab was engulfed in such bloodied communal riots that history had never witnessed before. Eventually, Punjab had to be partitioned into the Indian and Pakistani Punjab. In the process, over a million innocent people were massacred, millions were forced to cross over and become refugees while thousands of women were abducted, raped and killed, across all religious communities in Punjab.


1946 Indiana Hoosiers football team
The 1946 Indiana Hoosiers football team represented the Indiana Hoosiers in the 1946 Big Nine Conference football season. The Hoosiers played their home games at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, Indiana. The team was coached by Bo McMillin, in his 13th year as head coach of the Hoosiers. Fullback Pete Pihos was named the team's most valuable player.


1946 Indiana Hoosiers football team, After the season
The 1947 NFL Draft was held on December 16, 1946. The following Hoosiers were selected.


1946 Indianapolis 500
The 30th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Thursday, May 30, 1946. This was the first Indianapolis 500 presided over by new track owner Tony Hulman. The track had closed in late 1941 due to World War II, and over the next four years, the facility fell into a terrible state of disrepair. Hulman purchased the Speedway in November 1945, and quickly went to work cleaning up the grounds, which had become overwhelmed by overgrowth and weeds. The Speedway re-opened, and the 1946 race was considered a rousing success.


1946 Indianapolis 500
Race winner George Robson would be killed in a racing crash just months after the victory.


1946 Indianapolis 500
The 1946 running of the 500 was the first of sixty-one consecutive years (1946-2006) that featured popular fixture Tom Carnegie on the Speedway public address system.


1946 Indianapolis 500
During the pre-race ceremonies, James Melton performed the song "Back Home Again in Indiana." It was the first time the traditional song had been performed before the start of the race.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Sale of the Speedway
On December 7, 1941, the attack on Pearl Harbor launched the United States into World War II. On December 29, 1941, then-president of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Eddie Rickenbacker announced that the 1942 Indianapolis 500 was cancelled, and the race would remain suspended throughout the duration of the war. The Speedway gates were locked, and the facility was abandoned. The race would not be held from 1942 to 1945. During the period in which the track was closed, it fell into a terrible state of disrepair. Grass and weeds overwhelmed the brick racing surface,  and the old wooden grandstands became frail and unsuitable and inhospitable.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Sale of the Speedway
Tony Hulman announced the Indianapolis 500 would resume on its traditional date of Memorial Day for 1946. The AAA Contest Board subsequently announced that the specifications and rules would remain largely unchanged from 1941.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Sale of the Speedway
In mid-December, Indiana Lieutenant Governor Richard T. James, while on an official trip to Europe, formally extended invitations to European racing teams to enter for the 500.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race schedule
The deadline for entries to be received was midnight on May 1, along with a $125 entry fee. As had been customary, the track was made available for practice beginning May 1. Some teams, however, began arriving and setting up at the track as early as mid-March. Due to the ongoing renovations and construction, spectators were not allowed through the gates until May 11; only participants and press were allowed to enter the gates before then. In addition, practice over the first ten days of May was limited to 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. daily. On May 11, the track was opened to spectators for the first time during the month for a charge of 50¢ per person. Also on May 11, practice time was extended from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race schedule
Time trials was tentatively scheduled for five days - the two weekends leading up to race day, along with the Tuesday two days before the race. However, rain and the lingering shortage of necessary parts kept many of the cars off the track. Eventually, eight total days were made available for qualifying in order to fill the field to the traditional 33 cars.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race schedule
* Includes days where track activitywas significantly limited due to rain


