March 28 facts for kids

March 28 is the 87th day of the year (88th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 278 days remain until the end of the year.

Events

Pre-1600

• AD 37 – Roman emperor Caligula accepts the titles of the Principate, bestowed on him by the Senate.
• 193 – After assassinating the Roman Emperor Pertinax, his Praetorian Guards auction off the throne to Didius Julianus.
• 364 – Roman Emperor Valentinian I appoints his brother Flavius Valens co-emperor.
• 1065 – The Great German Pilgrimage, which had been under attack by Bedouin bandits for three days, is rescued by the Fatimid governor of Ramla.
• 1566 – The foundation stone of Valletta, Malta's capital city, is laid by Jean Parisot de Valette, Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.

1601–1900

• 1776 – Juan Bautista de Anza finds the site for the Presidio of San Francisco.
• 1795 – Partitions of Poland: The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia, a northern fief of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, ceases to exist and becomes part of Imperial Russia.
• 1801 – Treaty of Florence is signed, ending the war between the French Republic and the Kingdom of Naples.
• 1802 – Heinrich Wilhelm Matthäus Olbers discovers 2 Pallas, the second asteroid ever to be discovered.
• 1809 – Peninsular War: France defeats Spain in the Battle of Medellín.
• 1814 – War of 1812: In the Battle of Valparaíso, two American naval vessels are captured by two Royal Navy vessels.
• 1842 – First concert of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Otto Nicolai.
• 1854 – Crimean War: France and Britain declare war on Russia.
• 1860 – First Taranaki War: The Battle of Waireka begins.
• 1862 – American Civil War: In the Battle of Glorieta Pass, Union forces stop the Confederate invasion of the New Mexico Territory. The battle began on March 26.

1901–present

• 1910 – Henri Fabre becomes the first person to fly a seaplane, the Fabre Hydravion, after taking off from a water runway near in France.
• 1918 – General John J. Pershing, during World War I, cancels 42nd 'Rainbow' Division's orders to Rolampont for further training and diverted it to the occupy the Baccarat sector. Rainbow Division becomes "the first American division to take over an entire sector on its own, which it held longer than any other American division-occupied sector alone for a period of three months".
• 1918 – Finnish Civil War: On the so-called "Bloody Maundy Thursday of Tampere", the Whites force the Reds to attack the city center, where the city's fiercest battles being fought in Kalevankangas with large casualties on both sides. During the same day, an explosion at the Red headquarters of Tampere kills several commanders.
• 1920 – Palm Sunday tornado outbreak of 1920 affects the Great Lakes region and Deep South states.
• 1933 – The Imperial Airways biplane City of Liverpool is believed to be the first airliner lost to sabotage when a passenger sets a fire on board.
• 1939 – Spanish Civil War: Generalissimo Francisco Franco conquers Madrid after a three-year siege.
• 1941 – World War II: First day of the Battle of Cape Matapan in Greece between the navies of the United Kingdom and Australia, and the Royal Italian navy.
• 1942 – World War II: A British combined force permanently disables the Louis Joubert Lock in Saint-Nazaire in order to keep the German battleship Tirpitz away from the mid-ocean convoy lanes.
• 1946 – Cold War: The United States Department of State releases the Acheson–Lilienthal Report, outlining a plan for the international control of nuclear power.
• 1959 – The State Council of the People's Republic of China dissolves the government of Tibet.
• 1965 – An M_w 7.4 earthquake in Chile sets off a series of tailings dam failures, burying the town of El Cobre and killing at least 500 people.
• 1969 – Greek poet and Nobel Prize laureate Giorgos Seferis makes a famous statement on the BBC World Service opposing the junta in Greece.
• 1970 – An earthquake strikes western Turkey at about 23:05 local time, killing 1,086 and injuring at least 1,200.
• 1979 – A coolant leak at the Three Mile Island's Unit 2 nuclear reactor outside Harrisburg, Pennsylvania leads to the core overheating and a partial meltdown.
• 1979 – The British House of Commons passes a vote of no confidence against James Callaghan's government by one vote, precipitating a general election.
• 1990 – United States President George H. W. Bush posthumously awards Jesse Owens the Congressional Gold Medal.
• 1994 – In South Africa, African National Congress security guards kill dozens of Inkatha Freedom Party protesters.
• 1999 – Kosovo War: Serb paramilitary and military forces kill at least 130 Kosovo Albanians in Izbica.
• 2001 – Athens International Airport Eleftherios Venizelos begins operation.
• 2005 – An earthquake shakes northern Sumatra with a magnitude of 8.6 and killing over 1000 people.
• 2006 – At least one million union members, students and unemployed take to the streets in France in protest at the government's proposed First Employment Contract law.

