August 28 is the 240th day of the year (241st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 125 days remaining until the end of the year.

[edit] Events

• 475 - The Roman general Orestes forces western Roman Emperor Julius Nepos to flee his capital city, Ravenna.
• 489 - Theodoric, king of the Ostrogoths defeats Odoacer at the Battle of Isonzo, forcing his way into Italy.
• 1189 - Third Crusade: the Crusaders begin the Siege of Acre under Guy of Lusignan
• 1349 - 6,000 Jews are killed in Mainz, accused of being the cause of the plague.
• 1511 - The Portuguese conquer Malacca.
• 1521 - The Ottoman Turks occupy Belgrade.
• 1542 - Turkish-Portuguese War (1538-1557) - Battle of Wofla: the Portuguese are scattered, their leader Christovão da Gama is captured and afterwards executed.
• 1565 - St. Augustine, Florida, is established. It is the oldest surviving European settlement in the United States.
• 1609 - Henry Hudson discovers Delaware Bay.
• 1619 - Ferdinand II is elected emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.
• 1640 - Second Bishop's War: King Charles I's English army loses to a Scottish Covenanter force at the Battle of Newburn
• 1777 - American Revolutionary War - Battle of Cooch's Bridge takes place near Newark, Delaware.
• 1789 - William Herschel discovers a new moon of Saturn.
• 1830 - The Tom Thumb presages the first railway service in the United States.
• 1845 - Scientific American magazine publishes its first issue.
• 1849 - After a month-long siege, Venice, which had declared itself independent, surrenders to Austria.
• 1859 - A geomagnetic storm causes the Aurora Borealis to shine so brightly that it is seen clearly over parts of USA, Europe, and even as far afield as Japan.
• 1862 - American Civil War: Second Battle of Bull Run, also known as the battle of Second Manassas.
• 1867 - The United States takes possession of the, at this point unoccupied, Midway Island.
• 1879 - Cetshwayo, last king of the Zulus, is captured by the British.
• 1898 - Caleb Bradham renames his carbonated soft drink "Pepsi-Cola".
• 1913 - Queen Wilhelmina opens the Peace Palace in The Hague.
• 1914 - World War I: the Royal Navy beats the German fleet in the Battle of Heligoland Bight.
• 1914 - World War I: German troops conquer Namur.
• 1916 - World War I: Germany declares war on Romania.
• 1916 - World War I: Italy declares war on Germany.
• 1917 - Ten suffragists are arrested when picketing the White House.
• 1924 - Georgian opposition stages the August Uprising against the Soviet Union.
• 1931 - France and Soviet Union sign a treaty of non-aggression.
• 1937 - Toyota Motors becomes an independent company.
• 1943 - World War II: in Denmark, a general strike against the Nazi occupation is started.
• 1944 - World War II: Marseille and Toulon are liberated.
• 1953 - Nippon Television broadcasts Japan's first television show, including its first TV advertisement.
• 1955 - Black teenager Emmett Till is murdered in Mississippi, galvanizing the nascent American Civil Rights Movement.
• 1961 - Motown releases what would be its first #1 hit, "Please Mr. Postman" by The Marvelettes.
• 1963 - March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom: Martin Luther King, Jr. gives his I Have a Dream speech.
• 1964 - The Philadelphia race riot begins.
• 1968 - Riots in Chicago, Illinois, during the Democratic National Convention.
• 1971 - The dollar is allowed to float against the yen for the first time.
• 1979 - An IRA bomb explodes on the Grand Place in Brussels.
• 1981 - The National Centers for Disease Control announce a high incidence of Pneumocystis and Kaposi's sarcoma in gay men. Soon, these will be recognized as symptoms of an immune disorder, which will be called AIDS.
• 1984 - Josef Fritzl lures his 18 year old daughter, Elisabeth, into the basement of their home, where she would be imprisoned for the next 24 years.
• 1986 - United States Navy officer Jerry A. Whitworth is sentenced to 365 years imprisonment for espionage for the Soviet Union.
• 1988 - Ramstein airshow disaster: three aircraft of the Frecce Tricolori demonstration team collide and the wreckage falls into the crowd. 75 are killed and 346 seriously injured.
• 1990 - Iraq declares Kuwait to be its newest province.
• 1990 - The Plainfield Tornado: an F5 tornado hits in Plainfield, Illinois, and Joliet, Illinois, killing 28 people.
• 1991 - Collapse of the Soviet Union: Ukraine declares its independence from the Soviet Union.
• 1991 - Collapse of the Soviet Union - Mikhail Gorbachev resigns as Secretary of the Soviet Communist Party.
• 1996 - Charles, Prince of Wales and Diana, Princess of Wales are divorced.
• 1998 - Pakistan's National Assembly passes a constitutional amendment to make the "Qur'an and Sunnah" the "supreme law" but the bill is defeated in the Senate.
• 2003 - An electricity blackout cuts off power to around 500,000 people living in south east England and brings 60% of London's underground rail network to a halt.

