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THE DAY IN HISTORY · DECEMBER 18

December 18 in history

What happened on December 18: 3 moments from the Maps of History atlases, in 1916, 1979 and 1986, each linked to the map that shows it.

— Battle of Verdun

21 Feb-18 Dec 1916 — Falkenhayn attacks a fortress France cannot abandon, intending attrition itself as the goal. Ten months, ~300,000 dead on the two sides, nine villages erased forever — and the recoil bleeds Germany white too. “Ils ne passeront pas.”

READ THIS MOMENT → · SEE IT ON THE WWI MAP → · THE FULL STORY →

— Adoption of CEDAW

18 Dec 1979 — The UN General Assembly adopts the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women by 130 votes to none. It enters into force on 3 September 1981, once twenty states have ratified it.

READ THIS MOMENT → · SEE IT ON THE PROTEST AND CHANGE MAP → · THE FULL STORY →

— Jeltoqsan protests in Alma-Ata

16–18 Dec 1986 — When Moscow replaces Kazakhstan’s long-serving Kazakh party chief with a Russian from outside the republic, students protest in the capital’s main square and are broken up by troops. It was the first sign that glasnost would release national grievances.

READ THIS MOMENT → · SEE IT ON THE REMAKING THE STATE MAP → · THE FULL STORY →

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