- AD 37 – Roman emperor Caligula accepts the titles of the Principate, bestowed on him by the Senate.
- 193 – After assassinating the Roman Emperor Pertinax, his Praetorian Guards auction off the throne to Didius Julianus.
- 364 – Roman Emperor Valentinian I appoints his brother Flavius Valens co-emperor.
- 1566 – The foundation stone of Valletta, Malta’s capital city, is laid by Jean Parisot de Valette, Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.
- 1737 – The Marathas under Baji Rao I attack and defeat the Mughals in the Battle of Delhi.
- 1776 – Juan Bautista de Anza finds the site for the Presidio of San Francisco.
- 1794 – Allies under Prince Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld defeat French forces at Le Cateau.
- 1795 – Partitions of Poland: The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia, a northern fief of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, ceases to exist and becomes part of Imperial Russia.
- 1801 – Treaty of Florence is signed, ending the war between the French Republic and the Kingdom of Naples.
- 1802 – Heinrich Wilhelm Matthäus Olbers discovers 2 Pallas, the second asteroid ever to be discovered.
- 1809 – Peninsular War: France defeats Spain in the Battle of Medellín.
- 1814 – War of 1812: In the Battle of Valparaíso, two American naval vessels are captured by two Royal Navy vessels of equal strength.
- 1842 – First concert of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Otto Nicolai.
- 1854 – Crimean War: France and Britain declare war on Russia.
- 1860 – First Taranaki War: The Battle of Waireka begins.
- 1862 – American Civil War: In the Battle of Glorieta Pass, Union forces stop the Confederate invasion of the New Mexico Territory. The battle began on March 26.
- 1871 – The Paris Commune is formally established in Paris.
- 1883 – Tonkin Campaign: French victory in the Battle of Gia Cuc.
- 1910 – Henri Fabre becomes the first person to fly a seaplane, the Fabre Hydravion, after taking off from a water runway near Martigues, France.
- 1920 – Palm Sunday tornado outbreak of 1920 affects the Great Lakes region and Deep South states.
- 1933 – The Imperial Airways biplane City of Liverpool is believed to be the first airliner lost to sabotage when a passenger sets a fire on board.
- 1939 – Spanish Civil War: Generalissimo Francisco Franco conquers Madrid after a three-year siege.
- 1941 – World War II: Britain’s Mediterranean Fleet sinks three heavy cruisers and two destroyers of Italy’s Regia Marina.
- 1942 – World War II: A British combined force permanently disables the Louis Joubert Lock in Saint-Nazaire in order to keep the German battleship Tirpitz away from the mid-ocean convoy lanes.
- 1946 – Cold War: The United States Department of State releases the Acheson–Lilienthal Report, outlining a plan for the international control of nuclear power.
- 1951 – First Indochina War: In the Battle of Mạo Khê, French Union forces, led by World War II hero Jean de Lattre de Tassigny, inflict a defeat on Việt Minh forces commanded by General Võ Nguyên Giáp.
- 1959 – The State Council of the People’s Republic of China dissolves the government of Tibet.
- 1968 – Brazilian high school student Edson Luís de Lima Souto is killed by military police at a protest for cheaper meals at a restaurant for low-income students.
- 1969 – Greek poet and Nobel Prize laureate Giorgos Seferis makes a famous statement on the BBC World Service opposing the junta in Greece.
- 1970 – An earthquake strikes western Turkey at about 23:05 local time, killing 1,086 and injuring 1,260.
- 1978 – The US Supreme Court hands down 5–3 decision in Stump v. Sparkman, a controversial case involving involuntary sterilization and judicial immunity.
- 1979 – A coolant leak at the Three Mile Island’s Unit 2 nuclear reactor outside Harrisburg, Pennsylvania leads to the core overheating and a partial meltdown.
- 1979 – The British House of Commons passes a vote of no confidence against James Callaghan’s government by 1 vote, precipitating a general election.
- 1990 – United States President George H. W. Bush posthumously awards Jesse Owens the Congressional Gold Medal.
- 1994 – In South Africa, African National Congress security guards kill dozens of Inkatha Freedom Party protesters.
- 1999 – Kosovo War: Serb paramilitary and military forces kill 146 Kosovo Albanians in Izbica.
- 2003 – In a friendly fire incident, two American A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft attack British tanks participating in the 2003 invasion of Iraq, killing one soldier.