[edit] Births

• 1025 - Emperor Go-Reizei of Japan (d. 1068)
• 1582 - Taichang Emperor, of the Ming dynasty of China (d. 1620)
• 1592 - George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, English statesman (d. 1628)
• 1612 - Marcus Zuerius van Boxhorn, Dutch scholar (d. 1653)
• 1667 - Louise of Mecklenburg-Güstrow, queen of Denmark and Norway (d. 1721)
• 1691 - Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Holy Roman Empire Empress (d. 1750)
• 1714 - Anthony Ulrich II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (d. 1774)
• 1749 - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German writer and scientist (d. 1832)
• 1774 - Elizabeth Ann Seton, American-born Catholic saint (d. 1821)
• 1789 - Stéphanie de Beauharnais, Grand Duchess of Baden (d. 1860)
• 1801 - Antoine Augustin Cournot, French mathematician (d. 1877)
• 1814 - Sheridan le Fanu, Irish writer (d. 1873)
• 1827 - Grand Duchess Catherine Mikhailovna of Russia (d. 1894)
• 1828 - Leo Tolstoy, Russian author (birthdate according to O.S.) (d. 1910)
• 1840 - Alexander Cameron Sim, Scottish merchant (d. 1900)
• 1853 - Vladimir Shukhov, Russian engineer and inventor (d. 1939)
• 1867 - Umberto Giordano, Italian composer (d. 1948)
• 1878 - George Whipple, American scientist and Nobel laureate (d. 1976)
• 1885 - Vance Palmer, Australian author (d. 1959)
• 1894 - Karl Böhm, Austrian conductor (d. 1981)
• 1898 - Charlie Grimm, American baseball player (d. 1983)
• 1899 - Charles Boyer, French actor (d. 1978)
• 1903 - Bruno Bettelheim, American psychologist (d. 1990)
• 1904 - Secondo Campini, Italian jet engine pioneer (d. 1980)
• 1905 - Cyril Walters, England cricketer (d. 1992)
• 1906 - John Betjeman, English poet (d. 1984)
• 1908 - Roger Tory Peterson, American ornithologist (d. 1996)
• 1910 - Tjalling Koopmans, Dutch-born economist Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1985)
• 1911 - Joseph Luns, Dutch politician (d. 2002)
• 1913 - Robertson Davies, Canadian writer (d. 1995)
• 1913 - Richard Tucker, American tenor (d. 1975)
• 1913 - Terence Reese, British bridge player (d. 1996)
• 1913 - Boris Pahor, Slovenian writer
• 1913 - Lindsay Hassett, Australian cricketer (d. 1993)
• 1915 - Max Robertson, British sports commentator
• 1915 - Tasha Tudor, American illustrator (d. 2008)
• 1916 - Jack Vance, American author
• 1916 - Hélène Baillargeon, Quebec singer and folklorist (d. 1997)
• 1917 - Jack Kirby, American comic book artist (d. 1994)
• 1919 - Godfrey Hounsfield, English electrical engineer Nobel Laureate (d. 2004)
• 1920 - Frits Bernard, pedophile activist (d. 2006)
• 1921 - Fernando Fernán Gómez, Spanish actor, director, academic and playwright (d. 2007)
• 1921 - Nancy Kulp, American actress (d. 1991)
• 1924 - Janet Frame, New Zealand author (d. 2004)
• 1924 - Peggy Ryan, American actress (d. 2004)
• 1924 - Tony MacGibbon, New Zealand cricketer
• 1925 - Donald O'Connor, American singer, dancer, and actor (d. 2003)
• 1925 - Billy Grammer, American country music singer and guitarist
• 1928 - F. William Free, American advertising executive (d. 2003)
• 1929 - István Kertész, Hungarian conductor (d. 1973)
• 1929 - Ken Gampu, South African actor (d. 2003)
• 1930 - Windsor Davies, British actor
• 1930 - Ben Gazzara, American actor
• 1931 - John Shirley-Quirk, English bass-baritone
• 1931 - Tito Capobianco, Argentinian stage impresario
• 1932 - Andy Bathgate, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1935 - Gilles Rocheleau, French Canadian politician (d. 1998)
• 1936 - Don Denkinger, American baseball umpire
• 1938 - Paul Martin, Canadian politician
• 1938 - Maurizio Costanzo, Italian television journalist
• 1940 - Ken Jenkins, American actor
• 1940 - Roger Pingeon, French cylist
• 1940 - Nik Turner, English musician (Hawkwind)
• 1941 - Sybille de Selys Longchamps, Belgian aristocrat
• 1941 - Paul Plishka, American bass
