Browse Historical Events by Day: What Happened on August 28th?

Slavery is abolished throughout the British Empire, including in the British colonies of the Caribbean and North America.

Zulu King Cetshwayo, the last king of the independent Zulu nation was captured by the British during the Zulu war and taken into custody. Two years later he was allowed to travel to London and met Queen Victoria. He was permitted to return to South Africa to rule a portion of the former Zulu kingdom in 1883. More

Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his iconic "I Have a Dream" speech during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Over 250,000 persons attended the Civil Rights rally in Washington, D.C. More

The Ray Brothers’ family home in Arcadia, Florida burns down. It was almost certainly a case of arson fueled by fear and ignorance. The three boys- Ricky, Robert and Randy- were born with hemophilia and were 10, 9 and 8 at the time. They had been diagnosed positive with HIV in 1986 and were not allowed to attend school following their positive test results. Their home was burned to the ground a week after a court ruled the following year that they had every legal right to attend. The Ricky Ray Hemophilia Relief Fund Program act was enacted by the Health and Human Services Department on November 23, 2001 More