Today is Tuesday, July 28, the 209th day of 2026. There are 156 days left in the year. Highlights in history on this date: 1540 — Henry VIII of England marries Catherine Howard; Thomas Cromwell is beheaded on Tower Hill in England. 1586 — The first potatoes arrive in England from Colombia, brought in by Sir Thomas Harriot. 1588 — Lord High Admiral Charles Howard of Effingham sends British fire ships to destroy the Spanish Armada off Calais, France. 1643 — An English parliamentarian force under Oliver Cromwell takes Gainsborough. 1742 — The Peace of Berlin between Austria and Prussia ends the first Silesian War. Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mainly in Poland. 1750 — Death of Johann Sebastian Bach, German composer and organist. 1794 — French revolutionary leader Maximilien de Robespierre and 22 of his supporters are executed by guillotine before a cheering crowd in Paris. 1809 — British forces under Sir Arthur Wellesley (subsequently Duke of Wellington) defeat the French under Marshal Victor at the Battle of Talavera, southwest of Madrid. 1842 — Anglican bishop George Selwyn begins a five-month journey around his diocese in New Zealand. During this time he will travel 3700km, more than 1000km of it on foot. 1858 — The first use of fingerprints as a means of identification is made by William Herschel of the Indian Civil Service at Jangipur in India; he put the handprint of Rajyadhar Konai on the back of a contract. 1868 — The 14th amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, granting citizenship to blacks. 1893 — After being unsuccessful with 9000 signatures in 1891 and 20,000 signatures in 1892, a third women’s suffrage petition, containing 32,000 signatures, is presented to the New Zealand Parliament. 1904 — Russia’s Minister of the Interior, Vyacheslav Plehve, is assassinated by a socialist. 1914 — World War 1 begins when Austria Hungary declares war on Serbia. 1917 — James Weldon Johnson organises a silent protest parade of more than 10,000 African-Americans down New York City's Fifth Avenue, to protest the frequent lynchings of blacks in the South. 1937 — The Japanese seize Beijing in China and subsequently occupy it until 1945. 1940 — British forces repulse German attacks on the Mediterranean island group of Malta. The islands’ civilian population is later honoured with the George Cross for bravery. 1945 — A US army bomber crashes into the Empire State Building in New York City, killing 13 people. 1957 — Power and telephone services are disrupted as Dunedin becomes isolated during its worst snowstorm in almost 20 years. 1976 — An earthquake kills more than 240,000 people and almost completely destroys the city of Tangshan in northeastern China. 1979 — Australia wins its first rugby test against the All Blacks at home in 45 years, with a 12-6 victory at the Sydney Cricket Ground. 1990 — Alberto Fujimori takes over as Peru’s president. 1999 — Parliament votes 59-55 to lower the legal drinking age in New Zealand from 20 to 18. 2001 — Alejandro Toledo, of the centrist Peru Possible Party, is sworn in as president of Peru. 2005 — The Irish Republican Army guerrilla group formally announces an end to its armed campaign against British rule in Northern Ireland. 2006 — A federal appeals court in New York affirms the conviction and 255-year prison sentence of former WorldCom Inc chief executive Bernard Ebbers for orchestrating an $11-billion accounting fraud that led to the largest US bankruptcy. 2016 — Earliest evidence of cancer is found in 1.7 million-year-old toe fossil from Swartkrans Cave, South Africa. The find was published in the "South African Journal of Science". 2018 — The longest "blood moon" eclipse of the 21st century occurs, lasting 1 hour 43 minutes. 2022 Final episodes of Australian TV soap Neighbours screen, after a 37 year run. 2024 — Famed Dunedin musician Martin Phillipps (The Chills) dies. Today’s birthdays: Maxwell Bury, New Zealand architect (1825-1912); William Meldrum, New Zealand lawyer/farmer/military leader/magistrate/local politician (1865-1964); Beatrix Potter, British author and illustrator (1866-1943); Tom Morrison, All Black/rugby administrator (1913-1985); Wiremu Hakopa Toa Te Awhitu, first Maori to be ordained a Roman Catholic priest (1914-1994); Bill Fraser, New Zealand politician (1924-2001); Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, former US first lady (1929-1994); Peter Shirtcliffe, New Zealand businessman (1931-); Sir Garfield Sobers, West Indies cricketer (1936-); Jim Davis, US cartoonist (1945-); Jonathan Edwards, US singer/songwriter (1946-); Sally Struthers, US actress (1947-); Simon Kirke, British musician (1949-); Kathy Cross, New Zealand cricket umpire (1957-); David Shearer, New Zealand politician (1957-); Lori Loughlin, US actress (1964-); Steven Alker, New Zealand professional golfer (1971-); Elizabeth Berkley, US actress (1972-); Jacob Oram, New Zealand cricketer (1978-); Shelly Gotlieb, New Zealand snowboarder (1980-); Fabian Coulthard, British-born New Zealand professional race car driver (1982-); Craig Bradshaw, New Zealand basketball player (1983-); Harry Kane, British footballer (1993-);Nelly Korda, US golfer (1998-). Quote of the day: ‘‘Playing the game and working hard is what I have always dreamed of doing.’’ — Harry Kane, British footballer, who was born this day in 1993. ODT and agencies
