June 28

1491 Henry Tudor was born June 28, 1491 at Greenwich Palace, the second son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. A charming and loveable boy, Henry was bought up at his mother's home, Eltham Palace in South East London. By the age of 3, Henry was riding a horse from Greenwich to Westminster Palace. His older brother, Arthur was the heir to the throne, but died of tuberculosis aged 15. When his father died Henry succeeded him becoming at 18 Henry VIII of England.

1654 In 1654 the English Roman Catholic priest and martyr John Southworth was tried at the Old Bailey under Elizabethan anti-priest legislation. He pleaded guilty to exercising the priesthood and was sentenced to be hanged, drawn and quartered at Tyburn, London. On June 28, 1654, John Southworth became the last ever English Catholic priest to be hanged, drawn and quartered for his faith.

St John Southworth

1703 John Wesley was born on June 28, 1703 in Epworth, 23 miles (37 km) NW of Lincoln. His father, Samuel was a staunch High Churchman whose lifework was to minister to the inhabitants of the North Lincolnshire marshlands. His Mother Susannah was also very devout and both his parents were influenced by the Pietist movement. John was brought up in poverty; his father served in one of England's lowest-paying parishes and was rarely out of debt even spending time in debtor's prison.

1712 Jean Jacques Rousseau was born on June 28, 1712 at 40, Grand Rue, Geneva. He was bought up his watchmaker father and an aunt after his mother died nine days after his birth. Jean Jacques left Geneva aged 16 and traveled around France, where he met his benefactress, the Baronnesse de Warens. She furthered his education to such a degree that the boy who had arrived on her doorstep having never been to school developed into a philosopher, a man of letters, and a musician.

1776 An unsuccessful attempt was made to kill or kidnap George Washington during the Revolution. The governor of New York, the Mayor of New York City and Continental Army soldier Thomas Hickey were all involved. Hickey was hanged on June 28, 1776 before a crowd of 20,000 spectators in New York. Hickey was the first person to be executed by the Continental Army for "mutiny, sedition, and treachery."

1820 After Spanish explorers brought the tomato to Spain from Mexico, most Europeans were convinced that tomatoes were a lethal poison. Their acceptance by Europeans and later Americans as food was very slow. Tomatoes were put "on trial" on June 28, 1820 in Salem, New Jersey. In front of a courthouse, gentleman farmer Colonel Robert G Johnson ate a basket of tomatoes in order to demonstrate they weren't poisonous. The crowd waited for him to die. He didn't.

1836 When James Madison left the American presidency in 1817, he retired to his tobacco plantation in Orange County, Virginia, not far from Jefferson's Monticello. As with both Washington and Jefferson, Madison left the presidency a poorer man than when he entered, due to the steady financial collapse of his plantation, aided by the continued low price of tobacco and his stepson's mismanagement. Madison died at Montpelier on June 28, 1836 as the last of the Founding Fathers.

1838 Queen Victoria's coronation took place on June 28, 1838 at Westminster Abbey. Over 400,000 visitors came to London for the celebrations. As Queen Victoria was being crowned, the Archbishop of Canterbury forced the Coronation Ring on to the wrong finger. She didn't complain, but had to ice her bruised finger later. Victoria endeared herself to the public when she sprung from her throne to help an elderly noble man who had stumbled on approaching her to pay his respects.

Coronation portrait by George Hayter

1846 The saxophone was invented by Adolphe Sax, a Belgian inventor of musical instruments and patented in France on June 28, 1846. Sax patented 14 types of saxophones in total, split into two categories of seven instruments each, and ranging from sopranino to contrabass. The saxophone's ability to play technical passages easily like woodwinds and also project loudly like brass instruments led them to be included in military bands in France and elsewhere.

1870 Claude Monet's mistress Camille Doncieux gave birth to their first child, Jean in 1867. The impoverished Monet and Camille were without a permanent home and were forced to lodge with friends. After Monet and Camille married on June 28, 1870  they rented a house in Argenteuil near the Seine River. They had another son, Michel in 1878, but Camille’s health declined following the birth of their second child and she died of uterine cancer the following year aged 32.

The Woman in the Green Dress, Camille Doncieux, 1866, Kunsthalle Bremen

1894 The first Labor Day happened way back in 1882 in New York City in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. Worker unions started celebrating the day on the first Monday in September because it meant time off between Independence Day and Thanksgiving. Oregon became the first state to make Labor Day an official holiday in 1887 and Congress passed an act on June 28, 1894 making the first Monday in September a legal holiday.