- 2005 – An earthquake shakes northern Sumatra with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VI (Strong), leaving 915–1,314 people dead and 340–1,146 injured.
- 2006 – Massive protests are mounted against France’s First Employment Contract law, meant to reduce youth unemployment.
Births of March 28
- 931 – Liu Chengyou, emperor of Later Han (d. 951)
- 1097 – Atsiz, Abbasid caliph (d. 1156)
- 1416 – Jodha of Mandore, Ruler of Marwar (d. 1489)
- 1468 – Charles I, Duke of Savoy (d. 1490)
- 1472 – Fra Bartolomeo, Italian painter (d. 1517)
- 1483 – Raphael, Italian painter and architect (d. 1520)
- 1515 – Teresa of Ávila, Spanish nun and saint (d. 1582)
- 1522 – Albert the Warlike, German prince (d. 1557)
- 1527 – Isabella Markham, English courtier (d. 1579)
- 1591 – William Cecil, 2nd Earl of Salisbury, English earl (d. 1668)
- 1592 – John Amos Comenius, Czech bishop and educator (d. 1670)
- 1599 – Witte de With, Dutch captain (d. 1658)
- 1613 – Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang of China (d. 1688)
- 1621 – Heinrich Schwemmer, German composer and educator (d. 1696)
- 1638 – Frederik Ruysch, Dutch botanist and anatomist (d. 1731)
- 1652 – Samuel Sewall, English judge (d. 1730)
- 1725 – Andrew Kippis, English minister and author (d. 1795)
- 1727 – Maximilian III Joseph, Elector of Bavaria, (d. 1777)
- 1743 – Yekaterina Vorontsova-Dashkova, Russian academic and politician (d. 1810)
- 1750 – Francisco de Miranda, Venezuelan general and politician, President of Venezuela (d. 1816)
- 1760 – Thomas Clarkson, English activist (d. 1846)
- 1773 – Henri Gatien Bertrand, French general (d. 1844)
- 1793 – Henry Schoolcraft, American geographer, geologist, and ethnologist (d. 1864)
- 1795 – Georg Heinrich Pertz, German historian and author (d. 1876)
- 1806 – Thomas Hare, English lawyer and political scientist (d. 1891)
- 1811 – John Neumann, Czech-American bishop and saint (d. 1860)
- 1815 – Arsène Houssaye, French author and poet (d. 1896)
- 1818 – Wade Hampton III, American general and politician, 77th Governor of South Carolina (d. 1902)
- 1819 – Joseph Bazalgette, English architect and engineer, designed the Hammersmith Bridge and Battersea Bridge (d. 1891)
- 1828 – Melchior Anderegg, Swiss mountain guide (d. 1914)
- 1832 – Henry D. Washburn, American politician, general and explorer (d. 1871)
- 1836 – Frederick Pabst, German-American brewer, founded the Pabst Brewing Company (d. 1904)
- 1840 – Emin Pasha, German-Jewish Egyptian physician and politician (d. 1892)
- 1847 – Gyula Farkas, Hungarian mathematician and physicist (d. 1930)
- 1849 – James Darmesteter, French historian and author (d. 1894)
- 1850 – Kyrle Bellew, English theatre actor (d. 1911)
- 1851 – Bernardino Machado, Portuguese academic and politician, 3rd President of Portugal (d. 1944)
- 1862 – Aristide Briand, French politician, Prime Minister of France, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1932)
- 1866 – Jimmy Ross, Scottish footballer (d. 1902)
- 1868 – Maxim Gorky, Russian novelist, short story writer, and playwright (d. 1936)
- 1871 – Willem Mengelberg, Dutch-Swiss conductor (d. 1951)
- 1873 – John Geiger, American rower (d. 1956)
- 1878 – Abraham Walkowitz, Russian-American painter (d. 1965)
- 1879 – Terence MacSwiney, Irish republican politician and hunger striker; Lord Mayor of Cork (d. 1920)
- 1881 – Martin Sheridan, Irish-American discus thrower and jumper (d. 1918)
- 1884 – Angelos Sikelianos, Greek poet and playwright (d. 1951)
- 1886 – Gustave Mesny, French general (d. 1945)
- 1890 – Paul Whiteman, American violinist, composer, and bandleader (d. 1967)
- 1892 – Corneille Heymans, Belgian physiologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1968)
- 1892 – Tom Maguire, Irish general (d. 1993)
- 1893 – Spyros Skouras, Greek-American businessman (d. 1971)
