January 28Birthdays & History

On this day: January 28 in history

Oldest first. Tap a year to see it on the World Chronicle timeline.

1. 98On the death of Nerva, Trajan is declared Roman emperor in Cologne, the seat of his government in lower Germany.Europe
2. 814The death of Charlemagne, the first Holy Roman Emperor, brings about the accession of his son Louis the Pious as ruler of the Frankish Empire.Europe
3. 1069Robert de Comines, appointed Earl of Northumbria by William the Conqueror, rides into Durham, England, where he is defeated and killed by rebels. This incident leads to the Harrying of the North.Europe
4. 1077Walk to Canossa: The excommunication of Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor, is lifted after he humbles himself before Pope Gregory VII at Canossa in Italy.Europe
5. 1393King Charles VI of France is nearly killed when several other dancers' costumes catch fire during a masquerade ball in Paris.Europe
6. 1521The Diet of Worms begins, lasting until May 25.Europe
7. 1547Edward VI, the nine-year-old son of Henry VIII, becomes King of England on his father's death.Europe
8. 1568The Edict of Torda prohibits the persecution of individuals on religious grounds in John Sigismund Zápolya's Eastern Hungarian Kingdom.Europe
9. 1573Articles of the Warsaw Confederation are signed, sanctioning freedom of religion in Poland.Europe
10. 1591Execution of Agnes Sampson, accused of witchcraft in Edinburgh.Europe
11. 1624Sir Thomas Warner founds the first British colony in the Caribbean, on the island of Saint Kitts.EuropeLatin America
12. 1671Original city of Panama (founded in 1519) is destroyed by a fire when privateer Henry Morgan sacks and sets fire to it. The site of the previously devastated city is still in ruins (see Panama Viejo).Latin America
13. 1724The Russian Academy of Sciences is founded in St. Petersburg, Russia, by Peter the Great, and implemented by Senate decree. It is called the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences until 1917.Europe
14. 1754Sir Horace Walpole coins the word serendipity in a letter to a friend.Europe
15. 1813Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice is first published in the United Kingdom.Europe
16. 1846The Battle of Aliwal, India, is won by British troops commanded by Sir Harry Smith.AsiaEurope
17. 1851Northwestern University becomes the first chartered university in Illinois.North America
18. 1855A locomotive on the Panama Canal Railway runs from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean for the first time.Latin America
19. 1871Franco-Prussian War: The Siege of Paris ends in French defeat and an armistice.Europe
20. 1878Yale Daily News becomes the first independent daily college newspaper in the United States.North America
21. 1896Walter Arnold of East Peckham, Kent, becomes the first person to be convicted of speeding. He was fined one shilling, plus costs, for speeding at 8 mph (13 km/h), thereby exceeding the contemporary speed limit of 2 mph (3.2 km/h).Europe
22. 1902The Carnegie Institution of Washington is founded in Washington, D.C., with a $10 million gift from Andrew Carnegie.North America
23. 1908Members of the Portuguese Republican Party fail in their attempted coup d'état against the administrative dictatorship of Prime Minister João Franco.Europe
24. 1909United States troops leave Cuba, with the exception of Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, after being there since the Spanish–American War.North AmericaLatin AmericaEurope
25. 1915An act of the U.S. Congress creates the United States Coast Guard as a branch of the United States Armed Forces.North America
26. 1916The Canadian province of Manitoba grants women the right to vote and run for office in provincial elections (although still excluding women of Indigenous or Asian heritage), marking the first time women in Canada are granted voting rights.North AmericaAsia
27. 1918Finnish Civil War: The Red Guard rebels seize control of the capital, Helsinki; members of the Senate of Finland go underground.Europe
28. 1919The Order of the White Rose of Finland is established by Baron Gustaf Mannerheim, the regent of Finland.Europe