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race preparations, January
The rules announced were largely carried over from 1941, with few changes. Prize money was set at $20,000 for first place, and the traditional 33 cars would make up the starting grid.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race preparations, February
Tickets for the 1946 Indianapolis 500 officially went on sale on February 1. Mail orders had been pouring steadily in since the track was sold in November. Some eager fans sent requests for tickets as early as August (shortly after V-J Day) anticipating the track would reopen. Even though at the time there were no plans yet in place to reopen the track, much less hold the race.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race preparations, February
Numerous announcements were made with regard to officials and personnel. Seth Klein returned as the chief starter, Chester Ricker returned as the director of timing and scoring, and Henry Ford II was named the driver of the Lincoln Continental pace car. Kirkpatrick studio was signed on as the official photographers of the 500-mile race. The Indiana State Police was assigned to crowd control duties.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race preparations, February
Entries slowly began to arrive, bringing the total to six by the end of the month. Cliff Bergere and Joie Chitwood were the first two drivers to be entered. Cars were entered for Russ Snowberger, Ted Horn and George Connor. On February 7, Harry McQuinn flew into the Speedway, landing his Aeronca Champion airplane on the backstretch, arriving to personally deliver his entry for the race. Construction workers at the track briefly halted work to watch the plane land. Though not yet entered, driver Al Putnam was preparing for the race.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race preparations, March
Speedway officials continued to rebuild staff for the race. Clifford M. Rigsbee was appointed head of a new technical group at the Speedway. A welcoming committee with the local chamber of commerce was formed, in order to re-acclimate spectators to the event after the hiatus during the war. In addition, the Speedway announced Dr. E. Rogers Smith as the chief of the track medical staff.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race preparations, March
The $300,000 renovation project at the track was reported to be on-schedule. The grounds were now mostly cleaned up, and the biggest item of work was the pouring of concrete for the new Paddock grandstand across from the Pagoda. Excavation for the new G grandstand was underway, and many new parquet seats were already in place behind the pit area. The old diner adjacent to Gasoline Alley had been razed and a new restaurant was to be built in its place. With less than two months until race day, advanced reserved tickets sales were reported as brisk.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race preparations, March
By the end of the month, the entry list was up to 15 cars. Cars were entered for Al Putnam, Steve Truchan, and Arthur M. Sims entered the machine that Wilbur Shaw drove to victory in the 1937 race, but a driver was not yet named. One other car was entered by Ed Walsh without a driver named. Three-time pole position holder and 1941 National Champion Rex Mays was slated to drive the Bowes Seal Fast Special, the same car he drove to second place in 1941. Despite facing financial and transportation difficulties, at least five European drivers were inquiring about submitting entries.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race preparations, March
Early in the month, a minor controversy loomed. It was reported some drivers, particularly those from the U.S. West Coast, were expressing concern about the perceived low purse announced for the race.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race preparations, April
With less than a month to go before the track officially opened for practice, entries continued to pour in. Cars were entered for Harry O'Reilly Schell, "Raph", Emil Andres, George Barringer, Joel Thorne, Cliff Bergere, Rudolf Caracciola, Tazio Nuvolari, Chet Miller, and several others. By the end of the month, the entry list was up to 44 cars.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race preparations, April
Refurbishment of the facility continued, including the near-completion of new grandstands. On April 6, the Speedway Golf Course opened for business. Officials announced that a small number of tickets were still available.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race preparations, April
George Barringer arrived with his car on April 22, and two days later on April 24, Barringer became the first driver to take to the track for the year. Barringer's supercharged rear-engined machine completed laps over 115 mph. Track president Wilbur Shaw, George Connor, Chet Miller, and others were on hand to watch. The following day, April 25, Tony Bettenhausen became the second driver to take laps.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race preparations, April
Off the track, Roy E. Cole, vice-president in charge of engineering at Studebaker, was named the chairman of the technical committee for the race. Also, the Lap Prize Fund was accumulating, and the prize fund was announced at $60,000, quelling some of the concern about a low purse.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Practice
The track officially opened for practice on Wednesday May 1. However, practice time was limited to 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm for the first ten days in order to allow construction crews extra time to finish refurbishing the facility. In addition, spectators were not allowed inside the gates until May 11. The deadline for entries to be received was midnight on May 1, and any entries postmarked on or before May 1 were accepted. Numerous entries came in just before the deadline, bringing the total to 56 cars.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Practice
During the first week, many drivers and mechanics had arrived at the track, often seen hanging out at the restaurant in Gasoline Alley, and working on cars. However, few cars took to the track yet. At least ten cars were already in the garage area by Saturday May 4, with more arriving each day. At the end of the first week, Tazio Nuvolari announced he was withdrawing from the race, due to the death of his son. Achille Varzi was named his replacement, but the car would ultimately fail to qualify.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Practice
Practice started in earnest beginning on May 11. The track was now open from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., and spectators were allowed to attended.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials
Time trials was originally scheduled for five days (May 18–19, 25–26, and 28), but rain delays took away available track time. In addition, post-war shortages of certain replacement parts delayed some cars from being able to participate in practice sessions. Officials eventually would make the track available for qualifying on three additional days in order to fill the field to the traditional 33 cars. The minimum speed to qualify was set at 115 mph. Approximately 56 entries were expected to make attempts to qualify.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials
Officials retained the four lap (10-mile) qualifying runs that were traditional from 1920–1933 and from 1939–1941. The fastest qualifier on the first day of time trials ("pole day") would win the pole position. Cars that qualified on the second day would line up behind the first qualifiers, and so on. Prior to World War II, on time trials days the track would typically be open until "sundown." But for 1946, the times were standardized such that the track would close each day at 5:30 p.m., except for the final day - unless weather interfered.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Saturday May 18
The first day of time trials was scheduled for Saturday May 18. The track would be open from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The favorites for the front row included Harry McQuinn, Cliff Bergere, Rex Mays, and Ted Horn. Since many teams were lacking practice time, and some lacking parts, less than a dozen cars were expected to take to the track on Saturday.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Saturday May 18
