December 28 is the 362nd day of the year (363rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 3 days remaining until the end of the year.
Events
- 1065 - Westminster Abbey is consecrated.
- 1308 - The reign of Emperor Hanazono, emperor of Japan, begins.
- 1612 - Galileo Galilei becomes the first astronomer to observe the planet Neptune, although he mistakenly catalogued it as a fixed star.
- 1768 - King Taksin's coronation achieved through conquest as a king of Thailand and established Thonburi as a capital.
- 1832 - John C. Calhoun becomes the first Vice President of the United States to resign.
- 1835 - Osceola leads his Seminole warriors in Florida into the Second Seminole War against the United States Army.
- 1836 - South Australia and Adelaide are founded.
- 1836 - Spain recognizes the independence of Mexico.
- 1846 - Iowa is admitted as the 29th U.S. state.
- 1867 - United States claims Midway Island, the first territory annexed outside Continental limits.
- 1879 - The Tay Bridge Disaster: The central part of the Tay Rail Bridge in Dundee, Scotland collapses as a train passes over it, killing 75.
- 1895 - The Lumière brothers perform for their first paying audience at the Grand Cafe in Boulevard des Capucines marking the debut of the cinema.
- 1908 - An earthquake rocks Messina, Sicily killing over 75,000.
- 1912 - The first municipally owned streetcars take to the streets in San Francisco, California.
- 1929 - "Black Saturday" in Samoa: New Zealand colonial police kill 11 unarmed demonstrators, an event which leads the Mau movement to demand independence for Samoa.
- 1935 - Pravda publishes a letter by Pavel Postyshev, who revives New Year tree tradition in the Soviet Union.
- 1939 - First flight of the Consolidated XB-24 Liberator bomber prototype.
- 1945 - The Congress of the United States officially recognizes the Pledge of Allegiance.
- 1948 - The DC-3 airliner NC16002 disappears 50 miles south of Miami, Florida.
- 1950 - The Peak District becomes the United Kingdom's first National Park.
- 1973 - The Endangered Species Act is passed in the United States.
- 1974 - Senegalese marxist group Reenu-Rew founds the political movement And-Jëf at a clandestine congress.
- 1981 - The first American test-tube baby, Elizabeth Jordan Carr, is born in Norfolk, Virginia.
- 1989 - A magnitude 5.6 earthquake hits Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia, killing 13 people.
- 1999 - Saparmurat Niyazov is proclaimed President for Life in Turkmenistan.
- 2000 - U.S. retail giant Montgomery Ward announces it is going out of business after 128 years.
- 2005 - A U.S. immigration judge orders John Demjanjuk deported to Ukraine for crimes against humanity committed during World War II.
- 2007 - Nepal declares a federal democratic Republic by interim parliament, abolishing the monarchy.
Births
- 1164 - Emperor Rokujō of Japan (d. 1176)
- 1522 - Margaret of Austria, regent of the Netherlands (d. 1583)
- 1619 - Antoine Furetière, French writer (d. 1688)
- 1635 - Princess Elizabeth of England (d. 1650)
- 1655 - Charles Cornwallis, 3rd Baron Cornwallis, First Lord of the British Admiralty (d. 1698)
- 1665 - George FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Northumberland, British general (d. 1716)
- 1763 - John Molson, English-born Canadian brewer (d. 1836)
- 1778 - Franciszek Ksawery Drucki-Lubecki, Polish politician (d. 1846)
- 1842 - Calixa Lavallée, French-Canadian composer (O Canada) (d. 1891)
- 1856 - Woodrow Wilson, 28th President of the United States, Nobel laureate (d. 1924)
- 1866 - Szymon Askenazy, Polish historian and diplomat (d. 1935)
- 1879 - Billy Mitchell, American military aviation pioneer (d. 1936)
- 1882 - Arthur Stanley Eddington, British astronomer (d. 1944)
- 1888 - Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau, German film director (d. 1931)
- 1898 - Carl-Gustaf Rossby, Swedish meteorologist (d. 1957)
- 1898 - Shigematsu Sakaibara, Japanese admiral (d. 1947)
- 1899 - Eugeniusz Bodo, Polish actor (d. 1943)
- 1902 - Mortimer Adler, American philosopher (d. 2001)
- 1902 - Shen Congwen, Chinese writer (d. 1988)
- 1903 - Earl Hines, American musician (d. 1983)
- 1903 - John von Neumann, Hungarian-born mathematician (d. 1957)
- 1905 - Cliff Arquette, American actor (d. 1974)
- 1908 - Lew Ayres, American actor (d. 1996)
- 1910 - Billy Williams, American singer (d. 1972)
- 1913 - Lou Jacobi, Canadian actor
- 1914 - Bernard Youens, English actor (d. 1984)
- 1915 - Pops Staples, American musician (The Staple Singers) (d. 2000)
- 1922 - Stan Lee, American comic book writer
- 1924 - Milton Obote, President of Uganda (d. 2005)
- 1925 - Hildegard Knef, German actress (d. 2002)
- 1928 - Moe Koffman, Canadian musician (d. 2001)
