The world in
What happened in 1968?
27 events across 10 world regions, each with its sources.
North America
- Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons
The NPT is an international treaty concluded in 1968. It aims to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and related technology, promote cooperation on the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, and advance nuclear disarmament. From 1965 to 1968, it was negotiated in Geneva by the UN-sponsored Eighteen Nation Committee on Disarmament.
SourcesWikipedia ↗
- Peak Phase of the African American Civil Rights Movement (1954–1968)
Between 1954 and 1968, the African American civil rights movement peaked, using nonviolent means to challenge racial segregation and discrimination in the United States. Originating in the Reconstruction era and influenced by Gandhi's nonviolent philosophy, it involved mass protests and civil disobedience. This led to new federal protections, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Civil Rights Act of 1968.
SourcesWikipedia ↗
Tlatelolco MassacreOn October 2, 1968, the Mexican Armed Forces carried out a military massacre against students, civilians, and bystanders at the Plaza de las Tres Culturas in Tlatelolco, Mexico City, ten days before the opening of the Summer Olympics.
- Signing and Entry into Force of the Treaty of Tlatelolco
The Treaty of Tlatelolco, signed in 1967 and effective in 1968, established a nuclear-weapon-free zone in Latin America and the Caribbean. Proposed by Mexico's President Adolfo López Mateos and championed by Mexican diplomats, it was a direct response to the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. The treaty prohibits the testing, use, manufacture, production, acquisition, or deployment of nuclear weapons by member states. Alfonso García Robles, key architect, later received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1982.
SourcesWikipedia ↗
Establishment of Redwood National and State ParksRedwood National and State Parks were established along the northern California coast, combining one national park and three state parks to protect 45 percent of remaining old-growth coast redwood forests. The parks span 139,000 acres and include 37 miles of pristine coastline.
SourcesUNESCO World Heritage listing ↗Wikipedia ↗Image: Michael Schweppe / CC BY-SA 2.0 ↗
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Establishment of Redwood National and State ParksA complex of one national park and three state parks was established along the northern coast of California, USA, preserving approximately 45% of all remaining old-growth coast redwood forests. The combined parks include Redwood National Park, Del Norte Coast Redwoods State Park, Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, and Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, covering about 139,000 acres.
South Asia
Outbreak of the Vietnam WarIn 1955, armed conflict erupted between the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) and the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam), marking the start of the Vietnam War. This war was simultaneously a civil war, a Cold War proxy war, and a postcolonial independence conflict, with North Vietnam backed by the Soviet Union and China, and South Vietnam supported by the United States and other anti-communist nations. The fighting later spread to Laos and Cambodia, ending with all three countries under communist rule in 1975.
SourcesWikipedia ↗Image: Department of Defense. Department of the Navy. U.S. Marine Corps. James K. F. Dung, SFC, Photographer Ronald L. Haeberle / Public domain ↗
My Lai MassacreOn 16 March 1968, during the Vietnam War, U.S. Army soldiers murdered hundreds of unarmed civilians in My Lai village, Quảng Ngãi province, South Vietnam. The victims were mostly women, children and elderly men. Some were gang-raped and mutilated. The largest massacre by U.S. soldiers in the 20th century, it provoked global outrage, intensified anti-war sentiment in the U.S., and became a symbol of wartime atrocities.
SourcesWikipedia ↗Image: Ronald L. Haeberle / Public domain ↗
Tet OffensiveIn late January 1968, North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces launched a massive surprise attack across South Vietnam during the Lunar New Year holiday. Despite heavy fighting in cities like Huế and Khe Sanh, the offensive ended in military failure for the North. However, it shattered American public confidence in the war, prompting peace talks and eventual U.S. withdrawal.
Battle of Khe SanhFrom January to April 1968, the North Vietnamese Army besieged Khe Sanh Combat Base with two divisions totaling about 17,000 troops, defended by two Marine regiments and some ARVN forces numbering around 6,000. The battle lasted 77 days, ending in a US tactical victory after Operation Pegasus, but without clear strategic consequences.
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Battle of HueThe Battle of Hue took place from 31 January to 3 March 1968 in the city of Hue, as part of the Vietnam War's Tet Offensive. North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces initially seized most of the city. South Vietnamese and U.S. forces gradually recaptured it after over a month of intense urban combat. One of the war's longest and bloodiest battles, it caused heavy casualties and negatively affected American public perception of the war. It is regarded as one of the most brutal urban battles in modern warfare.
SourcesWikipedia ↗Image: USMC Archives from Quantico, USA / CC BY 2.0 ↗
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Completion of Baitul Mukarram National MosqueBaitul Mukarram National Mosque was completed in 1968 in central Dhaka, becoming the national mosque of Bangladesh. Initially accommodating around 30,000 worshippers, it was ranked the tenth largest mosque globally. It was later expanded to hold over 42,000.
Europe
Cold WarAfter World War II, the Western Bloc led by the United States and the Eastern Bloc led by the Soviet Union engaged in a nearly half-century-long political, economic, and military confrontation. Although the two superpowers never fought directly, they competed globally through proxy wars, an arms race, and the Space Race. The Cold War began in the late 1940s and ended with the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.
SourcesWikipedia ↗Image: U.S. Army photo Photo Credit: USAMHI / Public domain ↗
Signing of the Treaty on the Creation of the USSROn December 30, 1922, the Treaty on the Creation of the USSR was signed at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, officially establishing the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Plenipotentiary delegates from the Russian, Transcaucasian, Ukrainian, and Byelorussian Soviet republics signed the treaty, along with a declaration serving as its preamble. The treaty legally formalized the political union of the Soviet republics that had existed since 1919, creating a new federal government with centralized functions in Moscow. Legislative power was vested in the Congress of Soviets and the Central Executive Committee, while executive power lay with the Council of People's Commissars.
