Lester Pearson

Lester Pearson is considered the father of the modern concept of peacekeeping.

On this day in 1956, Britain, France, and Israel carried out a military attack on Egypt after President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal, which was run by French and British interests. This was known as the Suez Crisis. The nationalization was a response to the two countries pulling out funds for the Aswan Dam. And that was a response to Egypt's recognition of the Communist People's Republic of China, among other things. The United States opposed the attack, and Nasser went to Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev for help. Khrushchev threatened to nuke the West if the Brits and French didn't pull out. The world held its collective breath.

That left room for Pearson, a Canadian who went to the UN and proposed creating a United Nations Emergency Force to "keep the borders at peace while a political settlement is being worked out." This was a neutral force not involving the major alliances. Britain and France hated the idea but all 57 countries at the UN eventually signed the agreement.

Pearson was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1957 for his accomplishments and earned Canada an independent position on the world stage as far as peacekeeping. In 1963 he was elected as Canada's Prime Minister.