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What Happened Today in History on April 28

Explore the historical events that shaped our world on April 28th. From major milestones to cultural achievements, see what happened on this day in history. Dates for earlier events may be approximate.

Louis, Duke of Orléans, is assassinated on the orders of his cousin John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, sparking a civil war in France.

Maryland, ratifies the Articles of Confederation becoming the seventh State.

Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, “Il Duce,” is executed after being captured by partisans as he tried to escape Italy. More

President Lyndon B. Johnson sends more than 22,000 U.S. troops to the Dominican Republic, Ultimately, 42,000 American armed forces were deployed and remained there until September 1966. The U.S, military intervention, purportedly to prevent the establishment of a Communist government in the Central American Nation was followed by protests in Latin America. More than 3,000 Dominicans and 31 American servicemembers lost their lives. This was the second time that the U.S. invaded the Dominican Republic. The first time was in 1916, lasting over 8 years and resulting in the establishment of an American-sponsored puppet government in the Dominican Republic. More

Aloha Flight 243, 737 aircraft lands safely after Losing Its Roof at 24,000 feet. The explosive decompression, which tore off the cockpit door and over 18 feet of the aircraft's roof between the cockpit and the wings. The violent rush of air sadly caused flight attendant Clarabelle Lansing to be swept from the aircraft. She was the only fatality, with all passengers seated and belted at the time. Neither her body or the piece of the fuselage blown off the aircraft were ever found. The Investigation by the U. S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) concluded that the accident was caused by metal fatigue exacerbated by crevice corrosion. More

Dennis Tito, becomes the first private individual to pay for his own trip into space. He was 61 at the time. Reportedly, Tito paid $20M to join the Soyuz TM-32 mission which launched on April 28, 2001. The spacecraft docked with the International Space Station. Tito and his fellow cosmonauts orbited the Earth 128 times, spending 7 days, 22 hours, 4 minutes in space and orbited the Earth 128 times.