Prague SpringOn 5 January 1968, a political liberalization movement began in Czechoslovakia, with reformist Alexander Dubček elected First Secretary of the Communist Party. On 21 August 1968, the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact members invaded to suppress the reforms.
SourcesWikipedia ↗Image: The Central Intelligence Agency / Public domain ↗
Outbreak of May 68In May 1968, massive student protests erupted in France, quickly escalating into a nationwide general strike and occupation movement involving millions of workers, bringing the country to a standstill. The uprising challenged the Gaullist regime and traditional social order, becoming one of the most significant social upheavals in modern European history.
Sub-Saharan Africa
Portuguese Colonial WarArmed conflicts took place between Portugal and independence movements in its African colonies from 1961 to 1974, primarily in Angola, Guinea-Bissau, and Mozambique. The war stemmed from the Salazar regime's refusal to relinquish its colonial empire. It ended after the Carnation Revolution in Portugal in 1974 brought down the Estado Novo regime.
Beginning of the South African Border WarIn 1966, the South African Border War broke out across Namibia, Zambia, and Angola. It was fought between the South African Defence Force and the People's Liberation Army of Namibia, the armed wing of SWAPO. The conflict, closely tied to the Angolan Civil War, became one of Africa's largest wars since World War II.
SourcesWikipedia ↗Image: No machine-readable author provided. Ceresnet assumed (based on copyright claims). / CC BY-SA 2.5 ↗
Establishment of Comoé National ParkComoé National Park was established in north-eastern Ivory Coast, along the upper Comoé River, covering approximately 11,500 km². It encompasses habitats from humid Guinea savanna to dry Sudanian zone, making it the largest protected area in West Africa.
SourcesUNESCO World Heritage listing ↗Wikipedia ↗Image: Albert Backer / CC BY-SA 3.0 ↗
West Asia
- Dhofar Rebellion
The Dhofar Rebellion was an armed conflict in Oman's Dhofar Governorate from 1962 to 1976, led by the Marxist-Leninist Dhofar Liberation Front against Sultan Said bin Taimur and British influence. The Omani government, backed by Britain and Iran, fought the rebels, who received support from South Yemen, the Soviet Union, and China, making it a Cold War proxy war. The rebellion ended in July 1976 with the Sultan's forces regaining full control.
SourcesWikipedia ↗
- 17 July Revolution
On 17 July 1968, a bloodless coup led by Ba'athist officers including Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr ousted President Abdul Rahman Arif and Prime Minister Tahir Yahya in Iraq, bringing the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party to power. After the coup, the new government consolidated power by alleging US-Israeli plots, executing 14 people including 9 Iraqi Jews, and strengthening ties with the Soviet Union.
SourcesWikipedia ↗
- Launch of Iran's White Revolution
On 26 January 1963, Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi of Iran launched a series of far-reaching reforms known as the White Revolution. The program included land reform, women's enfranchisement, industrial growth, and public health improvements, aiming to modernize the country. The reform era ended with the Shah's overthrow in 1979.
SourcesWikipedia ↗
North Africa
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War of AttritionThe War of Attrition was a limited war fought between Egypt and Israel from 1967 to 1970. It began after Israel occupied the Sinai Peninsula in the Six-Day War, with Egypt aiming to create favorable negotiation conditions through attrition to regain the territory. The conflict unfolded along the Suez Canal ceasefire line and involved Jordan, the Palestine Liberation Organisation, and others. By the 1970 ceasefire, the lines remained unchanged and Egypt's objectives were not achieved.
SourcesWikipedia ↗Image: Israel Press and Photo Agency (I.P.P.A.) photographer / CC BY 4.0 ↗
Oceania
Establishment of the University of the South PacificIn 1968, the University of the South Pacific was established in Suva, Fiji, as a regional public research university owned by multiple Pacific island countries.
SourcesWikipedia ↗Image: User:Matthias Süßen / CC BY-SA 3.0 ↗
Central & South America
Nicaraguan RevolutionThe Nicaraguan Revolution was a revolutionary movement in Nicaragua from 1961 to 1990, led by the Sandinista National Liberation Front, aiming to overthrow the Somoza family dictatorship and, after its success in 1979, to carry out social and economic reforms.
East Asia
Start of the Great Proletarian Cultural RevolutionIn 1966, CCP Chairman Mao Zedong launched the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution. Marked by the issuance of the May 16 Notification, the movement aimed to preserve communism by purging capitalist and traditional remnants. This nationwide sociopolitical movement lasted a decade and profoundly impacted Chinese society.
Central Asian steppe
Establishment of Korgalzhyn Nature ReserveKorgalzhyn Nature Reserve was established in the Aqmola and Karaganda regions of Kazakhstan, west of the city of Astana. It later became part of the UNESCO World Heritage site Saryarka – Steppe and Lakes of Northern Kazakhstan, a Ramsar site, and a biosphere reserve.
Around 1968
These are known only to the century, not to the year. They are listed separately so a rough date is never mistaken for an exact one.
- Emergence of the Green Revolution
- Beginning of the Digital Revolution
- Completion of the Taipei Grand Mosque
- Establishment of Women's Suffrage Worldwide
- Establishment of Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park
- Construction of Grimeton Longwave Radio Station
- Construction of the Trans-Iranian Railway begins
- Construction of the 20th-Century Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright Begins