- 1894 – Ernst Lindemann, German captain (d. 1941)
- 1895 – Ángela Ruiz Robles, Spanish teacher, writer and inventor, pioneer of the electronic book (d. 1975)
- 1895 – Christian Herter, American politician, 53rd United States Secretary of State (d. 1966)
- 1895 – Donald Grey Barnhouse, American pastor and theologian (d. 1960)
- 1895 – Spencer W. Kimball, American religious leader, 12th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (d. 1985)
- 1897 – Sepp Herberger, German footballer and manager (d. 1977)
- 1897 – Tillie Voss, American football player (d. 1975)
- 1899 – Gussie Busch, American businessman (d. 1989)
- 1899 – Harold B. Lee, American religious leader, 11th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (d. 1973)
- 1899 – Buck Shaw, American football player and coach (d. 1977)
- 1900 – Edward Wagenknecht, American critic and educator (d. 2004)
- 1902 – Flora Robson, English actress (d. 1984)
- 1902 – Jaromír Vejvoda, Czech fiddler and composer (d. 1988)
- 1903 – Rudolf Serkin, Czech-American pianist and educator (d. 1991)
- 1904 – Isabel Cuchí Coll, Puerto Rican author and journalist (d. 1993)
- 1905 – Pandro S. Berman, American production manager and producer (d. 1996)
- 1905 – Marlin Perkins, American zoologist and television host (d. 1986)
- 1906 – Murray Adaskin, Canadian violinist, composer, and conductor (d. 2002)
- 1906 – Robert Allen, American actor (d. 1998)
- 1906 – Dorothy Knowles, South African-English author, fencer and academic (d. 2010)
- 1907 – Lúcia Santos, Portuguese nun (d. 2005)
- 1907 – Norrey Ford, English author (d. 1985)
- 1907 – Irving Paul Lazar, American lawyer and talent agent (d. 1993)
- 1909 – Nelson Algren, American novelist and short story writer (d. 1981)
- 1910 – Frederick Baldwin Adams, Jr., American librarian and art collector (d. 2001)
- 1910 – Jimmie Dodd, American actor and singer-songwriter (d. 1964)
- 1910 – Ingrid of Sweden, (d. 2000)
- 1911 – Consalvo Sanesi, Italian race car driver (d. 1998)
- 1912 – A. Bertram Chandler, English-Australian author (d. 1984)
- 1912 – Marina Raskova, Russian pilot and navigator (d. 1943)
- 1913 – Kazuo Taoka, Japanese crime boss (d. 1981)
- 1913 – Toko Shinoda, Japanese artist
- 1914 – Edward Anhalt, American screenwriter and producer (d. 2000)
- 1914 – Bohumil Hrabal, Czech author (d. 1997)
- 1914 – Kenneth Richard Norris, Australian entomologist and academic (d. 2003)
- 1914 – Edmund Muskie, American lieutenant, lawyer, and politician, 58th United States Secretary of State (d. 1996)
- 1914 – Everett Ruess, American explorer, poet, and painter (d. 1934)
- 1915 – Jay Livingston, American singer-songwriter (d. 2001)
- 1917 – Claude Bertrand, Canadian neurosurgeon and scholar (d. 2014)
- 1918 – Edward Amy, Canadian soldier (d. 2011)
- 1919 – Jacob Avshalomov, American composer and conductor (d. 2013)
- 1919 – Tom Brooks, Australian cricket umpire (d. 2007)
- 1919 – Eileen Crofton, British physician and author (d. 2010)
- 1919 – Vic Raschi, American baseball player and coach (d. 1988)
- 1921 – Harold Agnew, American physicist and academic (d. 2013)
- 1921 – Dirk Bogarde, English actor and author (d. 1999)
- 1921 – Herschel Grynszpan, German assassin of Ernst vom Rath (d. 1960)
- 1921 – Walter Neugebauer, Croatian-German author and illustrator (d. 1992)
- 1922 – Neville Bonner, Australian politician (d. 1999)
- 1922 – Grace Hartigan, American painter and educator (d. 2008)
- 1922 – Joey Maxim, American boxer and actor (d. 2001)
- 1922 – B. Neminathan, Sri Lankan politician
- 1923 – Paul C. Donnelly, American scientist and engineer (d. 2014)
- 1923 – Thad Jones, American trumpet player and composer (d. 1986)
- 1924 – Freddie Bartholomew, American actor (d. 1992)
- 1924 – Fred Flanagan, Australian footballer (d. 2013)
- 1925 – Innokenty Smoktunovsky, Russian actor (d. 1994)