- 1929 - Brian Redhead, British journalist (d. 1994)
- 1929 - Terry Sawchuk, Canadian hockey player (d. 1970)
- 1931 - Guy Debord, French writer (d. 1994)
- 1932 - Dhirubhai Ambani, Indian businessman (d. 2002)
- 1932 - Dorsey Burnette, American singer (d. 1979)
- 1932 - Roy Hattersley, British politician
- 1932 - Harry Howell, Canadian hockey player
- 1932 - Nichelle Nichols, American actress and singer
- 1932 - Manuel Puig, Argentine writer (d. 1990)
- 1933 - John Y. Brown, Jr., American politician
- 1934 - Dame Maggie Smith, British actress
- 1934 - Yujiro Ishihara, Japanese actor (d. 1987)
- 1936 - Jacques Mesrine, French criminal (d. 1979)
- 1936 - Lawrence Schiller, American journalist
- 1937 - Ratan Tata, Indian industrialist
- 1938 - Dick Sudhalter, American jazz musician (d. 2008)
- 1939 - Philip Anschutz, American businessman
- 1940 - Don Francisco, Chilean television host
- 1942 - Roger Swerts, Belgian cyclist
- 1943 - Richard Whiteley, British television presenter (d. 2005)
- 1943 - David Peterson, Canadian politician
- 1944 - Johnny Isakson, American politician
- 1944 - Kary Mullis, American chemist, Nobel laureate
- 1946 - Edgar Winter, American musician
- 1946 - Mike Beebe, American politician, governor of Arkansas
- 1946 - Pierre Falardeau, Quebec film director
- 1946 - Tim Johnson, American politician, senior senator from South Dakota
- 1947 - Aurelio Rodríguez, Mexican baseball player (d. 2000)
- 1950 - Alex Chilton, American musician (Box Tops)
- 1950 - Øivind Blunck, Norwegian comedian and actor
- 1951 - Ian Buruma, Anglo-Dutch scholar and writer on Japan and the Far East.
- 1952 - Arun Jaitley, Indian Politician
- 1953 - Richard Clayderman, French pianist
- 1953 - Tatsumi Fujinami, Japanese professional wrestler
- 1954 - Denzel Washington, American actor
- 1954 - Lanny Poffo, American professional wrestler
- 1956 - Nigel Kennedy, British violinist
- 1957 - Anne Sargeant, Australian netballer
- 1959 - Ana Torroja, Spanish singer (Mecano)
- 1959 - Phil Abrams, American actor
- 1960 - Raymond Bourque, Canadian hockey player
- 1961 - Kent Nielsen, Danish footballer and football coach
- 1962 - Rachel Z, American pianist
- 1962 - Michel Petrucciani, French pianist (d. 1999)
- 1962 - Melissa R. Kelly, former Maryland politician
- 1962 - Choi Soo Jong, South Korean actor
- 1964 - Maite Zúñiga, Spanish athlete
- 1967 - Chris Ware, American cartoonist
- 1969 - Linus Torvalds, Finnish computer programmer
- 1970 - Francesca Le, American porn star
- 1971 - Frank Sepe, American bodybuilder
- 1971 - Benny Agbayani, American baseball player
- 1971 - William Gates, American basketball player
- 1972 - Patrick Rafter, Australian tennis player
- 1972 - Roberto Palacios, Peruvian footballer
- 1972 - Adam Vinatieri, American football player
- 1973 - Alex Dimitriades, Australian actor
- 1973 - Herborg Kråkevik, Norwegian singer and actress
- 1973 - Seth Meyers, American actor
- 1974 - Jason Ridge, American porn actor
- 1974 - Rob Niedermayer, Canadian-born ice-hockey player.
- 1975 - B.J. Ryan, American baseball player
- 1977 - Shane Elford, Australian rugby league player
- 1978 - Chris Coyne, Australian footballer
- 1978 - John Legend, American musician
- 1979 - James Blake, American tennis player
- 1979 - Bill Hall, American baseball player
- 1979 - Senna Guemmour, German Singer (Monrose)
- 1980 - Lomana LuaLua, Congo footballer
- 1980 - Vanessa Ferlito, American actress
- 1981 - Elizabeth Jordan Carr, American Test-Tube Baby
- 1981 - Sienna Miller, British actress
- 1981 - Khalid Boulahrouz, Dutch footballer
- 1981 - Mika Väyrynen, Finnish footballer
- 1982 - Cedric Benson, American football player
- 1982 - François Gourmet, Belgian decathlete
- 1982 - Kevin Pereira, American television host
- 1982 - Quinton Porter, American footballer
- 1983 - Mike He, Taiwanese actor
- 1984 - Leroy Lita, English footballer
- 1984 - Alex Lloyd, British racing driver
- 1984 - Beverly Mullins, American wrestler/model
- 1985 - Kamani Hill, American footballer
- 1986 - Tom Huddlestone, English footballer
- 1987 - Thomas Dekker, American actor
- 1989 - Mackenzie Rosman, American actress
- 1990 - David Archuleta, American Idol runner-up, American singer
Deaths
- 300 - Theonas, Patriarch of Alexandria
- 1367 - Ashikaga Yoshiakira, Japanese shogun (b. 1330)
- 1446 - Antipope Clement VIII
- 1503 - Piero di Lorenzo de' Medici, ruler of Florence (b. 1471)
- 1558 - Hermann Finck, German composer (b. 1527)
- 1622 - Francis de Sales, Bishop of Geneva and saint (b. 1567)
- 1663 - Francesco Maria Grimaldi, Italian mathematician and physicist (b. 1618)
- 1671 - Johann Friedrich Gronovius, German classical scholar (b. 1611)
- 1694 - Queen Mary II of England (b. 1662), of the famed joint monarchy William and Mary.