Births

Pre-1600

• 1472 – Fra Bartolomeo, Italian painter (d. 1517)
• 1515 – Teresa of Ávila, Spanish nun and saint (d. 1582)
• 1522 – Albert Alcibiades, German prince (d. 1557)
• 1592 – John Amos Comenius, Czech bishop and educator (d. 1670)

1601–1900

• 1613 – Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang of China (d. 1688)
• 1638 – Frederik Ruysch, Dutch botanist and anatomist (d. 1731)
• 1652 – Samuel Sewall, English judge (d. 1730)
• 1725 – Andrew Kippis, English minister and author (d. 1795)
• 1727 – Maximilian III Joseph, Elector of Bavaria, (d. 1777)
• 1750 – Francisco de Miranda, Venezuelan general and politician (d. 1816)
• 1760 – Thomas Clarkson, English activist (d. 1846)
• 1793 – Henry Schoolcraft, American geographer, geologist, and ethnologist (d. 1864)
• 1795 – Georg Heinrich Pertz, German historian and author (d. 1876)
• 1806 – Thomas Hare, English lawyer and political scientist (d. 1891)
• 1811 – John Neumann, Czech-American bishop and saint (d. 1860)
• 1815 – Arsène Houssaye, French author and poet (d. 1896)
• 1818 – Wade Hampton III, American general and politician, 77th Governor of South Carolina (d. 1902)
• 1819 – Joseph Bazalgette, English architect and engineer (d. 1891)
• 1832 – Henry D. Washburn, American politician and general (d. 1871)
• 1836 – Emmanuel Benner, French artist (d. 1896)
• 1836 – Jean Benner, French artist (d. 1906)
• 1836 – Frederick Pabst, German-American brewer, founded the Pabst Brewing Company (d. 1904)
• 1840 – Emin Pasha, German-Jewish Egyptian physician and politician (d. 1892)
• 1847 – Gyula Farkas, Hungarian mathematician and physicist (d. 1930)
• 1849 – James Darmesteter, French historian and author (d. 1894)
• 1850 – Kyrle Bellew, English theatre actor (d. 1911)
• 1851 – Bernardino Machado, Portuguese academic and politician, 3rd President of Portugal (d. 1944)
• 1862 – Aristide Briand, French politician, Prime Minister of France, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1932)
• 1868 – Maxim Gorky, Russian novelist, short story writer, and playwright (d. 1936)
• 1873 – John Geiger, American rower (d. 1956)
• 1879 – Terence MacSwiney, Irish republican politician and hunger striker; Lord Mayor of Cork (d. 1920)
• 1881 – Martin Sheridan, Irish-American discus thrower and jumper (d. 1918)
• 1884 – Angelos Sikelianos, Greek poet and playwright (d. 1951)
• 1887 – Beulah Dark Cloud, American actress (d. 1945)
• 1890 – Paul Whiteman, American violinist, composer, and bandleader (d. 1967)
• 1892 – Corneille Heymans, Belgian physiologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1968)
• 1892 – Tom Maguire, Irish republican General (d. 1993)
• 1893 – Spyros Skouras, Greek-American businessman (d. 1971)
• 1894 – Ernst Lindemann, German captain (d. 1941)
• 1895 – Christian Herter, American politician, United States Secretary of State (d. 1966)
• 1895 – Donald Grey Barnhouse, American pastor and theologian (d. 1960)
• 1895 – Spencer W. Kimball, American religious leader, 12th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (d. 1985)
• 1897 – Sepp Herberger, German footballer and manager (d. 1977)
• 1899 – Gussie Busch, American businessman (d. 1989)
• 1899 – Buck Shaw, American football player and coach (d. 1977)
• 1900 – Edward Wagenknecht, American critic and educator (d. 2004)

