What Happened on June 28?

June 28 is National Paul Bunyan Day on the same date Archduke Franz Ferdinand's assassination in 1914 sparked World War I, the Treaty of Versailles ended that war in 1919, and the Stonewall uprising launched the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement in 1969.

• 1389 — Serbian forces clash with the Ottoman Empire at the Battle of Kosovo

  On June 28, 1389, Serbian armies battled the rising Ottoman Empire at Kosovo Polje — a defeat that became central to Serbian national memory. Read the full story →

• 1838 — Queen Victoria is crowned at Westminster Abbey

  On June 28, 1838, 18-year-old Victoria was crowned queen of the United Kingdom — beginning a 63-year reign that defined an era. Read the full story →

• 1914 — Archduke Franz Ferdinand is assassinated in Sarajevo

  On June 28, 1914, a Serbian nationalist shot Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary in Sarajevo — an event that triggered World War I. Read the full story →

• 1919 — Allied powers and Germany sign the Treaty of Versailles

  On June 28, 1919, Germany signed the Treaty of Versailles in France — formally ending World War I but planting seeds of future resentment. Read the full story →

• 1951 — The LEO computer runs the world's first business application

  On June 28, 1951, the Lyons Electronic Office (LEO) at a British bakery company ran payroll — the first routine business program on a stored-program computer. Read the full story →

Famous birthdays

Henry VIII (1491–1547) · John Cusack (1966) · Kathy Bates (1948) · Mel Brooks (1926)

Days & observances

National Paul Bunyan Day · National Insurance Awareness Day · National Tapioca Day · International Body Piercing Day