- 1703 - Mustafa II, Ottoman Sultan (b. 1664)
- 1706 - Pierre Bayle, French philosopher (b. 1647)
- 1708 - Joseph Pitton de Tournefort, French botanist (b. 1656)
- 1715 - William Carstares, Scottish minister (b. 1649)
- 1734 - Robert Roy MacGregor, Scottish folk hero (b. 1671)
- 1736 - Antonio Caldara, Italian composer (b. 1670)
- 1795 - Eugenio Espejo, Ecuadorian scientist (b. 1747)
- 1859 - Thomas Macaulay, British poet (b. 1800)
- 1872 - James Van Ness, Mayor of San Francisco (1855-1856) (b. 1808)
- 1877 - Nikolai Alekseevich Nekrasov, Russian poet (b. 1821)
- 1897 - Rev. William Corby, American Catholic priest (b. 1833)
- 1900 - Alexandre Alberto da Rocha de Serpa Pinto, Portuguese explorer (b. 1846)
- 1916 - Eduard Strauss, Austrian composer (b. 1835)
- 1917 - Alfred Edwin McKay, Canadian World War One flying ace (b. 1892)
- 1918 - Olavo Bilac, Brazilian poet (b. 1865)
- 1919 - Johannes Rydberg, Swedish physicist (b. 1854)
- 1924 - Léon Bakst, Russian artist (b. 1866)
- 1932 - Jack Blackham, Australian cricketer (b. 1854)
- 1937 - Maurice Ravel, French composer (b. 1875)
- 1938 - Florence Lawrence, American actress (b. 1886)
- 1943 - Steve Evans, American baseball player (b. 1885)
- 1945 - Theodore Dreiser, American author (b. 1871)
- 1947 - King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy (b. 1869)
- 1949 - Jack Lovelock, New Zealand athlete (b. 1910)
- 1952 - Fletcher Henderson, American musician (b. 1897)
- 1959 - Ante Pavelić, leader of Nazi Germany puppet Independent State of Croatia (b. 1889)
- 1962 - Kathleen Clifford, American actress (b. 1887)
- 1963 - Paul Hindemith, German composer (b. 1895)
- 1967 - Katharine McCormick, American women's rights activist (b. 1875)
- 1967 - Otis Redding, Black American soul singer (b. 1941)
- 1971 - Max Steiner, Austrian-born American film music composer (b. 1888)
- 1976 - Katharine Byron, American politician (b. 1903)
- 1976 - Freddie King, American musician (b. 1934)
- 1981 - Allan Dwan, Canadian-born film director (b. 1885)
- 1983 - William Demarest, American actor (b. 1892)
- 1983 - Jimmy Demaret, American golfer (b. 1910)
- 1983 - Dennis Wilson, American musician (The Beach Boys) (b. 1944)
- 1984 - Sam Peckinpah, American film director (b. 1925)
- 1986 - Andrei Tarkovsky, Russian film director (b. 1932)
- 1989 - Hermann Oberth, German physicist (b. 1894)
- 1991 - Cassandra Harris, Australian actress (b. 1952)
- 1992 - Sal Maglie, American baseball player (b. 1917)
- 1993 - William L. Shirer, American journalist (b. 1904)
- 1994 - Jean-Louis Lévesque, French Canadian entrepreneur (b. 1911)
- 1999 - Clayton Moore, American actor (b. 1914)
- 2001 - Samuel A. Goldblith, American food scientist (b. 1919)
- 2001 - William X. Kienzle, American novelist (b. 1928)
- 2003 - Benjamin Hacker, American admiral (b. 1935)
- 2004 - Jerry Orbach, American actor (b. 1935)
- 2004 - Susan Sontag, American writer (b. 1933)
- 2006 - Jamal Karimi-Rad, Iranian Minister of Justice (b. 1956)
- 2007 - Benazir Bhutto, Pakistani Prime Minister (b. 1953)
- 2007 - Aidin Nikkhah Bahrami, Iran national basketball team player (b. 1982)
Holidays and observances
External links
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