29. 1920Foundation of the Spanish Legion.Europe
30. 1922Knickerbocker Storm: Washington, D.C.'s biggest snowfall, causes a disaster when the roof of the Knickerbocker Theatre collapses, killing over 100 people.North America
31. 1932Japanese forces attack Shanghai.AsiaAsia
32. 1933The name Pakistan is coined by Choudhry Rahmat Ali Khan and is accepted by Indian Muslims who then thereby adopted it further for the Pakistan Movement seeking independence.Asia
33. 1935Iceland becomes the first Western country to legalize therapeutic abortion.Europe
34. 1938The World Land Speed Record on a public road is broken by Rudolf Caracciola in the Mercedes-Benz W125 Rekordwagen at a speed of 432.7 kilometres per hour (268.9 mph).Europe
35. 1941Franco-Thai War: Final air battle of the conflict. A Japanese-mediated armistice goes into effect later in the day.AsiaAsia
36. 1945World War II: Supplies begin to reach the Republic of China over the newly reopened Burma Road.Asia
37. 1956Elvis Presley makes his first national television appearance.North America
38. 1958The Lego company patents the design of its Lego bricks, still compatible with bricks produced today.Europe
39. 1960The National Football League announces expansion teams for Dallas to start in the 1960 NFL season and Minneapolis-St. Paul for the 1961 NFL season.North America
40. 1964An unarmed United States Air Force T-39 Sabreliner on a training mission is shot down over Erfurt, East Germany, by a Soviet MiG-19.North AmericaEurope
41. 1965The current design of the Flag of Canada is chosen by an act of Parliament.North America
42. 1977The first day of the Great Lakes Blizzard of 1977, which dumps 3 metres (10 ft) of snow in one day in Upstate New York. Buffalo, Syracuse, Watertown, and surrounding areas are most affected.North America
43. 1977The Shining, the horror novel and the first hardcover bestseller by Stephen King, is published.North America
44. 1980USCGC Blackthorn collides with the tanker Capricorn while leaving Tampa, Florida and capsizes, killing 23 Coast Guard crewmembers.North America
45. 1981Ronald Reagan lifts remaining domestic petroleum price and allocation controls in the United States, helping to end the 1979 energy crisis and begin the 1980s oil glut.North America
46. 1982US Army General James L. Dozier is rescued by Italian anti-terrorism forces from captivity by the Red Brigades.North AmericaEurope
47. 1984Tropical Storm Domoina makes landfall in southern Mozambique, eventually causing 214 deaths and some of the most severe flooding so far recorded in the region.Africa
48. 1985Supergroup USA for Africa (United Support of Artists for Africa) records the hit single We Are the World, to help raise funds for Ethiopian famine relief.North AmericaAfrica
49. 1986Space Shuttle program: STS-51-L mission: Space Shuttle Challenger disintegrates after liftoff, killing all seven astronauts on board.North America
50. 1988In R v Morgentaler the Supreme Court of Canada strikes down all anti-abortion laws.North America
51. 2002TAME Flight 120, a Boeing 727-100, crashes in the Andes mountains in southern Colombia, killing 94.Latin America
52. 2006The roof of one of the buildings at the Katowice International Fair in Poland collapses due to the weight of snow, killing 65 and injuring more than 170 others.Europe
53. 2021A nitrogen leak at a poultry food processing facility in Gainesville, Georgia kills six and injures at least ten.North America
54. 2023Protests begin in the United States after police beat and kill Tyre Nichols.North America
55. 2026Storm Kristin causes a catastrophic impact in Portugal and Spain with €6 billion in damage in the central region of Portugal, 15 deaths and 2,000 injuries.Europe
56. 2026A Learjet 45 crashes on approach to Baramati Airport in Maharashtra, killing all six occupants including the Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Ajit Pawar.Asia
57. 2026The Rubaya mine collapse at Rubaya mines in DR Congo causes at least 400 deaths and injured several others.Africa

Source: Wikipedia "January 28" / CC BY-SA 4.0