- 1925 – Dorothy DeBorba, American child actress (d. 2010)
- 1926 – Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart, 18th Duchess of Alba (d. 2014)
- 1926 – Polly Umrigar, Indian cricketer (d. 2006)
- 1927 – Theo Colborn, American zoologist and academic (d. 2014)
- 1927 – Marianne Fredriksson, Swedish journalist and author (d. 2007)
- 1927 – Vina Mazumdar, Indian academic and activist (d. 2013)
- 1928 – Zbigniew Brzezinski, Polish-American political activist and analyst; 10th United States National Security Advisor (d. 2017)
- 1928 – Alexander Grothendieck, German-French mathematician and theorist (d. 2014)
- 1929 – Paul England, Australian race car driver and engineer (d. 2014)
- 1930 – Robert Ashley, American soldier and composer (d. 2014)
- 1930 – Jerome Isaac Friedman, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1930 – Elizabeth Bainbridge, English soprano
- 1933 – Tete Montoliu, Spanish pianist (d. 1997)
- 1933 – Frank Murkowski, American soldier, banker, and politician, 8th Governor of Alaska
- 1934 – Lester R. Brown, American environmentalist, founded the Earth Policy Institute and Worldwatch Institute
- 1934 – Laurie Taitt, Guyanese-English hurdler (d. 2006)
- 1935 – Frank Judd, Baron Judd, English politician, Secretary of State for International Development
- 1935 – Michael Parkinson, English journalist and author
- 1935 – Józef Szmidt, Polish triple jumper
- 1936 – Mario Vargas Llosa, Peruvian novelist, playwright, and essayist Nobel Prize laureate
- 1938 – Hans-Jürgen Bäsler, German footballer (d. 2002)
- 1939 – Dov Frohman, Israeli electrical engineer and business executive
- 1940 – Tony Barber, English-Australian television host
- 1940 – Luis Cubilla, Uruguayan footballer and coach (d. 2013)
- 1942 – Daniel Dennett, American philosopher and academic
- 1942 – Kitanofuji Katsuaki, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 52nd Yokozuna
- 1942 – Neil Kinnock, Welsh politician, Vice-President of the European Commission
- 1942 – Mike Newell, English director and producer
- 1942 – Samuel Ramey, American opera singer
- 1942 – Conrad Schumann, East German border guard (d. 1998)
- 1942 – Jerry Sloan, American basketball player and coach
- 1943 – Richard Eyre, English director, producer, and screenwriter
- 1943 – Conchata Ferrell, American actress
- 1944 – Rick Barry, American basketball player and sportscaster
- 1944 – Ken Howard, American actor (d. 2016)
- 1945 – Rodrigo Duterte, Filipino politician, 16th President of the Philippines
- 1945 – Johnny Famechon, French-Australian boxer
- 1945 – Björn Hamilton, Swedish engineer and politician
- 1946 – Wubbo Ockels, Dutch physicist and astronaut (d. 2014)
- 1946 – Henry Paulson, American banker and politician, 74th United States Secretary of the Treasury
- 1946 – Alejandro Toledo, Peruvian economist and politician, 48th President of Peru
- 1947 – Greg Thompson, Canadian educator and politician, 25th Minister of Veterans Affairs (d. 2019)
- 1948 – John Evan, English keyboard player and songwriter
- 1948 – Janice Lynde, American actress
- 1948 – Dianne Wiest, American actress
- 1948 – Milan Williams, American keyboard player (d. 2006)
- 1949 – Ronnie Ray Smith, American sprinter (d. 2013)
- 1952 – Keith Ashfield, Canadian politician (d. 2018)
- 1952 – Tony Brise, English race car driver (d. 1975)
- 1953 – Melchior Ndadaye, Burundian banker and politician, 4th President of Burundi (d. 1993)
- 1953 – Rosemary Ashe, British actress and singer
- 1954 – Donald Brown, American pianist and educator
- 1955 – John Alderdice, Baron Alderdice, Northern Irish psychiatrist and politician, 1st Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly
- 1955 – Reba McEntire, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
- 1956 – Susan Ershler, American mountaineer and author
