Outer Mongolia, 1957-1960

Abstract

M CAJOR, BUT UNCONNECTED, EVENTS of the past three years in Mongolia' include a significant governmental purge in November I958 and March i959; the holding of the First International Congress of Mongolists in Ulan Bator, September i-8, i959; and a tremendous earthquake on December 4, I957. Chinese influence in the country continued to be important, activities of East Europeans in Mongolia increased, and the rate of collectivization of livestock herds was accelerated. Greater opportunities for Westerners to visit the country, more complete Soviet statistical information, and new studies by East Europeans and by the Mongols themselves, have combined to add significantly to our knowledge of the Mongolian People's Republic.2 The i958-i959 governmental and Party purge constituted an extensive shake-up, but Premier Tsedenbal has survived and apparently eliminated his major rival, Damba. The I959 First International Congress of Mongolists included 28 foreign representatives from I4 countries, with three American delegates, five Chinese and five Russian, and others from Eastern Europe, Western Europe, and Asia.3 The I957 earthquake occurred in the southwestern part of Outer Mongolia, in the Gobi Altai, and moved mountains and