1901–present

• 1902 – Flora Robson, English actress (d. 1984)
• 1903 – Rudolf Serkin, Czech-American pianist and educator (d. 1991)
• 1904 – Margaret Tucker, Australian author and activist (d. 1996)
• 1905 – Pandro S. Berman, American production manager and producer (d. 1996)
• 1905 – Marlin Perkins, American zoologist and television host (d. 1986)
• 1906 – Murray Adaskin, Canadian violinist, composer, and conductor (d. 2002)
• 1906 – Robert Allen, American actor (d. 1998)
• 1906 – Dorothy Knowles, South African-English author, fencer and academic (d. 2010)
• 1907 – Irving Paul Lazar, American lawyer and talent agent (d. 1993)
• 1909 – Nelson Algren, American novelist and short story writer (d. 1981)
• 1910 – Jimmie Dodd, American actor and singer-songwriter (d. 1964)
• 1910 – Ingrid of Sweden, Queen of Denmark (d. 2000)
• 1911 – Consalvo Sanesi, Italian race car driver (d. 1998)
• 1912 – A. Bertram Chandler, English-Australian author (d. 1984)
• 1912 – Marina Raskova, Russian pilot and navigator (d. 1943)
• 1913 – Toko Shinoda, Japanese artist (d. 2021)
• 1914 – Edward Anhalt, American screenwriter and producer (d. 2000)
• 1914 – Bohumil Hrabal, Czech author (d. 1997)
• 1914 – Edmund Muskie, American politician, 58th United States Secretary of State (d. 1996)
• 1914 – Everett Ruess, American explorer, poet, and painter (d. 1934)
• 1915 – Jay Livingston, American singer-songwriter (d. 2001)
• 1919 – Tom Brooks, Australian cricket umpire (d. 2007)
• 1919 – Eileen Crofton, British physician and author (d. 2010)
• 1919 – Vic Raschi, American baseball player and coach (d. 1988)
• 1921 – Harold Agnew, American physicist and academic (d. 2013)
• 1921 – Dirk Bogarde, English actor and author (d. 1999)
• 1922 – Neville Bonner, Australian politician (d. 1999)
• 1922 – Grace Hartigan, American painter and educator (d. 2008)
• 1922 – Joey Maxim, American boxer and actor (d. 2001)
• 1923 – Paul C. Donnelly, American scientist and engineer (d. 2014)
• 1923 – Thad Jones, American trumpet player and composer (d. 1986)
• 1924 – Freddie Bartholomew, American actor (d. 1992)
• 1925 – Innokenty Smoktunovsky, Russian actor (d. 1994)
• 1925 – Dorothy DeBorba, American child actress (d. 2010)
• 1926 – Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart, 18th Duchess of Alba (d. 2014)
• 1926 – Polly Umrigar, Indian cricketer (d. 2006)
• 1928 – Zbigniew Brzezinski, Polish-American political activist and analyst; United States National Security Advisor (d. 2017)
• 1928 – Alexander Grothendieck, German-French mathematician and theorist (d. 2014)
• 1930 – Robert Ashley, American composer (d. 2014)
• 1930 – Jerome Isaac Friedman, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1933 – Frank Murkowski, American soldier, banker, and politician, 8th Governor of Alaska
• 1934 – Laurie Taitt, Guyanese-English hurdler (d. 2006)
• 1935 – Michael Parkinson, English journalist and author (d. 2023)
• 1935 – Józef Szmidt, Polish triple jumper
• 1936 – Mario Vargas Llosa, Peruvian writer and politician, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1940 – Tony Barber, English-Australian television host
• 1940 – Luis Cubilla, Uruguayan footballer and coach (d. 2013)
• 1940 – Michael Plumb, American equestrian
• 1942 – Daniel Dennett, American philosopher and academic
• 1942 – Neil Kinnock, Welsh politician, Vice-President of the European Commission
• 1942 – Mike Newell, English director and producer
• 1942 – Samuel Ramey, American opera singer
• 1942 – Jerry Sloan, American basketball player and coach (d. 2020)
• 1943 – Richard Eyre, English director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1943 – Conchata Ferrell, American actress (d. 2020)