1911 Samuel J. Battle was the first African-American officer in the New York City Police Department (NYPD). He joined the NYPD on June 28, 1911, at the age of 28. During his tenure with the NYPD, Samuel J. Battle faced numerous challenges due to institutional racism. However, he rose through the ranks becoming the first African-American police sergeant in the NYPD in 1926,  first African-American lieutenant in 1935. and first African-American parole commissioner in New York State in 1941.

1914 Serbia's designs on Bosnia and Herzegovina, backed by Russia, led to friction with Austria-Hungaria. When Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, was assassinated by a Serbian on June 28, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. The ensuing domino effect resulted in the First World War.

1914 When Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated on June 28, 1914, he was driving in a Gräf & Stift Bois de Boulogne Double Phaeton luxury limousine, which had been purchased by Count Franz von Harrach on December 15, 1910. Harrach's car was fitted with a four-cylinder engine delivering 32 PS.

Assassination illustrated in the Italian newspaper Domenica del Corriere

1917 The first Raggedy Ann doll was introduced on June 28, 1917. It was created by American writer and cartoonist Johnny Gruelle, who based the character on a rag doll that his daughter Marcella found in the attic. Raggedy Ann dolls are made of fabric and have a simple, patchwork design. They have red yarn hair, a triangle nose, and button eyes. They are often dressed in simple clothes, such as a blue dress and a white apron.

1919 Harry S. Truman married Bess Wallace at Trinity Episcopal Church in Independence, Missouri on June 28, 1919. She had known her future husband since they were children attending the same school in Independence. Their only child, Margaret embarked on a career as a coloratura soprano classical soprano and later a journalist and media personality. Bess Truman died from congestive heart failure at the age of 97, the longest-lived First Lady in United States history.

1919 The Treaty of Versailles, which formally ended the First World War, was signed in the Hall of Mirrors of Versailles Palace on June 28, 1919. General Ferdinand Foch (Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in WWI) said of the Treaty of Versailles "This is not a peace treaty. This is an armistice for twenty years." World War II began 20 years and 64 days later.

1922 18-year-old Ralph Samuelson pioneered the sport of water skiing as it is known today on June 28, 1922 in Lake City, Minnesota. An expert aquaplane (standing on a board while being pulled by a powerboat), he had put on his skis while riding his aquaplane on Lake Pepin and had cast off, one foot at time, until he was planning on the two boards. Samuelson actually skied for several yards before he fell.

1926 Daimler Motoren Gesellschaftr and Benz & Cie merged their companies, the world’s oldest car makers on June 28, 1926. The name Mercedes-Benz was applied to all vehicles produced by the new company, Daimler-Benz AG, The merger allowed Daimler-Benz AG to pool their resources, engineering expertise, and distribution networks, creating a stronger entity that would go on to become one of the most prominent and successful automobile manufacturers in the world.

1935 The Hawaiian shirt came into being in the late nineteenth century after island missionaries encouraged the natives to cover their nakedness. The term “Aloha” shirt was coined in the early 1930s by Chinese shirtmaker Ellery Chun of King-Smith Clothiers and Dry Goods, a store in Waikiki. The first advertisement in the Honolulu Advertiser for an Aloha shirt was published on June 28, 1935.

A vintage aloha shirt, circa 1960

1940 Australian cricket legend Don Bradman joined the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) on June 28, 1940, but he was later transferred to the Australian Army due to his poor eyesight. Bradman was a brilliant batsman, and his eyesight was not a problem when he was playing cricket. However, the RAAF had strict vision requirements for pilots, and Bradman's eyesight did not meet those requirements.

1969 In response to a police raid that took place in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969 at the Stonewall Inn in New York City, groups of gay and transgender people began to riot. The Stonewall riots are widely considered to be the single most important event leading to the gay liberation movement and the modern fight for LGBT rights in the United States.

1970 Muhammad Ali claimed conscientious-objector status on the basis of his membership in the Black Muslims. Appearing for his scheduled induction into the Armed Forces, Ali refused to step forward at the call of his name. He was sentenced to five years in prison, before being freed on appeal. In order to pay his legal fees (since he was barred from boxing), Ali hit the college lecture circuit. His draft evasion conviction was over-turned by the US Supreme Court on June 28 1970.

2007 The China Disability Sports Training Center opened on June 28, 2007, the first facility in China entirely devoted to disability sports training. At 2,564,340 sq ft, it is the largest of its kind in the world. The CDSTC has been a major factor in China's success in international disability sports competitions. In the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games, China won 211 medals, including 95 gold medals. This was the most medals that any country had ever won in a single Paralympic Games.

2009 Stephen Hawking tried to lure time travelers to his house by throwing a party on June 28, 2009, then sending out invitations later. Nobody showed up. Hawking took this as evidence that time travel is not possible.