Over 20,000 spectators arrived for the first significant track action in nearly five years. However, rain threatened most of the afternoon, and allowed only six cars to complete runs. During a practice run, Frank McGurk in the Shoof Special spun coming out of turn four and hit the outside wall. The car hit the outside rail a second time, then slid across the track hitting the inside guardrail. McGurk was not seriously injured. The car was not seriously damaged, and was expected to be repaired. Pole favorites Rex Mays and Ted Horn suffered engine problems, preventing them from going out Saturday. Horn broke a water pump, while Mays suffered broken connecting rods and bearings.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Saturday May 18
Indy veteran Cliff Bergere won the pole position with a speed of 126.471 mph. At age 49, Bergere became the oldest pole winner in Indy history up to that point. Paul Russo, driving a unique twin-four-cylinder engine machine, qualified second to sit in the middle of the front row. On Russo's car, one engine drove the front axle, and the second engine drove the rear axle. Russo was on pace to take the pole through three laps, but on his fourth and final lap, one of his superchargers got too hot, and dropped the speed down. Sam Hanks rounded out the front row, despite leaking oil which obscured his goggles. Rear-wheel drive cars swept two spots on the front row, with Jimmy Jackson (5th) the highest front-wheel-drive-only machine.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Saturday May 18
Rain closed the track for nearly two hours, prompting officials to extend qualifying until 7:30 p.m. Still, only seven cars made runs, and only six were completed. Mauri Rose had a fast first lap that could have put him on the front row, but the engine threw a rod on lap two.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Sunday May 19
Time trials was scheduled for 12:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. A crowd of 40,000-60,000 spectators arrived but not a single car made a qualifying attempt. High winds kept most cars off the track early on, and later rain washed out most of remainder of the afternoon. Some cars did practice, but when the rains came, most spectators departed. Officials announced that Monday May 20 would be designated for qualifying, in order to make up for lost track time over the weekend.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Monday May 20
After weather interfered on Sunday, officials made Monday May 20 available for qualifications. Three cars completed runs in front of a small crowd of only 3,000 spectators. Ted Horn (driving Wilbur Shaw's 1940 winning car) was the fastest of the day. Horn's car, prepared by "Cotton" Henning, ran two identical laps, and put him on the inside of row three.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Monday May 20
Officials announced that Tuesday May 21 would not be available for qualifications.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Wednesday May 22
Qualifying resumed on Wednesday May 22. Approximately 20,000 spectators saw five cars complete runs, and the field was filled to 14 cars. Mauri Rose, who threw a rod on his first attempts, returned Wednesday with a different engine, was the fastest car of the day.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Wednesday May 22
During a practice run for his driver's test, Hal Robson broke an axle in turn two, lost a wheel, and spun out. Robson was not injured, and completed the test later on in a different car.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Saturday May 25
After two days of practice only, time trials resumed on Saturday May 25. With a speed of 128.861 mph, Rex Mays tentatively became the fastest qualifier in the field. As a qualifier on the fourth day, however, Mays would line up in 14th starting position. Mays was followed by George Robson and Jimmy Wilburn, both over 125 mph. Wilburn had passed his rookie driver's test just two hours prior to making his attempt. A crowd of about 12,500 witnessed the afternoon.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Sunday May 26
Ralph Hepburn shattered the one-lap and four-lap track records and became the fastest qualifier in the field. Hepburn returned to the track a day after his car quit during his first attempt. Under cold weather and threatening skies, about 22,500 spectators saw fours drivers complete runs, and the field was filled to 22 cars.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Sunday May 26
Hepburn's fourth lap was the fastest, a track record 134.449 mph (216.375 km/h), and his four-lap average was a record 133.944 mph (215.562 km/h). Hepburn drove the 8-cylinder front-wheel drive Novi Governor Special, entered by W.S. Winfield.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Monday May 27
At the request of many teams, time trials was extended into yet another day, with the track open from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Four cars completed runs, tentatively filling the field to 27 cars. Hal Robson joined his brother George in the field, but the speeds were noticeably down from Sunday's record-breaking efforts.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Monday May 27
With only one day remaining to qualify, six positions were tentatively left to be filled.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Tuesday May 28
The deadline for qualifications was set at sundown (8:08 p.m.) on Tuesday May 28. When the day opened, six spots were left open in the field. Tony Bettenhausen withdrew his previously-qualified car due to a broken crankshaft. He would re-qualify a new car to be the fastest driver of the day.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Tuesday May 28
During a practice run, Caracciola, in one of the Thorne Engineering Specials, lost control and crashed in turn two. He was thrown from the machine, which was badly damaged. Caracciola was seriously injured, and rushed to the hospital. After his release from the hospital, track owner Tony Hulman invited Caracciola to recuperate at his home in Terra Haute.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Tuesday May 28
Danny Kladis was the first driver to complete a run during the afternoon, at a relatively slow pace of 118.890 mph (191.335 km/h). He slipped down the standings as the day progressed, but his speed would hold up and he barely held on to qualify 33rd. Late in the afternoon, Charles Van Acker completed his required four laps at an average of 115.666 mph to fill the field at 33 cars. Buddy Rusch was now "on the bubble", the slowest car in the field. Steve Truchan was the next car out, but he pulled into the pits after only three laps.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Time trials, Tuesday May 28
Just minutes before sundown, three cars took to the track in an effort to bump their way into the field. Tony Bettenhausen, Billy Devore and George Connor all took to the track at the same time in order to make it in before the deadline. Bettenhausen earned a new spot in the field after withdrawing his previous car. Connor and Devore bumped Buddy Rusch and Charles Van Acker, respectively. One final car, Freddy Winnai made a last-ditch effort to make the field, but the car quit before completing a lap.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race summary
At the start, Mauri Rose tied an Indy record by leading the first lap from the 9th starting position. Attrition was high in the first race after World War II, as three of the first four cars on the grid were out before the 50 mile mark.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race summary
George Robson took the lead for good on lap 93. His six-cylinder Sparks was the first 6-cylinder winning car since Ray Harroun in 1911. Rookie Jimmy Jackson  finished second, at the relatively close margin of 44 seconds.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race summary
Ted Horn made two lengthy pit stops and fell seven laps behind the last running car. Horn returned to the track, and charged all the way up to third place at the finish. Horn was the fastest car on the track in the second half, and he completed the entire 500 miles, but was 12 minutes behind Robson.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Race summary
A mild controversy came about after the race, as race winner Robson was accused of breaking the rules by not exiting the cockpit of the car during pit stops. A protest was filed, but it was later dismissed.