• 1944 – Rick Barry, American basketball player
• 1944 – Ken Howard, American actor (d. 2016)
• 1945 – Rodrigo Duterte, Filipino politician, 16th President of the Philippines
• 1946 – Wubbo Ockels, Dutch physicist and astronaut (d. 2014)
• 1946 – Henry Paulson, American banker and politician, 74th United States Secretary of the Treasury
• 1946 – Alejandro Toledo, Peruvian economist and politician, President of Peru
• 1948 – Janice Lynde, American actress
• 1948 – Dianne Wiest, American actress
• 1948 – Milan Williams, American keyboard player (d. 2006)
• 1949 – Ronnie Ray Smith, American sprinter (d. 2013)
• 1953 – Melchior Ndadaye, Burundian banker and politician, 4th President of Burundi (d. 1993)
• 1954 – Donald Brown, American pianist and educator
• 1955 – Reba McEntire, American singer-songwriter and actress
• 1957 – Harvey Glance, American sprinter
• 1958 – Edesio Alejandro, Cuban composer
• 1958 – Curt Hennig, American wrestler (d. 2003)
• 1959 – Laura Chinchilla, Costa Rican politician, President of Costa Rica
• 1960 – José Maria Neves, Cape Verdeian politician, Prime Minister of Cape Verde
• 1961 – Byron Scott, American basketball player and coach
• 1962 – Jure Franko, Slovenian skier
• 1962 – Simon Bazalgette, English businessman
• 1964 – Karen Lumley, English politician
• 1968 – Iris Chang, Chinese-American journalist and author (d. 2004)
• 1968 – Nasser Hussain, Indian-English cricketer
• 1969 – Brett Ratner, American director and producer
• 1970 – Vince Vaughn, American actor
• 1970 – Jennifer Weiner, American journalist and author
• 1972 – Keith Tkachuk, American ice hockey player
• 1973 – Björn Kuipers, Dutch footballer and referee
• 1973 – Umaga, American Samoan wrestler (d. 2009)
• 1975 – Kate Gosselin, American television personality
• 1975 – Iván Helguera, Spanish footballer
• 1978 – Nathan Cayless, Australian-New Zealand rugby league player and coach
• 1979 – Shakib Khan, Bangladeshi film actor, producer, singer and media personality
• 1980 – Stiliani Pilatou, Greek long jumper
• 1980 – Luke Walton, American basketball player
• 1981 – Edwar Ramírez, American baseball player
• 1981 – Julia Stiles, American actress
• 1983 – Ladji Doucouré, French sprinter and hurdler
• 1984 – Christopher Samba, Congolese footballer
• 1985 – Stefano Ferrario, Italian footballer
• 1985 – Steve Mandanda, French footballer
• 1985 – Stanislas Wawrinka, Swiss tennis player
• 1985 – Josh Bray, American politician
• 1986 – Mustafa Ali, American wrestler
• 1986 – Bowe Bergdahl, American sergeant
• 1986 – Lady Gaga, American singer-songwriter and actress
• 1986 – J-Kwon, American rapper
• 1986 – Barbora Strýcová, Czech tennis player
• 1987 – Yohan Benalouane, French-Tunisian footballer
• 1987 – Simeon Jackson, Canadian soccer player
• 1987 – Jonathan Van Ness, American hairdresser and television personality
• 1988 – Geno Atkins, American football player
• 1988 – Ryan Kalish, American baseball player
• 1989 – Lukas Jutkiewicz, English footballer
• 1989 – Mira Leung, Canadian figure skater
• 1990 – Delroy Edwards, American musician
• 1990 – Laura Harrier, American actress and model
• 1991 – Derek Carr, American football player
• 1991 – Jordan McRae, American basketball player
• 1991 – Lisa-Maria Moser, Austrian tennis player
• 1991 – Marie-Philip Poulin, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1991 – Ondřej Palát, Czech ice hockey player
• 1992 – Sergi Gómez, Spanish footballer
• 1995 – Jonathan Drouin, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1996 – Matt Renshaw, English-Australian cricketer
• 1998 – Lance Morris, Australian cricketer
• 2001 – Xiyu Wang, Chinese tennis player
• 2004 – Anna Shcherbakova, Russian figure skater