• 1942 - Sterling Morrison, American guitarist (The Velvet Underground) (d. 1995)
• 1943 - David Soul, American actor
• 1943 - Lou Piniella, American baseball manager
• 1943 - Surayud Chulanont, Thai 24th Prime Minister (former)
• 1944 - Marianne Heemskerk, Dutch swimmer
• 1945 - Robert Greenwald, American film director/producer
• 1945 - Bob Segarini, American musician
• 1944 - Melvin Dummar, American claimant to the Howard Hughes estate
• 1947 - Liza Wang, Hong Kong actress
• 1947 - Shoto Tanemura, Japanese martial artist
• 1948 - Danny Seraphine, American musician (Chicago)
• 1948 - Murray Parker, New Zealand cricketer
• 1949 - Hugh Cornwell, British musician (The Stranglers)
• 1949 - Svetislav Pešić, Serbian basketball player and coach
• 1951 - Keiichi Suzuki, Japanese composer
• 1951 - Wayne Osmond, American singer (The Osmonds)
• 1952 - Rita Dove, American poet
• 1952 - Wendelin Wiedeking, German businessman
• 1952 - Guy Nadon, Canadian actor
• 1952 - Jacques Chagnon, Canadian politician
• 1954 - George Church, American geneticist
• 1956 - Luis Guzmán, Puerto Rican actor
• 1957 - Daniel Stern, American actor
• 1957 - Rick Rossovich, American actor
• 1958 - Scott Hamilton, American figure skater
• 1960 - Emma Samms, English actress
• 1961 - Kim Appleby, English singer
• 1961 - Cliff Benson, American football player
• 1962 - Paul Allen, English footballer
• 1962 - David Fincher, American music video and film director
• 1963 - Jennifer Coolidge, American actress
• 1963 - Regina Jacobs, American athlete
• 1965 - Amanda Tapping, Canadian actress
• 1965 - Shania Twain, Canadian singer
• 1966 - Priya Dutt, Indian social worker and politician
• 1967 - Frederick Kesner, Philippine-born Australian poet
• 1968 - Billy Boyd, Scottish actor
• 1969 - Jason Priestley, Canadian-born actor
• 1969 - Jack Black, American actor
• 1969 - Mary McCartney, English photographer
• 1969 - Pierre Turgeon, French Canadian ice hockey player
• 1970 - Sherrié Austin, Australian actress/singer
• 1970 - Rick Recht, Jewish singer
• 1971 - Todd Eldredge, American figure skater
• 1971 - Janet Evans, American swimmer
• 1971 - Raul Marquez, Mexican-born American boxer
• 1971 - Shane Andrews, American baseball player
• 1972 - Jay Witasick, American baseball player
• 1972 - Ravindu Shah, Kenyan cricketer
• 1973 - Matthew John Armstrong, American actor
• 1973 - DJ Assault, American musician
• 1974 - Johan Andersson, Swedish game programmer
• 1974 - Carsten Jancker, German footballer
• 1974 - Takahito Eguchi, Japanese composer
• 1975 - Jamie Cureton, English footballer
• 1975 - Gareth Farrelly, Irish footballer
• 1975 - Vera Jordanova, Finnish actress and model
• 1976 - Federico Magallanes, Uruguayan footballer
• 1978 - Jess Margera, American drummer (CKY)
• 1978 - Shaniqua, American wrestling valet
• 1979 - Robert Hoyzer, German football referee
• 1979 - Shaila Durcal, Spanish singer
• 1979 - Kristen Hughes, Australian netballer
• 1979 - Markus Pröll, German footballer
• 1979 - Ruth Riley, American basketball player
• 1980 - T.J. Beam, American baseball player
• 1981 - Martin Erat, Czech hockey player
• 1981 - Daniel Gygax, Swiss footballer
• 1981 - Vaggelis Moras, Greek footballer
• 1981 - Agata Wróbel, Polish weightlifter
• 1981 - Raphael Matos, Brazilian racing driver
• 1982 - Anderson Silva de França, Brazilian footballer
• 1982 - LeAnn Rimes, American singer
• 1982 - Kevin McNaughton, Scottish footballer
• 1982 - Thiago Motta, Brazilian footballer
• 1983 - Lasith Malinga, Sri Lankan cricketer
• 1983 - Alfonso Herrera, Actor, and singer in the Latin pop group RBD
• 1985 - Ralph Woolfolk IV, American actor
• 1986 - Gilad Shalit, Israeli corporal
• 1988 - Ray Jones, English footballer (d. 2007)
• 1990 - Bojan Krkić, Serbian-Spanish footballer
• 1991 - Kyle Massey, American actor
• 1991 - Sarah Jane Santos, Filipino singer
• 1999 - Prince Nikolai of Denmark