- 1957 – Harvey Glance, American sprinter and coach
- 1958 – Edesio Alejandro, Cuban composer
- 1958 – Elisabeth Andreassen, Swedish-Norwegian singer
- 1958 – Bart Conner, American gymnast and sportscaster
- 1958 – Curt Hennig, American wrestler, manager, and sportscaster (d. 2003)
- 1959 – Laura Chinchilla, Costa Rican politician, President of Costa Rica
- 1959 – Chiaki Morosawa, Japanese anime screenwriter (d. 2016)
- 1959 – Chris Myers, American journalist and sportscaster
- 1960 – Chris Barrie, British actor and comedian
- 1960 – José Maria Neves, Cape Verdeian politician, Prime Minister of Cape Verde
- 1960 – Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt, French-Belgian author and playwright
- 1961 – Byron Scott, American basketball player and coach
- 1962 – Jure Franko, Slovenian skier
- 1962 – Simon Bazalgette, English businessman
- 1963 – Jan Masiel, Polish politician
- 1964 – Karen Lumley, English politician
- 1966 – Cheryl James, American rapper and actress
- 1967 – John Ziegler, German-American radio host and director
- 1968 – Iris Chang, Chinese-American journalist and author (d. 2004)
- 1968 – Nasser Hussain, Indian-English cricketer and sportscaster
- 1968 – Colin Brazier, English journalist
- 1969 – Rodney Atkins, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1969 – Brett Ratner, American director and producer
- 1970 – Vince Vaughn, American actor
- 1970 – Jennifer Weiner, American journalist and author
- 1971 – Christianne Meneses Jacobs, Nicaraguan-American journalist and educator
- 1971 – Orfeh, American singer, songwriter and actress
- 1972 – Nick Frost, English actor and screenwriter
- 1972 – Keith Tkachuk, American ice hockey player
- 1973 – Björn Kuipers, Dutch footballer and referee
- 1975 – Fabrizio Gollin, Italian race car driver
- 1975 – Kate Gosselin, American television personality
- 1975 – Iván Helguera, Spanish footballer
- 1975 – Shanna Moakler, American model
- 1976 – Dave Keuning, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1977 – Lauren Weisberger, American author
- 1978 – Nathan Cayless, Australian-New Zealand rugby league player
- 1979 – Shakib Khan, Bangladeshi film actor, producer, singer and media personality
- 1980 – Cho Seung-woo, South Korean actor
- 1980 – David Lee, English footballer
- 1980 – Rasmus Seebach, Danish singer-songwriter and producer
- 1980 – Luke Walton, American basketball player
- 1981 – Lindsay Frimodt, American fashion model
- 1981 – Edwar Ramírez, American baseball player
- 1981 – Julia Stiles, American actress
- 1983 – Ladji Doucouré, French sprinter and hurdler
- 1984 – Shakib Khan, Bangladeshi actor
- 1984 – Christopher Samba, Congolese footballer
- 1984 – Nikki Sanderson, English actress
- 1985 – Stefano Ferrario, Italian footballer
- 1985 – Sauli Koskinen, Finnish TV host and entertainer
- 1985 – Steve Mandanda, French footballer
- 1985 – Stanislas Wawrinka, Swiss tennis player
- 1986 – Bowe Bergdahl, American sergeant
- 1986 – Lady Gaga, American singer-songwriter, dancer, producer, and actress
- 1986 – J-Kwon, American rapper
- 1986 – Amaia Salamanca, Spanish actress
- 1986 – Barbora Strýcová, Czech tennis player
- 1987 – Jean-Paul Adela, Seychellois footballer
- 1987 – Yohan Benalouane, French-Tunisian footballer
- 1987 – Simeon Jackson, Canadian soccer player
- 1987 – Kagney Linn Karter, American pornographic actress
- 1987 – Yotam Solomon, Israeli/American fashion designer
- 1987 – Mary Kate Wiles, American actress
- 1988 – Ryan Kalish, American baseball player
- 1988 – Lacey Turner, English actress
- 1989 – Afrikan Boy, English rapper
- 1989 – David Goodwillie, Scottish footballer
- 1989 – Lukas Jutkiewicz, English footballer
- 1989 – Mira Leung, Canadian figure skater
- 1989 – Marek Suchý, Czech footballer
- 1990 – Zac Clarke, Australian footballer