1946 Indianapolis 500, Broadcasting, Radio
The race was carried live on the Mutual Broadcasting System. The broadcast was sponsored by Perfect Circle Piston Rings and Bill Slater served as the anchor. The broadcast featured live coverage of the start, the finish, and live updates throughout the race.


1946 International Cross Country Championships
The 1946 International Cross Country Championships was held in Ayr, Scotland, on 30 March 1946. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald.


1946 International Cross Country Championships
Complete results, medallists,  and the results of British athletes were published.


1946 International Cross Country Championships, Participation
An unofficial count yields the participation of 54 athletes from 6 countries.


1946 Iowa Hawkeyes football team
The 1946 Iowa Hawkeyes football team was an American football team that represented the University of Iowa in the 1946 Big Nine Conference football season. The team compiled a 5–4 record (3–3 against conference opponents) and finished in fourth place in the Big Nine Conference. The team outscored its opponents by a combined total of 129 to 92. The team allowed an average of 200.7 yards per game, the best total defense in Iowa history.


1946 Iowa Hawkeyes football team
Eddie Anderson returned as a head coach for the Hawkeyes for his fifth season as Iowa's head coach; he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1971.


1946 Iowa Hawkeyes football team
The team's statistical leaders included Bob Smith with 503 rushing yards, Emlen Tunnell with 228 passing yards, Dick Hoerner with 72 receiving yards, and Bob Sullivan with 25 points scored. Tackle Bill Kay was selected as the team's most valuable player. Guard Earl Banks and fullback Dick Hoerner were selected as first-team players on the 1946 All-Big Nine Conference football team.


1946 Iowa Hawkeyes football team
The team played its home games at Iowa Stadium. It drew 197,811 spectators at five home games, an average of 39,562 per game.


1946 Iowa Hawkeyes football team, After the season
The 1947 NFL Draft was held on December 16, 1946. The following Hawkeyes were selected.