[edit] Deaths

• 388 - Magnus Maximus, Roman usurper
• 430 - Augustine of Hippo, North African saint and theologian (b. 354)
• 1341 - King Leo V of Armenia (b. 1309)
• 1481 - King Afonso V of Portugal (b. 1432)
• 1645 - Hugo Grotius, Dutch philosopher and writer (b. 1583)
• 1654 - Axel Oxenstierna, Lord High Chancellor of Sweden (b. 1583)
• 1678 - John Berkeley, 1st Baron Berkeley of Stratton, English soldier (b. 1602)
• 1757 - David Hartley, English philosopher (b. 1705)
• 1784 - Junípero Serra, Spanish missionary (b. 1713)
• 1785 - Jean-Baptiste Pigalle, French sculptor (b. 1714)
• 1793 - Adam Philippe, Comte de Custine, French general (executed) (b. 1740)
• 1805 - Alexander Carlyle, Scottish church leader (b. 1722)
• 1818 - Jean Baptiste Pointe du Sable, founder of Chicago
• 1820 - Andrew Ellicott, American surveyor (b. 1754)
• 1839 - William Smith, English geologist (b. 1769)
• 1900 - Henry Sidgwick, English philosopher (b. 1838)
• 1903 - Frederick Law Olmsted, American landscape architect (b. 1822)
• 1933 - Helen Dunbar, American actress (b. 1863)
• 1943 - King Boris III of Bulgaria (b. 1894)
• 1947 - Manolete, Spanish bullfighter (b. 1917)
• 1955 - Emmett Till, American civil rights movement icon (b. 1941)
• 1959 - Bohuslav Martinů, Czech composer (b. 1890)
• 1965 - Giulio Racah, Israeli physicist (b. 1909)
• 1975 - Fritz Wotruba, Austrian sculptor (b. 1907)
• 1976 - Anissa Jones, American actress (b. 1958)
• 1978 - Robert Shaw, English actor and writer (b. 1927)
• 1981 - Béla Guttman, Hungarian footballer (b. 1900)
• 1982 - Geoff Chubb, South African cricketer (b. 1911)
• 1985 - Ruth Gordon, American actress (b. 1896)
• 1987 - John Huston, American movie director (b. 1906)
• 1988 - Jean Marchand, French Canadian union leader and politician (b. 1918)
• 1990 - Willy Vandersteen, Belgian cartoonist (b. 1913)
• 1993 - William Stafford, American poet (b. 1914)
• 1995 - Earl Bascom, American rodeo pioneer (b. 1906)
• 2003 - Brian Douglas Wells, American criminal (failed) (b. 1956)
• 2005 - Jacques Dufilho, French actor (b. 1914)
• 2005 - Esther Szekeres, Hungarian mathematician (b. 1910)
• 2005 - George Szekeres, Hungarian mathematician (b. 1911)
• 2006 - Benoît Sauvageau, French Canadian politician (b. 1963)
• 2006 - Melvin Schwartz, American physicist, Nobel laureate (b. 1932)
• 2007 - Arthur Jones, American inventor of the Nautilus exercise machines (b. 1926)
• 2007 - Hilly Kristal, American musician (b. 1932)
• 2007 - Paul B. MacCready, Jr., American aeronautical engineer (b. 1925)
• 2007 - Antonio Puerta, Spanish footballer (b. 1984)
• 2007 - Francisco Umbral, Spanish journalist, novelist, biographer and essayist (b. 1935)
• 2007 - Miyoshi Umeki, Japanese-born American actress (b. 1929)
• 2007 - Nikola Nobilo, New Zealand winemaker (b. 1913)
• 2008 - Phil Hill, American race car driver and one-time F1 world champion (b. 1927)

[edit] Holidays and observances

• In Eastern Orthodox Churches using the Julian calendar: Feast day of the Assumption of Mary, the mother of Jesus, public holiday in the Republic of Macedonia, Serbia
• Many Christian churches: feast day of Saint Augustine of Hippo.

[edit] External links

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada