Commonwealth Day

History

The idea of observing one day each year as a public holiday throughout the British Empire was first suggested in 1894 and 1895 by Thomas Robinson, the honorary secretary for the Royal Colonial Institute based in Winnipeg. Taking up Robinson's suggestion, the Royal Colonial Institute's London council petitioned Queen Victoria in July 1894, arguing that while other nations had annual national celebrations, the British Empire lacked one. They proposed designating the Queen's birthday for this purpose. In a reply the British prime minister, Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, stated that it was a matter not for the government but for the community and pointed out that government departments already observed the Queen's birthday as a holiday. However, the idea quickly gained support from organisations such as the British Empire League in the 1890s.

The idea to hold an "Empire Day" as a day that would "remind children that they formed part of the British Empire" also gained support among educations during the 1890s. Championed by Clementina Trenholme, Empire Day was first observed in Ontario schools in 1898 and scheduled for the last school day before May 24, Queen Victoria's birthday. Empire Day was introduced in the United Kingdom in 1904 by Reginald Brabazon, 12th Earl of Meath, "to nurture a sense of collective identity and imperial responsibility among young empire citizens".

After the death of Queen Victoria on 22 January 1901, her birthday, 24 May, was celebrated from 1902 as Empire Day, though not officially recognised as an annual event until 1916. In schools, morning lessons were devoted to "exercises calculated to remind (the children) of their mighty heritage". The centrepiece of the day was an organised and ritualistic veneration of the Union flag. Schoolchildren were given the afternoon off, and further events were usually held in their local community.

After the First World War, the jingoism was toned down in favour of sombre commemoration in the festival. In 1925, 90,000 people attended an Empire Day thanksgiving service held at Wembley Stadium as part of the British Empire Exhibition. However, Empire Day became more of a sombre commemoration in the aftermath of the First World War, and politically partisan in the United Kingdom as the Labour Party passed a resolution in 1926 to prevent the further celebration of Empire Day.

Along with official condemnation from the Labour Party, left-wing youth organisations such as the Young Communist League and the Woodcraft Folk organised protests against Empire Day celebrations in schools from 1927 through to the early 1930s.

Change in name and date

After the Second World War the event fell into rapid decline. On 18 December 1958 the British prime minister, Harold Macmillan, announced in the House of Commons that Empire Day would be renamed Commonwealth Day.

In 1973 the National Council in Canada of the Royal Commonwealth Society submitted a proposal to the Canadian prime minister, Pierre Elliot Trudeau, that Commonwealth Day should be observed simultaneously throughout the Commonwealth of Nations. The proposal was included in the Canadian items for inclusion in the agenda for the 1975 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. After the meeting, it was agreed that the Commonwealth Secretariat would select a date with no historical connotations so that the entire Commonwealth could use it as a date to celebrate Commonwealth Day. At a meeting in Canberra in May 1976, senior Commonwealth officials agreed on a new fixed date for Commonwealth Day, the second Monday in March. The second Monday of March was selected by Commonwealth leaders as it was a day when most schools would be in session, facilitating student participation in several Commonwealth-related activities, including mini-Commonwealth Games, simulated Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, and studies and celebrations on the geography, ecology, products or societies of other Commonwealth countries.

Observance

Commonwealth Day is held on the second Monday in March. However, there is not a uniform observance of the day worldwide.

On the day, the Head of the Commonwealth broadcasts a message throughout the entire Commonwealth of Nations. The broadcast is addressed to the people of the Commonwealth, and not to specific governments. Past Commonwealth Day messages by Queen Elizabeth II are themed after an issue of importance to the Commonwealth which she thinks people can have an impact on. In some member states of the Commonwealth, the message is sometimes augmented by an address from a member country's president, prime minister, or another senior minister. The Commonwealth Secretary-General also issues a statement on the day, which is read on the radio or published in some Commonwealth countries.

Several cities throughout the Commonwealth host multi-cultural and inter-denominational services to mark the day. Flag-raising ceremonies for the flag of the Commonwealth of Nations are also held in several Commonwealth countries.

United Kingdom

On Commonwealth Day, flags of the member states of the Commonwealth of Nations are flown in Parliament Square and at Marlborough House. Flag flying guidelines for the Scottish Government and its related agencies also advises the flying of the flags of the Commonwealth of Nations and Scotland on the date, only if the building has two or more flagpoles.

In London an inter-denominational service is led by the Head of the Commonwealth at Westminster Abbey. During the service, representatives of Commonwealth countries offer the flags of member states for blessing. A reception hosted by the Commonwealth Secretary-General is held after the service. A wreath-laying ceremony to commemorate the sacrifice of Commonwealth soldiers at London's Commonwealth Memorial Gates is attended by the Commonwealth Secretary-General, and is held before the service at Westminster Abbey.

Several other events, such as the Commonwealth Africa Summit, also take place around the United Kingdom on Commonwealth Day.

British Overseas Territories

Commonwealth Day was formerly celebrated as a public holiday in several British Overseas Territories. The day was observed as a school holiday in British Hong Kong before the handover of the territory from the United Kingdom to China in 1997. The date was also formerly observed as a public holiday in Gibraltar. In 2021 the holiday was moved to February instead of March. In 2022, Commonwealth Day was no longer listed as a public holiday in Gibraltar, with the February public holiday replaced by the Winter Midterm Bank Holiday. Although the event is no longer a public holiday, the Government of Gibraltar continues to mark Commonwealth Day through various events.

Australia

Commonwealth Day is observed by Australian state governors and the governor-general. The Commonwealth Day Council of New South Wales holds an annual lunch in the presence of its patron, the governor, at Parliament House, Sydney.

Bahamas

In the Bahamas, Commonwealth Day school assemblies involving flag-raising ceremonies are held.

Belize

In Belize, Commonwealth Day was also known as Sovereign's Day and was formerly celebrated as a public holiday in May. The holiday was originally celebrated in honour of Queen Victoria's birthday, although it was later set aside to recognise and celebrate the importance of being part of the Commonwealth of Nations. In 2021, Sovereign's Day was removed from the government's official list of public and bank holidays.

Canada

In Canada the federal government directs that the Royal Union Flag is to be flown alongside the flag of Canada at federal installations nationwide where at least two flag poles are present. The requirement to fly the Royal Union Flag on certain days, including Commonwealth Day, stems from a 1964 parliamentary resolution following the adoption of flag of Canada, which retained the Royal Union Flag as an official symbol of the country's Commonwealth membership and allegiance to the Crown.

From 1898 to 1976, Empire Day/Commonwealth Day was observed on an ad hoc basis in conjunction with Victoria Day, a federal statutory holiday in May that also serves as the sovereign's official birthday in Canada. Empire Day/Commonwealth Day was held on the weekday before Victoria Day and was not intended to be a general holiday in itself, but a day to provide schools and civic institutions the opportunity to implement activities and lessons on Canada and the British Empire. In 1977, Commonwealth Day was moved to the second Monday in March, in line with the rest of the Commonwealth of Nations.

Tuvalu

Commonwealth Day is observed as a public holiday in Tuvalu, as legislated in the country's Public Holidays Act.

Commonwealth Day themes

Notes

References

References

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