Overview
- On December 21, 1989, East German border guards began dismantling the Berlin Wall at the Brandenburg Gate.
- On December 22, 1989, Romania’s communist leader Nicolae Ceaușescu was overthrown after 23 years in power.
- Apollo 8 launched from Cape Canaveral on December 21, 1968, becoming the first crewed mission to orbit the Moon with Frank Borman, James A. Lovell Jr., and William A. Anders aboard.
- On December 21, 2007, the Schengen area expanded from 15 to 24 countries with the entry of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Malta.
- On December 21, 2011, the European Central Bank conducted its first three‑year refinancing operation, lending €489.191 billion to 523 banks.