1946 Iowa Senate election
The 1946 Iowa State Senate elections took place as part of the biennial 1946 United States elections. Iowa voters elected state senators in 23 of the state senate's 50 districts. State senators serve four-year terms in the Iowa State Senate.


1946 Iowa Senate election
A statewide map of the 50 state Senate districts in the 1946 elections is provided by the Iowa General Assembly


1946 Iowa Senate election
The primary election on June 3, 1946 determined which candidates appeared on the November 5, 1946 general election ballot.


1946 Iowa Senate election
Following the previous election, Republicans had control of the Iowa state Senate with 45 seats to Democrats' 5 seats.


1946 Iowa Senate election
To claim control of the chamber from Republicans, the Democrats needed to net 21 Senate seats.


1946 Iowa Senate election
Republicans maintained control of the Iowa State Senate following the 1946 general election with the balance of power shifting to Republicans holding 46 seats and Democrats having 4 seats (a net gain of 1 seat for Republicans).


1946 Iowa State Cyclones football team
The 1946 Iowa State Cyclones football team represented Iowa State College of Agricultural and Mechanic Arts (later renamed Iowa State University) in the Big Six Conference during the 1946 college football season. In their fifth and final year under head coach Mike Michalske, the Cyclones compiled a 2–6–1 record (1–4 against conference opponents), finished in fifth place in the conference, and were outscored by opponents by a combined total of 239 to 77. They played their home games at Clyde Williams Field in Ames, Iowa.


1946 Iowa State Cyclones football team
There was no team captain selected for the 1946 season. The regular starting lineup consisted of ends Dean Laun and Bob Jensen, tackles Lou Bosnyak and Harle Rollinger, guards Fred Schneider and Norman Anderson, center James Riding, quarterback Don Ferguson, halfbacks Webb Halbert and Vic Weber, and fullback Ray Klootwyk. No Iowa State players were selected as a first-team all-conference players.


1946 Iowa State Cyclones football team, After the season
The 1947 NFL Draft was held on December 16, 1946. The following Cyclone was selected.


1946 Iowa State Teachers Panthers football team
The 1946 Iowa State Teachers Panthers football team represented Iowa State Teachers College in the North Central Conference during the 1946 college football season. In its ninth season under head coach Clyde Starbeck, the team compiled a 4–1–2 record (2–0–1 against NCC opponents) and won the conference championship.


1946 Iowa State Teachers Panthers football team
Five players were selected to the all-conference team: ends Nick Avelchas and Cy Bellock; halfbacks Pudge Camarata and Bob Williams; tackle Jason Loving; and guard Paul Salzman.


1946 Iowa gubernatorial election
The 1946 Iowa gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 1946. Incumbent Republican Robert D. Blue defeated Democratic nominee Frank Miles with 57.40% of the vote.


1946 Irish Greyhound Derby
The 1946 Irish Greyhound Derby took place during July and August with the final being held at Shelbourne Park in Dublin on 10 August.


1946 Irish Greyhound Derby
The winner Steve won £500 and was owned by Mrs R. H. Dent, bred by Pat Redmond and trained by Harry O'Neill.


1946 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition report
The Derby was won by an English connection for the first time when Steve owned by Mrs R. H. Dent (owner of Wattle Bark, winner of the 1937 English Greyhound Derby). The entry for the 1946 event was regarded as the strongest to date and some of those who were eliminated early included St Leger champion Star Point, 1945 finalists Gun Music and Tanner Trail and Oaks champion Paladins Charm.


1946 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition report
In the first round the Jack McAllister pair Mad Midnight (Celtic Produce winner) and Miltiades (Trigo Cup winner) both won. McAlinden Cup champion Lemon Flash set the fastest time in round one of 30.06 followed by Shroid Abbey in 30.08. The second round saw the elimination of Miltiades, but kennelmate Mad Midnight won again in 30.19. Lemon Flash went fastest again, beating Steve by eight lengths in 29.96.


1946 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition report
In the first semi-final Lemon Flash and Shroid Abbey found trouble at the third bend after the pair had led allowing Bohernagraga Boy (30.16) and Castledown Treasure to qualify for the final. In the second semi Baytown Ivy beat Steve by three lengths in 30.10 and the final heat went to Trustful Sweep from Manhattan Seale in 30.30. Mad Midnight damaged a toe after finishing fourth in the third semi-final.


1946 Irish Greyhound Derby, Competition report
In the final Steve broke well from the traps and led all the way, with Manhattan Seale finishing well to finish second.


1946 Istanbul Football Cup
The 1946 Istanbul Football Cup season was the fourth season of the cup. Beşiktaş JK won the cup for the second time. The tournament was single-elimination.