Deaths

Pre-1600

• 193 – Pertinax, Roman emperor (b. 126)
• 592 – Guntram, French king (b. 532)
• 966 – Flodoard, Frankish canon and chronicler
• 1072 – Ordulf, Duke of Saxony
• 1134 – Stephen Harding, founder of the Cistercian order
• 1239 – Emperor Go-Toba of Japan (b. 1180)
• 1241 – Valdemar II of Denmark (b. 1170)
• 1285 – Pope Martin IV
• 1346 – Venturino of Bergamo, Dominican preacher (b. 1304)
• 1563 – Heinrich Glarean, Swiss poet and theorist (b. 1488)
• 1566 – Sigismund von Herberstein, Austrian historian and diplomat (b. 1486)
• 1584 – Ivan the Terrible, Russian king (b. 1530)

1601–1900

• 1687 – Constantijn Huygens, Dutch poet and composer (b. 1596)
• 1690 – Emmanuel Tzanes, Greek Renaissance painter (b. 1610)
• 1718 – Thomas Micklethwaite, Lord Commissioner of the Treasury (b. 1678)
• 1818 – Antonio Capuzzi, Italian violinist and composer (b. 1755)
• 1822 – Angelis Govios, leader of the Greek War of Independence (b. 1780)
• 1868 – James Brudenell, 7th Earl of Cardigan, English lieutenant and politician (b. 1797)
• 1870 – George Henry Thomas, American general (b. 1816)
• 1874 – Peter Andreas Hansen, Danish-German astronomer and mathematician (b. 1795)
• 1881 – Modest Mussorgsky, Russian pianist and composer (b. 1839)
• 1884 – Georgios Zariphis, Greek banker and financier (b. 1810)
• 1893 – Edmund Kirby Smith, American general (b. 1824)
• 1900 – Piet Joubert, South African soldier and politician (b. c.1831)