- 1990 – Zoella (Zoe Sugg), English Youtuber
- 1991 – Amy Bruckner, American actress
- 1991 – Lisa-Maria Moser, Austrian tennis player
- 1991 – Marie-Philip Poulin, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1991 – Ondřej Palát, Czech ice hockey player
- 1992 – Sergi Gómez, Spanish footballer
- 1992 – Lucho Ayala, Filipino actor
- 1994 – Jackson Wang, Hong Kong rapper
- 1995 – Jonathan Drouin, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1996 – Matt Renshaw, English-Australian cricketer
- 2004 – Anna Shcherbakova, Russian figure skater (two-time Russian National Champion – ’19 & ’20)
Deaths of March 28
- 193 – Pertinax, Roman emperor (b. 126)
- 741 – Hatsusebe, Japanese princess
- 965 – Arnulf I, count of Flanders
- 966 – Flodoard, Frankish canon and chronicler
- 1072 – Ordulf, Duke of Saxony (b. 1022)
- 1134 – Saint Stephen Harding, founder of the Cistercian order
- 1239 – Emperor Go-Toba of Japan (b. 1180)
- 1241 – Valdemar II of Denmark (b. 1170)
- 1254 – William de Ferrers, 5th Earl of Derby (b. 1193)
- 1285 – Pope Martin IV (b. 1220)
- 1346 – Venturino of Bergamo, Dominican preacher (b. 1304)
- 1461 – John Clifford, 9th Baron de Clifford (b. 1435)
- 1563 – Heinrich Glarean, Swiss poet and theorist (b. 1488)
- 1566 – Sigismund von Herberstein, Austrian historian and diplomat (b. 1486)
- 1583 – Magnus, Duke of Holstein (b. 1540)
- 1584 – Ivan the Terrible, Russian king (b. 1530)
- 1687 – Constantijn Huygens, Dutch poet and composer (b. 1596)
- 1794 – Marquis de Condorcet, French mathematician and philosopher (b. 1743)
- 1818 – Antonio Capuzzi, Italian violinist and composer (b. 1755)
- 1865 – Petrus Hofman Peerlkamp, Dutch scholar and critic (b. 1786)
- 1866 – Solomon Foot, American lawyer and politician (b. 1802)
- 1868 – James Brudenell, 7th Earl of Cardigan, English lieutenant and politician (b. 1797)
- 1870 – George Henry Thomas, American general (b. 1816)
- 1874 – Peter Andreas Hansen, Danish-German astronomer and mathematician (b. 1795)
- 1881 – Modest Mussorgsky, Russian pianist and composer (b. 1839)
- 1893 – Edmund Kirby Smith, American general (b. 1824)
- 1900 – Piet Joubert, South African soldier and politician (b. 1831 or 1834)
- 1910 – Édouard Colonne, French violinist and conductor (b. 1838)
- 1917 – Albert Pinkham Ryder, American painter (b. 1847)
- 1923 – Charles Hubbard, American archer (b. 1849)
- 1927 – Joseph-Médard Émard, Canadian archbishop (b. 1853)
- 1929 – Katharine Lee Bates, American poet and songwriter (b. 1859)
- 1929 – Lomer Gouin, Canadian lawyer and politician, 13th Premier of Quebec (b. 1861)
- 1934 – Mahmoud Mokhtar, Egyptian sculptor and educator (b. 1891)
- 1941 – Marcus Hurley, American basketball player and cyclist (b. 1883)
- 1941 – Kavasji Jamshedji Petigara, Indian police officer (b. 1877)
- 1941 – Virginia Woolf, English novelist, essayist, short story writer, and critic (b. 1882)
- 1942 – Miguel Hernández, Spanish poet and playwright (b. 1910)
- 1943 – Sergei Rachmaninoff, Russian pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1873)
- 1944 – Stephen Leacock, English-Canadian political scientist and author (b. 1869)
- 1947 – Karol Świerczewski, Polish general (b. 1897)
- 1949 – Grigoraș Dinicu, Romanian violinist and composer (b. 1889)
- 1953 – Jim Thorpe, American football player and coach (b. 1887)
- 1958 – W. C. Handy, American trumpet player and composer (b. 1873)
- 1962 – Hugo Wast, Argentinian author and screenwriter (b. 1883)
- 1963 – Antonius Bouwens, Dutch target shooter (b. 1876)
- 1965 – Clemence Dane, English author and playwright (b. 1888)
- 1965 – Jack Hoxie, American actor (b. 1885)
- 1969 – Dwight D. Eisenhower, American general and politician, 34th President of the United States (b. 1890)
- 1971 – Robert Hunter, American golfer (b. 1886)
- 1972 – Donie Bush, American baseball player, manager, and team owner (b. 1887)