1946 Italian general election
General elections were held in Italy on Sunday, 2 June 1946. They were the first after World War II and elected 556 deputies to the Constituent Assembly. Theoretically, a total of 573 deputies were to be elected, but the election did not take place in the Julian March and in South Tyrol, which were under military occupation by the United Nations.


1946 Italian general election
For the first time, Italian women were allowed to vote in a national election. Electors had two votes: one to elect the representatives and one to choose the institutional form of the state.


1946 Italian general election, Electoral system
To emphasise the restoration of democracy after the fascist era, a pure party-list proportional representation was chosen. Italian provinces were united in 31 constituencies, each electing a group of candidates. At constituency level, seats were divided between open lists using the largest remainder method with the Imperiali quota. Remaining votes and seats were transferred at national level, where special closed lists of national leaders received the last seats using the Hare quota.


1946 Italian general election, Campaign
At the end of World War II, Italy was governed under transitional laws as a result of agreements between the National Liberation Committee (CLN) and the royal Lieutenant General of the Realm Umberto II of Italy. As no democratic elections had taken place for more than 20 years, legislative power was given to the government but, after the first election, the Italian Council of Ministers would have to receive a vote of confidence by the new Constituent Assembly.


1946 Italian general election, Campaign
The three main contestants were Christian Democracy and the Italian Socialist Party, which had both received popular support before the fascist era, and the Italian Communist Party, which had strengthened itself with the armed struggle against Nazism and fascism during the war. The Italian Liberal Party, heir of the pre-fascist and conservative ruling class, proposed an alliance called National Democratic Union. Monarchists groups created the National Bloc of Freedom, while the social liberal Action Party and Labour Democratic Party hoped to maximize the positive image of the governments that they ruled in the National Liberation Committee.


1946 Italian general election, Results
The election gave a large majority to the government formed by the three leaders of the CLN, which were briefly joined by the Republican Party after the exile of Humbert II. The alliance lasted for a year.


1946 Italian general election, Referendum
Together with the election, a constitutional referendum took place. Italian electors had to choose if they wanted to continue the reign of Umberto II of Italy or to turn Italy into a republic. While all regions of Northern Italy as far as Tuscany and Marches gave a majority to the republic, all regions of Southern Italy to Lazio and Abruzzo voted to maintain the monarchy.


1946 Italian general election in Veneto
The Italian general election of 1946 took place on 2 June 1946.


1946 Italian general election in Veneto
The election was the first after the return of democracy. Christian Democracy (DC) was by far the largest party in Veneto (49.5%) and was especially strong in the provinces of Vicenza (61.1%), Padua (55.7%) and Treviso (53.5%). The Italian Socialist Party (PSI) came second (26.7%) and was stronger in the provinces of Rovigo (35.7%), Verona (33.3%) and Belluno (28.7%). The Italian Communist Party (PCI) was a distant third (13.6%), but came second in Rovigo (28.5%), where the parties of the left gained a large majority (56.5%). Rovigo, the southernmost province, was influenced by nearby "red" Emilia-Romagna.


1946 Italian institutional referendum
An institutional referendum (Italian: referendum istituzionale, or referendum sulla forma istituzionale dello Stato) was held in Italy on 2 June 1946, a key event of Italian contemporary history.


1946 Italian institutional referendum
Until 1946, Italy had been a kingdom ruled by the House of Savoy, reigning royal house of Italy since the national unification in 1860 and previously rulers of the Duchy of Savoy. However, in 1922 the rise of Benito Mussolini and the creation of the fascist regime, which eventually resulted in engaging Italy in World War II alongside Nazi Germany, considerably weakened the role of the monarchy.