1901–present

• 1903 – Magdalene Thoresen, Danish writer (b. 1819)
• 1910 – Édouard Colonne, French violinist and conductor (b. 1838)
• 1916 – James Strachan-Davidson, English classical scholar, academic administrator, translator, and author (b. 1843)
• 1917 – Albert Pinkham Ryder, American painter (b. 1847)
• 1923 – Charles Hubbard, American archer (b. 1849)
• 1929 – Katharine Lee Bates, American poet and songwriter (b. 1859)
• 1929 – Lomer Gouin, Canadian lawyer and politician, Premier of Quebec (b. 1861)
• 1934 – Mahmoud Mokhtar, Egyptian sculptor and educator (b. 1891)
• 1941 – Marcus Hurley, American basketball player and cyclist (b. 1883)
• 1941 – Virginia Woolf, English writer (b. 1882)
• 1942 – Miguel Hernández, Spanish poet and playwright (b. 1910)
• 1943 – Sergei Rachmaninoff, Russian pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1873)
• 1944 – Stephen Leacock, English-Canadian political scientist and author (b. 1869)
• 1947 – Karol Świerczewski, Polish general (b. 1897)
• 1953 – Jim Thorpe, American football player (b. 1887)
• 1957 – Stylianos Lenas, Greek-Cypriot member of the National Organisation of Cypriot Fighters (EOKA) against the British rule (b. 1931)
• 1958 – W. C. Handy, American trumpet player and composer (b. 1873)
• 1962 – Hugo Wast, Argentinian author (b. 1883)
• 1963 – Antonius Bouwens, Dutch target shooter (b. 1876)
• 1965 – Clemence Dane, English author and playwright (b. 1888)
• 1969 – Dwight D. Eisenhower, American general and politician, 34th President of the United States (b. 1890)
• 1972 – Donie Bush, American baseball player, manager, and team owner (b. 1887)
• 1974 – Arthur Crudup, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1905)
• 1974 – Dorothy Fields, American songwriter (b. 1905)
• 1974 – Françoise Rosay, French actress (b. 1891)
• 1976 – Richard Arlen, American actor (b. c.1898)
• 1977 – Eric Shipton, English mountaineer and explorer (b. 1907)
• 1979 – Emmett Kelly, American clown and actor (b. 1898)
• 1980 – Dick Haymes, Argentinian-American actor and singer (b. 1918)
• 1982 – William Giauque, Canadian chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1895)
• 1985 – Marc Chagall, Russian-French painter (b. 1887)
• 1986 – Virginia Gilmore. American actress (b. 1919)
• 1987 – Maria von Trapp, Austrian-American singer (b. 1905)
• 1992 – Nikolaos Platon, Greek archaeologist (b. 1909)
• 1994 – Eugène Ionesco, Romanian-French playwright and critic (b. 1909)
• 1996 – Shin Kanemaru, Japanese politician, Deputy Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1914)
• 2000 – Anthony Powell, English soldier and author (b. 1905)
• 2004 – Peter Ustinov, English-Swiss actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1921)
• 2005 – Moura Lympany, English-Monacan pianist (b. 1916)
• 2005 – Robin Spry, Canadian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1939)
• 2006 – Pro Hart, Australian painter (b. 1928)
• 2006 – Charles Schepens, Belgian-American ophthalmologist and author (b. 1912)
• 2006 – Caspar Weinberger, American captain, lawyer, and politician, 15th United States Secretary of Defense (b. 1917)
• 2009 – Maurice Jarre, French-American composer and conductor (b. 1924)
• 2009 – Janet Jagan, 6th President of Guyana (b. 1920)
• 2010 – June Havoc, American actress, dancer, and director (b. 1912)
• 2012 – John Arden, English author and playwright (b. 1930)
• 2012 – Ioannis Banias, Greek politician (b. 1939)
• 2012 – Harry Crews, American novelist (b. 1935)
• 2012 – Addie L. Wyatt, African American labor leader (b. 1924)
• 2013 – George E. P. Box, English-American statistician and educator (b. 1919)
• 2013 – Richard Griffiths, English actor (b. 1947)
• 2013 – Hugh McCracken, American guitarist, harmonica player, and producer (b. 1942)
• 2013 – Bob Teague, American college football star and television news-reporter (b. 1929)
• 2013 – Gus Triandos, American baseball player and scout (b. 1930)
• 2014 – Jeremiah Denton, American admiral and politician (b. 1924)
• 2014 – Lorenzo Semple, Jr., American screenwriter and producer (b. 1923)
• 2015 – Chuck Brayton, American baseball player and coach (b. 1925)
• 2015 – Joseph Cassidy, Canadian-English priest and academic (b. 1954)
• 2015 – Miroslav Ondříček, Czech cinematographer (b. 1934)
• 2015 – Gene Saks, American actor and director (b. 1921)
• 2016 – James Noble, American actor (b. 1922)
• 2021 – Didier Ratsiraka, Malagasy politician and naval officer (b. 1936)
• 2023 – Paul O'Grady, English comedian, actor and drag queen (b. 1955)
• 2023 – Ryuichi Sakamoto, Japanese composer, record producer, and actor (b. 1952)

Holidays and observances

• Christian feast day:
  • Priscus
  • Pope Sixtus III
  • March 28 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Serfs Emancipation Day (Tibet)
• Teachers' Day (Czech Republic and Slovakia)

See also

In Spanish: 28 de marzo para niños