THE DAY IN HISTORY · DECEMBER 24
December 24 in history
What happened on December 24: 2 moments from the Maps of History atlases, in 1144 and 1951, each linked to the map that shows it.
— Siege of Edessa
24 Dec 1144 — Zengi, atabeg of Mosul and Aleppo, storms the first and most exposed crusader state. Its loss shocks Europe into the Second Crusade and gives the Muslim counter-crusade its first martyr-city and its first hero.
READ THIS MOMENT → · SEE IT ON THE CRUSADES MAP → · THE FULL STORY →
— Independence of Libya
24 Dec 1951 — The former Italian colony, its fate handed to the young United Nations, becomes the first African state to reach independence by international vote rather than by revolt.
READ THIS MOMENT → · SEE IT ON THE DECOLONIZATION OF AFRICA MAP → · THE FULL STORY →
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