- 1974 – Arthur Crudup, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1905)
- 1974 – Dorothy Fields, American songwriter (b. 1905)
- 1974 – Françoise Rosay, French actress (b. 1891)
- 1976 – Richard Arlen, American actor (b. 1898)
- 1977 – Eric Shipton, Sri Lankan-English mountaineer and explorer (b. 1907)
- 1980 – Dick Haymes, Argentinian-American actor and singer (b. 1918)
- 1982 – William Giauque, Canadian chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1895)
- 1984 – Carmen Dragon, American conductor and composer (b. 1914)
- 1985 – Marc Chagall, Russian-French painter and poet (b. 1887)
- 1986 – Virginia Gilmore. American actress (b. 1919)
- 1987 – Maria von Trapp, Austrian-American singer (b. 1905)
- 1992 – Nikolaos Platon, Greek archaeologist and academic (b. 1909)
- 1993 – Scott Cunningham, American author (b. 1956)
- 1994 – Eugène Ionesco, Romanian-French playwright and critic (b. 1909)
- 1996 – Shin Kanemaru, Japanese politician, Deputy Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1914)
- 1999 – Franco Gasparri, Italian actor (b. 1948)
- 2000 – Anthony Powell, English soldier and author (b. 1905)
- 2001 – Moe Koffman, Canadian flute player, saxophonist, and composer (b. 1928)
- 2004 – Peter Ustinov, English-Swiss actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1921)
- 2005 – Moura Lympany, English-Monacan pianist (b. 1916)
- 2005 – Robin Spry, Canadian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1939)
- 2006 – Pro Hart, Australian painter (b. 1928)
- 2006 – Vethathiri Maharishi, Indian philosopher and author (b. 1911)
- 2006 – Charles Schepens, Belgian-American ophthalmologist and author (b. 1912)
- 2006 – Caspar Weinberger, American captain, lawyer, and politician, 15th United States Secretary of Defense (b. 1917)
- 2009 – Maurice Jarre, French-American composer and conductor (b. 1924)
- 2010 – June Havoc, American actress, dancer, and director (b. 1912)
- 2011 – Wenche Foss, Norwegian actress (b. 1917)
- 2012 – John Arden, English author and playwright (b. 1930)
- 2012 – Alexander Arutiunian, Armenian pianist and composer (b. 1920)
- 2012 – Harry Crews, American novelist, playwright, short story writer, and essayist (b. 1935)
- 2012 – Addie L. Wyatt, African American labor leader (b. 1924)
- 2013 – George E. P. Box, English-American statistician and educator (b. 1919)
- 2013 – Manuel García Ferré, Spanish-Argentinian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1929)
- 2013 – Richard Griffiths, English actor (b. 1947)
- 2013 – Art Malone, American race car driver (b. 1936)
- 2013 – Hugh McCracken, American guitarist, harmonica player, and producer (b. 1942)
- 2013 – Heinz Patzig, German footballer and manager (b. 1929)
- 2013 – Bob Teague, American college football star and television news-reporter (b. 1929)
- 2013 – Gus Triandos, American baseball player and scout (b. 1930)
- 2013 – Robert Zildjian, American businessman, founded Sabian (b. 1923)
- 2014 – Jeremiah Denton, American admiral and politician (b. 1924)
- 2014 – Lorenzo Semple, Jr., American screenwriter and producer (b. 1923)
- 2014 – Avraham Yaski, Israeli architect and academic (b. 1927)
- 2015 – Chuck Brayton, American baseball player and coach (b. 1925)
- 2015 – Joseph Cassidy, Canadian-English priest and academic (b. 1954)
- 2015 – Miroslav Ondříček, Czech cinematographer (b. 1934)
- 2015 – Gene Saks, American actor and director (b. 1921)
- 2016 – James Noble, American actor (b. 1922)
Holidays and observances on March 28
- Christian feast day:
- Stephen Harding
- Guntram
- Priscus
- Pope Sixtus III
- Tuotilo
- March 28 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Commemoration of Sen no Rikyū (Schools of Japanese tea ceremony)
- Serfs Emancipation Day (Tibet)
- Teachers’ Day (Czech Republic and Slovakia)