1946 Italian institutional referendum
Following the civil war and the Liberation from foreign troops in 1945, a popular referendum on the institutional form of the state was called and resulted in voters choosing the replacement of the monarchy with a republic. A Constituent Assembly was elected on the same day.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Background
Democracy was not a new concept in Italian politics. The Kingdom of Piedmont had become a constitutional monarchy with the liberalizing reforms of King Charles Albert's famous Albertine Statute in 1848. Suffrage, initially limited to select citizens, was gradually expanded. In 1912 Giovanni Giolitti's government introduced universal suffrage for male citizens. In this period, the provisions of the Statute were often not observed. Instead, the elected Chamber and the Head of Government took major roles. At the beginning of the 20th century, many observers thought that, by comparison to other countries, Italy was developing in the direction of a modern democracy. Essential issues that needed to be resolved included the relationship of the Kingdom with the Roman Catholic Church.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Background
A crisis arose in Italian society as a result of the First World War, social inequalities, and the consequent tension between Marxist and other left-wing parties on one side and conservative liberals on the other. This crisis led to the advent of fascism, which destroyed freedoms and civil rights and established a dictatorship, breaking the continuity of the still fragile parliamentary tradition. The support of the ruling class and especially of the monarchy was crucial for the seizure of power by Benito Mussolini.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Background
After Mussolini's March on Rome in October 1922, King Victor Emmanuel III refused to sign a decree to declare a state of siege and instead asked Mussolini to form a new government. The King's decision was within his powers under the Albertine Statute, but contrary to the parliamentary practices of the Italian liberal state, as the National Fascist Party had only a small minority of the parliamentary deputies.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Background
After the invasion of Italy by Allied forces in 1943, the Grand Council of Fascism, with the co-operation of the King, overthrew Mussolini from power and established a new government headed by Marshal Pietro Badoglio. Germany, worried by the new government's intention to negotiate a separate peace with the Allies, invaded and occupied Northern Italy. In the Gran Sasso raid, or Operation Oak, German paratroopers rescued Mussolini from the hilltop hotel in which he had been imprisoned by the new government.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Background
Under pressure from Hitler, Mussolini then established a puppet state, the Italian Social Republic to administer the German-occupied territory, leading to Italy being split in two, each with its own government. In the North, Mussolini declared that the monarchy had been overthrown and began to establish a new republican state, with himself as Duce, but for practical purposes under the control of Karl Wolff and Rudolf Rahn. The Italian Social Republic had its seat of government in the town of Salò, so is commonly known as the Republic of Salo.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Background
Southern Italy, meanwhile, remained nominally under the control of the new legitimist government of Badoglio, continuing to operate as the Kingdom of Italy. Rome descended into chaos, as fighting erupted between Mussolini loyalists and supporters of the new government, as well as leftist opponents of fascism who emerged from hiding. The King and the government left Rome to seek the protection of the Allied forces that occupied the South. With half of the Italian peninsula occupied by the Germans and the rest by the Allies, a return to civil rights was suspended due to the complete disorder in the country.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Background
The pre-Fascist-era parties had been formally disbanded, and so far as they still existed their activity was clandestine and limited, with no form of contact with most of the population. Consequently, the future relationships between these parties and the balance of power were left to be decided at a later, quieter time. However, some political forces organized the Italian Resistance, which enjoyed strong popular support.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Background
Almost all of the Resistance were anti-monarchists; nevertheless, a temporary alliance between them and the Badoglio government was created by the decision of Joseph Stalin and Palmiro Togliatti, secretary of the Italian Communist Party, to postpone the problem of the state organization and focus all efforts on the fight against Hitler's puppet state in the North.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Background
At the end of the war, Italy was a severely damaged country, with innumerable victims, a destroyed economy, and a desperate general condition. The defeat left the country deprived of the Empire it had fought for in the past two decades and also occupied by foreign soldiers. For some years after 1945, internal politically motivated fighting continued.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Background
The emergence of political forces to replace fascism could not occur until the internal conflict ended and elections could be held. After fighting had died down, a few months were needed before attention could be given to institutional matters. The first important question regarded the royal family, blamed by many for the fascist regime, the war, and the defeat.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Background
Republican traditions in Italy traditionally hark back to the Roman Republic and the Medieval comunes, in which a wide spectrum of people took part in the business of government, but remained largely theoretical, as in the conclusion of Machiavelli's Il Principe. The struggle for a Republican Italy independent of foreign powers had been started by Giuseppe Mazzini in the 19th century. The movement Giustizia e Libertà, which continued the traditional Mazzinian ideology, was the second important force during the Resistance.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Background
It posed the question of the form of the state as a fundamental precondition to developing any further agreements with the other parties. Giustizia e Libertà joined the Comitato di Liberazione Nazionale (National Liberation Committee, CLN). The various competing political factions agreed that a popular referendum would be held to determine the future institutional form of the Italian State.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Abdication
As the Allies advanced through the peninsula, it became apparent that Victor Emmanuel III was too compromised by his earlier support of Mussolini to have any further role. Accordingly, in April 1944 he turned over most of his powers to Crown Prince Umberto. When Rome was recaptured on 4 June 1944, Victor Emmanuel relinquished his remaining powers to Umberto and named him Lieutenant General of the Realm, making him the de facto regent.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Abdication
However, Victor Emmanuel retained the title of king until his abdication in May 1946. Umberto then formally ascended the throne as King Umberto II. Many historians have noted that the royal house had an interest in the abdication, finding convenient to have a popular king "on stage" at that crucial moment. Umberto was more acceptable to the Italian people, in part thanks to his young and elegant life-style, and partially because his figure presented a stark contrast to the old, rough Victor Emmanuel, seen as compromised with the fascist regime himself. Umberto was relatively well received by the people from the moment of his crowning, even if his wife Marie-José was kept at some distance because of her foreign origins. He was commonly called Re di Maggio (May King), with reference to his brief rule of only 34 days.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Referendum
On 25 June 1944 a decree by Crown Prince Umberto, issued in his capacity as Lieutenant General of the Realm, during Ivanoe Bonomi’s time in office as Prime Minister, prescribed that a Constitutional Assembly would be organized after the war to draft a constitution and to choose an institutional form for the Italian State.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Referendum
The institutional debate was accelerated in the spring of 1946:


