On This Day: December 18th

US Secretary of State William Seward proclaims the adoption of the Thirteenth Amendment, prohibiting slavery throughout the United States.

The Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada abolishes the seigneurial system.

The national anthem of the Russian Empire, "God Save the Tsar!", is first performed.

New Jersey becomes the third state to ratify the U.S. Constitution.

The United States celebrates its first Thanksgiving, marking the recent victory by the American rebels over British General John Burgoyne at Saratoga in October.

The Whitehall Conference ends with the determination that there was no law preventing Jews from re-entering England after the Edict of Expulsion of 1290.

Portuguese forces score a military victory over the Kingdom of Kongo at the Battle of Mbumbi in present-day Angola.

A rebellion breaks out in Alpujarras in response to the forced conversions of Muslims in Spain.

Kublai Khan renames his empire "Yuan" (元 yuán), officially marking the start of the Yuan dynasty of Mongolia and China.

The city of Zaragoza is conquered by king Alfonso I of Aragon from the Almoravid.