THE DAY IN HISTORY · JULY 28

July 28 in history

What happened on July 28: 4 moments from the Maps of History atlases, in 1148, 1942, 1951 and 1976, each linked to the map that shows it.

1148 — Siege of Damascus

24–28 Jul 1148 — the kings of the Second Crusade besiege Damascus, the one Muslim city friendly to Jerusalem. They retreat after four days, for reasons that remain disputed. The failure drives Damascus toward Nur al-Din and discredits crusading for a generation.

READ THIS MOMENT → · SEE IT ON THE CRUSADES MAP → · THE FULL STORY →

1942 — Fall of Rostov and Order No. 227

24–28 Jul 1942 — With the loss of Rostov-on-Don, the road to the Caucasus lay open. Four days later Stalin issued Order No. 227, “Not one step back!” The order created penal battalions and blocking detachments behind the front.

READ THIS MOMENT → · SEE IT ON THE SOVIET UNION UNDER STALIN MAP → · THE FULL STORY →

1951

A UN conference in Geneva adopts the Refugee Convention, defining a refugee and forbidding return to persecution — for events in Europe before 1951 only.

READ THIS MOMENT → · SEE IT ON THE UPROOTED MAP →

1976 — Tangshan earthquake

28 Jul 1976 — Before dawn, an earthquake destroys the industrial city of Tangshan. It measures 7.6 in magnitude, or 7.8 on the Chinese scale. The official count is 242,000 dead, though other estimates are higher, and the government refused foreign aid. Many people followed an old tradition in reading the disaster as a sign that the Mandate of Heaven was passing.

READ THIS MOMENT → · SEE IT ON THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC UNDER MAO MAP → · THE FULL STORY →