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Referendum
The political campaign for the referendum was framed by incidents, especially in northern Italy, where monarchists were attacked by both republicans and post-fascists of the Italian Social Republic. Following a second decree (decreto legge luogotenenziale 16 marzo 1946, n. 98), during the government of De Gasperi, a referendum was held on 2 June and 3 June 1946 (2 June later was named as a national holiday). The question was as simple as possible: Republic or Monarchy.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Referendum
Following Italian law, the results were checked by the Corte di Cassazione (the highest judicial Court at that time), as expected. A problem arose when the Court, itself divided between monarchists and republicans, provisionally declared a republican victory on 10 June, but postponing the final result to 18 June. To avoid huge dangers of political riots due to the Court's delay, the government itself declared a republic and appointed De Gasperi as the provisional Head of State on 13 June. The legality of this action (according to the law in force at the time) is debated, as the Corte di Cassazione already declared a republican victory, at the same time stating that further data were to be analyzed.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Results, By district
The conservative, rural Mezzogiorno (southern Italy) region voted solidly for the monarchy (63.8%) while the more urbanised and industrialised Nord (northern Italy) voted equally firmly for a republic (66.2%).


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Aftermath
The republic was formally proclaimed on 6 June 1946, ending King Umberto II's brief 34-day reign as king. Umberto at first refused to accept what he called "the outrageous illegality" of the referendum, and took his deposition badly. In his last statement as king, Umberto refused to accept the republic, saying he was the victim of a coup d'état by his ministers and the referendum had been rigged against him. In response, Alcide De Gasperi who became acting president replied in a press statement:


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Aftermath
"We must strive to understand the tragedy of someone who, after inheriting a military defeat and a disastrous complicity with dictatorship, tried hard in recent months to work with patience and good will towards a better future. But this final act of the thousand-year old House of Savoy must be seen as part of our national catastrophe; it is an expiation,  an expiation forced upon all of us, even those who have not shared directly in the guilt of the dynasty".


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Aftermath
Some monarchists advocated using force to prevent a republic from being proclaimed, even at the risk of a civil war, but Mack Smith wrote that: "Common sense and patriotism saved Umberto from accepting such counsel". Umberto rejected the advice that he should go to Naples, proclaim a rival government with the intention of starting a civil war in which the Army would presumably side with the House of Savoy under the grounds that "My house united Italy. It will not divide it". The monarchy of the House of Savoy formally ended on 12 June 1946, and Umberto left the country.


1946 Italian institutional referendum, Aftermath
Prime Minister Alcide de Gasperi assumed office as Italy's interim Head of State. At about 15:00 on 13 June, Umberto left the Quirinal Palace for the last time with the servants all assembled in the courtyard to see him off; many were in tears. At the Ciampino Airport in Rome, as Umberto boarded the aeroplane that was to take him to Lisbon, a Carabiniere grabbed him by the hand and shaking it in tears said "Your Majesty, we will never forget you!"


1946 Italian local elections
The 1946 Italian local elections were the first after the fall of fascism in Italy, leading to the re-establishment of all municipal administrations, after the municipalities had been run by mayors and temporary councils appointed by the AMGOT in the South and by the CLN in the North.


1946 Italian local elections
The first turn of municipal elections was held on 10 March (436 municipalities), 17 March (1,033 municipalities), 24 March (1,469 municipalities), 31 March (1,560 municipalities) and 7 April (1,139 municipalities). The second turn of elections was held on 6 October (272 municipalities), 13 October, 20 October (286 municipalities), 27 October (188 municipalities), 3 November, 10 November, 17 November and 24 November.


1946 Italian local elections
The municipal elections of March 10 were the first to which women could also participate.