Victoria Day
Victoria Day (Fête de la Reine) is a public holiday in Canada, celebrated on the Monday on or before May 24, Queen Victoria's birthday. In Quebec it always falls on the same day as National Patriotes Day (Journée nationale des patriotes), which commemorates the Patriotes of the Rebellion of 1837. Anglophone Quebecers often prefer to call the combined holiday Victoria Day.
May 24 has since 1901 been celebrated throughout the British Empire as Empire Day. An amendment to the Statutes of Canada in 1952 moved the holiday to the Monday preceding May 25. From 1953 Empire Day was made the date of the Queen's official birthday in Canada by annual Vice-regal proclamation, the link being made permanent in 1957. In 1958 Empire Day was renamed Commonwealth Day.
In 1977 Commonwealth Day was moved to the second Monday in March, but Canadians continued to celebrate Victoria Day in May. In Canada, this holiday and Canada Day are celebrated with fireworks, though Victoria day is a decidedly lower-key event. Monarchist groups often use Victoria Day as a day of celebration, but to the majority of Canadians the day is simply a holiday off work, with little specific meaning.
This is the first of the summer long weekends in Canada. Known colloquially as "May two-four weekend". The phrase has two meanings, the first, of course, is the fact that it usually falls around May 24, secondly, those who celebrate will often get together to drink beer and a two-four is a case of 24 bottles of beer.
Before 2003 the holiday in Quebec was also known as the Fête de Dollard after Adam Dollard des Ormeaux.
There has been some debate in recent years about revamping Victoria day, and giving it a new name or meaning, such as "Heritage Day" or "Citizenship Day." There have also been loose thoughts alongside a revamping to move the date and have it concurrent with the U.S. Memorial Day, seven days later, for a common long weekend.
See also Commonwealth Day.
External links
[[Category:Canadian culture (http://www.canadianheritage.gc.ca/progs/cpsc-ccsp/jfa-ha/victoria_e.cfm)]