There's no denying that 2012 has been a big year for women. We won the election, we made millions and westood up to Rush Limbaugh. We wrote e-books that spent months on the New York Times best-seller list, putmotherhood at the center of the national conversation and we produced the heir to the British monarchy.

A lot went down in 2012, the good and the bad—and at the center of most of the hot-button issues were women. Kim Kardashian may be the most searched for women in the world of celebrity gossip, but the women who truly dominated the 2012 news cycle did much more than shop, date and pose for photos this calendar year.

Here's a look back at the women who made headlines—and history—in 2012.

Sandra Fluke

The Georgetown Law student, after speaking publicly about the hardships she and her female classmates endured as a result of not having birth control coverage under their University-sponsored health insurance, caught the attention of brash radio pundit Rush Limbaugh. Limbaugh called Fluke a “slut” on-air, causing uproar. President Obama later called Fluke to apologize for Limbaugh's action and she became a fixture on the campaign trail, where she spoke about the importance of the Obama Administration for women's rights.

Learn who else made the cut for the Forbes list.